Listening jounal week 3

Familiar music: Two Pieces by Demi Lovato (4:25), I'll Never Forget You by Birdy (3:48) Where Does the Good Go by Tegan and Sara (3:37). Two Pieces is a slower song about a best friend and how they are there for each other no matter what. At the beginning it is slow and has a drum part. When the chorus part comes she crescendos and an electric guitar starts playing giving it a rock feel. The harmony in this song is a lower part and it creates a deeper feel to the song.  I'll never forget you has a really pretty piano part in the beginning. Birdy make her voice sound raspier than she does in most of her songs. It is an extremely slow song. The ooh's in this song sound somewhat angelic. This song is about a break up and shes saying she will always remember him because he was her first love. Where Does the Good Go is a song I first heard when watching Grey's Anatomy. It is a really upbeat, catchy song. It talks about love and how it is a horrible thing. Throughout the whole song is harmony. The lyrics are repeated many times and the last chorus part has a huge crescendo. Unfamiliar: John Doe Made the Crossing by Big Country Bluegrass (3:52), Voices by Cheap Trick (3:50), and Veronica by Elvis Costello (3:54). John Doe Made the Crossing is a country song and I really didn't like it. It had an extremely twangy feel to it and that is something I don't care for in music. The southern accent is really thick so it is kind of hard deciphering what the man is singing. To me this song sounds all the same and kind of just mushes together.  Voices I thought was really cool they did a thing where voices were layered and it created somewhat of an eerie vibe but also really unique. It has an electric guitar in it which gives it an electric feel to it. I also liked all of the different parts where they used polyphony where the lead singer was singing different lyrics than the back ups.  Veronica is an extremely upbeat song it has a very fast tempo and as the song progresses it gets faster. It is dealing with a pretty serious topic (Alzheimer's) which surprised me based on how up beat and happy the songs tune seems.

Listening journal week 2

Familiar music: Bumper Cars by Alex and Sierra (4:09) and Marilyn Monroe by Nicki Minaj. Marilyn Monroe is by far my favorite song by Nicki Minaj. It is about embracing your true self and is empowering for people who are self-criticizing  because it tells them it's okay not to be perfect. This song has a middle tempo it isn't fast but its not slow either. The song deals with a serous topic and does so in a very upbeat way. I have always had a fascination with Marilyn Monroe and this song incorporates many of her quotes and I really enjoy that about it. For Bumper Cars the song is about a relationship that is falling apart and they are comparing themselves to bumper cars saying whenever they try to get close to each other they crash apart. This song is one of my favorite songs, it is a duet between a male and a female they create an amazing harmony. Overall the song has a slow tempo the refrain does pick up tempo a little but then it goes back to a slower pace. Unfamiliar: Powderfinger by Neil Young (5:47) and Flowers of Guatemala by R.E.M (3:54). Powderfinger was unlike anything I've ever listened  it was recommended to me by my dad and I surprisingly liked it. It's about a guy trying to protect his family but in the end gets shot. It has a very electrical feel to it with a strong electric guitar part featured in a few solos. Some of the lyrics are gruesome (especially when he gets shot) but all of them paint a very clear picture about what's going on which I enjoyed. For Flowers of Guatemala it has an eerie feel to it there a male voice in the background doing echos of what the singer is saying and also ooh and ahh type things. The line "the flowers cover everything is really emphasized it is repeated quite a few times throughout the song. Overall I felt neutral towards this song I didn't think it was horrible but it wouldn't be one I would listen to unless I had to.

Listening Journal Week 1

Familiar music: Clean by Taylor Swift (4:31) 

This song is one of my favorite by Swift I feel like it is a strong and empowering song. I like the fact that the lyrics can fit to a lot of people life situations. That said the lyrics don't mean any specific thing it is just talking about a struggle which I like how it leaves the listener to put their own interpretation on the song. This song is one of swifts more serious pieces but she  still manages to keep a lighter rhythm to it. 

Unfamiliar music: Iris (hold me close) U2 (5:19) At the beginning it has a very creepy feel to it. The males voice is low and in a whisper which I did not like. The refrain picks up the pace which I liked it made the song easier to listen to. Then it went back to the tempo and sound of the beginning. Overall I felt the song dragged on and was dark and I did not like it.