"Let The Loser Melt"
LISTENING PHASE 1 (RHYTHM)
Tempo: Medium
Source: The source is found in the guitarist's repeated paced strumming that sets the course for the rest of the song.
Groove: The rhythm's personality is very relaxed and passionate, as it grows louder as the song's duration continues.
LISTENING PHASE 2 (ARRANGEMENT)
Instrumentation: The guitars, drums, and bass all work together to drive the song in a direction. They all keep a steady pace and hold an essential part in making this song work.
Structure/Organization: For the most part, this song sticks to its original rhythmic pattern of a repetitive 4/4 time signature stomp. The structure of it grows increasingly louder with time.
Emotional Architecture: As mentioned, this song builds up tension until a calm down for the vocals to kick in. Then, a larger build up occurs until the last few seconds and leaves the listener hanging.
LISTENING PHASE 3 (SOUND QUALITY)
Balance ---
Height: This song covers the entire spectrum of frequency for the most part. The bass line occupies the low end, the singer's voice and guitar stand in for middle range, and the lead guitarist reaches into the higher tones with his pickings towards the end.
Width: There are no panning tricks going on in this song; both left and right speakers receive equal sound.
Depth: No certain instrument is mixed louder than the others, they all receive equal prevalence.
"Might"
LISTENING PHASE 1 (RHYTHM)
Tempo: Medium/Fast
Source: The bass isn't present for the entire song, so the rhythm derives from the drums solely.
Groove: This song has a pretty grungy, aggressive groove. A lot of passion is once again shown in the vocals, too.
LISTENING PHASE 2 (ARRANGEMENT)
Instrumentation: While the rhythm is supplied by the drums, the two bursts of guitars and bass that erupt from the refrain really get the song driving.
Structure/Organization: The song is a short one that consists of a verse/refrain/verse/refrain structure.
Emotional Architecture: The verses remain quiet until the refrain which immediately bursts into a raucous, all-encompassing band affair.
LISTENING PHASE 3 (SOUND QUALITY)
Balance ---
Height: Like the previous song, this also covers the spectrum of frequencies with a prevalent guitar and vocals filling in for midrange, and the following bass as a low end with the lead guitarist's screeching riffs sitting on the high end.
Width: Also like the previous song, no panning occurs here. It is all equally balanced between the right and left speakers.
Depth: Once again, no instrument takes precedent over another. The mixing is equal for all aspects of sound.
The lyrics of both of these songs are sung identically. During the verse sections, singer Eric Bachmann keeps fairly quiet until the refrain, where he grows into a harsher, vociferating tone. As for the melody, the “tune” that you hum to yourself after listening to the songs does not stem from Bachmann’s vocals, whereas most songs’ melodies are within the vocal tracks. Instead, Archers Of Loaf’s guitars supply the melodies, and this is true for both songs.
While “Let The Loser Melt” consistently spends its time in a medium rhythm setting, “Might” changes its pace from medium during the verses and quickens to a faster rhythm with the arrival of each chorus. Once again, both songs contain the same level of intensity, both lyrically and instrumentally. They work together to create a harder sound, because once the band starts to build up sudden sound, Bachmann’s vocals become much more intense and invested in the song. Regarding pitch, Eric’s voice sticks to the same range that he is capable of hitting. It never borders on falsetto, but it is not necessarily a baritone range either. He is roughly somewhere in the middle, and these tracks stay at a similar midrange pitch because of it.
Both of these Archers Of Loaf rockers have varying timbre, but in different ways. On “Might,” the complexity begins at a low featuring only the guitar part and drums. Then, Bachmann’s vocals enter. Once the refrain explodes, the remaining bass guitar and lead guitar follow to add much more complexity. That song takes a simple/complex/simple/complex approach. “Let The Loser Melt” is quite different though. The song introduces each instrument to add a higher timbre quality as the duration increases. From the start, there is a drumbeat, quickly accompanied by Bachmann’s guitar. After a few bars of those two at work, the bass track enters. After that, the lead guitar enters, giving four instruments at once achieving different parts. So, this song’s pattern slowly rises: simple/average complexity/complex. Both speeds are relatively played at a middle-of-the-road pace, except for when “Might” gains momentum during its refrains. Their organizational structures, as explained with the timbre, are contrasted greatly because “Let The Loser Melt” is ever-building in its pattern while “Might” maintains a fairly common verse/refrain/verse/refrain framework.
