Understanding Seven Nation Army
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 27 มิ.ย. 2024
- Seven Nation Army is arguably the most iconic bassline ever recorded. It's been adapted by countless musicians, and it's even become a stadium chant. But how did that happen? How did this humble walk down the minor scale become such a global sensation, and what can it teach us about the power of repetition?
Patreon: / 12tonevideos
Merch: standard.tv/12tone
Discord: / discord
Mailing List: eepurl.com/bCTDaj
Facebook: / 12tonevideos
Twitter: / 12tonevideos
Twitch: / 12tonevideos
Instagram: / 12tonevideos
Email: 12tonevideos@gmail.com
Last: • How I'd Learn Music Th...
Script: tinyurl.com/636dk6ps
Huge thanks to our Elephant of the Month Club members:
Susan Jones
Jill Jones
Duck
Howard Levine
Ron Jones
Brian Etheredge
Khristofor Saraga
Len Lanphar
Ken Arnold
Elaine Pratt
William (Bill) Boston
Chris Prentice
Jack Carlson
Christopher Lucas
Andrew Beals
Dov Zazkis
Hendrik Payer
Thomas Morley
Jacob Helwig
Davis Sprague
Alex Knauth
Braum Meakes
Hendrik Stüwe
Dan Bonelli
Kevin Boyce
Allyson
Scott Howarth
Luke
Kelly Christoffersen
Kevin Wilamowski
Symmetry
Donal Botkin
Dhruv Monga
Ken Jones
Obadiah Wright
Kobalent
Stephen Cook
Jesse Anderton
Jason Nebergall
Carlos Rendon
Lyan Porto
David Bartz
Sofia Sangiorgio
Aleksandar Milojković
And thanks as well to Henry Reich, Gabi Ghita, Gene Lushtak, Owen Campbell-Moore, Eugene Bulkin, Logan Jones, Oliver, Anna Work, Adam Neely, Rick Lees, Dave Mayer, Paul Quine, CodenaCrow, Arnas, Caroline Simpson, Michael Alan Dorman, Dmitry Jemerov, Michael McCormick, Blake Boyd, Luke Rihn, Charles Gaskell, Ian Seymour, Trevor Sullivan, Tom Evans, Elliot Jay O'Neill, Favrion The Man, JH, Chris Borland, David Conrad, Lamadesbois, Chris Chapin, Alex Atanasyan, Elliot Burke, Tim S., Elias Simon, Jerry D. Brown, Jake Lizzio, Todd Davidson, Ohad Lutzky, James A. Thornton, Brian Dinger, Peter Leventis, Stefan Strohmaier, Shadow Kat, Adam Wurstmann, Kelsey Freese, Aaron Epstein, Blake White, Chris Connett, Angela Flierman, Richard T. Anderson, Kevin Johnson, Kenneth Kousen, James, h2g2guy, W. Dennis Sorrell, Ryan, Matthew Kallend, Rodrigo "rrc2soft" Roman, Jeremy Zolner, Patrick Callier, Danny, Francois LaPlante, Volker Wegert, Joshua Gleitze, Britt Ratliff, Darzzr, Melvin Martis, Joshua La Macchia, Professor Elliot, Jozef Paffen, Charles Hill, Alexey Fedotov, Alex Keeny, Valentin Lupachev, John Bejarano, Roming 22, Gary Butterfield, Steve Brand, Rene Miklas, Andrew Engel, max thomas, Red Uncle, Peter Brinkmann, Doug Nottingham, Nicholas Wolf, Robert Beach, ZagOnEm, Naomi Ostriker, Alex Mole, Kaisai Morihito, Tuna, Mathew Wolak, T, Lincoln Mendell, Betsy, Tonya Custis, Dave Shapiro, Jacopo Cascioli, Sam Rezek, Matt McKegg, Beth Martyn, Lucas Augusto, Caitlin Olsen, NoticeMK, Evan Satinsky, RaptorCat, CoryC, Rafael Martinez Salas, Walther, Jigglypuffer, leftaroundabout ., Jens Schäfer, Mikely Whiplash, room34, Austin Amberg, Doug Lantz, Graeme Lewis, Jake Sand, Kayla Sparks, Max Glass, Francisco Rodrigues, Elizabeth, Michael Tsuk, Aditya Baradwaj, Matt Ivaliotes, Yuval Filmus, ThoraSTooth, Robert McIntosh, Brandon Legawiec, Brx, Jim Hayes, Evgeni Kunev, Hikaru Katayamma, Juan Madrigal, Alon Kellner, Özgür Kesim, Rob Hardy, Scott Albertine, Mark Henning, Patrick Chieppe, Eric Stark, David Haughn, Gordon Dell, Dave Hooper, Byron DeLaBarre, Matty Crocker, anemamata, Brian Miller, Lee-orr Orbach, Eric Plume, Kevin Pierce, Jon Hancock, רועי סיני, John Carter, Caleb Meyer, Conor Stuart Roe, Jason Peterson, Peggy Youell, Dragix PL, EJ Hambleton, Jos Mulder, Daryl Banttari, J.T. Vandenbree, Gary Evesson, Kottolett, Brian Stephens, Dylan Vidas, David Taylor, Cereus, Carlos Silva, John Castle, Wayne Robinson, Gabriel Totusek, SecretKittehs, Mnemosyne Music, AkselA, Philip Miller, Sam Plotkin, Sean Thompson, David MacDonald, Jeremiah Coleman, Nellie Speirs Baron, Charles R., Josh, Brian Davis, Eric Daugherty, The Gig Farmer, Sam, Hunter Embry, DialMForManning, Wayne Weil, Michael Wehling, darkmage, Jeff Bair, Thomas Morgan, Ludwick Kennedy, James, David Peterson, Bryan C. Mills, Ridley Kemp, Mark James, Bean, Paul, Jeremy Ryan Pierce, Milan Brezovsky, Edmund Horner, Daria Gibbons, TJ FUNCTION, and NinoDoko! Your support helps make 12tone even better!
