Are you a beginner guitarist trying to find some awesome anime songs to play along to, but everything just seems to be outside of your skill level? Don’t worry, I got you. As a beginner guitarist myself who has always loved anime music and is currently creating a rookie anime cover band, I have looked through so many tabs trying to find songs within my skill level.
For this list, I’ve considered both rhythm and lead guitar parts, along with strumming patterns, picking speed, and chord difficulty. Some songs are great if you want to work on bends and slides, others are great if you want to get your strumming down, and some may have a short challenging bits, but I believe you can get through it within a couple weeks if you keep at it.
And while there may be tabs elsewhere, I’ve only included songs that have tabs on Songsterr. Since coming across this tab site over 5 years ago, it is my main source of reference as you can hear it being played which makes it invaluable.
If you’re pretty new to guitar tabs, definitely check out My Ultimate Guide To Guitar Tabs where I discuss setup, tunings, techniques, and even things like theory and timing. It’s your all in one resource to understand anything you’ll see when reading guitar tabs 🙂
And if you’re interested in other tab lists, please check out my 50 Power Chord Anime Songs, 25 Anime Songs With Epic Riffs & Licks, 20 Fun & Funky Anime Songs for Rhythm Guitar, 10 Easy Anime Songs To Practice Fingerpicking, and 15 Intermediate Anime Songs To Practice Barre Chords. You can also refer to my article with 8 Resources for Anime Chords, Tabs and Tutorials.
And if you love Japanese music and would like to learn and understand it more, please check out My Japanese Music Resources Page. And if you’d like to learn more about Japanese music theory so you can understand and create your own Japanese inspired music, check out The Complete Japanese Music Theory Course!
So let’s get to it, shall we?
Don’t Say Lazy
K-ON!! – Ho-kago Tea Time
There’s a lot of K-ON!! songs to choose from, and while others may appear to be a bit easier, I chose this song as the strumming is all 8th notes and it is quite repetitive, but it also helps you work a lot on your speed and muting for both hands.
Uragiri no Yuuyake
Durarara!! – Theatre Brook
This is such a fun song to play, and it’s not too difficult either. Lead definitely takes a bit more work, especially for the arpeggio section during the pre-chorus, and there’s a few complex chords during the bridge for rhythm, but it’s definitely doable. Just believe in yourself!
Rewrite
Fullmetal Alchemist – Asian Kung-Fu Generation
If you choose to play rhythm for this song, you’ll get a chance to practice some pretty simply lead riffs. If you’re learning lead, this song has licks and riffs throughout that aren’t too fast or complicated. Asian Kung-Fu Generation has other easy songs, especially if you want a full song to work on lead, but this is definitely a great place to start.
Harukaze
Bleach – Scandal
This song has a pretty chill pace which gives it a great advantage. For lead, it is a great opportunity to practice playing between strings and also work on your fingering. If the lead part I chosen is a bit too complex, don’t worry, you have 2 other lead parts you can choose from in this tab. For rhythm, it is a song with a consistent strumming pattern and no power chords present (though E.G.2 has that if it’s preferred), so you can work on your chord changes.
Blue Bird
Naruto – Ikimono-gakari
One of the most popular Naruto openings isn’t too bad as a beginner song. The lead has a lot of breaks and the notes are held longer, so you can work on that skill if it’s newer to you. The rhythm is a bit more complex, but if you’re tired of power chords and open chords, I feel this is a great song to wrap your head around the various other chords out there as well as chords that come in on the 4+ beat. You’ll get to play around with extended chords and barre chords.
Pokemon Theme Song
Pokemon – Jason Paige
Yes, the OG English Pokemon Theme Song. This song can be a bit fast, especially for rhythm, but it’s not difficult in any way. I would definitely recommend learning both parts as there isn’t much lead, but the solo is definitely a great place to start for a newb.
Kaikai Kitan
Jujitsu Kaisan – Eve
This is one of the rare songs where the lead is actually easier than the rhythm. The notes aren’t too clumped together or too fast, so it’s definitely a lead song you can learn pretty early on. For rhythm, we aren’t using power chords, so you’ll have the opportunity to practice putting your fingers in different areas of the fretboard. It doesn’t get any faster than 8th notes, it’s just incorporating muting into your strumming. So depending on which you want to learn, you may move this up for lead and move it down for rhythm.
