LiamLyttle
StudentNumber:1010623
AUD110.3SongAnalysis
Intro
Earlydubstepinthelate90’swasa“London-centricoffshootofU.K.garagethatabsorbed
and transfiguredelementsofdrum'n'bass, techno,anddub” (allmusic,n/a).This sub-bass
centricmusicwasratherminimalisticbytoday’sstandards,butastimeprogressedthrough
to the late 2000’s the focus slowly shifted from the low end to the mid-range, whilst
maintainingtheheavysub-bassfrequencies.“(2006)wastheturningpoint,theentrypointin
drumandbassproductionwassohigh,thiswasaroundthesametimethatPendulumcame
outofdrumandbass so it seemedyour tuneshad tobeata certain level togetplayed,
Dubstepwasstillwellproducedbutitwasmoreaboutthevibes…youcoulddomoreminimal
stuff,youcandowhatyouwant,evenifit’ssoundsabitropey,aslongasit’sgotbassweight,
andisabout140bpm,that’sit.”(Melia,2015)
EventhoughthereweredubstepartistsandlabelsinAmerica,itwasn’tuntilSkrillexbroke
ontothescenein2011thatdubstepreallytookafootholdinthemainstream.Thiswouldn’t
havehappenedwithoutthehelpofhistwomentorsandfuturecollaborators,JohnDadzie
(the founderofSMOGrecords,betterknownas12thPlanet)and JoelZimmerman (better
knownasDeadmau5,thefounderofSkrillex’sfirstlabel,Mau5trap)(Leatherman,2011).
Forproducers,thisiterationofdubstepwasfreshandexciting,butitwasalsoconvenient—tempos
and textures aligned nicelywith current rap tracks, particularly from the South,which blasted
blockysynthmelodiesthatseemedtosplitthedifferencebetweenmetalandtechno.“Wobble,”as
itcametobeknownforitsoscillatingbass,couldrattleribsindingyclubs,festivaltents,oronthe
radio(Gaerig,2013).
Thepurposeofthisassignmentistoanalyzeinfluentialdubsteptrack,ScaryMonstersand
Nice Sprites, by Skrillex. It will serve as a guide to the songs structure as well as giving
informationontheinstrumentationandtheeffectitaimedtoachieve.
SongBreakdown
ScaryMonstersandNiceSpritesbySkrillexwasthetitularsingleoffthesecondEPfromthe
“FromFirsttoLast”singerturnedproducer.Widelyregardedasbirthofthe“brostep”craze,
the now double platinum Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites (SM&NS) (Recording Industry
AssociationofAmerica,2016)waswritteninGMinorina4/4timesignatureatatempoof
140beatsperminute,thesefigureswerefoundusingMixedInKey8,aharmonicmixingtool
forDJ’s.Thistimesignatureisessentialforallgenresofdancemusicaswithoutbeingableto
easilymixasonglive,itishighlyunlikelytobeplayedbyotherDJ’s.Thetempoisalsostandard
forthegenrewithmostdubsteptracksbeingwrittenat140bpm,thoughthishaschangedin
recentyearstoaslightlyfaster145or150bpm
Skrillex’ssongwritingskillsaresecondtononeindancemusic,andhisabilitytojuxtaposehis
electroinfluenceswith“sickandgorystyleofSkrillexdubstepthatisliketheaudioequivalent
ofagorycarcrash” (Leatherman,2011).The track is composedof8barphraseswhich is
commonwithindancemusicasitallowsittoeasilymixintoothersongsofthesamelength.
Inordertoaccuratelyrepresentthisasystemof(beat/bar)willbeusedtoaccuratelyportray
thepointinthesongthatisbeingreferringtoo.ThesongstructureisIntro-Verse-Breakdown–
Dropx4–Verse–Breakdown-Dropx4-Breakdown-Outro.Allphrasesofthesongare8barsin
length,apartfromthedropwhichis4repeatedphraseswiththelastbeing2barsshort.The
lead,piano,vocalandchordmelodymidi information for thisassignmentwas taken from
NonStop2k (NonStop2k, 2011). Additional info on the bass (Volt Punk, 2016) and vocal
processing(HowtoAbleton,2011)werefoundonYoutube.
Thefirstphrase(1/1)beginswiththeimmediatelypresentdistortedelectro-sawsynthwitha
heavyhigh-passfilterautomatedtoslowlyturnoffoverthephrase.Themelodyofthesynth
isunderlinedbythechordspatternfrompads.Thedelayedhighhatsalso immediatepan
hardeartoear,creatingarhythmicsensationforthelistener,thisisthenenforcedat(1/5)
bytheadditionofaclassicdubstepkickandsnarepatternwiththekickonthefirstbeatof
thebarandthesnareofthethird.Thesekicksandsnaresareheavilyhighpassfilteredinthe
first phrase, yet you can still hear some compression. As the melody of the main synth
progressesthekicksnarepatternisvariedat(1/7)topreparethelistenertotheendofthe
phrase. Insteadofthepreviouspatternon1and3,therearekickat(1/7), (2.75/7), (1/8),
(1.7/8)and(2.5/8),thelastthreeofwhichareatripletbeforethenormalsnareat(3/8)and
anadditionaloneon(4/8).
