One of the coolest scales I like to write with, as far as Rock music, is Dorian... 1,2,b3,4,5,6,b7 The triads available are; i, ii, bIII, IV, v, vi dim, & bVII. In order for this to sound, "Dorian," there are two very simple rules for Modal music:
1) Use a lot of the Characteristic Pitch in your chord progression! In this case the C.P. is natural 6. This pitch can be used as the Root, 3rd, or 5th of diatonic chords. This C.P. approach is effective for highlighting the sound of any Mode and in this case creates the Dorian Mode sound.
2) Be careful with the Tri-Tone. Basically, don't create one. The pitches may be used where this is found, but not together. If used together, the Dorian Mode (or any other Mode) will be lost.
Here's an example - In C Dorian, the C.P. is A. In this Mode, A would be the Root of the vi dim chord. Not a good choice here because of the Tri-Tone. We'll find with other Modes, this Root idea will work. A is the Maj 3rd of F Maj (IV) and is a good choice. A is the 5th of D min (ii) and is another good choice. These chords are referred to as cadence chords and can be used to set up this C Dorian sound. You can apply this logic to any of the Modes to bring out their unique qualities and write Modal music.
Lastly, write a melody that uses a lot of the Mode's C.P. You must use all of the notes of a Mode for it to sound like the desired Mode.
Good luck!
Pentatonics are awesome scales to improvise with, yet only five notes... in the early stages of a musicians development, it may be easy to run out of ideas. Try this cool trick - Displace either the major or minor pentatonic to scale degrees 2 and 5 of a given major or minor chord. If you're using the major Penta shape, just move it up a whole step or play it off of the 5th of a major chord. Same goes for minor. This is a very nice sound and it's easy to improvise with. Whether the chord is major or minor, it makes no difference, just stick to one shape and superimpose (displace it) onto these two different scale degrees. Great sound and lot's of "money" notes.
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