Thundercat’s signature multi-layered six-string bass plays over a drum beat sampled from The Isley Brothers’ “Footsteps in the Dark.” There are two bass parts, seventh chord arpeggios down the middle of the mix and heavy auto-wah bass notes in the sides of the mix. “Them Changes” is either named after its complex chord changes or as a nod to the Buddy Miles album of the same name.
Them changes thundercat mac#
I’ve looked at similar chord progressions in Mac DeMarco’s “A Heart Like Hers” and Depeche Mode’s “Shake the Disease.” With enough practice, it becomes second nature to improvise over key changes like this. When the chord changes back to Dm, the scale notes shift back to D minor.Ĭonstantly changing scales like this might seem complicated, but a fundamental part of jazz composition and performance is navigating over complex chord changes. With the scale notes changed, the melody fits perfectly over the new chord. To make the melody work with the chords, Thundercat shifts the melody notes from the D minor scale that he sings over the Dm chord to the D ♭ major scale over the D ♭ chord. Later in the “Friend Zone” verse, Thundercat extends his singing phrases over the D ♭maj7 chord. A ♭ doesn’t belong to the D minor scale but is one of the notes in D ♭maj7 so this helps bridge the two chords together nicely. However, he ends each phrase by landing on an A ♭ note over the D ♭ chord. In the first part of the “Friend Zone” verse, Thundercat sings a D minor scale (D E F G A C) melody over the Dm chord.
![them changes thundercat them changes thundercat](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/BbrBExKiNEY/sddefault.jpg)
![them changes thundercat them changes thundercat](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/27SBdCll4JI/maxresdefault.jpg)
The chord change sounds like this: Ĭare has to be taken when playing a melody or singing over chords that change keys because notes that work over the first chord might not work over the second chord. Dm9 and D ♭maj7 don’t belong together in any key or scale so there is a shift in harmony when the chord changes.ĭespite this, they work together nicely because they share two notes: F and C. The chords are Dm9 | D♭maj7, though the Dm9 is replaced with a Dm7sus4 in the synth-arpeggiated verse sections. “Friend Zone” is a relatively straightforward composition for Thundercat and it’s built around a two-chord progression. Out of all the chord theory articles I’ve written, this one covers the most complex ideas, so if you haven’t already, check out some of my previous Chord Theory articles. I’ve transcribed the chords and melody of five Thundercat songs to analyze music theory concepts used that you can also use in your own songwriting. Thundercat Music TheoryĪlthough Thundercat is mostly famous for his Moogerfooger-processed bass sound (sometimes mistaken for a bass synth), in this article I’m going to focus entirely on his songwriting. He is also a fan of simple, catchy melodies which he masterfully combines with these jazzy, “outside” chord progressions. While he combines these jazz influences with funk, pop & R&B to create his eclectic sound, his jazz background has the strongest effect on how he approaches songwriting, with unusual harmonic chord progressions being one of the hallmarks of his sound. Thundercat is heavily inspired by jazz musicians, citing Ron Carter, Herbie Hancock, Mary Lou Williams, and Miles Davis as the artists he introduced Kendrick Lamar to while collaborating on To Pimp a Butterfly. He is also a successful solo artist with four albums under his belt, with 2016’s Drunk and 2020’s It Is What It Is garnering critical acclaim for their mixture of virtuosic bass-playing, guest appearances, and idiosyncratic humour. Thundercat is the stage name of Stephen Bruner, a bassist known for his work with Kendrick Lamar, Flying Lotus, Erykah Badu, and Suicidal Tendencies. + Producers, Composers, Synth Heads and Sci-Fi Nerds, our new course with synthwave pioneer Com Truise: Mid-Fi Synthwave Slow-Motion Funk, is out now! Meeeow.This article originally appeared on Reverb Machine Comment by ?????įeeling like someone's cool grandpa rn Comment by (^_^)?? This a good song to get high too Comment by АНМ This song feels like having walking around town while overthinking and slowly succumbing to the overthoughts Comment by sadlopez Having a cool walk with anxiety Comment by lenskid Listening to bladee is like seeing an angel on ketamine Comment by eva. Mini-album 'The Beyond / Where the Giants Roam' will be released digitally on Monday 22nd June via Brainfeeder. Virtuoso bassist and singer-songwriter Stephen Bruner aka Thundercat returns to the Brainfeeder fold with his first solo material in two years, having already made outstanding contributions to not one, but two, of the greatest albums of 2015 - To Pimp a Butterfly and The Epic - by fellow Los Angelians Kendrick Lamar and Kamasi Washington. Pre-order the new album 'It Is What It Is', released 3 April on Brainfeeder: