I’ve picked out some of the biggest pop-punk riffs from the Kerrang! TV era—the ones that soundtracked my teenage years growing up in the north of England. They might not have been written with a ukulele in mind, but with a few tweaks, they sound brilliant.
We’ll be using all kinds of techniques like slides, hammer-ons, mini-barres and palm-muting to give these riffs a bit more grit and energy.
What Exactly Is a Riff?
A riff is a short sequence of notes that often becomes the most recognisable part of a song. In pop-punk, riffs are just as important as the lyrics—sometimes even more so. They’re the first thing you hear, the part you hum back later, and the hook that keeps the energy high. Think of the opening to Blink-182’s “What’s My Age Again?” or Sum 41’s “Fat Lip”—without the riffs, the songs just wouldn’t hit the same.
To learn all of these riffs, you need to know how to read tablature.
These are the songs we are learning to play.
Paramore - Misery Business
I’ve been playing this riff on the ukulele for as long as I can remember; Paramore have riffs for days, and this is without doubt one of their best.
Playing Tips
This riff starts on a power-chord-ish shape: put your ring finger on the 5th fret of the C string and your middle finger on the 4th fret of the E string, leaving your pointer finger hovering over the 1st fret on the A string. Pluck the chord twice, then plant your pointer on that 1st fret of the A string and play the next four notes. Using the same finger, lay a mini-barre across the 3rd fret of the C and E strings and strike it once.
The riff is basically repeated, except that on the last chord you barre the 1st fret instead of the 3rd. The tricky part is the tempo, but relying on the barre shape definitely helps because you don’t have to bring additional fingers in at awkward moments.
A|-------1-3-1-3-|-------------| E|4-4--4---------|-3-3--3-3--3-| C|5-5--5---------|-3-3--3-3--3-| G|---------------|-------------| A|-------1-3-1-3-|-------------| E|4-4--4---------|-1-1--1-1----| C|5-5--5---------|-1-1--1-1----| G|---------------|-------------|
Video — How to Play It
Sum 41 - The Hell Song
Playing Tips
Start with your middle finger on the 8th fret of the C string. Pluck that note, then drop your index onto the 7th fret of the same string. From there, hammer on to the 9th fret with your ring finger. (A hammer-on is exactly what it sounds like: you strike the string once, then “hammer” the next finger down hard enough that the pitch changes without a second pluck. Two notes for the price of one. You can read my full guide to hammer-ons here.)
After the hammer-on, shift your index to the 6th fret of the A string; keep the ring finger parked on the 9th fret you just hammered, because you’ll need it again almost immediately. Once you pluck the 6th-fret A-string note, your middle finger will naturally be in position to fret the 7th fret of the E string—grab that note right away.
The rest of the riff stays in this same patch of the fretboard. On the first three phrases the only thing that changes is the opening note. In the final phrase we get something slightly different: begin on the 6th fret of the C string, drop the middle finger to the 7th fret of the A string, and then fire off a quick run of notes that your fingers are already lined up to hit.
A|------6---|-------6--|-------6---|---7-7-6-6-----| E|--7h9---7-|---7h9---7|-7-7h9---7-|-----------9-9-| C|8---------|-4--------|-----------|-6-------------| G|----------|----------|-----------|---------------|
Video — How to Play It
Good Charlotte – Girls and Boys
Let’s finish with a song that feels as though it were destined for the uke. It sounds straightforward on first listen, but once you break it down there are a few advanced touches hiding in the riff.
Playing Tips
Pluck the four notes individually, then keep the chord shape locked and slide it up two frets. Hit that new position twice—not as a strum, but by plucking all four strings at the same moment. The beauty of the barre shape is that you can move it without changing finger positions, gliding smoothly along the neck.
For a little extra flavour, isolate the slide on the way back down: as you return to the first chord, lift the barre finger slightly so only the middle finger remains fretted, letting the slide itself create a quiet swoop before you plant the full chord again. It’s subtle and almost imperceptible, but it adds extra depth to the riff.
A|-------3-----5--5--| E|----4--------6--6--| C|-3-----------5--5--| G|----------3--------|
Video — How to Play It
Simple Plan - Im Just a Kid
Playing Tips
Begin with a full barre across the 5th fret. While the index holds all four strings, drop the middle finger onto the 6th fret of the E string and the pinky onto the 8th fret of the A string. Pick the first five notes without lifting that shape, then release the barre and let the remaining notes fall under whichever fingers land most naturally.
A|---8------8-|----8-------8-|
E|--------6---|------6-8-6---|
C|5-----------|--0-----------|
G|------5-----|--------------|
Video — How to Play It
New Found Glory – My Friends Over You
Playing Tips
Next, put your middle finger on the 2nd fret of the C string and make sure your ring finger is ready to fret the 2nd fret of the E string. This part moves very quickly.
The second section is almost identical in structure, but here we use a G-major chord instead of the D major. Place your pointer on the 2nd fret of the C, your middle on the 3rd of the E, and your ring finger on the 2nd of the A string.
I recommend using palm-muting when playing the individual notes—it gives you much more control over the speed.
A|5-5-5------------------------|
E|2-2-2--0-----0-----0-2-0-----|
C|2-2-2----2-2---2-2-------2-2-|
G|2-2-2------------------------|
A|2-2-2------------------------|
E|3-3-3--0-----0-----0-2-0-----|
C|2-2-2----2-2---2-2-------2-2-|
G|0-0-0------------------------|
Video — How to Play It
They can be tough when you're starting out. Here are 3 quick tips that’ll make your barre chords stronger, cleaner, and way less frustrating.
Lit - My Own Worst Enemy
Although this song doesn’t use many notes, plenty of technique is packed in: you’ll be sliding, damping notes, and finishing the riff with some light vibrato.
Playing Tips
Start with a two-note chord by placing your index finger on the 3rd fret of the C string and your pinky on the 6th fret of the A string—an octave apart. Pluck the C string with your thumb and the A string with your index finger, then slide both fingers up one fret so the index lands on the 4th and the pinky on the 7th.
Now comes the muting (often called “dudding”) that stops the notes from ringing: as you pluck, relax your fretting pressure just enough to deaden the sound. In this riff you’ll do that seven times, and you can see in the video how my fingers bounce off the fretboard.
To finish, slide the index up to the 6th fret of the C string, add the middle finger to the 7th fret of the E string, play the chord, and keep the shape while sliding down two frets. End with a touch of vibrato by rocking the fretting fingers back and forth; the subtle wobble gives the chord a bit of extra character.
A|-6/7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-|-6/7-7-7-7-7-7-----| E|-------------------|---------------7-5-| C|-3/4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-|-3/4-4-4-4-4-4-6-4-| G|-------------------|-------------------|
Video — How to Play It
+44 – When Your Heart Stops Beating
I have transposed this riff up five semitones for ukulele; it may sound like the easiest tune on the list, but the stretch between frets two and five will still give an absolute beginner a workout.
Playing Tips
The second section repeats the first six notes exactly, but then leaps up the neck: place your index on the 12th fret of the A string and your middle finger on the 13th of the E string. Getting to that high position smoothly is the trickiest part, so isolate the shift and practise it slowly before you bring the whole riff up to speed.
A|-5--------------------| E|---5-----5-----5---8--| C|-------2-----5-------0| G|----------------------| A|-5-----------------12----| E|---5-----5-----5------13-| C|-------2-----5-----------| G|-------------------------|
Video — How to Play It
Wrap Up
If you’re hungry for even more punk-inspired tabs, dive into the growing collection over at the Punk Ukulele Tabs and keep exploring.