What changes do you think 50 years can bring in the music industry of a country? To be more specific, how about a country that has existed in the world map for only about 50 years? Let me make things a little easier. This is the country in South-East Asia that has the longest sea beach in the world and for whom February 21st is celebrated as the International Mother Language Day each year. I am talking about Bangladesh, the country where I was born and raised. It is home to legendary band singers like Azam Khan, Ayub Bachchu and James who have crafted the way for present day band artists like Rafa, Shayan Chowdhury Arnob, Tasrif Khan, and others. These youngsters did not fail to live up to our expectations.
The beginning of the war-stricken country was not easy. The triumph of 1971 against West Pakistan (present day Pakistan) was glorious yet laden with challenges to achieve Shonar Bangla (translates to the Golden Bengal) in order to ensure prosperous lives of citizens. No one knew that music would become such an integral part of Bangladeshi lives in the coming days. As bands started to emerge in independent Bangladesh, band music continued to grasp the hearts of millions rapidly.
A Brief Timeline of Bangladeshi Band Music
A Brief Timeline of Bangladeshi Band Music (continued)
The images above represent a brief timeline of the bands that have existed since the birth of the country. The earliest bands of the country, Souls and Uccharon, were heavily influenced by Western music. They turned their love into their passion: took the risk of introducing Bangladeshi people with guitars, drums and keyboards. And they beautifully nailed it! Souls released their first album in 1982, named Super Souls. Before 1982, Azam Khan, the founder of Uccharon (who was also a Freedom Fighter in the 1971 Liberation War), boldly took charge and put his heart into rock music. For his utmost dedication, he was bestowed upon the title, King of Bangladeshi Rock Music. The cocktail of western instruments, rock genre and Bangladeshi touch was an instant success. While some of these songs exhibited the typical discotheque of Western music, others exhibited ambience.If you see a person either at home or abroad humming, Ore Salekha, Mon Shudhu Mon Chuyeche, or Abar Elo Je Shondha, that is undoubtedly a Bangladeshi individual. While Bangladeshi people enjoyed a new taste in these kinds of music, their lyrics vouched for further success. The storytelling depicted the struggles and melancholy of the post-war affected public and addressed various cultural and societal issues. Eventually, more creative minds felt the urge to use music as a way of expressing themselves effectively. The years 1977, 1996, 1998 and 2001 of this golden era gave us two new bands each year! Interestingly, 1999 is the birth year of three bands! That definitely testifies how the band music market grew stronger over the years.
Present Day Popular Bangladeshi Bands & Music
After Azam Khan, the two most renowned individual names would be LRB’s Ayub Bachchu and Nogor Baul’s James. Songs like Hashte Dekho,Shei Tumi, Baba and Taray Taray are masterpieces by these two legends. In the present day, bands like Artcell, Aurthohin, Warfaze, LRB and Nogor Baul have the most fan base. Over these years, artists have played around with different genres like rock, metal, folk etc. Folk is basically the genre that relates to Bengali culture and uses traditional instruments like flute, tobla etc. When infused with Western rock, it created something totally different. Yet, it was and is still well appreciated. Bands like Bangla, Lalon Band, Joler Gaan and Kureghor have significantly contributed to develop the bridge between folk and Western influence. The fusion ensured that both the tradition of folk and the uptempo of Western music existed.
Although some well-known bands gradually exited the limelight due to the expiration of a leading band member or for other reasons, their catchy songs will remain nested in Bangladeshi hearts forever. Again, that does not mean that the era of Bangladeshi band music has ceased. New bands are still forming while existing newbies plan to create more music. It is the nostalgia of these old bands that hit us sensually.
Metaphorically, the question of what music is can be explored in every different light; the lows of heartbreak, the intensity of romance, the memories of friendship and the strength of family along with every experience and emotion under the sun can be explored with music. The take that Eros Ramazzotti and Andrea Bocelli take on what they believe music is comes from their hit Italian-classic, “Musica è” that most fans consider an ode to music.
