CHords

I have been thinking about the actual mechanics of songwriting lately. Probably because Rob, who I play in a band with, and I have such different approaches but both write a ton of songs. I know that mine are different but, it is the only way I can write so I have been wondering exactly what makes my songs the way they are. This means that I have been dwelling on song construction to the point that that becomes the entirety of my interest in songs. Witness this Pearl Jam number. I must state that Pearl Jam was a band I was not very into. I saw them live however in 1992 or 93 and they were incredible. I have never bought any of their stuff, but I have come to be comfortable with liking some of their songs. This is the one I have been dwelling on lately. "Hail, Hail." What I have been focusing on with this is the fact that they know they have this bad-ass chord change so they just make it the whole song. They throw on some other stuff to appease the sense of how a song goes, but the meat of the song is that great: D F C# D G A B# A# bit that is almost good enough to be in a Hoover song. Of course, if it had been Hoover they would have told the bridge and verse to fuck off and just rocked that part.



Having this song in my head kept turning the cranks and telling me their is another song, an earlier song which it favors. I could get the chorus in my head. I could hear the bass. But, I just couldn't place it. Then I the gears cranked around and I heard the trumpet and I realized it was Fishbone's "Sunless Saturday." Another solid effort. How many bands use the word "abscond" in a sentence? It's funny how any band now who couldn't cut it in the heavy metal scene and bought a drum machine and Adobe Audition are now a hybrid fusion of rap metal. Look out, Fishbone's sneaking up behind you and they roll with canes and bowlers.