Also, thanks to Jareth Arnold and Sofia Sangiorgio for proofreading the script to make sure this all makes sense hopefully!
Some additional thoughts/corrections:
1) Technically, the track with the percussive tones contains not just the pick noise frequencies but the full spectrum range. The center track, though, seems to be missing the frequencies from around 4500-8000 hertz, which is probably where those slaps live.
2) Also, one thing I maybe should explicitly mentioned is that, since they aren't really intentionally placed at all, the pick sounds move around from riff to riff: Some notes they're prominent, others they're not really there, and that changes every time, just like the microrhythms do.
3) If you're curious about the exact rhythm, it seems like the last note is usually about 20% shorter than the first one. The middle note fluctuates a lot, but overall I clocked it to roughly a 12:13:15 ratio. (Honestly 8:9:10 might've been a little more accurate, but that would've been significantly harder to notate.)
4) To be clear I don't actually think Adam Neely would describe the b6 in this riff as nostalgic. Adam understands that notes can fill multiple roles depending on context. (If I recall correctly, that "b6 is nostalgic" thing was explicitly tied to major-key contexts anyway.) I was just doing a goof.
5) On the drum transcription, I want to shout out the video on this song by Duke Grooves. I wasn't entirely sure if Meg was playing the kick along with the tom, so I looked it up, and his seemed to be the most thorough and accurate one out there: th-cam.com/video/-35X52OwDAs/w-d-xo.html
6) I described the drums as progressive layering but honestly the whole song could be described that way. I decided not to 'cause it doesn't capture the transition or the change in vocal melody but those are fairly surface-level differences. Overall the whole thing is just building layers.
7) I described the effect on the voice as digital distortion and I think there's some of that, but to be more precise, it sounds to me like a radio voice effect, where they dampen the highs and lows to make it feel like it's coming through a cheap radio without much dynamic range.
8) The G# in the guitar power chord could also be a product of intermodulation (That is, he may not have actually played it, it might have come from the effects and distortion layered on top of it) but since it's more prominent on that one time than the others I don't think that's it. Not sure, though.
9) Wow I had a lot of extra thoughts this time, huh?
Nice
Certainly
The major 3ds on the power chords are actually from playing them with a slide in an open A tuning
On point #8: The best transcriptions I've seen state that the guitars are actually played in an Open A tuning, with a slide. All of those chords are major chords.
Yeah, those chord are not just power chord because of how he played it, there's a nice video with Jack White, Jimmy Page and The Edge talking together and specifically talking about Seven Nation Army and showcasing how he plays it and the slide also add a twangy overtone with the distortion that can make it fuller than if it were simply power chord.
Repetition legitimizes
Repetition legitimizes
Repetition legitimizes
Repetition legitimizes
Satisfying
Repetition legitimizes
Draw an elephant blinking two times if you're currently being held hostage by Adam.
🐘 😉 😉
🤣
This wins the 2021 You Tube comment award.
In honor of this comment youtube should implement "Comment Recommendations"
😑🐘😑🐘
“Seven nation army is a wonderful simple anthem of garage rock- *17 minutes of analysis later* -and then they just end!”
When the button note was played the video should have ended.