As the song takes on multiple genres depicting what music is, the song is broken down very strategically into three separate sections each feeling like their own individual songs. To make them each individual songs inside this nearly 10 minute hit, There are 4 elements that appear in every song to create the feeling of its individuality; An instrumental melody to explore a new direction to the individual section, Eros Ramazzotti’s vocal solo, Andrea Bocelli’s vocal solo, and their duet to wrap the section and fade into the next.
The instrumental is done to shine light and spread the importance of what music can bring and the feelings attached to each aspect of music. This can be heard in the composition of the instrumental moments before the next “song” or verse would start. The beginning instrumental build up to the beginning of Ramazzotti’s distinct and calm composure singing what music is to him is first introduced in what is labeled “song 1”.
“Song 1” includes a 47 second instrumental – representing a dream-like state with the soft melody of the piano and dreamy accompanying sounds of a clarinet, synthesizer, and saxophone to fit into what could be interpreted as peaceful and calming. Opening lyrics from Ramazzotti explore, “Musica è / guardare più lontano e perdersi in se stessi” which translates to looking to the future and looking ahead while getting lost in yourself. Lyrics sung in Ramazzotti’s section explore the dreamy-state we had heard from the instrumental to deepen what the music is trying to convey.
When Bocelli comes in, his interpretation of the same instrumental explores what music is when dancing with the one you love; the lyrics, “musica è / la danza regolare di tutti i tuoi respiri su di me” depict a scene of dancing with the one you love and also can be later explored to fit into the dream-like state we hear in the beginning instrumental medley of the song. Here, bringing in these two different interpretations of what music is to them, basing these depictions off of the instrumental gives so much more meaning and understanding to the entirety of the first song.
When their duet comes into play, we hear the continued phrase “Musica è” as an effortlessly faded transition leads us into the second song which automatically gives off different emotions because of how different instruments are being played and the intensities that follow.
The same pattern is repeated in Song 2 where we hear a new instrumental melody accompanied with a piano, synthesizer, flute, violin, and a drum that is introduced. In their vocal solos, Ramazzotti and Bocellis have different interpretations of what that section of music means for them starts to intensify in their vocal ranges heightening. The duet now obtaining more lyrics explores how these interpretations can be combined but have their individuality towards them.
In this section, we start to hear the infamous vocal range of Bocelli’s italian-tenor voice throwing in some opera notes that he hits as the duet comes into play; Their deliverance of the last line to sum up the meanings of the power of music, “è / musica è / da conservare, da salvare insieme a te” explaining the importance and totality of how music can save someone.
What is the most powering in the entirety of the 3rd song and entire song overall is the build up and finale where the order does change and perfectly fits in to bring all ideas together throughout the different songs to finish strong of discovering what music is – almost as if they had been on a journey of asking this question of what music is and truly finding the right answer.
Bringing in the start of the finale, Bocelli’s roaring message of, “senti / più siamo in tanti e più in alto sale / un coro in lingua universale” to give in the message of the beauty music can be for all languages therefore to all people. A chorus of people that are different share the love for music – It is what we take out of the music we listen to when truly exploring what music is. Ramazotti coming in with, “dice che dice che/anche del cielo han bucato la pelle/ lo senti/ è l’urlo delle stelle” to describe how exactly music is unifying by a larger number of people from all over that even it had cracked up to the stars.
The exploration and journey that these three separate songs combined into one had led to this destination of what music truly is; Ramazzotti and Bocelli reveal to us in the last lyrics that, “perchè un mondo senza musica / non si può neanche immaginare /perché ogni cuore anche il più piccolo /è un battito di vita e d’amore /che musica è…”. Without music, love is not present, therefore, Music is simply love. Love is described to live in the heart and with music, life is compared to even the tiniest of heartbeats.
The journey and decision of three songs into one truly does emphasize the importance of discovering what music is, giving more meaning to the deliverance of and the lyrics; the importance of the three sections and what messages lay inside each individual one was a brilliant move excellently performed from Eros Ramazzotti and Andrea Bocelli. Music is compared to love and therefore compared to life – without it, we would not be who we are.
How did UK drill music influence the new sound of New York drill?
How did Drill even start?
