Chart update - 13 October

I have some good news and some bad news. The good news is that the top 3 has had some movement for the second week running. The bad news is that the Black Eyed Peas are back in the top 3, so my hope for variety is forlorn. The song they're in with is called "meet me halfway". The other good news is that this is a good song. I don't think it's a classic though.

Structure:

The structure is ABABCB ... but it's cleverly tweaked. The first verse stands out because of the repeated words at the end of each line, this effect is duplicated in the second verse, but not exactly, in verse 2, the repeated words occur in the middle of the line rather than at the end. Verse 2 is somewhat weakened by the opening line about 'seven seas' - a cliche if ever there was. The chorus works well enough, but it's not as striking as the verse. The second time we hear it, the last two lines are repeated which leads us nicely into the bridge, which starts with the line 'let's walk the bridge' - and you can bet that they used the word 'bridge' because it was in the bridge. I really like their use of the vocoder, sparing and effective. The usual black eyed peas arrangement of male verse vocal and female chorus works well, but isn't sonically striking because it's been done by so many rap and hip hop artists.

Lyrical content:

This song is about a girl who really likes a guy but who needs him to 'meet her half way'(choruses). The guy meanwhile also really likes the girl - he talks about missing her, being prepared to meet her anywhere she'd like (verses and bridge). You'd think from the verses that he was willing to do anything necessary, but the chorus keeps on insisting that she can't go any further. You can imagine all kinds of possibilities for this little drama, and I guess having that unresolved element helps keep the song interesting, and also tinged with melancholy.

Music:

The chords aren't particularly remarkable - but they're solid and follow the rules. The verse and chorus melodies contrast nicely, but not startlingly so - fast, low words in the verse with longer, slower, higher words in the chorus. I suspect that the chorus melody floats over a wider range than the verse melody, but I'm not 100% sure - I'd have to see it written down. The production and arrangement is, of course, very effective. Nice quiet sweeping synth, basic drums, filtered and pitch shifted vocals in parts of verse 1, harmonies in parts of verse 2 and vocoded vocals in the bridge, but nothing over done. Comments I saw on youtube reckoned it had an 80s feel. I'd agree.