Favorite keys...

[NormanConquest]

What are your favorite keys for songwriting and/or playing solos? I have a few...

C# minor is my favorite overall. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, Search and Destroy (Stooges), Sonic Reducer (Dead Boys) are some of my favorite tunes in this key. The tonality just sounds menacing to my ears. Plus, you can use an open E major, which sounds huge.

E major. Natch!

Ab minor. Unusual choice, but I like the odd overtones.

Keys I try to avoid: F# minor. The quintessential rock/metal key, but I totally abuse this one...too many of the songs I've written with my band use it. If I write a riff in F# I try to transpose it, or else I just toss it out (unless it's really, really good).

[jamie.pope]

Generally i have a habit of sticking to the same keys.

It's generally Eminor, C, Dminor and possibly G.

[RUSHFANnLV]

My house key is a good one.:D

Sorry.....couldn't resist.

I like E and Eminor to play solos in. I use E as a base for transposing to other keys. I learned alot of sabbath early on and most of it is in E/Eminor.
As for writing songs in a specific key, I don't. I just write (not that often) by feel. I do transpose the main riff up or down to see if the song sounds better in another key but usually it's the vocals that determine that.

[d y l o n]

B minor: a lot of the less rock-oriented pieces I write seem to fall into this key.

[Gfunk]

my band mostly plays in Emin Bmin and G. we don't vary off of that much

[guitardude5489]

d minor and f minor.....

[NoteBOOM]

I love D Harmonic Minor. It's neat-o sounding.

[moondog]

D Minor - the saddest of all keys :p :D

Actually I do like D minor a lot, also love E minor. E flat minor is really nice for a slightly "softer/rounder" sound (to my ears) than E. Love B flat for slightly minor kinds of blues, and A flat for more major/bluesy sort of blues. G minor's cool for a lot of things too, as is C#minor, which to me sounds more poppy. C minor has a lovely minor blues kind of sound, and of course C major is beautifully happy and poppy. As you can tell, I like most keys; I think each of them has a different flavour, and is useful for different moods/occasions.

My favourite though has to be C lydian and/or B phrygian. Give me a Cmaj7 - Bmin7 vamp and I'm happy for days. :D

[Rayguitargod]

I tune down a half step, and I play metal so obviously When I write I have a tendency to play alot of stuff in Dminor. I also use Dharmonic minor and Gminor alot for some odd reason.

[skip tracer]

I write a lot of songs in E and A because I like all the open chords you can play in those keys, letting the B and E strings drone. Unfortunately I don't sing too well in either key. I sound best in G and Em, so I try to write in those two a lot. When writing for the piano, I use Bb and C#m a lot. I've got a guitar tuned to C#m7 and its a very spooky sound. C#m has to be the saddest key.(that sounded kinda Spinal Tap..) That's what The first part of Moonlight Sonata is in..

I try to write in a lot of different keys so everything doesn't start sounding the same. Using a different tuning or capo is the most obvious solution.