Simple in the most complicated way.
0
12tone: some of you may take issue with how I have notated it...
Me, knowing absolutely nothing about music: outrageous
LMAO. Yes. My music theory is my soul, and it’s incalculable. I know 3rds,5ths, octaves, triplets, BLAH, by the natural feeling of its frequencies. This guy’s knowledge is incredible though. But, analytics is a creativity killer if your a songwriter. I write from the beating of my heart. Stay safe! 😂
Same 😂
"Part of that aesthetic is underproduction"
*Draws the 12tone symbol*
Well, I mean, he does write out all his videos on paper
Lmao
true
Underpoduction, or preferred aesthetic. You saw potato, I say shakshuka. 😅
Teacher: This homework is so sloppy!
Me: Yeah, but it's a very specific kind of sloppy
The progressively shorter and shorter answers to each subsequent question reflects the urgency and panic I felt while slowly realizing I was running out of time to complete the assignment. This uneven descent from passable to unintelligible drives inevitably toward the realization that I'll do the exact same thing next week and the week after, until I either drop out or graduate. Repetition legitimizes.
@@badwolf4239 Stop it, you guys!
This is unreasonably funny.
@@svrvphimprod No it's not!
"It's embedded with human experience. Would you prefer my work to be perfect and artificial? You don't gotta draw inside the lines, teach."
How long can you talk about 2 bars?
12tone: yes. :'D
12tone: How much time ya got?
4 bars
@@StratsRUs nope, 8 quarters, unless you suggest seeing (well, hearing) it in 2/4
The laser sound from the pitched picking actually comes from a spring reverb effect
^
instant surf tone
yes it is 100% intentional and not “a little gem meant for us to find”
@@andrewutz3674 Being intentional and "a gem meant for us to find" are not mutually exclusive. In fact "a gem MEANT for us to find" means it's intentional.
@@bluebonics8079 dawg it’s spring reverb. i heard it the first time I listened to the track, it’s not hidden. in fact it’s blatantly in your face.
By explaining the power in repetition within 7 nation army, 12tone just inadvertently described multiple genres of electronic music as a whole.
I couldn't think of anything but techno, IDM, French and Progressive House towards the ending of this video.
As a drummer, can I just add that it’s kinda genius for Meg white to be playing that hihat at all times when not playing the snare, bc the way hihats resonate they sound texturally similar to snares sometimes, and I think that by playing the hihat in the beginning and other parts it creates this pseudo-snare/pseudo-aggression that provides a snare-like sound but makes it much easier to pay attention to that sweet, sweet riff baby
People always call Meg a bad drummer but she’s actually not half bad
She's only a quarter bad
Not gonna lie, I thought this said “Soviet Nation Army” and I was totally ready for analysis on the Soviet national anthem…
That needs to be a Weird Al song!
"God, I don't know why anyone watches these videos"
Me: Subscribes
I believe I can explain the G# in the chorus. As far as I know, Jack plays this song in an open G tuning. That is, the guitar is tuned to DGDGBD. The chorus is then played with a slide. The slide can only cover one fret at a time and, if it comes in contact with the B string, will ring out the major third of whatever chord is being played. So, along with the G#, I think you can occasionally pick up a rogue B, F#, E, and D# over the G, D, C, and B power chords, respectively. Maybe I'm wrong though!
Only minor correction, it's an open A, you can hear it sometimes in the chords section when he just picks at the loose strings between repetitions
@@loukabarone Oops, that's right, thanks!
yeah i wrote this too, jack isn't a technical player as much as a tone freak. he uses very weird effects all of the time to make the guitar more than it actually is. but because not every guitarist is a producer and this song is one of the best beginners song, the thought of the tone and producing technics doesn't really sink in, and everybody learn this song for like the first 3 lessons and move on. and the song remains that beginner easy and boring song
@@danielhayun304 Yep, good point. In fact, I recall (from some interview) Jack mentioned that he prefers listening to music that he wouldn't know how to recreate himself. In other words, I think he's a big fan of production wizardry and perfecting tone.
Also commented this. Any tuning that has the (standard) B string tuned 2 full steps above the (standard) G string will have E and G# be right above each other. I also encountered this covering the song in high school in my garage band and would play around with it, sometimes using it sometimes not. It's got that whole "We're gonna have a major 3rd here even though it's minor just because blues/rock" thing I love.
The looser time to keep always added a degree of emotion to the delivery. Like the rising and falling illustrates Jack's wavering emotions as he delivers it. I know I sound different when I'm playing relaxed vs anxious vs tired vs angry.
