Pop Punk Starter

By a ComposerDeck member · 34 cards (9 Malus, 4 Lyrical, 3 Melodic) · updated 2026-11-08

Cards for a pop punk song in an afternoon: four chords, fast drums, a wordless hook and a chorus you can shout. Malus included. Draw one to three, start the click, finish before dinner.

The 34 cards

• Tempo137 BPMSet the click to 137 BPM, quick enough to push and slow enough to shout along. Keep it there for the whole song.
• ProductionCrunchy Distorted GuitarsRhythm guitars with the crunch on, played hard. No guitar around? Run a synth through a distortion pedal and play it the same way.
• HarmonyFour Chords, One StructurePick four chords and keep them for the whole song, verse and chorus included. Change the rhythm, the melody and the energy, never the chords.
• FormShort Form, Simple ArrangementUnder three minutes. No intro longer than four bars, no section you cannot explain in one sentence, no part that waits for a second listen.
• RhythmPalm-Muted Eighth Notes, All DownstrokesPlay the verse guitars as palm-muted straight eighth notes, every one a downstroke. On the chorus, lift the palm and let the same chords ring. Same pattern, twice the size.
• RhythmFast Punk Beat (Snare on Every Upbeat)Drive the verse with the fast punk beat: kick on the beats, snare on every upbeat, hi-hat or ride in straight eighths. Drop to a regular backbeat when you want a section to breathe.
• TempoHalf-Time Verse, Double-Time ChorusOne tempo for the whole song. The drums sit in half time on the verse and jump to double time on the chorus. The song feels like it speeds up while the click never moves.
• MelodicOctave Lead LineWrite the guitar hook as an octave line (the root and the octave above, the string between them muted). One or two bars, repeated over the chords, loud enough to be the intro.
• MelodicThe Whoa-oh HookGive the song a wordless hook: whoa-oh, na-na, hey. It shows up at least twice, and anyone in the room can sing it back after one listen.
• MelodicChorus Melody Higher Than the VersePut the chorus melody at least a fourth above the verse melody. The singer has to reach for it, and that strain is the hook.
• DynamicsStop, Count-In, Last ChorusCut everything for one bar before the final chorus. Silence, a drum fill or a shouted one-two-three-four, then the whole band back in at once.
• FormIntro Riff Is the Chorus RiffOpen with the chorus guitar part alone, four bars at most. Drums kick in, verse starts. When the chorus arrives, the listener already knows it.
• InstrumentBass Alone for Eight BarsStart the song with the bass by itself for eight bars, played with a pick, treble up. Drums join first, guitars last.
• ProductionDouble-Tracked Guitars, Hard Left and RightRecord the rhythm guitar twice, same part, same energy, and pan the two takes hard left and hard right. Keep the middle for kick, snare, bass and voice.
• LyricalSuburbs, Boredom, Friday NightWrite about one ordinary evening: the parking lot, the friend who did not text back, the job you hate. Concrete details, first person, no metaphors.
• LyricalDon't Wanna Grow UpWrite a chorus about refusing to grow up, sung by someone who already had to. Use the words a sixteen-year-old would use, and nothing a thirty-year-old would add.
• LyricalJoke Verses, Serious ChorusThe verses tell a stupid story or land a dumb pun. The chorus means every word. Make the switch work with the same four chords underneath.
• HarmonyPower Chord Riff (Root & Fifth)Build a central guitar riff primarily around power chords (root and fifth, possibly with an octave root).
• Roman NumeralI - IV - VBuild a progression using the classic major key chords. Forms the foundation of countless songs across genres.
• Roman NumeralI - V - vi - IVCompose with the "axis of awesome" four-chord pop progression. Widely used for its balanced emotional journey.
• Roman Numeralvi - IV - I - VCreate using this popular progression (sometimes called "sensitive female progression"). Begins with relative minor for emotional quality.
• LyricalMicro-Story (Under 2 Minutes)Write a song or short instrumental piece that tells a complete, concise story in under 2 minutes.
• ChallengeNo Computer Editing of PerformanceRecord all instrumental and vocal parts live with no digital editing of the performance (e.g., no quantization, pitch correction, copy-pasting of performed sections).
• ChallengeTime Limit: 30 Minute Composition & RecordingAttempt to compose and record the entire core idea of the piece within a strict 30-minute time limit.
• InstrumentAcoustic Drums Only (No Electronic)If using drums, use only sounds from an acoustic drum kit (no 808s, electronic samples, or drum machines).
• MalusOne TakeRecord your next part in a single take. No editing, no punching in. Keep the mistakes.
• MalusNo QuantizationDisable quantization. Play everything live and keep the human groove (and errors).
• MalusNo FXZero FX allowed on any track. Keep it super raw and dry!
• MalusStanding OnlyYou must compose this entire section while standing up. No sitting allowed.
• MalusCopy Paste BanYou are not allowed to copy and paste anything. Every note must be played/drawn individually.
• MalusNo ClickTurn the metronome off. Count in out loud, one-two-three-four, and record to your own time. If the song speeds up, it speeds up.
• MalusThree Chords MaxThree chords for the entire song. No passing chord, no sus4 on the turnaround, no "just one more" for the bridge.
• MalusOne Guitar ToneOne amp setting and one pedal for every guitar part in the song, intro to outro. No switching, no second layer with a different sound.
• MalusNo SoloNo guitar solo, no lead break, no instrumental section. The chorus is the solo. Play it again instead.

Keep reading

• Odd time signatures: 12 exercises from 6/8 to 11/8
• 25 production constraints to finish a track
• 20 chord progressions to steal
• 33 songwriting prompts that get songs finished
• How producers turn constraints into finished tracks

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