chamber pop

Jonatha Brooke | Landmine

“Jonatha Brooke started off as one half of The Story, with Jennifer Kimball,” (Tuesday Morning 3 a.m.) “The duo made lovely, complex acoustic pop music, but the best songs were Brooke’s, so it was no surprise that when she went solo with Plumb, she made a perfect pop record … It was her fourth album, 10 Cent Wings, however, that truly established her as a formidable songwriting voice. It’s one of those records on which each song, as it’s playing, is your favorite. It takes retrospection to find a standout track.

MCA Records had no idea what to do with an album this good … 10 Cent Wings languished unpromoted, a common story with an increasingly common result: Brooke bailed on major labels all together. (in 2000) she followed Aimee Mann, another literate pop songwriter with a history of uncooperative record companies, into the realm of independent distribution … Despite how difficult it must have been to watch an album like 10 Cent Wings wither on the vine, Jonatha Brooke has delivered on her own confidence. She’s proven throughout her career that if one group of songs doesn’t bring her the recognition she deserves, she can always write more that are just as good. That’s something no label executive could ever do.”

“Landmine,” a doleful track from 1997’s 10 Cent Wings, begins in D minor. The chorus shifts to D major at 0:46. But not before travelling through a short pre-chorus in E minor (0:31 – 0:46) featuring little more than a tritone bass line (’nuff said) and vocal melody. Starting at 1:21, the pattern repeats. Even when chorus’ sunnier tonality arrives, the lyrics are still downcast:

Was it that you wanted that I didn’t understand
The boomerang of expectation’s back to bite the hand

And I give my love to you
And you / You walk away too soon

Gabriel Kahane | To Be American

Composer/singer/songwriter Gabriel Kahane’s “To Be American” is a track from his from his 2022 album, Magnificent Bird. “Kahane both mines and interrogates nostalgia in the song, which he wrote during the roiling, national tumult of October 2020,” (Nonesuch.com). “‘It’s fitting,’ he says, ‘that a song preoccupied with the past would feature musicians who are some of my oldest friends. This song, as much as any on the album, is a showcase of my musical community.’ The elegiac anthem features an all-star band of Andrew Bird, Caroline Shaw, Punch Brothers’ Chris Thile and Paul Kowert, and percussionist Ted Poor.

Magnificent Bird, Kahane’s fifth solo LP … chronicles the final month of a year spent off the internet … Kahane revels in the tension between quiet, domestic concerns, and the roiling chaos of a nation and planet in crisis … In October 2020, the final month of his tech sabbatical, Kahane set out to write a song every day. ‘I wanted to create an aural brain scan at the end of this experiment,’ he explains, ‘and to give myself permission to write about small things, rather than trying to distill the enormity of the moment into grand statements … My internet hiatus grew out of a belief that at root, our digital devices reinforce the fiction that convenience and efficiency have intrinsic value. That has implications with respect to climate crisis, to inequality, to our (in)ability to see ourselves in each other, to build the kinds of coalitions necessary to make a more just world. I wanted to leave it all behind not as a further expression of techno-pessimism, but rather in search of a positive alternative.’

… Hailed as ‘a stunning portrait of a singular moment in America’ by Rolling Stone, the album chronicled an 8,980-mile, off-the-grid railway journey in the aftermath of the 2016 presidential election. ‘I wanted unmediated interaction with strangers, so I took that trip without my phone. Somewhere in New Mexico, I remember thinking, Wow, this is really transformative. I should do this for more than thirteen days.’”

