Odd time-signatures apreciation - Progressive Rock Music Forum

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Lima96

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Topic: Odd time-signatures apreciation
Posted: March 23 2012 at 11:40

Why haven't I seen this thread before?

irrelevant View Drop Down

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Posted: March 23 2012 at 10:52

peart_lee_lifeson wrote:

Odd time signatures are cool, but should not be used pointlessly. Try not to say, "I'm going to write a song in an odd time signature," but rather, "The song I'm writing requires the use of an odd time signature," or something to that extent. Either way, melodic and rhythmic ideas should come from the heart more than the head.

I agree.

New album!
http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=7385

peart_lee_lifeson View Drop Down

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Posted: March 23 2012 at 10:49

Odd time signatures are cool, but should not be used pointlessly. Try not to say, "I'm going to write a song in an odd time signature," but rather, "The song I'm writing requires the use of an odd time signature," or something to that extent. Either way, melodic and rhythmic ideas should come from the heart more than the head.

Edited by peart_lee_lifeson - March 23 2012 at 10:49

PROG ON!!!

Icarium

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Posted: March 23 2012 at 10:18

not prog but Soundgarden is pretty insane when it comes to odd-time-sigs, i bet each album (5) have songs, almost 70% of the songs on a Soundgarden album inherit ether a bar of odd-time sigs or more offen a hole songs with different time sigs, i thnk in a hole Soundgarden album it is rarer to find songs with straight 4/4 them an odd time sig, use of 9/8 is common, and so is 5/4 and 6/8, 12/8, and even some polo-rythems and axperimental syncopation

this song have a 22/4 second half of the song

this is in 9/8

Riuku

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Posted: March 23 2012 at 09:50

Oh boy, the intro to Firth of Fifth is delicious as well. The Dance of Eternity is more like the Dance of insanity. The Incident by PT, the last three songs are full of changes and somewhere on there is this delicious crushing 5/8 bit.

Riuku

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Posted: March 23 2012 at 09:49

About Here Comes the Sun, I believe the bridge is in 26/8, or 11/8+4/4+ 7/8

The Beatles were totally prog! Love them.

Riuku

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Posted: March 23 2012 at 09:48

Seeing as how common 4/4 is on the radio here in America I think even if it's in 3 or has time signature CHANGES or polyrhythms it's "odd."

However, in the prog world, 3/4, 6/8, 12/8 are not odd at all of course.

Math Rock is insane of course, as is tech/extreme prog metal and jazz fusion. I love Tool though, for example, in Jambi, I believe Adam is 9/8, Justin in 6/8, and Danny in several :P, and that's just the intro! A Perfect Circle has some good ones, or tiny little sections, like in The Outsider. Or that perfect shift from 7/4 to 6/8 in Gravity, it makes you feel like you're defying gravity.

Mars Volta are ridiculous.

Also, Freewill, Limelight, Time Stand Still, Red Barchetta, Tom Sawyer and Spirit of Radio are all ridiculously awesome for utilizing odd times and making them radio accessible. And not only odd times, but random bars of odd times. For example, in Tom Sawyer there is one bar of 13/16 and one 15/16.

Does anyone know what Anesthetize is in? 23/16 right?

Mars Volta are pretty unique too. In Inertiatic ESP that bridge is primarily in 7/4 but I think they add or remove a beat here and there. Copernicus has like no time :P

Frank Zappa deserves a mention.

Meshuggah are insane for polyrhythms. Pain of Salvation uses some fun ones. Between the Buried and Me are also ridiculously insane.

Icarium

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Posted: February 07 2012 at 17:44

I just have to recomend "Pie in the Sky" av Vaiping just listen to it if you can

himtroy

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Posted: February 07 2012 at 17:25

I'm playing a piece for school that is a lot of 9/8 and 12/8 alternating. However it isn't consistent alternation so it isn't 21/8.

Which of you to gain me, tell, will risk uncertain pains of hell?
I will not forgive you if you will not take the chance.

SaltyJon

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Posted: February 07 2012 at 16:09

Supposedly, Dave Kerman's said the first part is in 53/32. I'm not very good at counting to 53 in 32nd notes in prog, so I can't verify that. LOL

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Posted: February 07 2012 at 15:41

I love odd time sigs, but when using them in a song you have to be careful not to get self-indulgent(sometimes they sound unnatural and pointlessly confusing) .

megablasterzoid View Drop Down

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Posted: February 07 2012 at 14:59

That Jean Louis track is superb! Good stuff

Turillazzo View Drop Down

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Posted: February 07 2012 at 14:05

megablasterzoid wrote:

Gentle Giant - Cogs in Cogs: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cifBpc3r-tQ One of my favourites! Smile

In the middle section, the two vocal parts are in different meters. The first part to enter ("The circle turns around, the changing voices calling...") is in 6/4, but the second one ("Circle turns around the changing voices") is in 15/8. This means that the two melodies "line up" differently in five different ways. The phrases "meet" every 60 eighth notes.

Lovely! other notable polyrithmies:

-Obviously Total Mass Retain, with guitar and voice playing in the old same 3/4 and drums'n'bass in 4/4

And then, well, the serious staff <3
http://jeanlouis.bandcamp.com/track/zakir-2

megablasterzoid View Drop Down

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Posted: February 07 2012 at 10:24

Gentle Giant - Cogs in Cogs: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cifBpc3r-tQ One of my favourites! Smile

TODDLER

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Posted: January 26 2012 at 18:41

One way to keep good even time with "Sprinkling of Clouds" is to count it ...1,2,3,4,5,- 1,2,3,4,5,-.1.2.3.4.5,- 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9, and then repeat. Wait for the high-hat to begin.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEgZeZgZ248

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Posted: January 26 2012 at 11:33

One of my tracks:

New album!
http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=7385

AtomicCrimsonRush View Drop Down

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Posted: January 25 2012 at 19:55

This!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVNebNyGEVE&feature=related

geneyesontle View Drop Down

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Posted: January 25 2012 at 17:12

I Love odd time signatures.

Mr. Maestro View Drop Down

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Posted: January 08 2012 at 13:57

This one may just take the cake as far as odd time signatures go.

Also, even though it's not really prog, nearly every song on Soundgarden's Superunknown contains either 6/4, 7/4, or 10/4, and it was a rather large mainstream success.

bensommer

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Posted: January 07 2012 at 19:37

Forget odd meters, how about mixed tempos & meters at the same time? This is something I do in my music all the time - I came upon it organically, but it was popularized - and rediscovered in the 20th century by composer Elliot Carter. Called metric modulation

Only example I've heard in top 40 music in last 15 years: Soundgarden's Pretty Noose - at around 1:05