Your favourite chord (right now)

[Nag]

I'm guessing this is the best subsection of the forum to post this thread in.

So, recently (at least in my guitarist life) I've taken a rather different approach to music in general. Instead of just working on chops-based stuff like nailing Metallica riffs and Bodom solos I've been trying to sharpen my, uh, sense of musicality, so to speak. Even though I'm primarily a metal guitarist and power chords do almost all of my work for me, I've always known complex chords and I've used them here and there. But I'm sort of re-learning how I use them, trying different things with them. I find myself doing less and less noodling and just letting chords ring and fill me with their sound. Just absorbing the feel of specific voicings, wondering "where do we go from here" like I just paused my life in the middle of a chord progression. It's what helps me being creative these days, I feel like.

So I thought, let's make a thread about this. Come in here, any time you've found a chord that made you go "hmmm" enough that you'd want to share how it made you feel in that moment. It's really tough to describe sounds and feelings with words but I think it's one way to enrich our musical vocabulary.

I'll start this off and see if I can get anyone interested in the idea I have for this thread.

I play this C7M chord : x32000 (low to high : EADGBe). It's got this sort of melancholic hope sound to it that just mirrors how I've felt so often in my life. Every time I hear a 7M chord voiced like that (sometimes without the highest note, making it a bit darker) it resonates with me. I like the sound of it clean, less so distorted. Think "Soothsayer" by Buckethead, the last chord of the clean intro bit before the song gets energized by the heavy riff. I feel like this chord embodies a feeling I carry with me every day, like it's the musical definition of a big, big side of me. I hope everyone can find a chord or two like that. You tell me about it. If the thread lives long enough, I'll come back when I find another chord I like enough that I want to talk about it to somebody (that's you).

(I also like the added 9th version of this chord... x32033. It gives me the same feeling of melancholic hope, but it's the sound I prefer on my brighter days.)

 

[Winspear]

The opening chord to All New Materials by Periphery. Yikes that's been with me 12 years now I guess! It was the first time I ever really heard big chords on guitar I think. I learned the riff, it's stayed with me all that time and the first chord gets played any time I happen to pick up a standard or drop tuned guitar (rare these days ). One of those chords that only sounds good when intonation and tuning is great - I'll always play it after a setup.
x 0 11 13 10 0 followed by x 0 11 13 12 0. AMaj7 followed by AMaj9 I guess.
Aint it funny, without a guitar in hand I had to look up the tab to tell you that.

 

[Wuuthrad]

At times playing acoustic, I like making variants on the different L hand triad (and other) shapes across the strings, up and down the fretboard without any regard to conventional theory, using open strings for harmonics and dissonance, sometimes arpeggios, strummed, plucked, focusing on rythm and articulation of each note or combination of notes, and then use this as an idea for chord progressions and see how this transfers to hi gain electric.

Also using open tunings and minor open tunings, and trying to incorporate my limited knowledge of flamenco copas into riffs or even chord leads if I’m up for it (rarely lol!)

 

[Winspear]

To make use of the website I showed you, how about this one that's possible on my microtonal guitar A minor seventh chord with the 3rd and 7th tuned down 33 cents. https://xenp.io/#{r150hz} [0,702c,1...- {r150hz} [0,702c,1466c,2167c]--------------

 

[Nag]

That sounded rather unsettling. Mister microtonal weird stuff.

 

[Wuuthrad]

To make use of the website I showed you, how about this one that's possible on my microtonal guitar A minor seventh chord with the 3rd and 7th tuned down 33 cents. https://xenp.io/#{r150hz} [0,702c,1466c,2167c]-------------- {r262hz} [0,702c,1466c,2167c]-------------- {r150hz} [0,702c,1466c,2167c]--------------

Nice!

 

[gnoll]

I have trouble coming up with a guitar voicing, I just don't play chords on guitar!! Hm wait. Can I say power chords??

But generally... I like maj7 and add9 chords when I can put them to good use. But I think I pay more attention to good melodies and voice leading and making the most out of pretty simple chords. Maybe I'm not spicy enough as a musician

 

[Wc707]

Gotta be the 004630 in a drop tuning. I have no idea what is

 

[bostjan]

Gotta be the 004630 in a drop tuning. I have no idea what is

"a drop tuning?" Drop A?

Then it's Amaj9

I always liked all flavours of 9th chords: add9, madd9, maj9, min9, 7aug9, etc.

From the Beginning by Emerson Lake and Palmer has some really nice chords in it. That was my general approach to songwriting as a teenager- take a chord shape and move it up and down, sometimes flip the shape over. It didn't matter how the chord was spelled, I could figure that out later.

The nümetal band I was in back in the very early 2000's - the other guitar player usually played either open chords clean or power chords dirty. Once I started writing the chord structures for them, we worked out something I quite liked, where he (the other guitarist) played stacked fifths (add9 power chords) and I played different voicings of m9 or maj9 chords with lots of open strings in between fretted strings. I know it was pretty much the trend of what a lot of bands were doing back then, but I still liked the sound of the guitar arrangements done this way.

 

[Wc707]

"a drop tuning?" Drop A?

Then it's Amaj9

I always liked all flavours of 9th chords: add9, madd9, maj9, min9, 7aug9, etc.

From the Beginning by Emerson Lake and Palmer has some really nice chords in it. That was my general approach to songwriting as a teenager- take a chord shape and move it up and down, sometimes flip the shape over. It didn't matter how the chord was spelled, I could figure that out later.

The nümetal band I was in back in the very early 2000's - the other guitar player usually played either open chords clean or power chords dirty. Once I started writing the chord structures for them, we worked out something I quite liked, where he (the other guitarist) played stacked fifths (add9 power chords) and I played different voicings of m9 or maj9 chords with lots of open strings in between fretted strings. I know it was pretty much the trend of what a lot of bands were doing back then, but I still liked the sound of the guitar arrangements done this way.

