Dancer On The Water - A Musical Analysis

This is a review of Dancer on The Water by Brothertiger.  The songwriter and singer is Brothertiger (John Jagos).  The producers are Brothertiger and Jon Markson.  This song was released on march 18, 2021 and it appears on the self titled album.  

Brothertiger is an electronic artist whose creations are influenced by 80’s and 90’s electronic music.  His career started back in 2009 in Ohio.  He was influenced by bands like M83 and Animal collective.  This song in particular falls under the genres of chill-wave and synth-pop. 

Click to watch 

Personal Reflection

I spent a great deal of my childhood summers in nature.  My hometown had thick birch forests with spruce trees.  I loved the solitude and peace the forest provided.  The song Dancer on The Water brings me back to the same headspace.

Lyrics 

This song tells a story of longing for a tranquil space.  The song opens with the chorus. The chorus represents the singer's dream of being by the ocean.  He uses the lyrics “Dancer on the water” to evoke a graceful and effortless surfer.  The line “Cool ocean blue carries you” describes the calm quality of the “dancer”.  After daydreaming of the ocean, the singer becomes optimistic, which is made clear with the line “sun up above shining through”.   

He then goes on to tell us why he daydreams of the ocean.  The lyrics “I Drift through the streets all alone at night” clue us in to the singer not finding what he is looking for in the city.  The lyrics “escape from you the streets so grey” symbolize how dull and lackluster the city is.  The singer goes on to say “cus I’m not a city boy anyway”, which means city life is not for him.  

With the lyrics “I’m through. I’ll try to remember you” the author is saying he is over this brief fantasy.  He ends the song by singing “one more sullen sky and watch as the boats go by.” This lyric describes the end of his fantasy.

Chords 

This song has 4 chords:  E♭ -> D♭ -> Fₘ⁷ -> B♭ₘ⁷.  The song is in the key of D-flat. (Song BPM)

 This key brings the emotional quality of grief (Song BPM).  I don't think this matches the tone of the song.  I think there are notes of grief in it, but the song mostly sounds like relief from grief in the form of a daydream.     The opening line "dancer on the water" is in the key of E-flat major, which evokes love or devotion.  The second line "moving like you do is in D-flat major, which brings the emotion of grief.  The third line "cool ocean blue carries you" is F minor 7th chord, which has the emotional quality of melancholy. The fourth line is b-flat minor 7th chord, carries the emotion of cheerful love.  So, the chord progression carries the listener through mixed emotions. 

Texture  

This Song incorporates many “nostalgic” sounds from various 90’s rack mount synths (SAYS WHO?)  The intro is the sound of a soft drink filling up -- an interesting and non-musical sound-nugget that is there purely for texture.  Next, a bright synth flute sound appears.  The texture of this instrument is airy. The harmonica that comes in afterward has a metallic texture.  To round out the overall sound, a chime interment plays at the tail end of the verse -- this adds a bright, shimmering element of texture. 

Range

This song has mid-range vocals throughout.  The vocals smoothly roll up and down similar to gentle waves.  

Melody

In this song, the primary melody is both sung (in the chorus) and performed on the harmonica.  The melody ends with a long, sustained-but-dwindling note reminiscent of a sigh.  This contributes to the daydream-like and wistful emotional characteristics of the song.  I think it is particularly interesting that the melody carries over from the singer's voice to an instrument. It's almost like his voice is just one of the instruments playing the melody. 

Critical Response

The music blog Glamglare shared an opinion of Dancer on The Water: "[it is an] irresistible blend of 80s pop sensibilities and his own highly appealing craftsmanship and style."  BroadwayWorld wrote: "Armed with a wacky new vocabulary of sounds, Jagos wrote 'Dancer on the Water,' an elegant, up-tempo coastal fantasy with lustrous synths and pan flute flourishes." So, these critics clearly appreciated the song, like I do. 

 

Sources

“Brothertiger – Dancer on the Water.” Genius, genius.com/Brothertiger-dancer-on-the-water-lyrics. Accessed 19 Feb. 2024. 

