By Shawn Leonhardt for Guitar Tricks and 30 Day Singer
These days hearing someone play guitar is no longer the focal point of most music genres, however, it is still often present. And if you want to learn how to play guitar well, it is best to play different styles of music, and what better way than to try out the most recent hits!
Here are some of the best songs of 2022 that feature a guitar.
“Emo Girl”
This song by Machine Gun Kelly has an expected punk and emo vibe given the title! The electric guitar part is nothing too difficult and focused on mostly riff-heavy hard rock. The part where Willow comes in has a melody line that follows her singing and keeps it light until it moves back into the main hook.
“Chaise Lounge”
The band Wet Leg is an indie group that has a knack for quirky and memorable lyrics. This song has a nice mix of funk and punk genre sounds. It is upbeat, fun to play, and would be considered an easy guitar song, but it’s all about getting the right rhythm. This band also has a few other popular songs released last year.
“About Damn Time”
This Lizzo hit is a great example of guitar that is essential, but not in an overpowering way. As a funk-styled groove, the rhythm playing of the guitarists against the bass line is important to providing the overall tone. Sometimes the guitar part can be mixed in so well that we aren’t always aware of it!
“Whisper”
Marcus King has a soulful voice and the guitar playing in his songs is a mix of rockabilly, country, and hard rock with plenty of distortion at times. This song here has a nice blues riff and some great guitar chords and licks that remind the listener of southern rock bands like Lynyrd Skynyrd but with a mix of ZZ Top. A lot of recent guitar rock bands are finding success with these older styles of playing fused into modern themes.
“The Abysmal Eye”
If you are looking for some heavy metal riffs of 2022 then Meshuggah has you covered! This song is almost too epic, it belongs on a movie soundtrack. The main riff has a fast rhythm and it isn’t too difficult with some nice bends. Of course, to get the right sound it will require a lot of distortion and the correct playing of the heavy chugging underlying rhythm.
“Boys Back Home”
This is a country hit by Hailey Whitters and is predominantly played on acoustic guitar. If you are a beginner guitar player, this can be a decent song to learn as it is not too hard. And if you want to make it sound better you can add some of the steel guitar licks into your chords.
“This is a Photograph”
This tune by Kevin Morby is a mix of folk, country, and Americana genres. Along with that vibe, the guitar playing is very riffy at times so it can fit better into modern pop. It has a great mix of picking and strumming techniques for any guitar student looking to get into folk and even bluegrass styles.
“Playing God”
If you like progressive guitar rock then the band Polyphia has you covered. They have a mix of flamenco, classical, and genre fusions of incredible playing. Obviously, if you are looking to play this one on guitar it is going to take a lot of practice, styles like this are for advanced guitarists. You’ll need more than some guitar tabs for this one!
“One Way”
Hip-hop music usually has very simple guitar hooks like this song by Saba. Even though it is simple and repetitive, it has a unique feel and a memorable little riff. It won’t take long to learn this one and is a different genre than usual for guitar.
“American Teenager”
This song by Ethel Cain is a mix of pop, country, and arena rock. At some parts of this tune, the guitar playing is very reminiscent of an ’80s dreamy rock sound. It seems like it wouldn’t fit in such a song with other modern elements and about teens, but sure enough, it all sounds great together!
“Kill or Be Killed”
If you prefer metal songs with lots of bends and squeals then this heavy hit by Muse is for you. It starts out like many hard rock tunes but soon mixes the styles of grunge and punk in. This is a great song to wail on if you have an electric guitar and some distortion pedals to play it through.
“You Will Never Work in Television Again”
This song by The Smile may have a familiar ’90s sound, with the grungy and alternative vibe of that era. The guitar has those thick and distorted tones that are quite reminiscent, and as soon as we hear the voice of Thom Yorke we realize why!
“This is Why”
This song by Paramore has a huge variety of genre influences! It feels a little country, electronic, funky, and at times the guitar sounds very jazzy. The chords and riffs aren’t too hard to play but getting the rhythm right for the tune can be a little tough.
“Where I Go”
This is another example of a hip-hop tune with a catchy guitar riff written by the group NxWorries and featuring H.E.R. Whether you like acoustic or electric guitar you can check out other songs written by H.E.R. as some feature prominent use of funky and soul style playing.
“Fear of the Dawn”
As always Jack White brings some great guitar riffs our way and this time they are pushed to some wild extremes. If you like blues rock his music is suitable and here he runs those notes through lots of effects pedals to go with the modern music trend of extremely loud and distorted playing!
“The River is Rising”
This song is a heavy metal, fusion, and guitar-centric hard rock mix that features Slash with Myles Kennedy and The Conspirators. Slash still has some incredible chops and so we get a song that has a vibe of ’80s shredding but with a more modern metal feel. If you want to play this song on electric guitar you will need to practice a lot, as it is not easy!
There you have it! Some of the best songs in 2022 that featured guitars, and of course there are many more from these same artists and others. Sometimes the guitar is the central part of the song, other times it is just a necessary part of the rhythm. Whether you prefer acoustic or electric, distorted or crisp, if you like guitar then 2022 had some great music!