Verse one begins at second phrase (1,9) with the now unfiltered electro-sawwhere the
distortionismorepresentthanbefore.Thesynthitselfislikelymadeupofmultiplelayersof
differentsynthsofvariousqualitiesandfrequencies.Themaintransitionfromthefirstphrase
tothesecondistheun-filteringofthedrumswhichbringsthemtotheforefrontofthemix.
Thehighhatsarenowgatedtotakethembackinthemix,addingswing.Thenewpresenceis
thebasssynthplayingabassmelody,accompaniedbyapadaddingathicklayeroflowend
givingthetrackwarmthinthemiddle.Theheavilycompressedkickandsnarebothsitinthe
centerofthemix,surroundbythesynthsandpadinstereo.
ThemainsynthmelodyisplayedthroughSylenth1aVSTpluginsynth,whileSkrillexwould
havemodifiedthepatchhimself, it iswidelythoughtthathestartedonapresetcalledLD
Screamer,tookoffthesecondoscillatorandturnedoffthedelayandreverb(/r/Skrillex,2013)
(dubstepforum.com,2011)(kvraudio.com,2013).
ThemelodystartsonGinthe3rdoctaveoftheGMajorScale,goingonseveralleapsandruns
betweentheupperandloweroctaveG’s.Themelodyoccursontheeightnoteswith2rests,
thefirstsnareofthephrase(3,9)andthesecondonthesixteenthnotbeforethesecondsnare
(2.5,10). These rests add groove to the track by emphasizing the percussion. At the
breakdown(1,17)thepercussionistakenawayafteronlythefirstkickreverberatesout,with
thenowhighpassfilteredmelodyjoinedbythevocalmelody.ThevocalmelodyisSkrillex’s
ownvoice,anditfadesinslowly2barsearly(1,15)toforeshadowthecomingmelody.The
deliberately unintelligible and auto-tuned vocal is sliced in certain parts to give it an
unnatural, robotic feel. A triplicate kick drum plays before the melody, and all other
instruments in the track end a bar short of the phrase (1,24). Skrillex uses a now classic
dubsteptechnique,ofsamplingaviralYouTubevideoasaprecursortohisdrop,forSM&NS
hechoseacutfromRachaelNedrow’s(akaspeedstackgirl)“7.00!!!OMG!!!NEWPB!OMG!!
OMG!!!SOCLOSETOSIX!!OOMMGG!!!”,avideo,andreactiontohersettinganewpersonal
beststackingcups.Inthe“Yes,Ohmygosh”thatSkrillexuses,headdssomecompressionto
matchittothevolumeofhistrack,aswellasspeedingupthetimebetweentheyesandthe
oh,tofitinthebar.Thisnotonlyaddstotheenergyofthetrack,butalsoitsmemorability.
“Youcan’ttalkaboutinfluentialdubstepdropswithoutmentioningSkrillex’sScaryMonsters
andNiceSprites,itsetthestandardofdubstepforthenext2or3yearsandeveryoneand
theirdogtriedtocopythatdrop”(Skism,2016).Thefounderofthe independentdubstep
label,NeverSayDie,certainlyisn’tlyingwhenhesaysSM&NSsetthestandard.Skrillex’sarray
of bass growls are impressivebecause the carefulmodulationheuses to get thatunique
timbrefitsperfectly intohisexistingdrumpattern.Thelistenerdoesn’thavetopayactive
attention to the rhythm as it has been simplified by changing the previous triplicate kick
patterntoa2baralternatingpatternwithsinglealwaysonthefirstbeat,adoublekickand
justafterthesecondbeatofthesecondbar.Thisiscomplimentedbyasnareonthethird
beatofeachbar.Thehighhatsnowonlyplayontheotherdrumhitsinsteadofintheirown
pattern,andthissimplificationallowsthelistenertofullyexperiencethewildlymodulating
distortedsawwavethat’sworkinginadditiontothedeepsubbass.
“ArecentstudybyCanada'sMcMasterInstituteforMusicandtheMindresearchedhowthe
humanbrainreactstolow-andhigh-pitchedtones.Anefforttofigureouthowhumansdetect
rhythm,thestudyhadparticipantslistentoastreamoftonesandtaptheirfingersalongto
various beats, allwhile having their brains scanned.Off-rhythmmistakeswere inserted in
thesebeats,andbrainswerefoundtorespondmorestronglytotheoff-beat,lowertones.
Thisledresearcherstodeterminethatit'seasierforushumanstofollowdeeperbasssounds.