“To Be American” begins with an intro and verse in Bb major, but shifts up to C major at 0:26; at 0:39, there’s a return to the original key. More key changes follow throughout. For all of Kahane’s skill in creating inventive textures as a classical composer, as well as his second career walking a complex line between classical and pop-adjacent contemporary music, this video sheds light further downstage — on his melody lines and lyrics.

for Steven

A video overview of Kahane’s cross-country 2016 rail journey:

The High Llamas | Triads

“Under the direction of multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, and arranger Sean O’Hagan, the High Llamas have developed a very specific sonic fingerprint — Baroque ’60s melodies, sweeping orchestral strings, and warmly bleeping vintage synths all co-mingled in smooth harmonies — that helped define the indie sound of the ’90s and has proven to be influential to quite a few artists in the decades that followed,” (TiVo/Qobuz). “The group released albums throughout the decade that balanced Steely Dan-styled soft rock songcraft (Gideon Gaye), circular arrangements (Hawaii), and trippy easy listening music (Cold and Bouncy) but never strayed far from O’Hagan’s original idiosyncratic template.

… O’Hagan’s debut solo album, High Llamas, was released in 1990, and the Beach Boys-inspired instrumentation (and general West Coast smoothness) of the record provided a glimpse at where things were headed. O’Hagan then formed the High Llamas as a vehicle to indulge his Baroque pop/Beach Boys/space age electronic interests, and released Santa Barbara in 1992 … “

“Triads” (from 1999’s Snowbug) features an increasingly intense intro based on alternating G major and F/G chords. Verse 1 begins with a syncopated melody driven by a light swing feel at 0:43. An interlude/chorus(?) built around G# minor with a prominent hook from the vibes, supported by low brass, is in effect from 1:13 – 1:51. Then we’re back to verse 2, again in G major. The two sections continue to alternate throughout, until the tune begins to gradually deconstruct itself in its final minute or two.

Many thanks to regular contributor Ari S. for yet another distinctive find, which she describes as “dripping with Bacharach influence.”

Jonatha Brooke | Glass Half Empty

“Jonatha Brooke is one of those artists whose name always sounds familiar … but whose music you may not be familiar with … though, frankly, you really should be,” (Popdose). “She’s a talented singer-songwriter who first got her career rolling in the early ’90s as a member of a duo called The Story, with collaborator Jennifer Kimball, but Brooke soon stood on her own two feet and has trotted out album after album … some on major labels, some on indies … to critical acclaim and a decidedly diehard following.”

In a 2001 interview, Brooke held forth on the seismic shift in the music industry brought set in motion by Napster and file sharing. She had a front-row seat to both the “before” and “after” cultures of this shift: “‘… it still breaks my heart that music has been so devalued and I think labels — especially the majors — are the worst culprits at not defending the value of art, of music. And because songs are the easiest, tiniest files to steal at this point, the cat’s out of the bag. But I think it comes down to no one being educated as to what really goes into doing what someone like me does … yeah, there are tons of opportunities and great ways to network and share stuff on the Internet, but it’s hard making a living … you have to seek out gazillions of other revenue streams because records just don’t sell the way they used to.'”

1997’s 10-Cent Wings, an early solo effort, was well reviewed: “ … essential, like taking a deep breath after witnessing something magnificent,” (Billboard). “Glass Half Empty,” a mid-tempo track, is quintessential Brooke: polished musicianship, unpredictable and rangy melodies, a rich harmonic vocabulary, and lyrics that are likely to feed an earworm for days on end. You could search for a frayed edge in Brooke’s songwriting, but instead you’re too engaged in the narrative, the mood, or the shifting textures to even start. The intro and verses are in A minor overall (with a shift in emphasis to C major at times); the chorus throws some grit in the gears, shifting to G minor (1:28). Next is a return to the lighter tread of the interlude and then the next verse at 1:50, both in A minor. The alternating pattern continues from there.

Aimee Mann | Knock It Off

“Mental Illness (2017) is Aimee Mann’s quintessential statement, tempering the discord of life with elegant chamber folk,” (Pitchfork). ” … Mann doing an album called Mental Illness is a concept so fitting it took her a lifetime to find it. Having already delivered a new wave smash, scored an Academy Award nomination, recorded eight stylistically diverse solo records as well a fiesty collaboration with punk’s Ted Leo, Mann is rightfully pissed that she’s nevertheless pigeonholed as a dreary fabricator of slow, sad-sack songs. So she’s answered her critics with her slowest, sad-sack-iest album yet, one populated by ordinary people struggling against operatic levels of existential pain at odds with their humdrum lives.