As someone who did pep band in middle school this song forever haunts my nightmares
Brother in trauma
Alongside Hey Baby, We Will Rock You, and Twist and Shout
@@brifox Ooh, Twist and Shout is a name I am unfamiliar with, however Crazy Train (yes that one) is hell
I assume this is like the rock equivalent to Canon in D
@@brifox Hey baby is a certified banger and no it is not only bc I'm in low brass but mostly yes it is bc I'm in low brass
*Three times is enough to establish the pattern*
Man, Jack really loves the number 3.
he's obsessed with it dude, there's a analysis video that's like 7 minutes and lilke at least 2 minutes of the video is talking about how Jack often use the number
@@michaelnajoan5104 If you talk about the Polyphonic video, yeah... I've seen it. It's kinda amusing how much he looms over that number.
Anf if you're not talking about that video, can you tell me what video are you talking about? lol
@@Zaffre_ENTMT I don't remember which one, but if I was correct it was one of Middle 8's video that talked about it, I just don't know which one
0:13 "C'mon, you know how it goes" *sings it in 12/8 time*
After 7 nation army, I think feel good inc. is one of the most iconic bass lines.
I've played this song _countless_ times during my time in marching band. Brings back some good memories and adds so much depth to a song that I only played 4 measures of over and over. Thanks 12Tone!
I wish we did when i was in marching band i played flute and that woulda be fun
@@rhinoispro8559 At my school (I play snare) it's only low brass and drumline up in the stands
Playing seven nation, not in general.
The song is definitely a meme
"it might make sense for a band like sungazer"
LOOOL
Repetition Legitimizes
One of my favorite examples of "robot rock" would be Radiohead's "The National Anthem". It's a five-minute loop of a riff made with only four notes, and yet I can still listen to it endlessly.
It's the horn section that does it for me. It's the same reason I like QOTSA "I Think I Lost My Headache". Both players from the Disneyland band I believe, but not necessarily the same individuals.
@@mal2ksc I think the horn section is really key to the sound, a really big portion of the track is just that riff, vocals, and drums. Even under the horns, the riff continues underneath
They tried this approach again on Ful Stop. It’s only two notes. ^^
My favorite is "Robot Rock"
Cory, Adam Neely and Mr Plinkett walk into a bar
It's not a joke, I just want this to become reality
Make that two
I know the middle guy..but who are the other ones? I take it 12 Tone is one of them, still leaves one out
@@AtomizedSound Cory is 12 tone and Plinkett is a creation of RedLetterMedia.
Also, in RLM's Plinkett review of The Phantom Menace, he says "You may not have noticed, but your brain did."
C'est ne pas une joke
"its an exercise in repetition
that repetition becomes inevitable
that inevitability becomes powerful
and that power becomes endlessly compelling"
i love that
I hate how when you said robot rock I automatically sang the line from Daft Punk's "Robot Rock" out loud
I think of engineer gaming
gaming
Be proud
Robot Rock kinda is Robot Rock
I'm gonna miss those guys...
At least they went out with a bang
The triplet is a classic case of "I can feel it".
Think about how abd this would sound if someone produced it to death with a computer.
It's a lot like the whole Master of Puppets thing. Both are meant to be felt by both the player and the listener. You're meant to notice it. Putting it perfectly in time on a grid would hide it more, make it seem natural but also boring. To give it impact, you play it off. And as Mr. Neely loves to say, repetition legitimizes. Play it twice and now it still feels off but also right in a way that moving something a perfect 64th or 128th note never can.
The music teacher at my high school hated the following songs:
Eye of the Tiger
Smoke on the Water
Seven Nation Army
All because they're the songs she hears constantly, as a music teacher
Every elementary music teacher will physically cringe if you so much as hint you'll play Hot Cross Buns
How can you forget Stairway to Heaven?
@@arizonagreenbee they made us play it all the fucking time
@@OriginalKingRichTv my sixth grade teacher almost cried when I learned it on euphonium
They were marching band songs, we had to keep bringing them back so the older students could help the younger ones learn without having to start entirely from scratch!
Minor correction: On the pre-chorus thingy, the chords are G5 and A major. And also the chorus chords are all major, he played it in a guitar tuned to open A with a slide strumming all the strings.
so…you could say that’s a “major” correction
*badum-tss*
He also does not play a bass in this song.
You said you don't know why people watch your videos... well I've watched off and on for a while now.. and as a music theory novice.. I have learned so much to from you to try to incorporate into my playing. If I ever release a song you will be in the credits as a coach or something
For reals. The first album I drop is going to be less a work of art and more a thesis on applied 12tone music theory.
