How to make an electronic dance song.
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Artist:
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Track:
Being more integrated with Mog now gets me more into reading the stuff that's on there. I was thinking dreaming about doing a post on the structure of a song for a while now and I was worried about which one to do it on. I'm picking Blue Monday because:
1. It's a really good song;
2. It has been over-played/remixed/covered (in my opinion);
3. It's popular.
I'm afraid that I might kill the track for people or go so far as to kill music for people. I go to shows and if I'm sober I always end up analyzing the structure of a song and the specific underlyings of a track (drunken dancing has its benefits). I can't help myself, but that might be due to the engineer in me.
Before reading on, I recommend checking out this post about BM's influences.
Now, this is not so much an exercise in figuring out this specific song as it is showing off what makes a good track (especially in the dancy electronic world where I prefer to hang out in). There are specific details that although a song does not need to follow, it certainly doesn't hurt. I hope I don't give away all my personal secrets, but I don't really care. Don't worry, this isn't meant to be a formula like Weezer songs.
I don't know if all of you have the same version of BM, but here is the one I'm using for all the timing.
New Order - Blue Monday
Part I: The Intro (0:00 - 0:55)
You can come right off the bat and have high energy, but when it comes to dance music, especially if you want your track in a party/club, you need to have a slow rise in the front. The number one job of this (my opinion) is that this makes it easy to mix into the last track. BM is perfect at this: it's a kick that's not the normal 4-to-the-floor. Not only that, it is instantly recognizable now that it's a mainstream song. Think of it as a courtesy for the track that you just played before.
Want to bend the rules on this one? Make the song a single or if it's on your album it should be transitioning already with the previous track and then release a 'club' version.
The number two reason for the slow rise is that you don't want to get your listeners all hyped up and then let them down later on. You can't turn it up without turning it down and you can't speed it up without slowing it down. Trust me.
Part II: The Rest Of It
Now I chose to say that the intro stops at about 0:55 when the 2-bars of cymbals come in. That little break sets you up for the proper part of the song where everything you hear is built from a variation of itself.
a) Speaking of variation, your sound needs to be doing it constantly. I'm not talking notes, but rather timbre. Even during the intro the effect pattern on the synthesizer is changing. If it didn't your sound would be monotonous and decipherably programmed. You want it to sound like you had some instrument that depending on the breath in your lungs, how you cover the holes, how you press the strings, move the bow, where you hit the drum skin, whatever is going to sound slightly different: i.e. ANALOG. Your music should sing.
b) (1:33 - 2:05) And as it is singing, you need to reinforce change. This is done by introducing multiple things at once but they all have a common goal: the build-up. You'll notice that there is the main bassline, but the real drivers of the build-up are the 3 layers that come up in succession: (1:33) the synth choral, (1:36) the left-hand synth, then (1:51) the right-hand synth, until they all mash together and then suddenly disappear/crash. Also notice the increase in pitch in a step-wise fashion.
c) (2:05 - ) The build-up ends in the (extended) break-down or chorus in this case and then the rest of the song which builds and breaks on that with different sounds. You don't want to do that too many times otherwise it sounds like your song is going on for too long. I recommend 3x max and then you exit. By the way, if you are making a pop song, it helps the catchiness of the track if you have actual vocals, simple nonsense ("dee dee dee, a da da da, is what I want to say to you") or better yet: nonsense with potential for call and response!
Klaxons - Golden Skans, namely the intro (and I guess everywhere else it ends up in the rest of the song).
That leads to interaction between DJ and crowd or performer and crowd ("Say it loud" "I'm black and I'm proud"), but you know that already. BM's charm is that it is elegant in that it doesn't dabble in the easy stuff.
d) Here is the known secret to sweet 80's basslines: octaves. Now, do a variation on that - think of any bassline, separate it into quarter notes and move every other one to the higher (or lower) octave. I don't recommend just using the oscillating octave and change it when you do a key change... too monotonous. BM does a nice job here except that it's nicked from:
Sylvester - You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)
e) The rest of the song is a mixed bag of tricks: a couple of effects on the vocals, different random sounds that fit in (imagine a trumpet only playing for 4 bars, twice for an entire song, or a block percussion that only hits on the 3rd beat for 4 bars), more build-ups and break-downs (notable the 'jet flyby' at 3:22). It is worth mentioning the obvious in that a build-up can simply be an increase in volume / pitch and the break-down is the reverse. I can't think of anything where it would be different than that (all effects and layering achieves the same result). It should have a breathing effect in that you are inhaling during the build-up to get ready for excitement, and you are exhaling to relax for the break-down. It is natural and it helps when you are dancing to have a moment to rest for 16bars or so.
f) The last thing I notice is the isolated beat: you kill all other parts on the track except for a simple ~1-measure part of the beat (3:28). This is the pinnacle of the tension and then you throw in a very dissonant sound (BM literally breaks it with an explosion).
Part: The Outro
By the way, the outro or exit of the song can be the reverse of the intro, but it is more tolerant to ending abruptly. Don't think of adding anything new at the end unless it is interesting and makes a statement for your track. If it is getting mixed, it is probably going to be cut and the DJ will just put on loop the part that works. Interestingly enough, BM actually uses a build-up that results in a fade out thereby setting the DJ up for the next track that will kick in. Nicely done.
