Your donation will be used to maintain and improve this site.
"Backpacking Elephants"
Written & Produced: 2005
1st Reproduction: Dec 2007 || 2nd Reproduction: Dec 2009
1st Reproduction: Dec 2007 || 2nd Reproduction: Dec 2009
Backpacking Elephants is a tune I wrote in 2005. It features electric guitar on the melody part, and is styled along the lines of Jazz-funk and Breakbeats.The title comes from the fact that it's based on the chord sequence of Bbm7 and Eb9. The first letters of the title's words match the first letters of the chords.
A friend of mine pointed out the similarity between this and Herbie Hancock's Chameleon, a classic from 1973 which is also based on Bbm7-Eb9 sequence. I admit it was certainly a big part of inspiration as I've always been a huge fan of him. (Chameleon on Youtube)
This is the mix page of the project, in Cubase. The top raw is the Guitar part which is the center of the tune, and the next one is the electric piano. This "EP" track and the "Perc" (Percussion) track seen below are auto-panned. They move left and right according to the pre-drawn green lines indicated right below the corresponding tracks. The third raw from the top is "EP Solo" which does the 2nd solo part in the tune. The sound is a layer of traditional electric piano and synthesizer.The fourth raw from the top is the "SE" track. This is made of what I recorded at Shibuya Station in Tokyo with a portable recorder. The fifth raw is the "Arp" track. I mean "arpeggio" by "arp", so this is the synth part which does the arpeggio-ish phrases.
Score || Leadsheet || Guitar Solo || Score (Video)
(Continued from the left column)
This is the Strings part heard in the intro. The first note on the fourth bar is A natural which is the "tension #11" of the Eb9 chord. Tension #11 creates a thrilling effect. Hear the Strings and the Bass together, and you'll see what I mean.
Here's another bit of the Strings part with the Bass. There's an accidental in some bars: the 4th, 8th, 12th and 16th bars. You'll notice that the notes with those accidentals sound somewhat "out", or unusual. That's because those notes are less-common tensions of the chord of the moment, Eb9.
There is a Breaks part in this tune although it's only one of the supporting roles behind the main characters and barely noticeable. This part comes in every once in a while, when the main Drums part takes a breather. Here's another bit of the Breaks part, and here's the main Drums part switching to the Breaks at the end.
This is a phrase from the Guitar solo. The solo is mostly based on Bb Dorian mode which is the most usual choice for a Bbm7-Eb9 sequence. Nonetheless, the first seven notes of the second bar are derived from another mode, E Dorian. I did this in order to create the unusual feeling. E is a tritone away from Bb, so E Dorian is the farthest sounding Dorian mode from Bb Dorian, thus creating the "out" feel.
There are some other spots I used the same trick in the solo. Here's another example. The first ten notes are from E Dorian while the rest are from Bb Dorian.
This is the Strings part heard in the intro. The first note on the fourth bar is A natural which is the "tension #11" of the Eb9 chord. Tension #11 creates a thrilling effect. Hear the Strings and the Bass together, and you'll see what I mean.
Here's another bit of the Strings part with the Bass. There's an accidental in some bars: the 4th, 8th, 12th and 16th bars. You'll notice that the notes with those accidentals sound somewhat "out", or unusual. That's because those notes are less-common tensions of the chord of the moment, Eb9.
There is a Breaks part in this tune although it's only one of the supporting roles behind the main characters and barely noticeable. This part comes in every once in a while, when the main Drums part takes a breather. Here's another bit of the Breaks part, and here's the main Drums part switching to the Breaks at the end.
This is a phrase from the Guitar solo. The solo is mostly based on Bb Dorian mode which is the most usual choice for a Bbm7-Eb9 sequence. Nonetheless, the first seven notes of the second bar are derived from another mode, E Dorian. I did this in order to create the unusual feeling. E is a tritone away from Bb, so E Dorian is the farthest sounding Dorian mode from Bb Dorian, thus creating the "out" feel.
There are some other spots I used the same trick in the solo. Here's another example. The first ten notes are from E Dorian while the rest are from Bb Dorian.