My motivation is harder to explain - I don't play any instrument, and _cannot_ sing. My only interest in music is as a consumer. .... I can only assume that YT thought I would be interested as I watch a _lot_ of guitar videos, including virtually all of Trogley's videos for the past three years, plus some of Rick Beato's videos. .... Did I mention that I don't play _any_ instrument, and cannot sing? :-/
Never knew Ratatoskr was into music theory
@@TheDutchCreeperTDC well I mean he's a god.. so yeah lol. Might have hopped onto Apollos chariot or something
I think what keeps me coming back to 12 Tone is that it's applying music theory to the music I really love. Well, that and all the little easter eggs in the illustrations (The Periodic Table cell for technicium when something is rare, the pennyfarthing bicycle when something refers to the number 6, etc.) Oh heck, the whole aesthetic of the channel is compelling.
When i was a guitar teacher I transcribed this bassline for students and nearly lost my mind trying to figure out if the walkdown was a triplet or a tresillo. For clarity of reading I think I went with triplets and then told my students to play it by ear lol. It was a good lesson in the limits of notation
I teach kids how to play music in bands, and this video is a great summary of lots of reasons why this is a really fun song for them to play. The way the song builds repeatedly gives each of the members of the band something fun to do in the song
"Robot Rock"
Daft Punk, Joy Electric, and Kraftwerk: Allow us to introduce ourselves.
I would likely refer to the way Jack White plays the riff as doing so with rubato. Perhaps it is an antiquated term, but I still consciously utilize rubato in a lot of my playing.
You're like Joni Mitchell, but different!
thanks for sharing this! didn't know the term until now
Can you explain what rubato is? I'm uninformed and don't really feel like googling it
Rubato is basically slowing or speeding what you are playing to give it expression.
I definitely agree it fits that bill, but I also think his mention of micro rhythms fits that as well. As a drummer I love giving things a "bouncy" or groove between drums, essentially playing flams between them with maybe the delayed "bounce" or rebound I mentioned. I think Isolating his guitar does it rhythmic injustice because I hear those "flams" between him and meg, in my mind he's playing "around" her more solid beat, rhythmically. I believe it's an inherent groove thing, and if you look deep enough into it it's not so different than the harmonic series if you think of BPM as very low hertz.. like 120 BPM is a 2hz beat. Now apply the naturally occurring rules of the "harmonic series" to that and you have what I believe is approaching groove. Like rhythmic harmony.
Great review. The "played" instead of "produced" feel is definitely a huge part of what makes this song (and album) great.
From the liner notes of the Album: No Computers were used in the creation of this album.
That reminds me a little of Queen, and how they put "no synthesizers" in their liner notes, until The Game, at least. (though, they kinda lied, cuz there's a stylophone on the end of Seven Seas of Rhye lol)
@@chrisjamesr77 man I never knew that about Queen (or Elephant for that matter) but that’s disheartening to hear. Gatekeeping “how good rock music is made” is so lame
@@BradsGonnaPlay Apparently the reason Queen did that was because an early review of their first single Keep Yourself Alive said something about the "nice synthesizer work" or something like that, and I assume that Brian May was annoyed that someone would mistake his unique guitar sound for that.
But anyway, like I said, from The Game onward, they were using synths all over the place, lol
@@BradsGonnaPlay "Gatekeeping rock music" is basically Jack White in a nutshell. He's good at what he does but goddamn is he ever an asshole about it.
In direct opposition to another album of the same era, which is named something like “computer? OK!”
Thank you for the captions! This Deaf viewer is able to follow along and enjoy ❤️
This was our unofficial high school band theme song.
Maybe we can summon @adamneely with that
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Maybe we can summon @adamneely with that
Maybe we can summon @adamneely with that
Maybe we can summon @adamneely with that
Yes, I'm very into that joke.
It worked
To me, the slide guitar is crucial to this song, and should be mentioned in an analysis.
It points towards the blues tradition, of using one "riff" for the whole song. Similar to a song like Smoke Stack Lightning by Howlin' Wolf.
To me Jack also had a vocal delivery similar to very old traditional blues singers, especially when he goes in to his higher register.
There's definitely some of that blues DNA in there, also in the solo going up around the twelfth fret for the solo, similar to traditional blues slide soloing, possibly inspired by Son House.
To me White Stripes was always a blues band with a garage rock sound and aesthetic.
Well said. It's hard to understand this without the context of their earlier work.
Not a bad take. huh.