Probably should've clarified better. I just mean a drop tuning overall, not specifically A. But good to know what that translates too!
I wish i found theory interesting. Always start learning but find it hard to keep pursuing.

 

[Nag]

In this thread : people discuss the importance and awesomeness of 9th chords

 

[Bodes]

This one is pretty nice!


Ok. I am sitting on the couch with a cold and my brain thinks my joke is much funnier than it probably is. *exit stage left*

 

[Wuuthrad]

074000

7400xx

alternating arpeggios, rhand patterns, and or strummed, works well with

x32000

I'm guessing this is the best subsection of the forum to post this thread in.

So, recently (at least in my guitarist life) I've taken a rather different approach to music in general. Instead of just working on chops-based stuff like nailing Metallica riffs and Bodom solos I've been trying to sharpen my, uh, sense of musicality, so to speak. Even though I'm primarily a metal guitarist and power chords do almost all of my work for me, I've always known complex chords and I've used them here and there. But I'm sort of re-learning how I use them, trying different things with them. I find myself doing less and less noodling and just letting chords ring and fill me with their sound. Just absorbing the feel of specific voicings, wondering "where do we go from here" like I just paused my life in the middle of a chord progression. It's what helps me being creative these days, I feel like.

So I thought, let's make a thread about this. Come in here, any time you've found a chord that made you go "hmmm" enough that you'd want to share how it made you feel in that moment. It's really tough to describe sounds and feelings with words but I think it's one way to enrich our musical vocabulary.

I'll start this off and see if I can get anyone interested in the idea I have for this thread.

I play this C7M chord : x32000 (low to high : EADGBe). It's got this sort of melancholic hope sound to it that just mirrors how I've felt so often in my life. Every time I hear a 7M chord voiced like that (sometimes without the highest note, making it a bit darker) it resonates with me. I like the sound of it clean, less so distorted. Think "Soothsayer" by Buckethead, the last chord of the clean intro bit before the song gets energized by the heavy riff. I feel like this chord embodies a feeling I carry with me every day, like it's the musical definition of a big, big side of me. I hope everyone can find a chord or two like that. You tell me about it. If the thread lives long enough, I'll come back when I find another chord I like enough that I want to talk about it to somebody (that's you).

(I also like the added 9th version of this chord... x32033. It gives me the same feeling of melancholic hope, but it's the sound I prefer on my brighter days.)

 

[Nag]

7400xx sounds dark, man

 

[Nag]

By the way, this video here is a gold mine :

 

[USMarine75]

My favorite chord is the next chord.

 

[ElRay]

... Ok. I am sitting on the couch with a cold and my brain thinks my joke is much funnier than it probably is. *exit stage left*

Important information left out, Bodes is sitting on his couch:

• Wearing a Chord Sweater
• Covered in a Crocheted Blanked
• Staring at a macrame planter
• Just dropped a stack of "radial network diagrams" (aka Chord Diagrams) on the floor.

 

[mongey]

I'm guessing this is the best subsection of the forum to post this thread in.

So, recently (at least in my guitarist life) I've taken a rather different approach to music in general. Instead of just working on chops-based stuff like nailing Metallica riffs and Bodom solos I've been trying to sharpen my, uh, sense of musicality, so to speak. Even though I'm primarily a metal guitarist and power chords do almost all of my work for me, I've always known complex chords and I've used them here and there. But I'm sort of re-learning how I use them, trying different things with them. I find myself doing less and less noodling and just letting chords ring and fill me with their sound. Just absorbing the feel of specific voicings, wondering "where do we go from here" like I just paused my life in the middle of a chord progression. It's what helps me being creative these days, I feel like.

So I thought, let's make a thread about this. Come in here, any time you've found a chord that made you go "hmmm" enough that you'd want to share how it made you feel in that moment. It's really tough to describe sounds and feelings with words but I think it's one way to enrich our musical vocabulary.

I'll start this off and see if I can get anyone interested in the idea I have for this thread.

I play this C7M chord : x32000 (low to high : EADGBe). It's got this sort of melancholic hope sound to it that just mirrors how I've felt so often in my life. Every time I hear a 7M chord voiced like that (sometimes without the highest note, making it a bit darker) it resonates with me. I like the sound of it clean, less so distorted. Think "Soothsayer" by Buckethead, the last chord of the clean intro bit before the song gets energized by the heavy riff. I feel like this chord embodies a feeling I carry with me every day, like it's the musical definition of a big, big side of me. I hope everyone can find a chord or two like that. You tell me about it. If the thread lives long enough, I'll come back when I find another chord I like enough that I want to talk about it to somebody (that's you).

(I also like the added 9th version of this chord... x32033. It gives me the same feeling of melancholic hope, but it's the sound I prefer on my brighter days.)

I've always liked a c maj 7 chord. I'm partial to this one with the B doubled

879000



also this 13 shape - great final chord for a jazzy major thing

A 13 for example

5x567x

 

[Nag]

See this is what I think could be great about this thread.

So often, I hear a sound that I like but I don't really know what it is. Because chords are complicated, so many pitches going on at the same time, and often it's fast and in a mix, so it's even harder to figure everything out. I often experiment randomly trying to find chords but I rarely come across a voicing that's "oh, so THAT's what this is". That 5x567x chord is TOTALLY the jazz resolution chord. Glad someone finally showed me

 

[HungryGuitarStudent]

For the last 30 mins: Emb9sus4

Reason: I’m improvising over an E Phrygian backing track. Love that mood.

Voicing starting on 6th string:
Root b9 4 5 root.

Fingering: 12 x 15 14 12 12, I like to skip the 5th string 12 fret to make it less muddy.