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The "real" chords

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(@coolnama)
Prominent Member
Joined: 15 years ago
Posts: 590
Topic starter  

Ok, so I remember when I first started playing electric guitar a year back my teacher started me out with power chords ( "5" chords G5 C5 and so on ) which at the time I thought were heavenly but well as I kept on learning and I got together with more experienced players, I saw that they used some weird chords ( weird for me ) and had a better sound than my empty sounding power chords.

OK so my question is. Who actually uses power chords aside from people starting to learn electric guitar?

( I never use power chords anymore o.o I normally just move down the E shape down using a barre I kinda lost respect of the power chord and I am losing respect of the "moving E shape with barre" thing too, I move down other shapes but my E shaped with barre chord is my go to thing )

( So my other question would be is it wrong to have that thing that U "go to" most of the time? I always try if I'm doing something to do it first with a barre moving the E shape around and then with Open string chords but its way easier just moving the E shape around ( maybe cause its so similar to a power chord xD ) but I can still do Open string just have to concentrate a bit more. )

Well I don't know if you could answer something about what I said, just kinda mking an observation ( about myself ) and asking a question or two about how I could stop that dependancy, you could call it, to moving the E shape around.

I wanna be that guy that you wish you were ! ( i wish I were that guy)

You gotta set your sights high to get high!

Everyone is a teacher when you are looking to learn.

( wise stuff man! )

Its Kirby....


   
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(@scrybe)
Famed Member
Joined: 16 years ago
Posts: 2241
 

Power chords are used very prominently in pretty much all heavy rock. Think Led Zep, Black Sabbath, through Iron Maiden, Nirvana, and all those pesky modern nu-metal bands I'm conveniently forgetting*.

They can be very useful, so I wouldn't forget about them. Also, power chords (often with some embellishment) feature on a lot of blues and rock and roll records (think the chugging rhythm guitar of say a Chuck Berry song - that sort of stuff is frequently just power cords with a bit of variation).

Playing a chord sequence for the first time, I usually strum it using barre chords or in the open position if possible (between the 1st and 3rd frets). Actually, if I'm honest, much of my rhythm playing looks like I'm playing barre chords all the time, although I often pick out a few notes rather playing the entire chord (my hand still frets the entire chord most of the time though).

In short, both power chords and barre chords are very useful and will let you play 90% of the rhythm guitar tracks you could ever want. But what I think you might benefit from is learning about extended chords. From you post it sounds like you are playing straight major and minor chords (Gminor, A major, C major, and so on), but much music will use these chords with extra notes added to them (e.g. a G7 chord, with the notes G,B,D,F, instead of a G major chord, with the notes G,B,D). I would take this moment to illustrate some new chords for you to begin getting on with, but I'm fairly certain this site will have an article on this very matter that will be much better than my late-night attempt would. So, I'd suggest searching the GN mainpage for "dominant 7th chords" and "extended chords" and seeing what that comes up with.

Apologies if I have misunderstood your question.

* Korn, Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park, Nine Inch Nails, whatever band Dimebag Darrell was in. Can you tell I rarely listen to this style of music nowadays? lol

Ra Er Ga.

Ninjazz have SuperChops.

http://www.blipfoto.com/Scrybe


   
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(@coolnama)
Prominent Member
Joined: 15 years ago
Posts: 590
Topic starter  

Well I know some of these extended chords my tuner is really handy it has alot of chords in it, weird chords and my teacher is a fan of weird chords. I just kinda need to implement them into my playing, thanks. And also all these "7" chords sound really cool like bluesy or something. Well I think I'm ok I could play 90% percent of rhythm guitar, not really lol but once I can its just all about making it better, giving it a feel and all that stuff.

But dang, not to take away from all these metal bands, but power chords are easy, the same shape all over except if the root is in the D string, just move it up and down, it takes some practice but once u can move it around and change roots, you've got it. Well its not only Power Chords it could be coupled by some riffs and then land on the power chord, but after I learned how to do that I just kinda stopped using them, but I could never forget them, the shape is simple.