 “Song Pick: Brothertiger - Dancer on the Water (Video).” Glamglare, 22 Mar. 2021, wp.glamglare.com/music/2021/03/22/song-pick-brothertiger-dancer-on-the-water-video/. 

“Brothertiger Hometown, Biography.” Last.Fm, www.last.fm/music/Brothertiger/+wiki. Accessed 19 Feb. 2024. 

“BPM and Key for Dancer on the Water by Brothertiger: Tempo for Dancer on the Water.” SongBPM, songbpm.com/@brothertiger/dancer-on-the-water-yr0jiAVHyr. Accessed 19 Feb. 2024. 

“Dancer on the Water by Brothertiger.” SonicHits, sonichits.com/video/Brothertiger/Dancer_on_the_Water. Accessed 20 Feb. 2024. 

Major, Michael. “Brothertiger Announces New Self-Titled Album.” BroadwayWorld.Com, www.broadwayworld.com/bwwmusic/article/Brothertiger-Announces-New-Self-Titled-Album-20221005. Accessed 24 Feb. 2024. 

"Unlock It" -- a bubbly, hyper pop song about connection

In the modern era, it is becomingly increasingly difficult to form relationships with other people. Charli XCX is a cutting-edge pop artist who explores this theme in super-danceable songs.    'Unlock it' is a quintessential hyperpop song with a catchy synth melody and a synthetic timbre. 

Hyperpop is kind of a niche genre, so you might not have heard of it.  Click on the link below to hear a version of 'Unlock it," a quintessential hyper pop song that will introduce you to the genre. 

Personal Reaction

To me, this song is euphoric. At the same time, I feel like this song acknowledges a sense of isolation, so it feels like a celebration after a period of suffering or sadness.  It feels kind of like spring -- coming out into the light after a long period of isolation.

Lyrics 

The lyrics of this song are repetitive -- a lot of the chorus is just Charli Xcx saying 'Lock it, lock it, unlock it. Lock it, lock, it unlock it.'  The repetitiveness contributes to the dreamy or trance-like feel of the song. The real meaning comes in at the end of this repetitive chorus, though, which says 'if you want my love, try to unlock it.'  These lyrics mean that the author wants to connect with another person, but finds that there is a 'lock' in the way.  For the author, loving and being loved is not easy, so she needs her pursuer to put forth considerable effort to 'unlock' her love, which is buried beneath defensive barriers.  

The bridge in this song says 'Roller coaster ride in the fast lane, got the roof down, kiss me hot in the pouring rain.'  These lyrics explain that connecting is, for the author, a chaotic process with a lot of highs and lows.  

Even though the author is defensive and unpredictable, she also feels vulnerable to the person she is trying to love.  Another verse says 'I'm right here in your pocket; you've got my heart so don't you drop it; if you want my love, try to unlock it.' 

Melody and Chords

The melody in this song is very fast and bubbling. It contributes to the overall euphoric feeling of the song because it instantly catches you and then keeps looping and intersecting with other parts of the song in unexpected ways.  It feels like the melody bounces on top of the song and then ducks underneath it throughout the song.  I think this has something to do with its equalization / sound engineering.  Musically, though, the melody sounds like a bubbling crystal spring -- it is very catchy and it repeats over and over throughout the entire song without stopping.  The unceasingness of the melody makes the song kind of hypnotic and dreamy, which accentuates the 'synthetic' vibe of the song. 

It's also worth noting that the melody comes from an arpeggiation of the chords in the song. The chord progression is D, E, C sharp minor, A, F sharp minor, G sharp minor in the key of A major (ultimate-guitar.com).  The key of A major is associated with pure joy and euphoria, so that tracks (Steblin 1983).  The chord progression starts with two major chords in a row, goes back to a major chord (A), then sinks into two minor chords before starting over again.  This chord progression -- while euphoric overall -- is suggestive of a euphoria that is teetering on despair (because the chord progression starts from mostly major chords but ends in mostly minor chords). This makes the song emotionally poignant and interesting despite being very 'bubblegum.' 