UK drill originated in South London district of Brixton in 2012. The dark streets of London then created there own unique sound and started rapping about violent and hedonistic criminal lifestyle. Typically, those who started creating this style of music were affiliated with gangs or come from socioeconomically deprived neighborhoods where speaking about crime and death was them vocalizing how they were products of there own environment. UK drill beats are differently structured from the New York sound, they are more fast- paced and have a hi-hat pattern with snares landing on a fourth beat instead of the third every two bar. AXL beats (Rapper/London Producer) explained that 808s fast tempo snares in UK drill was the start of grime music. 808 has became a slang from the phrase “ heart beating like a 808” . People who aren’t musicians or producers may still understand the reference to the 808 as a drum sound, which you hear a lot in the drill sub genre. The sound typically utilizes a tempo of approximately 138-151 beats per minute.
How did New York get influenced by the UK Drill sound? How did they add there own creativity to this sound?
When you ask the youth, “ what songs comes to your head to represent New York?” ,you’re going to hear the talk of Brooklyn rapper Pop Smoke, also known as “Bashar Barakah Jackson”. Pop Smoke came into the rap game at the age of 21 and executed, the whole year of 2019. Right when the pandemic hit, Pop Smoke released his debut project “ Meet the Woo”, but what made his sound change the name of rap? When Pop was introduced to producer 808Melo, he was allured by Melo’s bass heavy percussion. Melo was credited as a pioneer of UK drill and Brooklyn drill for this ,once they began collaborating these two were inseprable. Pop brought that gritty Brooklyn sound and mixed with Melo’s distinctive UK beat that’s when the new wave of drill was born.Pop flew 808Melo out to New York where they made his fourth song, “Welcome to the Party”. Released in April 2019, and became his first breakout hit. The track was later remixed featuring hip-hop heavyweights Nicki Minaj and Skepta who also was one of the first rappers to began the UK drill scene
Throughout the years New York and UK drill were at different peaks, how does this connect who the youth was listening to more?
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When UK drill started to get the recognition in 2012, the generational youth started to recognize this wasn’t your average MC hip hop sound. This intrigued us because it was the feeling the 808 drum beat gave us, it turned what was we knew was “gangsta rap” into a whole new sound of aggression and lively energy you felt when a drill song came to play. When UK started the new trend of drill in 2012 you can see that 30% of the youth across from New York and UK started to tap in to drill. While New York was at 10% because just as the UK got familiar with the sound we discovered it overseas. The data was not drastically increasing as we started to get used to what drill was, and at the same time new rappers started rising from the UK also trying out drill. Then 2014-2015 year happend , this was UK’s prime peak time when it came to getting high streams in music, rapper LD 67 from Brixton, London came out with his debut single “Today” the streets were riled up with the song LD said “it felt like one moment I was at home not knowing if this rapping career would take off , now everyone at clubs waiting to see me perform. I knew I had it when I heard the crowd sing the song lyric by lyric, I didn’t need my fu*cking mic man.”
New York didn’t stand back down, the noise got around that UK drill was trending, and New York being the epicenter of hiphop couldn’t take the 2nd place title. So right after, Brooklyn rapper Sheff G released his debut single “ No Suburban” in 2017 this song was a response towards the song “ Suburban” by 22gz Brooklyn rapper made in 2016 . The power of any drill scene often lies in beef between rap crews and the corresponding onslaught of songs that amp up the rivalries. “Suburban” and “No Suburban” made New York the next drill hotbed in the 2020s, one with enough raw energy to stand toe to toe with UK as the new epicenter for the sound. By most accounts, it started in Brooklyn with “Suburban,” by 22Gz a diss song that drew a response from a then-unknown Sheff G, who released his own version, “No Suburban.” The two records left New York rap on fire, directly tying in to the formation of the sound that now dominates rap from the state. Increasing the streams the youth affected the percentage of how much people were starting to listen to New York drill instead. By 2017 the UK dropped 50% of streams because everyone was so focused on New York and the 808 production we took from the UK.