There is a lot of power in just stopping once you've said what you want to say. This is true in public speaking, it's especially true in extemporaneous speaking, and there's no reason to be surprised that it's true in music as well. I particularly liked the discussion of microrhythms; I feel like one of the things that draws me to my favorite songs is the rhythm underlying everything. Songs like Walkin on Sunshing (Katrina and the Waves) and Life is a Highway (Tom Cochrane) make me bang them out on the steering wheel if I'm listening while I'm driving, and stick in my head as my brain tries to process exactly what's going on, and ... other things I have a hard time putting into words. Rhythms are important and I'm always excited when the analysis dives into that end of the pool.
I love this song and this video, and I also love that my pep band days were well behind me when this song caught fire. Jack's often said that he's proud to have made an entry in the folk songbook and it feels crazy that that can happen in the 21st century, but also that is how folk music works.
I'm from Italy, and let me tell you, when we won the cup this sunday this song was put on a friggin LOOP. It truly never gets old
My. Guy. I've always wondered a) Why I couldn't accurately tap along to the beat...the microrhythms explains that completely b) why I enjoyed such a "basic" riff...man.
Thank you for this. This is the first video I've seen of yours and this is absolutely killer. I'm only 6.5 minutes in and I've already had my mind blown once or twice 😂🤘🏽
I was at a rock festival in Werchter, Belgium in 2003. This song was voted best song of the festival.
The White Stripes didn't play at the festival. The song was one of the tracks that played between acts. The crowd always sang along to this riff and we all got really into it.
The G# in the riff at the chorus is because he plays this riff with a *slide* and the fingering position of a power chord with a slide makes a (sort of) "major chord"
jack isn't known for his great technical and complex playing, he is more known for his unique tone and sound that is really different from a lot of other guitarists.
I'm glad to be old enough to remember the release of Seven Nation Army. I got hypnotized by this riff immediately and I knew it's exceptional, but I did not expect I'm witnessing the birth of a legend.
As a lefty, I appreciate your drawing from right to left.
Most iconic bassline of all time: "Good Times" by the CHIC Organization - written by Nile Rodgers & Bernard Edwards (the bassist). The disco/funk 1978 song which became the bassline for "Rapper's Delight" by Sugar Hill Gang also spawned the funk & punk rock flavor of the eighties and it's the father of commercial hip-hop. Right after "Good Times" it gave birth to Queen's "Another One Bites The Dust" with full blessings from Bernard Edwards & Nile Rodgers as they were both in the studio with Queen as it was being written and recorded. It then gave birth to INXS's "New Sensation" from the album that Nile Rodgers produced for them and continued to flavor their funkier tunes including "I Need You Tonight". It can be heard on Blondie's recording of "Rapture". Deborah Harry of Blondie was responsible for introducing Nile Rodgers to actual Hip Hop parties in New York City in the Bronx & Brooklyn where he heard they played the "Good Times" bassline for hours while rappers rhymed over it. These are just the first infants out of multi thousands of songs that bassline spawned moved on to including David Bowie's most popular hits (which Nile Rodgers produced for him specifically to create hits.) I can not list all in this paragraph but just thought I'd drop it into your "arguably the most iconic bassline" statement.
Jesus, I came back, listened to the song and I'm shocked I never head those picking "reflections"!!!
2:39 I suspect the lasery part to be a spring reverb that has been added to the sound before pitching everything down.
I enjoyed this video - thanks for making it! An additional thing I would mention is the studio that "Elephant" was recorded in - Toe Rag Studios in London. The White Stripes had met Toe Rag owner Liam Watson on their first UK tour in 2001 and decided to record an album there after visiting the studio with all its classic analogue equipment.
Liam Watson recorded, engineered, and mixed "Elephant" (although Jack White also has a mixing credit). In a 2006 interview, he described how "Seven Nation Army" was recorded:
BMI: For the benefit of any skeptical readers out there, could you please describe how you went about recording the White Stripes using nothing but tape and eight tracks?
LIAM WATSON: Sure thing. I suppose the best-known song on Elephant is “Seven Nation Army.” For starters, here’s what the track sheet looked like:
Track 1: guitar overdub - amp 1
Track 2: main vocal
Track 3: live guitar - amp 1
Track 4: drums
Track 5: bass drum
Track 6: live guitar - amp 2
Track 7: guitar overdub - amp 2
Track 8: second vocals/lead guitar solo
The band played the song live with a guide vocal going to one track on the 8-track machine. Jack’s guitar was going through two separate amps at the same time; I miked these with AKG and Shure dynamic mics, each amp having its own track. I miked the drums with AKG dynamic and condenser mics, and used a Shure dynamic mic on the snare. I mixed the drums to a single track, except for the bass drum, which had a track of its own. When we got a take the band was happy with, another guitar was added using the same two separate amps with the same miking scheme. For the lead vocal, I used two different mics: one old Neumann condenser going into the desk, and a Shure dynamic going to a small guitar amp, which I miked with an AKG dynamic. I then mixed both together with a little tape delay and spring reverb through a compressor and recorded them onto the track I’d been using for the guide vocal, wiping that one in the process. With the main vocal finished we added a second vocal pass, recorded exactly the same way as the first and taking up the last unused track on the machine. The last thing we did was the lead-guitar part, which was recorded the same as the other guitars, again using the two separate amps.
