Four Chords, 36 Songs

[Furtherman]

I figured this video was good for a stand alone than the youtube thread.


There are only so many combinations of notes that a musician can use. It's inevitable that we're going to run out of original songs eventually, hence this video.

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[hammersavage]

That's why I stick to 3 chord music.

[Hottub]

The new Blind Man Drive album?

[A.J.]

I think those songs have the same chord progression but they're not all in the same key.

[DarkHippie]

I think those songs have the same chord progression but they're not all in the same key.

You're right, they transposed.

This was kinda silly, most western music uses some form of the I IV V progression, or the I iv IV V.

[JerseyRich]

The new Blind Man Drive album?


Please...I think one of our songs has at least 6 chords.

[Hottub]

Please...I think one of our songs has at least 6 chords.

Sorry. That was a typo.

I meant One Bullet Test.:tongue:

[JerseyRich]

Sorry. That was a typo.

I meant One Bullet Test.:tongue:

Fuck those hacks! :wink:

[topless_mike]

Please...I think one of our songs has at least 6 chords.

do you play any of them?

[fezident]

This is weak.
It's a parlor trick.
He's really shoehorning a lot of dis-similiar themes into that one progression in order to prove his point (such as it is).

He's changed the tempos, the feels, the keys, and the grooves on almost everything. He's (obviously) changed the instrument. He's removed every bit of syncopation. Etc etc. And he's removed every bit of emotion as well.


This is like the chicks in those Robert Palmer videos. They don't look anything alike. Not even a little. But.... pull all their hair back.... give them all same cold make-over.... give them all the same dress & shoes.... make them all dance the same.... and make them all do the same facial expression.... and BAM.... they're all interchangeable.

[Hottub]

Fuck those hacks! :wink:

Sorry. That was a typo.
I meant Art Of The Topless.

[Servo]

Fuck those hacks! :wink:

x2

[Freakshow]

The Ramones proved this years ago...

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[Gvac]

Songs with more than 3 or 4 chords are usually pretentious and shitty.

[blancostupido]

So
Big Hairy Deal. Lots of songs share the same progressions. "Lots"....who am I kidding, proabably millions or more than we'll ever know...especially the I-IV-V. I only saw the clip here, so I know nothing of the "Axis of Awesome" or whatever it is, so I don't know how or what context that clip was presented....I found it kind of entertaining, maybe that was it's intent....if were they trying to say "nothing's original", then they need to get over it

Anything ever come of that Satriani/Coldplay duel?

[cougarjake13]

i ve been thinking about this since high school


theres only so many chords and combinations how the hell are there all these artist constantly coming up with new music

[Gvac]

i ve been thinking about this since high school


theres only so many chords and combinations how the hell are there all these artist constantly coming up with new music

That's the beauty of a limited art form - finding uniqueness in simplicity.

Blues, country, rock...they stick to 3 chords for the most part. And you'll constantly hear PHENOMENAL songs that sound like nothing else, even if they're in the same key.

[cougarjake13]

but wouldnt there still be a time that originalness runs out regardless of how many chords are used ??

[fezident]

but wouldnt there still be a time that originalness runs out regardless of how many chords are used ??

Nope.
The reasons is; there are so many ways to vary the chords and notes. A "d" chord with distortion sounds different -and conveys a different emotion- than that same chord played clean. Or with chorus. Or delay. Or backwards. Or........


Additionally, there's an infinite number of ways to combine notes & chords because of tempo, groove, accents, and syncopation. (I mean... look at Eric Clapton's two versions of "Layla". Completely different. And IT'S LITERALLY THE SAME SONG!)

Think of it this way:
take a normal sentence. For example "I'm not going home"
You can say it several ways:
I'm NOT going home.
I'M not going home.
I'm not going HOME.
then there's
I AM not going home.
I'm not goin' home.
and on and on and on.

"Jessie's Girl" and "With Or Without You" are basically the same. But the way the chords are staggered and repeated... the sounds... the vibe... the message.... everything.... makes those two songs completely dis-similar.

Then there's the production. It's always evolving. New sounds. New effects. New tricks. Every few years, the entire landscape changes into something unrecognizable to other generations.

In a hundred years, we still be hearing new songs that sound fresh because of production techniques and good ol' human creativity.

[extracheese]

I disagree - the music DOES all sound similar, and subconsciously the "composers"
have heard these progressions before - make slight changes and think they wrote
something new.
Thats why new music sucks. Very little original good work. Am i the only one
who finds fewer albums today worth buying, than years ago? I still listen to
music from the 70s and 80s.

Fezident - youve explained how it happens, but the result is repetitive music. Claptons 2 songs ARE the same. If you liked Jesses girl you would have also liked "with or without you" and if you hated one, youd hate the other.

[fezident]

I disagree - the music DOES all sound similar, and subconsciously the "composers"
have heard these progressions before - make slight changes and think they wrote
something new.
Thats why new music sucks. Very little original good work. Am i the only one
who finds fewer albums today worth buying, than years ago? I still listen to
music from the 70s and 80s.

Fezident - youve explained how it happens, but the result is repetitive music. Claptons 2 songs ARE the same. If you liked Jesses girl you would have also liked "with or without you" and if you hated one, youd hate the other.


Not following you here.
You think "Jessie's Girl" and "With Or Without You" sound the same? You think a Springfield fan is a U2 fan?

New music doesn't suck. Just ask the kids that buy it. That was you once.