Tag: 2000s

KT Tunstall | Heal Over

Scottish singer/songwriter KT Tunstall released her debut album Eye to the Telescope in 2004, making a splash in both Europe and North America. The breakthrough hit was “Suddenly I See,” but the release was full of many other gorgeous tunes, including “Heal Over.” Written in E major overall, the tune features a shift to E minor during the the bridge (2:56 – 3:37).

Garbage | Androgyny

UK/US hybrid band Garbage, led by Scottish vocalist/frontwoman Shirley Manson, had scored several hits by the time it arrived at its third studio album in 2001. In keeping with the band’s history of meticulous arrangements and production, the sound of “Androgyny” alternates between synth timbres on the verses and strong guitar-driven choruses, jumping back and forth between A minor and E minor, respectively. But the bridge (1:57 – 2:17) opens up into a completely different texture, bringing strings to the fore as it jumps to an entirely unexpected tonality (Eb major) before returning to the original key.

The Flaming Lips | Do You Realize

Ranked #31 on Rolling Stone‘s 100 Best Songs of the 2000s, The Flaming Lips‘ “Do You Realize?” (2002) features a rather unorthodox modulation from 2:25 – 2:42 before reverting to the original key.

The Guardian reports on The Flaming Lips’ Wayne Coyne’s process in bringing the song into being: “It wasn’t too far into making the album that ‘Do You Realize??’ emerged. Steven Drozd, our guitarist, liked the line: ‘Everyone you know someday will die.’ You don’t really know where the song is going until that point. There’s storytelling and it has wisdom, romance, and heartache. It’s gentle but not mellow and has elements of propulsion and triumph even though it’s lazy and sad at the same time. It also benefits from not knowing it’s going to be an important song. That’s the best thing about it. The ‘1, 2, 3, 4’ at the beginning is like the laughter at the end of ‘Within You Without You’ on the Beatles’ Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Anything we could do to lift the song and deliver a great but not heavy message.”

Lisa Loeb | Bring Me Up

The first musical artist to have a #1 hit (Stay / “I Missed You”) without the benefit of a contract with a record label, Lisa Loeb has gone on to release many other distinctive tunes. There’s a modulation in “Bring Me Up” (2002) during the bridge (2:10 to 2:39); then the tune reverts to its original key on its verse-based outro.

James Taylor | On the 4th of July

Happy Fourth! Apologies for the second James Taylor post in as many weeks!

JT somehow seamlessly combines Americana instrumentation with a light Brazilian groove and unmistakably jazz-infused chord voicings for “On the 4th of July” (2002). In the short instrumental section (2:11), the guitar restates the hook and the scene is set for the modulation (2:19).