E Power Chord Chord

What is a E5 chord?

A power chord is just the root and the perfect 5th — no third. With no major or minor third, the chord is gender-neutral (works against either tonality) and free of harmonic clash, which is why it's the only chord shape that survives heavy distortion without turning to mud. The interval between root and 5th is a perfect consonance, mathematically the most stable interval after the octave.

Where E5 fits in a key

E5 appears as the I in E major.

Common progressions with E5

When to use a power chord chord

E5 is the key-neutral power-chord root for riffs centred on E. Use power chords as the rhythm-section foundation of any rock, punk, metal or grunge song. Because they have no third, you can move a single shape through any key without thinking about major/minor — that's why entire songs (Smells Like Teen Spirit, Iron Man, You Really Got Me) are built on power chord shapes alone. They're also useful in funk and pop when you want a riff to read as harmonically neutral.

Common substitutions for E5

• •Full barre chord — when the song wants explicit major/minor coloring
• •Octave doubled (root + 5 + octave) — fatter, more resonant power chord
• •Drop-D power chord — uses the open low D string for a heavier root