That's it. Start the opinionating.
1. It's a really good song;
2. It has been over-played/remixed/covered (in my opinion);
3. It's popular.
I'm afraid that I might kill the track for people or go so far as to kill music for people. I go to shows and if I'm sober I always end up analyzing the structure of a song and the specific underlyings of a track (drunken dancing has its benefits). I can't help myself, but that might be due to the engineer in me.
Before reading on, I recommend checking out this post about BM's influences.
Now, this is not so much an exercise in figuring out this specific song as it is showing off what makes a good track (especially in the dancy electronic world where I prefer to hang out in). There are specific details that although a song does not need to follow, it certainly doesn't hurt. I hope I don't give away all my personal secrets, but I don't really care. Don't worry, this isn't meant to be a formula like Weezer songs.
I don't know if all of you have the same version of BM, but here is the one I'm using for all the timing.
New Order - Blue Monday
Part I: The Intro (0:00 - 0:55)
You can come right off the bat and have high energy, but when it comes to dance music, especially if you want your track in a party/club, you need to have a slow rise in the front. The number one job of this (my opinion) is that this makes it easy to mix into the last track. BM is perfect at this: it's a kick that's not the normal 4-to-the-floor. Not only that, it is instantly recognizable now that it's a mainstream song. Think of it as a courtesy for the track that you just played before.
Want to bend the rules on this one? Make the song a single or if it's on your album it should be transitioning already with the previous track and then release a 'club' version.
The number two reason for the slow rise is that you don't want to get your listeners all hyped up and then let them down later on. You can't turn it up without turning it down and you can't speed it up without slowing it down. Trust me.
Part II: The Rest Of It
Now I chose to say that the intro stops at about 0:55 when the 2-bars of cymbals come in. That little break sets you up for the proper part of the song where everything you hear is built from a variation of itself.
a) Speaking of variation, your sound needs to be doing it constantly. I'm not talking notes, but rather timbre. Even during the intro the effect pattern on the synthesizer is changing. If it didn't your sound would be monotonous and decipherably programmed. You want it to sound like you had some instrument that depending on the breath in your lungs, how you cover the holes, how you press the strings, move the bow, where you hit the drum skin, whatever is going to sound slightly different: i.e. ANALOG. Your music should sing.
b) (1:33 - 2:05) And as it is singing, you need to reinforce change. This is done by introducing multiple things at once but they all have a common goal: the build-up. You'll notice that there is the main bassline, but the real drivers of the build-up are the 3 layers that come up in succession: (1:33) the synth choral, (1:36) the left-hand synth, then (1:51) the right-hand synth, until they all mash together and then suddenly disappear/crash. Also notice the increase in pitch in a step-wise fashion.
c) (2:05 - ) The build-up ends in the (extended) break-down or chorus in this case and then the rest of the song which builds and breaks on that with different sounds. You don't want to do that too many times otherwise it sounds like your song is going on for too long. I recommend 3x max and then you exit. By the way, if you are making a pop song, it helps the catchiness of the track if you have actual vocals, simple nonsense ("dee dee dee, a da da da, is what I want to say to you") or better yet: nonsense with potential for call and response!
Klaxons - Golden Skans, namely the intro (and I guess everywhere else it ends up in the rest of the song).
That leads to interaction between DJ and crowd or performer and crowd ("Say it loud" "I'm black and I'm proud"), but you know that already. BM's charm is that it is elegant in that it doesn't dabble in the easy stuff.
d) Here is the known secret to sweet 80's basslines: octaves. Now, do a variation on that - think of any bassline, separate it into quarter notes and move every other one to the higher (or lower) octave. I don't recommend just using the oscillating octave and change it when you do a key change... too monotonous. BM does a nice job here except that it's nicked from:
Sylvester - You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)
e) The rest of the song is a mixed bag of tricks: a couple of effects on the vocals, different random sounds that fit in (imagine a trumpet only playing for 4 bars, twice for an entire song, or a block percussion that only hits on the 3rd beat for 4 bars), more build-ups and break-downs (notable the 'jet flyby' at 3:22). It is worth mentioning the obvious in that a build-up can simply be an increase in volume / pitch and the break-down is the reverse. I can't think of anything where it would be different than that (all effects and layering achieves the same result). It should have a breathing effect in that you are inhaling during the build-up to get ready for excitement, and you are exhaling to relax for the break-down. It is natural and it helps when you are dancing to have a moment to rest for 16bars or so.
f) The last thing I notice is the isolated beat: you kill all other parts on the track except for a simple ~1-measure part of the beat (3:28). This is the pinnacle of the tension and then you throw in a very dissonant sound (BM literally breaks it with an explosion).
Part: The Outro
By the way, the outro or exit of the song can be the reverse of the intro, but it is more tolerant to ending abruptly. Don't think of adding anything new at the end unless it is interesting and makes a statement for your track. If it is getting mixed, it is probably going to be cut and the DJ will just put on loop the part that works. Interestingly enough, BM actually uses a build-up that results in a fade out thereby setting the DJ up for the next track that will kick in. Nicely done.
That's it. Start the opinionating.
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