Musically I attempted to blend elements of traditional and contemporary song. The brief states that the song may contain a maximum of two instruments and a vocal. I decided to use one guitar and vocals as I feel the sparseness adds to the intimacy of the songs delivery. The introduction draws influence from scottish traditionalist music, featuring drones, rolls and compound time. This aids in setting the scene which is in Glasgow. The verse takes influence, like in "The Mountain," from more contemporary folk artists like James Taylor, featuring broken chords throughout whilst continuing to hint at traditional roots in the melody. This allows the vocal melody to move more freely than in "The Blantyre Explosion" giving the song a more contemporary feel.
Structurally "The Blantyre Explosion" essentially remains AAA throughout. I attempted to keep within a similarly simple structure but felt I had to make some adaptions to allow the song to fit within a contemporary role. Like in "The Blantyre Explosion" I avoided putting in a chorus, instead there is a refrain that happens twice after each verse when the lyrics read "When I close my eyes..." The song unfolds verse-refrain, verse-refrain and ends with a new section. The Final section moves between two chords and happens as the survivor in the song pays tribute to those who lost their lives in the accident. I felt it was necessary to alter this final section as the pattern of the lyrics changes. While the verses close with the lyrics "When I close my eyes," here the survivor tells us "They closed their eyes." The simplicity of the final section highlights what is for me, the saddest part of the song.
You can listen to the track at the link below.
Structurally "The Blantyre Explosion" essentially remains AAA throughout. I attempted to keep within a similarly simple structure but felt I had to make some adaptions to allow the song to fit within a contemporary role. Like in "The Blantyre Explosion" I avoided putting in a chorus, instead there is a refrain that happens twice after each verse when the lyrics read "When I close my eyes..." The song unfolds verse-refrain, verse-refrain and ends with a new section. The Final section moves between two chords and happens as the survivor in the song pays tribute to those who lost their lives in the accident. I felt it was necessary to alter this final section as the pattern of the lyrics changes. While the verses close with the lyrics "When I close my eyes," here the survivor tells us "They closed their eyes." The simplicity of the final section highlights what is for me, the saddest part of the song.
You can listen to the track at the link below.