BMI: Except now you’re out of tracks?
LIAM WATSON: No problem, I just mixed the mics to mono and then recorded the solo onto the same track as the second vocal!
source: www.bmi.com/news/entry/Tips_from_the_Top_Liam_Watson_of_Toerag_Studios
the idea that the song “isn’t so much a song as a groove” feels really key-totally changed the way i look at this song and probably others!!! great analysis, thanks as always for sharing!!
This is a great video telling us how music is humanized or rather what’s lacking in artificial music
Que Adam Neely repeating “repetition legitimizes” repeatedly.
@Zbigniew G its because repetition legitimises
I love how he switched to his right hand to draw a sloppy elephant :-D
When you talked about leaving in the possible error at the “solo” part, it reminded me of Yes’s performance of Close To The Edge off of the Yessongs album/documentary. Jon Anderson hits a climactic note like 14 minutes into the song, and on this particular recording, he cracks the note, sliding into it from a half step below. His vocal tone is so clear and bright that it just kinda worked, adding a really wonderful layer of interest to an already legendary prog song
To answer the question you posed in the video, even though I have very little to no idea what you're saying, the reason I watch these videos is it's fun to watch someone who is knowledgeable and passionate about a subject TALK about that subject. The fact that it has to do with many songs that I enjoy quite a bit is enough to catch the eye, and then just hearing you go off about something that is clearly very important to you is enough to entertain and occasionally inform.
Thanks for all the hard work you do here. Power to your little elephant man.
10:25 - We watch these because there are entertaining and (at least for me) educational. These make me understand music more. So thank you!
(still hoping that one day we'll get one hour video for Tool - Pneuma, or Lateralus, or 7empest xD)
I feel like this captures a lot of what I love about one of my favorite songs. Thank you.
1:00 hey I finally understood that Daft punk song after all these years.
You know a song is good when you can listen to it fully explain played over and over and im still going to jam it out when this video is over
i watch these videos because of the illustrations, learning why songs i love sound good and to pretend i know music theory
I saw the notification for this video and I had to watch it immediately!!! The white stripes are my all time favorite band!!
This is the most amazing thing I ever heard. I wish I comprehended more of what you were explaining. I wish I could hear and see music in real time like you do.
This is fantastic, I love the in-depth breakdown of what seems like a simple song. Great work!
10:20
Corey: "... So after 10 minutes on this single 2-bar phrase..."
Me: Wait, it can't be 10 minutes into this video
Me: *checks time*
Me: damn...
Maybe that's why we watch this stuff, because you somehow manage to say so much interesting stuff about one rythm that people don't realise that so much time has passed. Or maybe you cultivated an audience that is crazy enough about absurd details to listen to music theory stuff all day..
Also, is that Penrose tiling at 17:04 ? That's a terrible choice, I completely lost you there because I was to intrigued by the drawing ;)
You didn't even mention one of my favourite aspects of Seven Nation Army, which is that the vocal line uses 7ths that sound closer to major 7ths than minor 7ths, especially over the "B" in the riff. They're definitely "in between", but closer to D# than to D. Very nice contrast to the stubbornly pentatonic riff.
Fantastic video as normal, but this one really showed how your sense of humor has developed and deepened over time. Loved it.
Great video as always, and thanks for the shoutout for Blue Orchid! My favourite riff by them too.
Some say “sloppy”; some say “rubato” :-) Nice analysis, especially of the rhythmic subtleties. It’s interesting that I never thought of the flat 6 as particularly “spicy” in this context. That’s partly because I’ve always loved its poignant sound, and whenever I try playing in Dorian or melodic minor I miss its emotive pang. But also I associate that 1-b6-5 motion with a lot of 80s synth pop, especially Sweet Dreams (as others have mentioned), and some Pseudo Echo and maybe Pet Shop Boys. And it has some more classic rock and blues connotations too: isn’t it pretty much the Andalusian cadence without the flat 7?
Twelves:
“I have no idea why anyone watches these videos.”
Me:
“You know what man? Neither do I. But I do!”
