How One Chord Helped the Kinks Change Rock and Roll Forever 

When we think of the natural progression of rock ‘n’ roll, the Kinks are often toward the left of the timeline amongst other jangly rock groups like the Byrds and Donovan. But without the Kinks and their use of one chord type in particular, the bands to the right of the timeline might have never sounded the way we know them today. Didn’t think the Kinks were heavy?

Think again.

The Kinks Changed Rock Forever With This One Chord

In the early 1960s, the British invasion was permeating American airwaves with a certain sense of coy politeness. Bands came across the pond clad in sharp suits on their best behavior, singing about puppy love. There were elements of the blues hiding in their arrangements, but it was watered down for the most part. The Kinks’ 1964 track “You Really Got Me” shed that manufactured sense of British modesty, kicking the door down and ushering in a new brand of rock ‘n’ roll.

Not only was the track one of the first commercially successful songs of its genre to utilize distortion. But “You Really Got Me” also introduced a new chord to the rock world: the power chord. Unlike the typical “cowboy chord” major triad, a power chord only contains octaves and perfect fifths. The wide intervals, particularly when fuzzed out with distortion, create the sonic illusion of fullness and, well, power.

The Kinks’ use of the power chord changed rock ‘n’ roll forever. Countless bands in just as many subgenres would go on to incorporate power chords as integral parts of their band’s arrangements. These open-interval harmonies would become commonplace in punk, heavy metal, and other rock offshoots, setting the course for the genre for decades to come.

The Iconic Distortion Came From a Lost Young Romance

In addition to the Kinks’ use of power chords, the band also implemented heavy guitar distortion in their iconic 1964 track—something that had certainly been done before but wasn’t necessarily commonplace just yet. According to Kinks guitarist Dave Davies, his decision to distort his guitar tone into something fuzzier and grittier came from a forced breakup with his childhood sweetheart, Sue.

“Sue got pregnant, and we wanted to get married,” Davies explained to The Guardian in 2013. “But our parents said we were too young, and they split us up. I was a rebellious, angry kid anyway, but that had a profound effect on me. I was full of rage. A little later, I was very depressed and fooling around with a razor blade. I could easily have slashed my wrists.”

“But I had a little green amplifier, an Elpico, that was sounding crap,” Davies continued. “I thought, ‘I’ll teach it,’ and slashed the speaker cone. It changed the sound of my guitar. Then, when I wired that amp to another, a Vox AC30, it made it a lot, lot louder. That’s how “You Really Got Me” became the first hit record to use distortion. So many bands have cited [that] as the beginnings of punk and heavy metal.”

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