Metal · Intermediate · minor key

Phrygian i–♭II–♭VII–i

i – ♭II – ♭VII – i — Dark Spanish/metal flavour from the half-step ♭II.

Chord shapes in E minor (standard tuning)

Using a different tuning? Open it in the Looper — it finds playable shapes for whatever tuning you choose.

How the chords work

Written in Roman numerals, this progression is i – ♭II – ♭VII – i — in A minor that is Am – Bb – G – Am. Each numeral is a step of the scale; upper case is a major chord, lower case minor.

• i — the minor home chord.
• ♭II — a major chord a half step above home: exotic and tense.
• ♭VII — a major chord a whole step below home, borrowed from the minor key — classic rock swagger.

Phrygian i–♭II–♭VII–i in all 12 keys

Practice ideas

• Beginners: play one strum per chord and say the chord names out loud, then two strums, then a steady down-down-up-up-down-up pattern.
• Change keys with a capo: keep the E minor shapes and move a capo up — the capo calculator shows which fret gives the key you want.
• Solo over it: loop it in the Looper and improvise with the E minor pentatonic or E natural minor or E blues scale — the scale pages show every position and play a backing track.
• Train your ear: the progression ear trainer mixes this with similar progressions until you can tell them apart.

Similar progressions

• Phrygian vamp (i–♭II) i – ♭II – i – ♭II
• Minor ♭VI–♭VII–i resolution ♭VI – ♭VII – i – i
• Metal power chords (i–♭VI–♭VII) i5 – ♭VI5 – ♭VII5 – i5
• i–♭VI–V i – ♭VI – V – i
• i–v–♭VI–♭VII i – v – ♭VI – ♭VII
• Descending lament (i–♭VII–♭VI–V) i – ♭VII – ♭VI – V7

← i–v–iv–i · Phrygian climb i–♭II–♭III–♭II →

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