Take early stuff from Burt Bacharach, the Beatles, The Kinks, or the Beach Boys - there's pretty much a set pattern to what they do. I'll begin by playing something from West Side Story , and before I know it, I'll be playing my own tune. Sometimes Moulding employs open tuning to escape musical ruts. If I put the major third note at the bottom of a chord, it rearranged the notes and provoked a different melody in my head. On the other hand, chords and melodies can turn out very modal in open E or open A tuning.
Partridge also favours alternate tunings.
It stimulated my brain because I couldn't figure out what the hell I was doing. Now I'm working with keyboards, because I don't know what the hell I'm doing. Mayor of Simple Gear Partridge and Moulding aren't tech-heads. I get just as sexed up about a pencil. I find myself picking it up because it's so little and non-threatening.