Hikari Are
Haikyuu!! – Burnout Syndromes
One of the most beloved openings for Haikyuu. Such a beautiful song with a very powerful singer. However, when you look at the tabs, both rhythm and lead are quite easy. There are a few jumps in chords for rhythm right before the chorus, but otherwise, it shouldn’t be a difficult song if you have your eight note strumming down.
Tell Me Why
Berserk – The Penpals
It’s hard for me to classify if this song is super easy or just a tad bit on the challenging side. The song only has 4 chords, and a few strumming patterns, I learned it in an hour, but if you haven’t worked on your strumming at all, you may want to hold off until you have that down. As for lead, it is super easy when it comes to notes and speed, but it’s also a really weird slightly off key bend, but I guess that means anything goes, right? 😛
Guren no Yumiya
Attack on Titan – Linked Horizon
As epic as this song sounds, the guitar parts aren’t actually too difficult. The main lick for lead can be done in the same box pattern, and there are only power chords for rhythm. Just be sure you have a distortion pedal or setting to ensure your chords ring out as long as they need to.
Make My Story
My Hero Academia – Lenny Code Fiction
Don’t let the tuning of the strings freak you out. If you look carefully, every string is lowered by a step/semitone, so you can practice this song in normal tuning with the same fingering, and just raise the pitch of the song by a semitone to match. Then, when you are ready to play it officially, you lower your strings. That’s what I do as I’m too lazy to tune everyday to practice a single song.
For lead, this is a great song to practice your hammer-ons and pull-offs, and also work on bends at a slower pace. For rhythm, it’s an opportunity to practice a new strumming pattern, muting during rests, and incorporating a couple non-power chords now and then.
Blood Circulator
Naruto – Asian Kung-Fu Generation
Here’s another Naruto song that isn’t too hard to learn or follow. There is only one lick for lead which isn’t too fast but will make you feel pretty epic. The rhythm is mostly power chords and the strumming is steady, but it allows the opportunity to practice string switching and harmonics as well.
Again
Fullmetal Alchemist – Yui
The classic. You can chose to learn the band song, or an acoustic version with chords. The chords are mostly open chords, so it’s a great song to practice with. The lead is also slow and simple, which will help you work on those chops.
Target
Digimon – Kouji Wada
While Butterfly may be the well known and beloved theme, the Season 2 opening is pretty epic and lucky for you, is much easier to play. The lead riff is pretty simple but gives you the opportunity to practice octave and chord riffs. The rhythm isn’t complicated either, but lets you work on a new power chord rhythm and palm muting.
Astericks
Bleach – Orange Range
The pacing of this song is also relaxed. The lead has chords, octaves, and single note melodies to practice with. The rhythm has a couple arpeggios of sorts, but then falls into a comfortable 8th note strumming pattern. I would recommend learning both guitar parts for the added benefits.
L’s Theme (A & B)
Death Note
L’s Theme A – Lead Tabs | Rhythm Tabs
L’s Theme B – Lead Tabs | Rhythm Tabs
A has always been my fav, and it’s a great way to practice different time signatures in a repetitive setting, and B is like a warm up song for me as I can keep my hand in one place but I have to use all 4 fingers across 3 strings. It’s definitely a great choice if you want to work on your picking timing.
Hitohira no Hanabira
Bleach – Stereopony
This is a very fun song despite what side you choose. There’s actually 4 guitar parts, the lead part I chose includes solos that stand out the most, and there is a rhythm part that is mostly power chords, but there are more melodic parts to choose from as well. They all come together during the bridge for a little scale lick as well.
Shunkan Sentimental
Fullmetal Alchemist – Scandal
This song has great benefits for each part. This is a great song for getting into solos without too much notes or speed at the same time. It also include bends and optional harmonics if you need to work on those. For rhythm, while it is mostly power chords, this song includes other ‘power chords’ such as diminished and 7th power chords, which is great for your arsenal if rock is your thing.
