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Kate Bush - Hounds of Love (General Context ('Cloudbusting' is…
Kate Bush - Hounds of Love
Harmony & Tonality
Added note, sus and slash chords
Cloudbusting - C#m7, Badd9, A6/9, F#7(sus4)
And Dream of Sheep - F#m/A, B(add4)/A, F#7(sus4), C#m7, C#m9
Under Ice - F7#4, Dm9, A(sus2), Am/C
Bush uses a plethora of decorated chords to convey the concepts of Hounds of Love and The Ninth Wave - dissonant suspensions and added notes to portray the negative aspects such as Reich's arrest and the narrator's struggles at sea and on the ice
Wuthering Heights - use of 7th chords
As a result of being self-taught, Bush is not confined by functional rules and progressions
Bush's music is tonal but not simply diatonic and functional - it is often modally inflected through chord choice and progressions
Modal
Cloudbusting - Modal C# minor - the mystery of Wilhelm Reich and his eventual arrest
And Dream of Sheep - Verses in Modal C# minor, choruses in E (Relative Major) - parallel to the shift in tone from one of peacefulness as the narrator awaits rescue to the realisation that help isn't coming
Under Ice - Modal A minor - the ambiguity of the narrators state of mind - seeing herself under the ice
Material Girl - simple, basic C major tonality
Modulations
Cloudbusting and Under Ice - both pieces have no modulations
And Dream of Sheep - modulates to the relative major for the choruses
Melody
Melismas
And Dream of Sheep - use of melismas throughout, especially within the coda: 'deeper and deeper' - connotes the feeling sinking helplessly in the ocean - the concept of The Ninth Wave
Wuthering Heights - frequent use of melismas e.g. 'cold' & 'window' in chorus and 'grab' in middle section - Cathy's passionate desperation
Perfect & Major intervals
And Dream of Sheep - Opens with perfect 5ths - the peacefulness of floating out at sea
And Dream of Sheep - Coda contains frequent use of major 6ths - the shift in tone as the narrator loses hope and sinks
Syllabic text-setting
Under Ice - Mostly syllabic vocal line - the harsh cold of the ice - the concept of The Ninth Wave
Material Girl - Highly syllabic
Stonemilker - Syllabic vocals with a staccato delivery
Triadic phrases
Cloudbusting - triadic opening intervals to verses
Pentatonicism
Under Ice - Quasi-pentatonic shapes used in more lyrical melodic sections
Rhythm & Metre
Syncopation
Cloudbusting - chorus uses anticipatory syncopation
Material Girl - syncopated melodies
Anacrusis
And Dream of Sheep - Coda has an anacrusic pick-up
Common time w/ use of other time sigs for effect
Cloudbusting - mostly 4/4 but use of 6/4 to extend phrases
And Dream of Sheep - mostly 4/4 with use of 2/4 to extend phrases and 5/4 for dramatic effect - the irregularity of the sea
Wuthering Heights - regular 4/4 metre - the constant wind on the moors
Madonna, Material Girl - complete contrast, simple 4/4 with typical SAW drumbeat
Lombard Rhythm
And Dream of Sheep - Coda ending phrase makes use of Scotch Snap/Lombard Rhythm
Repeated Rhythmic Pattern
Under Ice - repeated 10-bar rhythmic unit forms basis of the piece: 4/4 x 2; 3/4 x 5; 4/4 x 3
Instrumentation
Unorthodox instrumentation: use of Fairlight CMI, Bouzouki, Balalaika, sound effects, Uillean pipes and Irish whistles
Bush doesn't use traditional 80s rock and pop instruments such as Bass/Electric Guitar and strong Drums
Use of (treated) vocal samples and sound effects
Cloudbusting - use of (treated) vocal samples in the instrumental, spoken word in the coda and ending with steam engine effects - Bush has used these to portray the story of the concept album - train engine could be a reference to cloudbusters
And Dream of Sheep - Spoken vocal sample shortly before verse 2 - shipping information - the narrator is lost at sea
Under Ice - Rumbles and thunderous sounds of an avalanche - narrator is skating on ice
Imogen Heap, Hide and Seek (2005) - use of the Vocoder
(Madonna - Material Girl) Orthodox pop of the 80s = 3min Stock, Aitken & Waterman (SAW) pop songs - drum machine, synthesisers and a catchy tune - a COMPLETE contrast to Bush's creative, experimental music
Björk meshes organic and synthetic - Stonemilker uses a combination of electronic sounds and string arrangements
General Context
Hounds of Love is a concept album that was released in 1985
The vinyl was produced with two sides: side one concluded with 'Cloudbusting'; side two is 'The Ninth Wave'
'The Ninth Wave' is a mini-concept album comprising 7 tracks about 'the thoughts of a person drifting alone in the sea at night, battling to stay awake, slipping in and out of consciousness'
'Cloudbusting' is side one; 'And Dream of Sheep' and 'Under Ice' are part of 'The Ninth Wave'
'And Dream of Sheep' - drifting in the sea, awaiting rescue
'Under Ice' - in a dream-like state, the narrator is skating on ice alone. In a doppelganger-like moment she sees herself under the ice
'Cloudbusting' - based on the relationship between inventor Wilhelm Reich and his son, his theories about Orgone and machines called Cloudbusters
Björk - Icelandic singer-songwriter - was influenced by Kate Bush
The concept album 'Vulnicura' (2015) documents the deterioration of the relationship between Bjork and Matthew Barney and her overcoming the pain
'Stonemilker' is solely composed and produced by Björk - the sub-title for Stonemilker is '9 months before' - meaning that it was written 9 months before the break-up
The music video was uploaded to YouTube and was one of the first 360-degree interactive music videos on YouTube - it is therefore clear that, like Bush, Björk was ahead of her time with regards to experimentation with technology
Texture
Homophony
Cloudbusting - Homorhythmic string chords - broken for effect at end of pre-choruses
Under Ice - Homorhythmic vocals in 'refrain' sections - gives a sharp jagged feel which imitates the narrator skating on ice
Polyphony
Cloudbusting - Violin riff acts as counterpoint to vocals in the choruses
Melody-dominated Homophony
Overall texture of Cloudbusting
And Dream of Sheep - texture focuses strongly on vocals - emphasises the narrator's lucid state of mind
Wuthering Heights - thin opening texture + scalic chimes + generally high pitch of instruments - gives ethereal atmosphere - perfectly introduces the piece about the Gothic moors and toxic love of Heathcliff and Cathy
Material Girl - standard Melody & Accompaniment
Structure & Form
And Dream of Sheep
Song form: Verse 1, Bridge 1, Verse 2, Bridge 2, Coda
Under Ice
Through-composed! - highly unorthodox for 80s pop - easily portrays the development of the narrator's journey
Cloudbusting
Extended traditional song form: Verse, Pre-chorus, Chorus x2, Instrumental, Altered Chorus & Postlude
Wuthering Heights & Material Girl - both standard song structure - with a few simple additions, e.g middle section in WH
Stonemilker - Extended song form: Intro, Verse, Pre-chorus, Chorus x2, Outro