Mann has long been an expert of articulating this tension. Originally written about her attraction to a woman on the down low, her 1985 ‘Til Tuesday single ‘Voices Carry’ found its defining shape when record company meddling forced Mann to recast it as a heterosexual melodrama that became a feminist anthem about overcoming male dominance. Yet no one would’ve predicted then that Mann would rank among the few new wave survivors who’d achieve both consistent sales and artistic credibility well into the 21st century … A rocker at heart if not always in practice, Mann has sometimes been muted but never mellow; her new wave training and constitutional angst haven’t allowed it. To prepare for her latest, she studied the gentle craftsmanship of Bread, Dan Fogelberg, and other unhip smoothies that punk tossed on the anti-establishment bonfire with Yes and ELP. Mental Illness is accordingly made of skeletal strings, coolly regulated commentary, and minimal drums. Juxtaposing elegant chamber folk against the discord of lives out of balance, it’s musically more delicate than even her soft rock models.”

After a start in Bb major overall, “Knock It Off” features a soft-spoken breezy bridge between 1:46 – 2:02, shifting us into Db major. Returning to Bb major for the balance of the tune, Mann decisively closes with a simple plagal cadence.

Cole Fortier | Such Unlikely Lovers (Elvis Costello and Burt Bacharach)

Here’s a first: a submission which not only includes an exacting level of theory detail, but is a live performance by the contributor, leading a quartet! Cole Fortier is an undergrad at the SUNY’s Crane School of Music. Thank you for such a detailed description of this genius tune’s structure, Cole!

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From Burt Bacharach and Elvis Costello’s masterwork album, Painted from Memory (1998), comes the track “Such Unlikely Lovers.” It’s a truly unique and incredible song for many reasons.

First, it seems to be the one lyric on the album where everything goes right for the main character! While this album is an epic and stunning meditation on heartbreak, the upbeat and colorful narrative of this song brings the variation of levity and charm to the ordeal. Costello said that he heard the music that Bacharach presented to him for this track and immediately envisioned a lyric based around a chance romantic encounter on the street. The sense of spontaneity, optimism, and energy in the lyric is reflected so excitingly in the music. This song grooves so hard — more than almost any other song on the album. The constantly shifting tonality and subtle meter changes (a Bacharach trademark) truly embody the spontaneous spirit that drives the song.

As the song begins, it’s difficult to discern the key; the riff essentially vamps between a Gsus chord and an Fsus chord (Eb/F to be specific). The vocal then enters on a C minor chord, which contextualizes the previous Eb/F chord as being a part of the key signature of C minor. More specifically, this section of the song can be interpreted as C Dorian with the raised sixth scale degree of the A natural. The most intriguing harmonic shift happens very quickly though as an F#min7 chord occurs on the word “gray” (0:24) and subsequently resolves to a Bmin9 chord. This modulation from C minor to B minor is masterfully handled through carrying over the common tone of the A natural from the C Dorian mode to the F#min7 chord. The entire modulatory sequence repeats again at the lyrics “when you look how you feel” (0:30) — but this time, the song continues on in a tonality much more closely associated with B minor than C minor (starting at “Listen now”, 0:40). After the chorus, the opening riff returns at 1:17. Weirdly enough though, the opening riff is played 2.5 steps down and is never played in its original tonality again.

The smooth and nuanced modulation patterns in “Such Unlikely Lovers” through the use of common tones really show the genius of Bacharach’s writing while also supporting the energized and spontaneous lyric that Costello wrote.

