Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Rock drive

How to play Parallel Universe on piano

By Red Hot Chili Peppers

  • C minor
  • 4/4
  • 124 BPM
  • 1999
  • Medium
Tuning the piano…
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Style

Left hand Engine 8thsRight hand Ticking clockChords the loop the song repeats most

Play the full song with sheet music

Learn Parallel Universe in 5 steps

The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.

  1. 1

    Chords: Cm – Bb – Eb – Gsus4

    How it goes

    Parallel Universe sits in C minor: C is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Cm is C, Eb and G; Bb is Bb, D and F; Eb is Eb, G and Bb; Gsus4 is G, C and D. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.

    CmiBbVIIEbIIIGsus4Vsus4
    • CmC · Eb · G
    • BbBb · D · F
    • EbEb · G · Bb
    • Gsus4G · C · D
  2. 2

    Left hand: Engine 8ths

    How it goes

    The lowest note on every eighth: the engine of rock. Musicians call it root bass · 8ths (root bass rhythm), a medium pattern heard in thousands of songs of the library.

  3. 3

    Right hand: Ticking clock

    How it goes

    One high note repeated on every quick beat: tick, tick, tick. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.

  4. 4

    Both hands at 124 BPM

    How it goes

    Put the two hands together over the loop. Start at half speed with the player's speed control, and bring it up once every change is easy.

  5. 5

    Ending: Gsus4 – G – C

    How it goes

    The last chords are Vsus – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.

    Gsus4GC
    • GG · B · D
    • CC · E · G

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Questions about Parallel Universe

What chords are in Parallel Universe?

The loop is Cm – Bb – Eb – Gsus4 (i – bVII – bIII – Vsus) in C minor, and the song ends on Gsus4 – G – C.

What key is Parallel Universe in?

C minor, at about 124 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Parallel Universe?

Engine 8ths: root bass · 8ths, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Parallel Universe easy to play on piano?

It is a medium one: learn the 4 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.

Made from one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.