Not to holdmit against you, but Cory prefers they/them pronouns, so they might not appreciate beimg referred to as "man".
(again, nothing against you, just letting you know in case you care enough to, well, care).
Hey! I'm someone and I watch your videos, a lot of it is over my head but I always seem to learn something and I get a kick out of the art. Thanks.
This is one of my fave videos you've made. Great work!
10:26 I can’t speak for everyone, but I watch these videos because I’m a huuuuge nerd
Same
Most iconic bass line of all time is clearly Pachelbel's Canon.
I hate this but I can't deny it. But I hate it.
Or Pachelbel's Canon's younger cousin, With or Without You by U2
Sorry, guys... Another One Bites the Dust.
I'm a simple man. I see a flat6 5 bass progression, and I just think Phrygian Cadence.
Clearly it's Ice, Ice, Baby.
This is such an interesting concept for exploring music. I’m so glad that I stumbled upon your channel.
I don't know why I watch these videos either, but here we are, with you making them and me watching them. The internet is a wonderful thing :)
He’s in an open tuning and playing with a slide which would explain the occasional G sharp
12:53 Jack's melody on "cant forget" sits somewhere between the ^b7 and the ^7 to my ears. This reminds me of your distinction between the simple pentatonic and the more complex melodic minor implied in the main riff. Thoughts on this?
7 minutes in and I'm in love with your thought process. Easy subscription.
Such an iconic song, great video man
repetition legitimizes
repetition legitimizes
repetition legitimizes
My excuse now is that I’m playing off-beat to make a ‘feel’
Great to see ya giving team rhythm some love on this one! Keep up the good work man.
I'm here for all the crossovers. Didn't expect more than one, but man, this is good.
This track was just a rock re-do of 'Sweet Dreams' by Eurythmics . Come at me 2000s bros
Literally almost the exact same riff, except sweet dreams is in the key of C and doesn't use the flat 7th note like seven nation army does
I cant believe I've never noticed the similarities
Man, thank god none of you are music attorneys
Well someone made a quality mashup of them and they fit almost too well
Hey takes songs we love and tells us why we love them. This guy is amazing!
Nice call out on that base line! I don't recall ever hearing this piece before but by your third repetition my mind was anticipating the next note. #FeedTheAlgorithm
Everyone nowadays seems so concerned with exact timing and quantization, and I understand why, but it's people like Jack who tell us time and time again that kind of thing doesn't matter that much.
As an amateur that mostly jams with friends and has only ever recorded with 1 stage mic plugged straight into a tape recorder, I don't care to try and make an "amateur" recording that tries to sound "professional". I'd rather indulge in the amateur nature of it all anyways. In my opinion most, but not all, amateur songs made to sound professional just sound like a bad professional song, why not just make non-professional sounding music that sounds good as is?
That's just personal opinion, of course, but I think a lot of people still share the sentiment that tight highly-produced music isn't the only music that sounds good. I guess I wish more musicians felt that way too, I think there'd be even more good music out there.
So I guess I like Seven Nation Army and Phillip Glass for the same reason. huh... :)
My dad’s favourite joke about Phillip Glass:
Dad: Knock, knock
Me: Who’s there?
Dad: Knock, knock
In the vocal melodies, I'm hearing a "neutral seventh" from the root (going down by a neutral second, or 3 quarter tones, or 150 cents) rather than a full seventh, at 12:54 especially. The "blue note" here definitely helps shape the overall aesthetic of the song, which is definitely lost when just deploying auto-tune all over the place. Microtones are actually more commonplace in popular music than one would think; learning to notice them more is definitely good practice in eartraining.
Wow! This is insane analytics, and I LOVE IT. To put it simply though, the song is just a great expression of pure creativity at its finest. It’s imperfectly perfect, n that’s what humans want to hear, bc that’s what we are. Imperfect.
Mentioning sungazer two minutes after saying repetition legitimazes... I see what you did there
repetition legitimizes
repetition legitimizes
@@joeybatmania9327 legitimation repetimizes
this is the first video I watched from you but I can already tell I ll watch more.I have no idea how long it takes you to make 1 video but pls keep it up it amazing.
I always felt like the tabs online didn't fully capture the melody, now I understand why. Thank you so much!!!
Led Zeppelin did this quite a lot with their riffs, especially with their biggest hits
Great work sir.
I have no idea any of the technical stuff your talking about, but I enjoy it regardless. Its great!
goddamn it, you can't say repetition legitimizes four times in a row and make it cool
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
Repetition legitimizes.
I could go on.
Repetition legitimizes
Repitition legitimizes.