Rufus Wainwright | Trouble in Paradise

A July 2020 piece in FLOOD magazine suggests that singer/songwriter Rufus Wainwright is “the reigning king of elegant, earthen and sophisticated art pop. He still has a knack for crooning smartly piquant, yet deeply emotional lyrics with cosmopolitan melodies that come across more Tin Pan Alley, London Palladium and Topanga Canyon than something out of today’s more nebulous and steely AutoTune universe”

His 2019 song “Trouble in Paradise” is the lead single for his most recent album, Unfollow the Rules. In an American Songwriter interview, Wainwright said “After the opera world and natural aging, I can now sing at the full power of my abilities, and this record really shows that off.”He also shared a this synopsis of the song for his website: “Drum beats herald a romp through the inner mind of a bob-haired fashion doyenne on her drive from the town to the country. She reflects on the true price of glamour, and weighs its spiritual costs while eyeing her future legacy, and eternity.”

Typical of Wainwright, the arrangements are layered and ornate — but never overpower what FLOOD calls his “slippery, oboe-like vocals.” Starting in Bb major, the tune modulates up a half-step at 2:13. At 2:49, the song ends in an ambiguous swirl of layered notes, somehow suggesting falling and ascending simultaneously.

Reign of Kindo | Dust

Reign of Kindo‘s music, according to AllMusic, features “the introspective Brit-pop influences of bands like Coldplay and Keane, but placing the piano front and center and mixing complex jazz harmonies and dissonances with the pop sensibilities of a Ben Folds.” The band has toured with a small central core of musicians, but makes its main impression with the sprawling instrumentation featured in this live recording session. Recording live in the studio, with no overdubs, is a feat on its own — but the band has also added the challenge of capturing the process on video.

The ensemble doesn’t fit neatly into a genre, sitting somewhere between the prog rock, pop, and jazz worlds. The band’s website explains: “It is piano-driven Alt-Jazz…Latin and R&B close by …since the debut EP hit #5 on the Billboard Middle Atlantic Heatseekers chart in 2007, this band has only just begun to emerge from their decade-long journey from rags to… better rags with resumes.”

Starting in C minor, an extended multi-key middle section runs from 1:40 through 3:19. At 3:19, there’s a clear return to C minor.

XTC | Wrapped In Grey

AllMusic.com calls XTC “one of the smartest — and catchiest — British pop bands to emerge from the Punk and New Wave explosion of the late ’70s. From the tense, jerky riffs of their early singles to the lushly arranged, meticulous pop of their later albums, XTC’s music has always been driven by hook-laden songwriting of guitarist Andy Partridge and bassist Colin Moulding.” In an interview with Popdose, Partridge described 1992’s “Wrapped in Grey” as “ersatz Bacharach” and one of the “perfect songs” of his career, feeling that he had “exorcised a lot of those kind of Lennon-and-McCartney, Bacharach-and-David, Brian Wilson-type ghosts out of my system by doing all that.”

Drenched with harmonic tensions from its opening, the tune starts in B minor, transitioning to F# major for the chorus from 1:19 – 1:57; the cycle then repeats. The “everything but the kitchen sink” arrangement of saloon-style piano, sweet strings, varied percussion, wide-ranging backing vocals, and a chaotic, meter-shifted tag at 3:31 make this waltz a true “Exhibit A” from the later output of this singular band.

Nate Wood | Stand By Your Man

Nate Wood is perhaps best known as the drummer for the modern electric jazz quartet Kneebody, which the New York Times calls “a resolutely un-pindownable band” using “a common jazz instrumentation to make a somewhat less common amalgam of urban-signifying genres, from electro-pop to punk-rock to hip-hop.”

In addition to working with Kneebody since 2002, Wood has balanced sideman stints with the likes of George Harrison, Sting, Chaka Khan, guitarist Wayne Krantz (Steely Dan), Armenian pianist Tigran Hamasyan, and Taylor Hawkins (Foo Fighters). Wood’s several solo releases (starting with 2003’s Reliving) showcase his writing and vocal abilities; he played and recorded every instrument on the debut album.

“Stand By Your Man” has a plodding groove, but features a dense harmonic tapestry. Starting in C major, the track shifts about mysteriously, its cadences far from expected. Near the end of the track (3:04) the tonality shifts, obscured by the unconventional harmonies and frequent inversions. At 3:30, the fog clears: the harmonies simplify as the first phrase is repeated, now unmistakably in D major.