By the end of 2018, New York took over the drill scene and we were locked in having the hierarchy title of having the most streaming of music, we were hitting billboard and getting the recognition of interviews from these upcoming rappers that came from the dangerous parts of Brooklyn. Word around the street got out fast about rapper 21 year old rapper Pop Smoke, before his tragic death, Pop left New York with a legacy we will hold forever in the streets of New York. When 808 Melo and Pop Smoke realsed “ Welcome to the Party” we made rap history that night, we heard in every radio the word of Pop and it became global, there was restaurants and clubs, kids at school going crazy getting “sturdy” ( at type of dance made from drill music) to the song. Pop’s lyrics commented on his environment and aspirations of his contemporaries they glamorized drugs, exalted wealth and sexualised women, but were not characterized by excessive violent references. He said in interview “I make music for that kid in the hood that’s gotta share a bedroom with, like, four kids the young kids growing up in poverty.” Pop had a captivating formula, one that set him apart and propelled him into the forefront of the drill scene. He stuck to his formula to the extent that it can be hard to distinguish one track from another. But there was no stopping the power of his distinctive music, and Pop was on the verge of greatness. In December 2019 Pop achieved recognition from rap royalty when featured on Travis Scott’s Jackboys compilation on the song “Gatti”, which was also co-produced by 808Melo. The same month he told The Face magazine that his “life’s a movie now” and promised that his follow-up mixtape Meet the Woo 2, released on Spotify just 12 days before his murder, would be “happier” to reflect on.
After Pop Smoke tragic death, his legacy continued in the hands of fellow Bronx rapper Kay Flock and B-Lovee, at 18 years of age Flock released his debut project “ The DOA Tape” which caught the eyes of the New York youth, why? When Pop died the New York youth thought we wouldn’t have no one else to represent the New York sound. So when Flock came out with his song “Is Ya Ready” everyone turned ears to hear who Kay Flock was. Flock used the same heavy bass percussion and deep 808 drum beat Pop would use. Flock was the talk of the town all 2021 increasing the stream of music from 2019 towards 2021 to 15%. Soon after Flocks short career got caught off due to legal issues his friend B-Lovee carried his title of what was suppose to be “ King of Drill”. B-Lovee carried his career very smoothly all throughout 2021 and 2022, but competition arises when UK rapper Central Cee dropped his single “ Doja”.
B-Lovee stated “ I don’t feel threatened we know who really is the king of drill, and New York go that title.” Central Cee brought the stream usage of UK listners and New York listeners to even out the play feild on who was listening more to who. New York and UK were tied towards the end of 2022, something New York was not expecting since we were in the lead in 2017.Central Cee called 808 Melo and created the Tik Tok viral song which till this day is doing number.
Never underestimate how tables can turn, drill started in UK and just how they easily started the new wave of drill sound is the same way they could take it back.
A song of desperation, confusion, and denial of losing the person you love arriving to listeners’ ears with calming melodies was intensified when Julia Michaels was brought in. The hit song, “Lie to Me” by 5 Seconds of Summer off of their 2018album, Youngblood, had been performed in several different versions, one where Julia Michaels gives a dual perspective of the song’s lyrics sung with lead vocalist, Luke Hemmings. This deliverance brings a new meaning to the original song and what its true intentions were when Hemmings cried out the lyrics, “If I ask you if you love me I hope you lie lie lie lie, lie to me”.
The song’s original first verse and first chorus stayed the same in this duet between Hemmings and Micheals but what changes is the interesting second verse and altered bridge which gives the perspective of the person Hemmings is singing about, delivered by Michaels. Molding the concepts sung in the first verse and chorus give Michaels’ room to create this new perspective of where the love has gone that Hemmings is singing about. Changing lyrics from the original song’s second verse of, “It’s three am and the moonlights testing me/ if I could make it til dawn then it won’t be hard to see/ that I ain’t happy” to Michaels’ second verse of, “Its’ three am and the moonlights testing me/ I know that you’ve been holding on to someone else and now I can’t sleep/ I ain’t happy” brings more context and story to the original song. Powerful moves and additions to this version truly mark the importance of the feel to the song.
