Stop Waiting

How to play Stop Waiting by Cigarettes After Sex on guitar

These are the sounding chords. With a capo on fret 2 you play C, B, D, F, Am, Em and more, the shapes the player above shows.

“Stop Waiting” is a great pick if you want a moody, steady song that still feels very playable. You get a smooth, hypnotic flow in D major, and once the changes settle in, it has a calm but driving feel that rewards clean timing.

You can lean on the open shapes D, E, G, and Em, but the harder part is the barre shapes C#, Bm, and F#m. The main thing to watch is the opening move from D to C# and back again, since that quick shift can expose any hesitation in your fretting hand.

Start by looping the opening progression slowly - D, C#, D, E - until the hand motion feels automatic. Then add the rest of the chords in small groups, keeping the changes even, and only bring it up to tempo once the barre shapes feel stable and the transitions stay relaxed.

Use the play-along above to follow each chord change in time with the music, or learn the shapes first with the chord diagrams below.