Range

This song has a very narrow range of sound.  There is no bass line in this song, and the melody (along with the singer's voice) are quite high pitched.  This is very characteristic of the hyper pop genre.  The narrow sound range makes the song sound kind of artificial and glossy. That is part of the aesthetic of this genre.  Said another way, the narrow range contributes to the feeling of 'floating on a cloud' that this song is trying to engender.

Critical Response

Overall, critics raved about this song.  Pitchfork called the song 'art-pop at it's finest' and 'hyperaware of contemporary trends" and 'euphoric.'  This supports my analysis of the song.  Pitchfork also called the song 'just shy of a parody,' which I think is funny and accurate.  In my words, the song 'bubbles;'  in the words of pitchfork, the song 'evaporates.'  I think both of those words are good descriptors of the unique way this song evolves (Nast 2024). 

Sources

"Charlie Xcx - Unlock It (Chords)." Tabs.ultimate-Guitar.com, tabs.ultimate-guitar.com/tab/charlie-xcx/unlock-it-chords-2256213. Accessed 17 Feb. 2024

Nast, Conde. "Charlie XCX: "Unlock It" [Ft. Kim Petras and Jay Park]." Pitchfork, pitchfork.com/reviews/tracks/charlie-xcx-unlock-it-ft-kim-petras-and-ja-park/#:`:text=The%20lyrics%20of%20. Accessed 17 feb. 2024.

Steblin, Rita. "Musical Key Characteristics." Which.edu, 1983, which.edu/mus-theo/courses/keys.html

Introduction

Hello, I'm Karsten Kroener and I am currently in a Bachelor of Arts in Art program at UAF.  

This is a photo I took from near the top of Bear Mountain in the summer of 2021.  
To the right of the mountain in the distance is the town of Eagle River.

I've lived in Fairbanks for the past few years and don't plan on ever leaving.  I am a lifelong Alaskan who really enjoys the nature, more-so in interior Alaska.  I like the dryer weather, mixed forest, and surrounding tundra all encapsulated in a small-ish town.  Music brings me peace and helps me stay grounded .  In the 7th grade I played the trumpet, much later on I learned how to use daw's and midi keyboards in conjunction with GarageBand.  I didn't have any training in music so all of what I've created in Garageband is more experimental sounding.  I usually use synth instruments with a deep baseline.  I like to go for nature walks and take nature photographs. Another pastime I enjoy is to make art, primarily three-dimensional art like woodworking, sculptures, etc.

I mostly listen to electronic music, I think this is due to all the electronic soundtracks I heard growing up playing computer games like Command and Conquer Red Alert, and Need for Speed III: Hot Pursuit.  I listen to a variety of sub-genres like break-beat, house, melodic / downtempo, and nostalgic sounding vaporware.  I don't exclusively listen to electronic music.  I also like some alternative / indie rock (Pinkshinyultrablast), dream pop (The Sundays), classic rock (Fleetwood Mac), some rap (Azealia Banks), some classical music (Clair De Lune), and electronic music (Negative Gemini).  I used to listen to a lot more rock and grunge music (puddle of mud, minerva, nine inch nails, etc.) but as I got older I've leaned towards other music.

I have been to three music concerts in my life.  The first was in Seward AK back in 2000.  I was originally there for a camping trip, but a bluegrass concert was going on at the same time so I attended for a few songs.  The next concert I saw was around 2009, I'm not exactly sure.  It was at the East high school auditorium and the performer was the drummer for the band Hootie and The Blowfish.  The first real concert I attended was in Anchorage in the summer of 2017.  It was the road to warped tour.  I saw multiple bands play.  It was mostly modern up and coming "scene music" and an older 90's alt rock band.  Linked below is a song that has recently become one of my favorites.  The singer is Caroline Loveglow  and this song has nostalgic appeal to me.  

Caroline Loveglow - Foxy