Street Spirit (Fade Out) by Radiohead

Radiohead’s hauntingly beautiful song “Street Spirit (Fade Out)” from their acclaimed 1995 album The Bends has captivated listeners for decades. The song's intricate guitar work, atmospheric quality, and emotional intensity make it a perfect choice for guitarists who want to deepen their technical skills and explore unique playing styles. This guitar lesson on "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" takes you through the key techniques employed by guitarist Jonny Greenwood and explores how mastering these skills will elevate your playing. Michael Casswell breaks down this iconic track in this exclusive Lick Library video tutorial.

The Guitarist: Jonny Greenwood’s Influence on Street Spirit (Fade Out)

Jonny Greenwood, Radiohead’s lead guitarist, has long been celebrated for his experimental and genre-defining approach to guitar playing. In “Street Spirit (Fade Out),” Greenwood creates a mesmerising, almost hypnotic guitar sound through his use of arpeggios, finger-picking, and altered tunings, crafting a soundscape that is both ethereal and intense. His ability to combine traditional guitar techniques with experimental styles has influenced guitarists worldwide, making him a key figure in alternative and indie rock guitar. By learning the techniques in “Street Spirit,” you can gain insight into Greenwood’s creative approach, which has set a benchmark for emotive and innovative guitar playing.

Key Guitar Techniques in Street Spirit (Fade Out)

1. Finger-Picking

Finger-picking is the core technique in “Street Spirit (Fade Out),” and it gives the song its rhythmic flow and hauntingly delicate quality. This technique involves plucking the strings individually with the fingers, allowing for a more nuanced and expressive sound than typical strumming. In this lesson, you’ll learn how to achieve a consistent picking pattern to maintain the song's meditative feel.

Benefits of Learning Finger-Picking: Mastering finger-picking improves your control and precision. It’s also essential for playing a wide range of styles, from classical to folk to alternative rock, expanding your versatility as a guitarist.

2. Arpeggiated Chord Progressions

Greenwood’s use of arpeggios, where notes of a chord are played sequentially rather than simultaneously, gives the song its flowing and cascading quality. By arpeggiating the chords, you’ll replicate the song’s distinctive melody and rhythm, creating a sense of movement within each measure.

Benefits of Learning Arpeggiated Chord Progressions: This technique enhances your understanding of chord structure and improves finger independence, allowing you to add intricate textures to any piece you play. It also encourages rhythmic control, which is essential for playing more complex pieces with similar arpeggiated parts.

3. Alternate Picking

Alternate picking, a technique where you alternate between downstrokes and upstrokes, is critical for achieving the smooth flow in the arpeggiated sections of "Street Spirit." It helps in creating a balanced sound and ensures each note is articulated clearly.

Benefits of Learning Alternate Picking: Practicing alternate picking will improve your speed and accuracy, crucial skills for playing intricate patterns at tempo. It’s a foundational skill that benefits almost every style of playing, from rock to classical guitar.

4. Altered Tunings

In "Street Spirit," altered tunings are employed to achieve unique chord voicings and enhance the song’s haunting atmosphere. Using an altered tuning will help you replicate the specific tonal qualities that Radiohead achieves in the song, providing a richer, fuller sound that cannot be captured in standard tuning.

Benefits of Learning Altered Tunings: Exploring altered tunings broadens your tonal possibilities and helps you think beyond conventional chord shapes. It encourages creativity by allowing new chordal and melodic ideas to emerge, enriching your approach to songwriting and composition.

5. Sustain and Dynamic Control

A subtle but essential element in "Street Spirit" is the use of sustain and dynamic control to create emotional depth. By controlling the length and intensity of each note, you’ll convey the song's melancholy and build its immersive atmosphere.

Benefits of Learning Sustain and Dynamic Control: Practicing sustain and dynamic control helps you convey emotions more effectively in your playing. It also improves your ear for tone, allowing you to bring a professional, polished quality to your sound.

6. Syncopated Rhythms

The guitar rhythm in “Street Spirit” subtly incorporates syncopation, where emphasis is placed on the off-beats, giving the song a pulsating, hypnotic feel. Syncopated rhythms bring out the tension in the piece, enhancing its emotional weight.

Benefits of Learning Syncopated Rhythms: Mastering syncopation adds complexity to your rhythm skills and opens up new possibilities for phrasing. This skill is essential in genres like jazz, funk, and even rock, allowing you to build grooves and rhythms that capture attention.

Why Learn These Techniques?

Studying the techniques in "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" will deepen your understanding of both technical and expressive guitar playing. Each technique offers benefits that extend beyond this particular song, providing you with skills that can be applied across a variety of musical genres. From finger-picking and arpeggiated chord progressions to syncopation and altered tunings, each technique builds foundational skills that elevate your playing and allow you to convey emotions through your instrument, just as Jonny Greenwood does.

By learning the guitar techniques in this lesson, you’ll not only be able to play "Street Spirit" note for note but also enrich your overall musicianship. You’ll develop a stronger sense of rhythm, melody, and tonal control, which are essential for taking your guitar playing to the next level.

List of Guitar Techniques Used in Street Spirit (Fade Out)

• Finger-Picking
• Arpeggiated Chord Progressions
• Alternate Picking
• Altered Tunings
• Sustain
• Syncopated Rhythms

Master these techniques with our “Street Spirit (Fade Out)” guitar lesson and bring the sound of Radiohead’s iconic track to life in your own playing. Each technique covered in this lesson will help you progress not only in playing this song but also in building a versatile skill set for tackling complex and emotive guitar pieces.