Moby Analysis

GCSE Music AOS2 Popular Music In Context
Club Dance Music Moby Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?
Song Structure
Section
Intro Verse 1 Chorus Verse 2 Break
Bar Numbers
1-8 9-40 41-48 57-72 73
Chorus
Outro
74-97
98-105
Intro Section
o o o o o Tonic key of A minor is established. Time signature is 4 crotchets beats in a bar. Tempo is 98bpm (beats per minute). Song begins with the chord sequence 1 shown below. Piano establishes chord sequence 1 (see next slide).
Chord Sequence 1
Bar 1 Bar 2 Bar 3 Bar 4 Bar 5 Bar 6 Bar 7 Bar 8 Am Am Em Em G G D D
Intro Section
o Piano establishes chord sequence 1, see example below.
Verse 1
o Verse 1 consists of four repeats of chord sequence one that was previously heard in the Intro section. As a result verse 1 can be split into the following sections:
Section of Song Verse 1 Bars 9-40 Sub-section Sub-Section 1 Bar Numbers 9-16
Sub-Section 2
Sub-Section 3 Sub-section 4
17-24
25-32 33-40
Chord Sequence 1
Bar 1 Bar 2 Bar 3 Bar 4 Bar 5 Bar 6 Bar 7 Bar 8 Am Am Em Em G G D D
Verse 1: Sub-Section 1
o Sub-section 1 follows chord sequence 1. o First vocal sample is introduced and simple piano accompaniment from the Intro continues.
o Vocal sample is very untidy as you can hear echo's & traffic noises in the back ground.
o Sub-section 2 follows chord sequence 1. Vocal sample & piano accompaniment continue. o Drum/percussion loop is introduced playing a hip-hop style rhythm. o You can also hear a sustained synthesiser pad playing bass notes with the left hand of the piano.
o There is a similar synthesiser pad which is also doubled by the right hand high notes of the piano playing the response section in the call & response texture with the vocal sample. (See next slide).
o Call & Response between vocal sample, string synthesiser & right hand of piano.
o Sub-section 3 follows chord sequence 1. Vocal sample, piano accompaniment continue & call & response idea continues. o A synthesiser bass part & string synthesiser part is added to fill out the texture with long sustained chords in the mid to high pitch range.
o Sub-section 4 follows chord sequence 1. Vocal sample, call & response idea, synthesiser bass part & string synthesiser continue. o The piano accompaniment continues but playing a different syncopated rhythm & decorating the chord sequence through the use of suspension chords in particular sus2 & sus4 chords.
Chorus 1
o Chorus 1 is split into two different sections as can be seen in the table below:
Section of Song Chorus 1 Bars 41-56 Sub-section Sub-Section 1 Sub-Section 2 Bar Numbers 41-48 49-56
o Chorus sub-section 1 uses chord sequence 2.

Bar 1 C Bar 2 C Bar 3 Am Bar 4 Am Bar 5 C Bar 6 C Bar 7 Am Bar 8 Am
o Chorus sub-section 2 uses chord sequence 3.

Bar 1 F Bar 2 F Bar 3 C Bar 4 C Bar 5 F Bar 6 F Bar 7 C Bar 8 C
Chorus 1: Sub-section 1
o Chord sequence changes to chord sequence 2, with a dramatic lifting effect on the mood. o Key is now ambiguous it could be either A minor like verse 1 or C major as both of these chords are used in the chord sequence. o Second vocal sample is used on the lyrics These open doors .
o Texture is similar to sub-section 4 of verse 1. o The answering phrases between the synthesiser & piano have been replaced with more subtle phrases in the right hand of the piano part.
o The synthesiser string part is now more a part of the background, becoming more prominent towards the end of the chorus.
o Chorus 1: sub-section 2 uses chord sequence 3. o The music is now clearly in C major, this is confirmed by chord sequence 3 as all the chord in the sequence belong to C major. o The texture remains the same as in in sub-section 1. The main difference is that the sample is retriggered faster than in sub-section 1. As a result the sample answers itself in the call & response pattern. o Echos & shouts are added.
Verse 2
o Verse 2 is split into two different sections as can be seen in the table below:
Section of Song Verse 2 Bars 57-72 Sub-section Sub-Section 1 Sub-Section 2 Bar Numbers 57-64 65-72
o Verse 2 returns to chord sequence one & as a result the key changes back to A minor.
Verse 2: Sub-sections 1 & 2

Sub-section 1 o Verse 2 sub-section 1 is very similar to verse 1 sub-section 4. o The vocal sample has the following an echo effect added & a telephone voice EQ is applied to the echo which makes it sound much thinner. o The echo effect is delayed & there are a number of repeats of the echo which gradually fade away.
Sub-section 2 o Sub-section 2 is an exact repeat of sub-section 1.
Break
o The break section consists of a single bar where all the instruments have dropped out.
Section of Song Break Bar 73
o Dying repeats of the delay effect on the Eqed vocal echo. o A quiet delay repeat of the snare drum which was playing in the drum loop of verse 2. o Tailing off of the reverb that has been applied to the other parts.
Chorus 2
o Chorus 2 is split into two different sections as can be seen in the table below, however the second section of this chorus repeats.
Section of Song Chorus 1 Bars 41-56 Sub-section Sub-Section 1 Sub-Section 2 Sub-section 2 Bar Numbers 74-81 82-89 90-97
o Sub-section 1 uses chord sequence 2 as in chorus 1. o Vocal sample 2 from chorus 1 is used. Reverb & delay has been added to it to make it sound distant.
o The reverb & delay also blend it in with the lush string pad part which is playing the static chords. o Drums enter at bar 81 leading into sub-section 2.
Bars 82-89 o Similar to sub-section 2 of chorus 1, uses chord sequence 3 as in chorus 1. o Reverb on the vocal sample 2 has been dramatically reduced from sub-section 1. It now sound clearer & more prominent even though it is no louder than it was in sub-section 1. Bars 90-97 o This repeat of sub-section 2 is unexpected as we are anticipating an immediate return to the verse. o Repeating or extending the chorus at the end of a song is a common song writing trick which signify's that the song is coming to the end.
Outro
o The outro is the final section of the song & uses chord sequence 1.
Section of Song Outro Bars 98-105
o Texture reduces to just vocal sample 1 accompanied by synth pad playing the chord sequence using static chords.
Important Points
Sampling o Moby left in the background noise on the vocal samples as he felt that this enhanced the emotional content of the song as well as the emotional reaction of the listener. Musical Effects o In electronic music using effects is an important development tool. Moby uses a number of subtle techniques including reverb, delay, & equalisation (EQ). He also pays particular attention to the placement of sound within the stereo field, this means where they have been placed within the left-hand & right-hand speakers.
Important Points
Harmonies o Harmonies in dance music are usually very simple. Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad only consists of 6 chords. These chords were selected because of the emotional response they would provoke from the listener rather a musical theory. As a result we have a unique combination of chords being used.

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GCSE Music AOS2 Popular Music In Context

Club Dance Music Moby Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?

o Chorus sub-section 1 uses chord sequence 2.

o Chorus sub-section 2 uses chord sequence 3.

Verse 2: Sub-sections 1 & 2

Sub-section 2 o Sub-section 2 is an exact repeat of sub-section 1.

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