What makes the lyrics come to life even more is the strange duet we hear them attempting to harmonize to later in the bridge. The vocal dynamic brought here playing with their levels of vocal range by Michaels is beautifully paired with the constant cry out the word “lie” delivered by Hemmings. This duo truly does bring out the beauty and different meaning to this word and what it entails since the first thought to the word lie usually has a negative connotation. The repetition of “lie” in this bridge begins when Hemmings sings the line, “I hope you” and Michaels coming in to finish, “lie lie lie lie lie to me”. After that is sung, the bridge begins where the word “lie” is sung solely by Hemmings while Michaels vocal takes off in the background, reaching high and lower notes to accompany the “lie” word continuously being sung.
This ending strike in the bridge gives insight to how devastating and the feeling of longing for the one you had loved for both parties in the story within the song; Hemmings crying out and pleading for a lie to be told of love and Michaels harmonizing with her own added improvisation of unmatching notes to blend into what we hear Hemmings sing for is powerful within itself giving a whole new meaning to the duet that both parties are experiencing this pain.
All in all, hearing and absolutely loving 5 Seconds of Summer, it was very powerful of them to bring in Michaels to give the duet which had brought a more intensified meaning to their original song, “Lie to Me” which did not give us this dual perspective and opened up new opportunity for a story to be made hearing what the chorus gives us of losing love.
Definitions:
Bridge:
A bridge is a section of a song that’s intended to provide contrast to the rest of the composition. From The Beatles to Coldplay to Iron Maiden, songwriters use bridges to change moods and keep audiences on their toes. Typically, a bridge will follow a chorus section and present something different—whether it’s a different chord progression, a new key, a faster or slower tempo, or a meter change. A song doesn’t end on its bridge, so there will always be an opportunity to steer the composition back to its main themes once the bridge has concluded.
Dynamic:
In music, we use the word dynamics to describe the volume of music.
But, rather than using words like loud and soft, we use different Italian terms and symbols to describe the volume of the piece.
We group the musical terms for dynamics into two different categories:
Static dynamics
Changing dynamics
Improvisation:
improvisation, also called Extemporization, in music, the extemporaneouscomposition or free performance of a musical passage, usually in a manner conforming to certain stylistic norms but unfettered by the prescriptive features of a specific musical text. Music originated as improvisation and is still extensively improvised in Eastern traditions and in the modern Western tradition of jazz.
Tapping your feet, bobbing your head, and swaying your shoulders are all normal ways the human body uses to groove with music. But while listening to “Could It Be,” you may find yourself doing a little bit of everything to try and keep up with Kaidi Tatham’s modulating production. The song has a whirling, danceable energy, bolstered by a driving cowbell with a clear Latin and Caribbean imprint, and keyboard textures that keep an analogue whimsy within this “plugged in” track. With its crystal-clear sound, you can almost see the instruments figuring in quick succession after the sparse and dry intro, which sounds a bit like clanging drumsticks in a cave forlorn by the apocalypse. The off-key piano notes aren’t very danceable either, and they’d be off-beat if there was a beat to begin with. The discordant noise reminds of creaking metal gates, but then, with no lead-up or reason to expect otherwise, lush syncopation swings open the door to reveal the light Tatham has in store for us.
The body, in response, launches into pattern-making and head-nodding. The initial pattern Tatham weaves together is pace-made by a cowbell and tight cymbals shining over a swaggering Latin drum beat while the bass hangs low, playing when the melody doesn’t. Meanwhile a fuzzy synth, doubling the half-notes of the drum beat, creates melodic harmony with bright keys placed high in the mix. This draws attention to the rhythm of the track. Another synth comes in, this one in ode to funk. There is a lot of blending happening, but no time to think about it. All the while, the melody is modulating over and over, not totally unlike a car careening off a Mario Kart road: the color is there but the missteps are not. As much as the melody builds, it hasn’t abandoned itself.
Halfway into the track, our original melody abandons us, and our headnod yields to the sensual new melody that’s been introduced. The original melody has been interrupted by an ascending repeated phrase from the funky synth, which is echoed by the finally-used snare, like a staircase elevating the song into its next “verse.” The melody clears, and the 80’s synth is playing quietly now while a new sound takes over: warm, shimmering notes ooze, but the familiar backbeat marches on. It hasn’t changed from the first melody, acting as a thread between the sounds. The cowbell is much quieter now but it’s there, like an encore. More discordant notes close out the track, reminding us of where we started. The track follows a bell-curve structure, with the center-most parts of the track allowing for the most modulation. This provides a unique experience in the human body: we get to experience all the sensations, from discomfort to hip-swinging fun, that music can offer in a short four-minute track.