I wanna be that guy that you wish you were ! ( i wish I were that guy)

You gotta set your sights high to get high!

Everyone is a teacher when you are looking to learn.

( wise stuff man! )

Its Kirby....


   
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(@mahal)
Estimable Member
Joined: 17 years ago
Posts: 107
 

Different genres of music put different expectations upon the guitarist. While a rhythm role in rock may have power chords with the proper amount of effects laid. His partner may do no more then play triads higher up on the neck. In CCM an acoustic player may do the the acoustic version of power chords with open chords as he lets the high strings drone and ring. Some may use barre chords because they don't want that high E and B, assuming no CAPO ringing but then fall in with jazzer's who wonder why the you are playing that one boring chord through a measure. Meanwhile a funk player may just play a partial 9th chord on the high strings as opposed to the rock power chord player being on the low strings, and is more interested in keeping time then actually sounding a clean note so he is heavily muting those strings as he scratches.


   
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(@gosurf80)
Eminent Member
Joined: 15 years ago
Posts: 28
 

All chords have their purpose in music- Power chords give you that great big sound with just a few notes, "Standard" chord voicings give you harmony and movement through the key centers, and extended chords with tensions can be used to the same effect with greater color.

One thing that I've found lately that seems to help, it that if you can play fewer notes, do. In a band setting especially, having the same note played my multiple instruments can muddy up the mix.

Try playing just guide tones- maybe just the 3rd and the 7th of the chord, just the 1 and the 3, etc.

These will help you to build some more creative rhythm parts and stick out a little in the band.


   
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(@wes-inman)
Illustrious Member
Joined: 20 years ago
Posts: 5582
 

The sound and color you are after is what really determines what you play. In Metal for instance, you want that highly defined power chord, especially when using lots of distortion. They are tight and very compressed sounding. But as you said yourself, after awhile those power chords can get a little boring, so you want to add a fuller chord with more color.

One of my favortie guitarists was Paul Kossoff of Free (died in 1975). Unlike many Rock guitarists of his day, he often used full chords even with distortion. To me, this made his rhythm work far more interesting. He also liked to use partial chords where he might leave a note out of a full chord. Hendrix did this often as well. For example, if you listen carefully to All Along the Watchtower, you may think he was using C#m, B and A chords which is a fairly common progression. But Hendrix would mute the G string in all chords which created a very colorful and unusual sound for these chords. Now, leaving the note on the G string out makes these chords a C#5, B5, and A5 which is still just a powerchord, but by using four stings instead of two, and string skipping over the G string the chords sound much more interesting. Listen for yourself.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14qTXRkAKr8


Chords used in Watchtower by Hendrix

C#5 B5 A5

e----------------------
b---9i------7------5---
g---X-------X------X---
d---11p-----9------7---
a---11r-----9------7---
e---9t------7------5---

Try playing this song with full C#m, B, and A barre chords, or even using two string power chords, and then compare with the four string power chord. Huge difference. It was using unusually voiced chords that gave Hendrix a very unique sound.

So, there is no rule on this, go by your ear. If it sounds good, it is good. 8)

If you know something better than Rock and Roll, I'd like to hear it - Jerry Lee Lewis


   
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(@rparker)
Illustrious Member
Joined: 20 years ago
Posts: 5480
 

Wasn't it Angus and Malcom Young who like full chords as well? Their reasoning was that they thought the voicing added more to the music. (like has been mentioned earlier)

Roy
"I wonder if a composer ever intentionally composed a piece that was physically impossible to play and stuck it away to be found years later after his death, knowing it would forever drive perfectionist musicians crazy." - George Carlin


   
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 Cat
(@cat)
Noble Member
Joined: 16 years ago
Posts: 1224
 

The sound and color you are after is what really determines what you play.

Dat's a fak, Jak!

Well said, Wes...

Cat

"Feel what you play...play what you feel!"


   
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