Monday 7 September 2015

Eb minor, 5/4 time and more

Posted by speedygeoff on Monday, September 07, 2015 with
Song of the weekAnimals”, by Muse, from “The 2nd law
At https://youtu.be/tFG_5PBl2K8



It is ironic that there would be a competition for a video of a song about industries desperate to "kill the competition". Anyway I am more interested in the rhythms therein. An article reads in part "'Animals' is a unique composition in Muse's discography, being the band's first full song to use a 5/4 time signature, and marking their first use of polymeters as a band, (previously used in Hoodoo with a string section): during the outro, the drums play in 4/4 while the other instruments remain in 5/4. It's also the first Muse song written in the key of E♭ minor. The progression in the chorus is similar to Screenager. The bridge that leads into the guitar solo bears a resemblance to the outro of Unnatural Selection. Throughout the guitar solo, the band plays 3 bars of 5/4; the 4th bar being 6/4. Throughout this solo, the crash is hit in 5/2 time for two bars, and then 11/4 for the next two bars in a similar fashion."