Stuck on basic chords… how do I make them sound dreamy?

Hey everyone, I’ve been playing guitar for over three years, but I feel stuck on basic chords, power chords, and simple drop D shapes. I don’t feel creative at all, and I’m not sure how to improve. How do I make my chords sound more dreamy?

Slowdive has been a huge inspiration for me, but I can’t seem to get that ethereal sound with the chords I know.

Any exercises, songs, or techniques I should check out? Do scales help?

I’d love to start writing my own music, so any advice is welcome!

If you want that dreamy Slowdive sound, the first thing is understanding their chord choices.

They use lots of chord extensions like:

  • 7th chords
  • Suspended chords
  • Add chords

A cool trick is to take a barre chord and leave the highest two strings open. This creates a lush, open sound.

Try this Aadd9:

e|–0–
B|–0–
G|–6–
D|–7–
A|–7–
E|–5–

Move this shape around the neck and experiment with different positions. You’ll find some dreamy sounds that way.

Effects also play a big role. Slowdive uses:

  • Delay
  • Reverb
  • Distortion
  • Flanger

Look up their pedalboards to get an idea of how they stack their effects.

And don’t stress if you can’t match their tone exactly—studio recordings have layers of guitars. Just experiment and find your own take on it! Hope this helps.

@Pat
Yeah, reverb is huge for this sound. I just got an EXH Oceans 11 pedal, and it has a bunch of reverb settings. Doesn’t magically make you better, but it’s fun to play with!

Parker said:
@Pat
Yeah, reverb is huge for this sound. I just got an EXH Oceans 11 pedal, and it has a bunch of reverb settings. Doesn’t magically make you better, but it’s fun to play with!

For sure! Reverb is a must for dream pop and shoegaze. I’ll check out that pedal, sounds interesting! And yeah, gear helps, but the real magic comes from experimenting and playing around with different settings.

@Pat
I hadn’t planned on getting it, but the salesperson convinced me, lol. There are some great YouTube demos out there if you’re curious. Have fun!

Check out this lesson: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSB3iIkDy7o. This whole playlist is super helpful.

@Lane
Great suggestion! Tomasso Zillow really knows his stuff.

I don’t know theory, but I get what you’re asking. Try playing standard chords with different fingerings.

For example, instead of C (0-3-2-0-1-0), try 0-3-2-4-3-0. Boom, dreamy C. Or instead of G (3-2-0-0-0-3), try 3-2-0-0-0-2—has a dreamy Spanish feel.

Small tweaks like this can make a huge difference!

@Darian
Sounds like Cmaj7add9 and Gmaj7—if my theory is right!

Look into the book ‘Chord Chemistry’ by Ted Greene. Super useful!

Start by looking up these chord types:

  • sus2, sus4
  • Major 7th (maj7), Minor 7th (m7)
  • Major 9th (maj9), Minor 9th (m9)
  • Major 11th (maj11), Minor 11th (m11)
  • Add9, Minor add9 (m(add9))
  • Major 7#11 (maj7#11)
  • 6/9

Also, check out spread voicings and try omitting the 5th from certain chords. Small changes can make a big difference!

Read books, watch videos, and practice! The guitar is like a puzzle—you learn pieces over time. Keep at it, and you’ll get there!

Vic said:
Read books, watch videos, and practice! The guitar is like a puzzle—you learn pieces over time. Keep at it, and you’ll get there!

Got any book recommendations?

Van said:

Vic said:
Read books, watch videos, and practice! The guitar is like a puzzle—you learn pieces over time. Keep at it, and you’ll get there!

Got any book recommendations?

Honestly, read as many as you can!

Learn music theory. Every dreamy chord is just a regular chord with a little extra color. Knowing your chord structures helps a lot!

Just learn more chords?

Try different tunings! Standard tuning has limits, but open tunings can unlock new sounds.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IDxUb9N27o