You know what, songs now are getting lazy.
RUNNING out of ideas? Just do a remix. Not sure how to write a song? Just do a remix. Want an easy income? Just make a remix. You get the idea. Music just seems to be a continuous onslaught of covers and remixes, with not even a whiff of originality.
But what’s in a song? I suppose that’s a complicated question, not every piece of music has to be poetic, not every line poignant. After all, art without diversity is just a dictatorship of paint and sounds. And yet, I still can’t help but demand more from the spiel of tracks these artists keep rolling out each year. Sigala’s latest remix of the John Newman song Fire in me, for example, is a collage of these popular synths and sparse lyricism prevalent in the industry now.
Lets load it up and you’ll see what I mean…
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C:// Booting_
LOADING_MUSIC_
[Sigala_John_Newman_]
{Fire_in_me_}
_Start_
_Silence. _ Chorus of ethereal vocals.
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Long introduction with minimalist drips of instruments here and there. __ A typical dance track opening, in all honesty.
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_The formula is all the same, a male tenor vocal sings with the dramatic loneliness of an aria to start the piece. The occasional click here and desolate drum beat there are all that can be met on this empty landscape of sound. _ A swift stampede of synth keys come swooping in to carry him as his voice weakens and the strength builds. _ It sounds just like any other John Newman song, with his slightly nasal vocals ripping through the thick barrage of synths.
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_Im already bored and its only just got to the prechorus. _Finally a drum beat. A strong thunder of drums comes hailing down as the song finally pushes itself through the metal wall it built and into the chorus.
Were one minute in and this is where the track truly begins.
Loaded_ ready to start_
This explosion of skipping beats and sparkling ornate strings sews itself across the dark night sky. Suddenly the desolate landscape is lit with rich chords that hold the hands of the keyboard melodies; it’s a gorgeous coupling and may just save the entire track from it’s draw out verses.
The stratosphere is practically coming alive when the spectacular chorus hits. Everything sparkles with the shimmering glitter of the keys and their metallic timbre. Each iconic vocal sample causes a collision between the rocks in the sky – their powerful and sharp notes seem to slice into the atmosphere. The sounds are so distant. They’re doused in plenty of reverb, stuck like glue with perfect vocal harmonies and ever so slight cheeky reverse on the strings. It’s as though an entire Orchestra had taken over this manufactured track, morphing the sharp digital beats into something that transcends the audible. Thick and booming bass lines crack the ground beneath open, rumbling the earth until it crumbles underneath the light sky of strings.
This comet in the sky of blackened beats quickly passes however, as the verse shadows its way back into the scenery. _ Dim digital beats, stagnant and straight, they seem to make up at least 90% of this track__. It seems the dance break is just a glitch in the system, because the rest of the verses are just the same as the introduction – dull and disengaging.__
_Newman sings: “I’ve still got a fire in me”, but i just can’t hear it in this track.__ There’s no fire, no passion, nothing to disassociate it from all the other dance tracks out there. ___It’s just another over programmed formula that copies every other popular song, desperately trying to claw at their success and make a bucket load of money. __ I might have been seduced by the dance break, but I’ve been dropped like a hat by the verses. ___ I’m disappointed.__
__ENDING TRANSMISSION __
C:// Shutting_down_
_End_