Moby: Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad? (1999)

Texture:

• Homophonic
• Texture driven by layered entries of instruments
• Thins in breakdown – drums no longer play
• Pause bar of silence
• Piano is chordal, dense syncopated chords in 5th repeat of the verse

Harmony:

• Three simple chord progressions:
• 1 (male sample, dorian mode on A): Am Em G D; strong tonic-dominant relationship (Am – Em; G – D)
• 2a (female sample, C): C Am C Am;
• 2b (female sample, C): F C F C; strong tonic-dominant relationship (F – C)

Instrumentation:

• Synthesizers – strings, bass, piano
• Sampler for vocal samples, not treated to keep it ‘dirty’/’edgy’
• Drum machine
• Sequencer
• Panning used to place sounds in stereo field
• Reverb and delay to develop timbre

Rhythm:

• 4/4 time signuature
• 98bpm tempo, slower than conventional dance music
• Drum loop made up of backbeat (emphasis on beats 3 and 4)
• Varied piano chord rhythm

Melody:

• Based on two samples from gospel choir singers; male sample for verse and female for chorus
• Untreated samples to give them a vintage and dirty sound
• Samples looped for repetition and simplicity
• Call and response effect towards end of song

Form:

• Verse-chorus
• Breakdown signalled by a bar of silence followed by chord sequence 2 without drums
• Intro – Verse – Chorus – Verse – Breakdown – Chorus - Verse