Syncopation: the concept of playing rhythms that accent or emphasize the offbeats. It shifts or displaces a standard rhythm by stressing beats generally not stressed.
Half-notes: a musical note with the time value of ¹/₂ of a whole note.
Melody: a sequence of single notes that is musically satisfying.
Backbeat: a strong accent on one of the normally unaccented beats of the bar, used especially in jazz and popular music.
Modulation: variation in the strength, tone, or pitch of one’s voice.
I would rewind time to listen to this EP for the first time. Music has this ability to heal as it has always been a part of our world. Music is a space where creatives are able to express feelings and their experiences.. For me, this type of music allows my brain to calm down.
Alina Baraz creates music that equally focuses on the vocal’s aspect with its tactful Adlib that only heightens the intimacy and warmth that she creates in her music. This EP features four songs alone with you, if you let me, between us, I could imagine. In these tracks, Alina plays around with bpms and attaches her sultry and soft tone creating this dream-like sensation where you suddenly feel light and calm. Hearing her voice, it draws you in and can be comparable to the likes of Kali Uchis who to me sounds like another voice of femininity. Unlike Kali Uchis’ voice, Alina has this airy sound that simply adds to the allure and sexual appeal of her voice.
Comparing bpm for each song, If you let me falls at 138 while the other three in this EP are 62.5 bpm like Alone with me. With the opening music in this song, the vocals don’t begin until 14 seconds after. The way this song was recorded when you listen to it with headphones, certain parts make it feel like Alina baraz’s voice is coming from somewhere close to you. Her subtle changes in tones on certain lines in this song like when she sings “why don’t we, mix a little kiss a little and having an adlib that says
“a lot” reflects this female desire and the little signals the flirtatious mood that the singer is conveying.
Alina when she describes feeling attraction in Alone with you
“Something bout the look on your face, as you feeling a way baby, I feel it tool/
In the transition from 2:49 to 2:58, the music slows down and changes bpm reflecting and sounds like a spiral with distorted voices. This song also feels like it slows down as the tempo gives off sounds of peace with its lyrics attached about finding someone worthy.
“Look at you and I see versions of me that I need”
In the song, If you let me it appears to be a song where Alina is trying to save an emotionally unavailable man by reassuring him that she will always be there. Through the lyrics, “ don’t keep your feelings to yourself/if you let me”, it reminds me of how I was throughout my relationships, constantly trying to be the one to fix the other person’s problems. This is a prime of example of giving your energy out and not receiving the same energy back,
The song “Between us” starts off with music that reminds me of an ice cream truck but slower in tempo. In the chorus of this song, Alina Baraz sings about running away from everyone when she says, “where they can’t reach us” to her supposed emotionally unavailable lover. Further evidence with the adlib, “never meant to hurt you, I fucked up, I know it wasn’t cool” shows how the singer is in a relationship that is not deserving of their love. Love truly does make some blind.
I could imagine is the only song in this EP, where the song is not focused on a relationship but on this idea of self sabotage as Alina sings about, “I keep running away from, I keep running from all the things I want” reflecting that maybe they don’t feel deserving of the love they receive. The music in the chorus is heightened by the angelic-like voices in the background that attach to Alina’s soft and sultry voice.
The insanely “chill” and “stable” vibes of the beginning of “By the Way” take a new approach with the complete syncopation hitting the beat at 30 seconds. An unexpected twist with the pre-chorus makes the song have a new meaning towards it; The now fast and steady drums lead straight into the chorus which quickly jumps to a similar speed of the pre-chorus. The strange lyrical composition in this pre chorus also make a listener very curious because of the uncertainty of what is to come. This back and forth of the beats makes the song feel uneasy to some but a true headbanger at heart will appreciate this rock-anthem’s choice made by the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
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