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StaaViinsZ View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Topic: Bayside (Band) / (Music Theory?)
    Posted: September 24 2017 at 03:28
Anyone heard of the band Bayside? I got their self-titled record from VNYL (a Vinyl subscription service), and enjoyed it.

I recommend the whole thing, but the song "Montauk" inspired me greatly, and introduced me to one of my now all-time favorite chord progressions, which, along with "Don't Call Me Peanut" has also inspired a strange, accidental-filled, borderline Prog Jazz harmony sense in my music writing.

The progression to Montauk's Chorus (B-Minor, E-Minor, A-Major, D-Major, F#-Minor) is interesting in that it's one of the first chord progressions that I really felt like I could use "accidentals" (out of key notes) in a highly significant manner (more than just one as a transition or special case) and still make something actually beautiful. At least in a certain fresh or "pitiful, angsty" way. Or perhaps "emotional" is a better word. And really, emotions are at the center of lots of music-- aren't emotions what connects us to the sentiments expressed in the music of our choice? Whether it be Yes, Spock's Beard, or Bayside?

The song "Don't Call Me Peanut" introduced me to a whole new way of thinking about writing songs. If you use accidentals or strange chords or "dissonance" in the right way, you CAN make something beautiful that actually DOES have a sense of melody, and lead somewhere in a pleasing way. Plus, if you're going for an extreme "emotional" sound in your music, then the musical tone and mood fits perfectly.

Lately, I've been experimenting with more and more unique accidental tinged and laced harmonies, outlined with chord progressions I've known and loved for some time now-- and slowly discovering a whole new world of music. I used to hear "Jazz" and hear nonsense, a blur of strange notes, atonality, and dissonance. I still do hear that, sometimes, but lately, I've been listening to more and more, and going "Wow, you know, that really is beautiful and has a totally different but still awesomely good sense of melody, if you know how to do it right, and have a good musical backbone." In other words, I've been hearing JAZZ stuff and thinking "that sounds GOOD!", and I'm wondering if it's just my musical brain expanding and advancing, learning and becoming enamored with new, interesting harmonies.

For instance, I just stumbled across an impromtu Jazz street piano improv on Instagram. I listened to it once, and didn't really like it. I didn't really understand. I'm always a bit hesitant about Instagram videos and watching them at first because they usually make me feel bad about my own musical progress or captivate me for much too long out of my day. But anyway, towards the end, I started to hear the tonal centers more of the bass notes and chords, and, by the second listen, I found the entire thing gorgeous, and I was fascinated by my own musical taste. Suddenly, the whole thing made sense to me and it was like it was so awesome.

I'm also wondering if it's the music I'm hearing and finding that's changing-- or if it's just my view. It's a surreal experience when you start to hear things you previously might've shunned and disliked or totally seemed incapable of understanding, and you're starting to like and embrace them and actually find beauty in them.

What worries me just a tad though is that other people, on a different musical path than me (likely one of little musical advancement, like many non-musically obsessed western world citizens are), might hear something I write with strange harmonies I now find next to normal and beautiful, and think "that sounds really weird... I don't get that!" Which is a spacey, weird thought. Because if I hear the beauty in it... Everyone else surely can, too, right? Perhaps everyone is capable, but not willing, being so adjusted to traditional harmony that thinking outside the box is much too advanced for someone with little great interest in music, anyway, besides for the enjoyable tunes they stumble upon.

And really, we can all be that way, I suppose. And I suppose if I really step out, I should probably realize most of what I do is heavily rooted in traditional progressions and harmony, even if I am expanding to new horizons every day with accidentals and fascinating harmonies. Which means that it's normal enough to not totally go over everyone's head while I still find it beautiful.


But it's still a weird thought, and true, that if you delve in far enough... You could find yourself in a musical place that many western music listeners simply are NOT at-- an expanded sense of harmony that you'll have to reign back to write songs that make sense to other people, and not just you (and those three dudes at the café).

But anyway, before this band (Bayside, remember? That seems like so long ago, I was talking about them...), accidentals just never worked for me and writing very much. Perhaps it was a natural maturation-- but still, I wonder why this particular progression seems to lend itself to "grace-notes" galore, (grace-notes are a piano-based concept of usually quickly played accidental notes that usually quickly land on an in-key note, therefor "forgiving" the out-of-key tonality, hence the term "grace-note") and why it seems that I can play around with making each chord in the progression cycle quickly between major and minor versions, and yet, still come up with something... That sounds good to me, that I like?


Feel free to talk and possibly derail this thread with music theory and/or other discussion of topics. Apologies for starting this thread off with such a monster post. Just brainstorming!

Best Wishes!

P.S. And don't forget to check out Bayside's S/T!

Stephen


Edited by StaaViinsZ - September 24 2017 at 03:56
"Let us scream like Tom Mallicoat, and whisper like Geoff Tate, for the difference between the two is nigh."
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miamiscot View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: September 27 2017 at 08:48
Bayside is actually a really cool band. I love their acoustic live LP.
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