Entre Nous
In my last post I mentioned that I wasn't looking forward to the next two. I respect this song musically and the lyrics are certainly not bad, but they don't do anything for me either. Now that I listen to music on computers and have playlists, I avoid this song entirely. Just between us, the spaces between "Freewill" and "Natural Science" leave
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I dig it lyrically on a couple of levels. First, i like the overall message of "we don't need to be identical or know each other perfectly to share something cool" -- perhaps apropos given the paragraph above. :) I also like the analogy play -- even tho many of them are stock (books, ships in the night, yada) -- it's fun and evocative.
Guitar-wise, i share your assessment of "competent but not amazing", based mostly on the fact that i can actually play this song. (Honestly, like Rivendell, i think some part of my love for this song also grows further from love of playing it.) However, i see this tune as a model of "competency that works really really well" -- a case where doing the right simple things is really all you need.
You mention Alex's shift to arpeggios on the second verse, and this is a great example of this. The motion that he gives to the verse totally drives the form line through the tune, and helps create these great contrasts between sections -- staccato driving chords in one verse, colorful arpeggios in another, fast-moving few-note arpeggios in the vamp, long ringing power chords as we wrap the chorus -- this song is all about the push and pull, and Alex's guitar work actually sets up the rhythmic playground for the whole piece.
The bridge actually doesn't have much to explain, theory-wise. Like much of the rest of the song, it's just driven by color tones. The chords in this song are so gorgeous because of all those irregular notes (meaning those you wouldn't just find in vanilla major/minor triads), and because of the perfectly dialed-in level of distortion with which Alex delivers them. In the bridge (like the second verse), Alex arpeggiates on these types of chords -- with quick breaks to punctuate with hits -- painting a chordal harmony out of notes more like those you'd find in a melody. With harmony locked down and melody implicit therein, this frees up Ged to go find his thing (and most certainly not leave it alone), creating more roller-coaster form-line fun with a mixed-density bass part.
Yeah, i gotta say i do love this song. (I found a 12" radio single of it on eBay and just had to.) Even beyond the lyrics, i find the movement and rhythm created by the constant changes in Alex's parts simply masterful, and i love his tone so much i could just listen to that last chord ring out for hours. I consider this song near the top of my best-of-the-rest list of unsung greats. When they busted this out on the S'n'A tour i totally almost cried.
... of course, maybe you did, too. :D
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