The Hero
One Punch Man – Jam Session
If you’re looking for a drop D song to play around with, I would definitely recommend this one. As epic as it sounds, it actually isn’t too fast at all. You can practice your slides and octaves, and a fun melodic piece for lead, and it offers a 6-note-per-bar patterns with some slide offs and and palm muting for rhythm. It’s definitely something to try if you want a song that isn’t too repetitive and let’s you try new things without going to overboard for difficulty.
Redo
Re:Zero – Konomi Suzuki
Whether you’re learning lead or rhythm, the majority of this song is focused on octaves and power chords, and the riff is pretty consistent, helping you develop those skills. The lead has a few licks that may be a bit challenging (or easy if you can see the chord, so you are arpeggiating instead of soloing) but you’ll be able to do with persistence. I believe in you!
Crossing Field
Sword Art Online – LiSA
This is a song where the rhythm stands out due to it’s chord riffs and strumming, so both parts I chose have a lot of rhythm in them. There is a very short solo part to learn as well if you’d like, but what’s wrong with focusing on rhythm now and then?
Brave Song
Angel Beats – GirlsDeadMonster
This is the ending of the series and it has a pretty slow, easy going pace, which is really useful if you want to take on the rhythm part that has palm muting, barre chords, arpeggios, and single note melodies.
Theme of SSS
Angel Beats
Here’s another Angel Beats song that not many people know about, but it’s a great song to work on if you ever want to play some of their other songs. The lead part has a lot of string skipping but is at a reasonable pace and plays throughout. While the song is in normal tuning, the rhythm is using an inverted power chord so the two notes align on the fret board. If you plan to play a lot of Drop D songs in the future, this is a great song to practice using your index finger to hold down multiple strings.
Silhouette
Naruto – Kana-Boon
Another very popular Naruto song. The main riff is a single note melody that can mostly be played in the same box pattern, while also challenging you with octaves and chords later on. The rhythm aspect of the song isn’t difficult at all, and while there is another tab with power chords, this version uses about 6 alternate open chords, which can be great if you’re bored or tired of regular chords and want to challenge your fingers more.
Conclusion
I hope this list has been useful on your guitar learning path. If you like this list, be sure to subscribe and let me know below! If the demand is high enough, I may make another one 😉 And definitely check out my blog for guitar tips and other anime lists!
If you went through this list and you felt that the majority of these songs were outside of your current skill level, then I would recommend working on your foundation a little big longer. One thing that really helped me fill in the blanks in my playing and help with my chords, strumming and lead was GuitarTricks.
It has a fun and detailed beginners course, and considering all that’s available, it’s totally worth the cost. Click here for a 2-week full access trial! (As an affiliate, I may get some financial compensation with no additional cost to you. Feel free to also read my article on my experience with Guitar Tricks).
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Hey, do you have any advice how to play those 16th single notes in Kaikai Kitan lead guitar? Should I be resting my palm on guitar body or something?
Hello! When it comes to lead, people have different preferences. I find it is best to just rest the tip of your thumb on the middle of the neck of the guitar, but have nothing else touching, as this would allow your fingers the most flexibility and movement. Of course, this would be easier to play when sitting as you can rest your guitar on your lap and keep it in place. You will still change and adjust depending on what you’re playing, like if you’re playing higher or lower strings, tapping or power chords and such. When I do chords, I tend to rest my thumb more because I have more time between chords and I also need more precision to have 3-4 fingers holding down the right strings. For rhythm/chords, your fingers need to be more curved as you shouldn’t be muting other strings, but for lead, you’re usually touching other strings to mute them and prevent them from ringing out, so the playing style differs. Not sure if that helps exactly, especially as I’m not sure how long you’ve played guitar, but figuring out what feels and works best when you play takes time, and can always differ from person to person. Same with how holding a pick feels very strange, even when you hear other’s tips and watch tutorials, but once you figure out and practice what works best for you, it starts to become more natural 🙂 There’s no exact right way, what matters most is that it sounds good and notes ring out well, and what matters second is that it doesn’t cause you too much pain or discomfort, as you really don’t want to create health issues later on ^^”