Musical Moment

So far, I have begun every post by somehow mentioning Tuesdays. Evidently, I will not be breaking the pattern this week. That aside, hello and welcome to another musical interlude that, in the true spirit of my title, is as random as last week. I am once again visiting my “favorites” list and giving a bit of commentary/analysis on some of the songs.

I have two new additions to the list compliments of the Nerd of the Blog: Jump Jump and Dam Dadi Doo by Nightcore. Both are energetic techno songs that have now made their way into my rave list. They’re a bit hyper and high-pitched, but, after the initial shock, I like them quite a bit. Most importantly, they fulfill my requirement for fast and energetic music. I have recently found that I work best to techno because I tend to type/write at the speed of the music and it keeps me focused for studying.

I See the Light by Disney

I cannot express how much I love Tangled. If you haven’t seen it, you need to do so (same for How to Train Your Dragon which is mentioned later). Disney repeatedly has that one love song that marks the climax of the movie, and I See the Light is that song. The lyrics, in my opinion, either are or are among the most romantic I have heard from Disney which is saying quite a bit given how they are normally (though I may be slightly biased). The soft orchestral music highlights the vocal line throughout the piece and, as such, isn’t extremely noteworthy on its own. The vocal line focuses on the higher range of both voices unlike many songs and, after a moment of getting used to it, I’m beginning to like Mandy Moore’s unique style of singing in this movie. As the Nerd of the Blog, our resident Disney expert, pointed out to me, the melody is mainly a compilation of previous Disney classics that work surprisingly well together.

Testify to Love by Avalon

This has long been my favorite Christian song particularly of those recorded and played on the radio as opposed to those sung in my church alone. Apart from having a nice, open-sounding melody/harmony (not to be confused with open chords in the SATB composition for you music theory people), it is a classic praise song done in a more contemporary way to make it interesting. It took a good amount of effort for me to listen to it without singing along so as to figure out the exact chordal structure in order to write this post.

This is Berk by John Powell

First of all, How to Train Your Dragon is an absolutely amazing movie and the music lends to that heavily. It is a wonderfully dramatic mix of traditional European orchestral and Scottish styles (I believe it’s Scottish, but I could be wrong and there may be some Celtic influence as well). I have a great affinity for Scottish and Celtic pieces in general because of the runs and grace notes that, to me, are incredibly exciting (a theme that shows itself in my techno selections as well). I am reminded of my flute solo in Who Wants to Live Forever by Queen we performed two or three years ago. This particular piece is so powerful and well-recorded that I can, without any strain, imagine myself in the orchestra playing along.

The Wicked Symphony by Avantasia

I’m notoriously horrible at discerning the meaning of lyrics, so I will say before I begin that my love for this song is entirely independent of the lyrics (they may be great…but I can’t quite tell). The combination of traditional string instruments and electric guitar is very well done. It’s a generally bombastic song, but the guitar doesn’t overpower the rest – it’s just all on the powerful side. The key itself is amazing and the vocal line accents the best note patterns. Said vocal line is closer to yelling in some parts than I’m typically used to, but in this instance it sounds great.

Footloose by Kenny Loggins

Here is a classic entirely about dancing. It may not be deep, but it’s fun and it’s from the 80s (two of my many optional criteria for good music). The beat is perfect for dancing to if you can keep up and it’s been stolen for different songs countless times. The bass guitar has an interesting feature in the instrumental breaks, but the voices are the primary focus throughout.

Go On by B. Reith

This is probably the only rap song I have ever enjoyed listening to. It’s grown on me. As a rap song, it’s mostly about the lyrics which are hilarious. The entire song is essentially about how people can’t pronounce his name. The chorus is much more musical and pleasing to the ear. I would be quite happy if he expanded that melody into a real song, but, as it is, I still like it.

I hope you have enjoyed the musical selection. Once again, I challenge all of you to comment and list a song or two you might want me to talk about.

Until my next post (when I will finally be free of finals w00t!), have fun.

~ Entropy