Companion to Chapter 1.8, Powerful Chords and More
Iron Man
The Power Chord Industrial Complex
The Essays
On songs, on theory, and on the space between.
Every essay is listed here as it's published. Every essay goes out in full on Substack; this is the archive.
Companion to Chapter 1.7, Drones, Pedals and Layers
The Chords Stand Still; the Song Keeps Moving
Never leaving the world of its own creation.
Companion to Chapter 1.6, Measure for Meter
Written Straight, Played Swung
Any swing is a gait.
Companion to Chapter 1.5, At the Interval
Dissonance — or, as I’d rather call it, Resonance
It began as a negotiating tactic. It became a metaphysical striving.
Companion to Chapter 1.4, Scaling the Heights
Why Twelve?
The piano keyboard is a decision, not a fact — and my ear grew up inside it
Companion to Chapter 1.3, It’s About Time
Beethoven, Upside Down, in Stomping Boots
What Queen's "We Will Rock You" knows about the Fifth Symphony
Companion to Chapter 1.2, Lines and Dots and Blobs, Oh My!
What the Dots Leave Out
The recording is the score of pop music.
Companion to Chapter 1.1, Pop Music, Huh?
The Sound and the Theory: Signifying Something
My textbook on popular music goes public today — one free chapter every week, starting with Chapter One.
EP review
The Psychedelic Baby: Simulating by The Brahmankind
A Vancouver art-rock debut in four twisted tales — and 21 minutes worth learning to get lost in.
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