Do you have the same problem as me? Does every song you write naturally gravitate to the standard pop song structure? You write a verse, then a chorus, a second verse, then repeat the chorus. After that all you need is to come up with a bridge or middle eight, repeat the chorus, and you’re finished.

It can get a bit predictable.

You might want to start off writing something completely different But if you don’t want to be so radical, for instance if you’ve got a song that follows the pop song structure, but could do with just a slight tweak, why not try one of these ideas?

1. Build up the intro – It’s vital to get to the hook quickly, right? That’s what all the songwriting manuals tell you. Get to the hook, get to the part the audience will sing a long to, the part that sticks in their mind. Sometimes that’s good advice, but it isn’t the only option. Why not try a long, mood setting intro, that gradually builds up into the main riff or first verse?
2. Use a bridge - but only once. The Soundgarden song ‘Burden in my Hand’ has a bridge before the first chorus that isn’t there before the second chorus. This works to speed us on to the second chorus and is a nice but simple surprise. An added bonus is that, by using a line from the later middle eight, that bridge foreshadows musical ideas we hear later, giving the piece greater cohesion.
3. Don’t return to the chorus – Whoa! What am I talking about? You’ve got this great, singalong chorus, and now I’m telling you not to repeat it after the middle eight? Well why not, there are plenty of songs that don’t. The Manic Street Preachers wrote a whole album of them. An album successful enough to be released as a 10^th anniversary special edition no-less.
4. Expand the middle – The first idea, a long intro, might sound odd stuck at the front of a three minute pop song. To make sure things don’t overbalance and make your song one big introduction, something else needs to grow in proportion. So add two middle eights were one will do, put in an extra guitar solo section, or just stick in that killer chorus from another song that didn’t quite work. Go through two key changes, then get back to the first chorus. Or combine this with idea 3 and don’t return to the chorus at all

All right, by the end of my fourth idea I was clearly advocating a complete disregard for standard pop song structures.That’s because it’s often only useful as a starting point. How do you be creative with the pop song structure? In short, remember it’s just a guideline.

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