Basically,yourbrainpicksupontherhythmsoflower,bassiermusicfasterthanitdoeshigh-
pitchednoises…
"There is a physiological basis forwhywe createmusic thewaywedo," Laurel Trainor, a
neuroscientistanddirectoroftheMcMasterInstituteargues,"Virtuallyallpeoplewillrespond
moretothebeatwhenitiscarriedbylower-pitchedinstruments."(Bain,2014)
Skrillex’smasteryofbassfrequenciesisondisplayinSM&NS,hisuseofunnaturallyloudlow
frequency noises with different volume and pitch automations elicits a deep emotional
responserelatedtoourprimalpast.
“A team of researchers at UCLAmade up of the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary
Biologychair,DanielBlumstein,amovieandfilmcomposer,PeterKaye,andanevolutionary
psychologist who also is a musician, Greg Bryant think they've determined why humans
respondsostronglytothisstimulus.It'sbecausedissonanceinmusicmimicsdistresscriesin
wildanimals,whichsummonsstrongreactions.Inotherwords,theseartistsliterallybringout
theanimalinus…
Skrillexprobablyknowswhatthehellhe'sdoing,evenifhemightnotbeabletoarticulateit.
"Composershave intuitive knowledgeofwhat sounds scarywithout knowingwhy,"Bryant
says."Whattheyusuallydon'trealizeisthatthey'reexploitingourevolvedpredispositionsto
getexcitedandhavenegativeemotionswhenhearingcertainsounds."(Haithcoat,2012)
By far themostmusically complex thing Skrillex does in SM&NS is when hemanages to
seamlesslytake2barsoutofthelastphraseofthedrop(1,55).Byplayingthefirsttwobars
of themelodywherethe last twoshouldbe ineveryoneof thedrop’s4phrases,Skrillex
preparestheunknowinglistenerthenotonlyfortheendofeachphrase,buttheeventual
continuationofthemelodyintothesecondverse.Thisseamlesspieceofsongwritingwould
go unnoticed to the average punter, but this complex change melody’s structure allows
Skrillextomanipulatethesong’sstructureinthelastphraseofthedrop,givinghimaseamless
transitionintothesecondverse.
Thesecondverseisidenticaltothefirstandseesthereturnofthefullmelodyandnotjust
thefirsttwobarsteasedinthedrop.Thestructuralpatternofverse(1,55)-breakdown(1,63)-
drop(1,71)isrepeated,withslightvariationinsomeofthebassgrowlsoftheseconddrop.
Skrillexonceagaindrops2bars fromthe finalphraseof thedropbeforegoing intoverse
3(1,101).
Breakdown3(1,109)differentiatesfromthefirsttwobyaddingtherhythmicpercussionand
high hats from the verse, before transitioning into the bridge (1,117) where the song is
strippedbacktojustpianoplayingthenewleadmelody,newbassprogressionandthevocals.
Skrillexfinallysingsthefirstandonlylyricsofthetrack;
Lookatthis
I'macowardtoo
Youdon'tneedtohide,myfriend
ForI'mjustlikeyou
Whileclearlyfilledwithintendedmeaning,thelackofcontextgivesambiguitytothewords,
ultimatelypersonalizingtheirmeaningfortheartistalone.Therhythmicpercussionjointhe
pianomelody for the outro (1,125), the kick and snare for the first phrase before being
strippeddowntojustthepianoanddelayedhighhats(1,133).Thepianomelodyrepeatsonce
morewiththehighhatsdroppingoutat(1,137)withtheirreverberateddelayfadingasthe
pianomelody finishes2barsearlyon (1,141),being replacedwitha fadingpanningvocal
chant.
ReflectionsScaryMonstersandNiceSpritesisoneof,ifnotthe,firstdubstepsongIeverheard.It,and
ultimatelySkrillexwereamajor influencetoome.Whilst IhadhearditmanytimesIhave
neverbrokenitdownanalyticallyorcriticallybefore,anddiscoveringtricksliketherepriseof
themelody to change the structureof the songwereexciting. Iwatched lotsofdifferent
YouTubevideosanalyzinghowtheindividualsynths,andvocalweremade,yetIwouldliketo
learnmoreabouthowtheindividualbassgrowlswerelayeredoverthechordprogression
throughouthisdrops,bothintimewithdrums,andeachother.
WorksCited/r/Skrillex. (2013).Hasanyonefoundanypresets inAbletonorpluginsthatSkrillexuses? .
Retrieved from Reddit:https://www.reddit.com/r/skrillex/comments/1gb2b5/has_anyone_found_any_presets_in_ableton_or/
allmusic. (n/a). Dubstep. Retrieved July 20, 2017, from allmusic:http://www.allmusic.com/style/dubstep-ma0000004465
Bain,K.(2014,July16).AScientificExplanationofWhyYouLoveBassMusic.RetrievedfromInsomniac: https://www.insomniac.com/media/scientific-explanation-why-you-love-bass-music
dubstepforum.com. (2011, June 23). Help Me Make That Sound - 2011. Retrieved fromdubstepforum.com:https://www.dubstepforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=197795&start=360
Gaerig, A. (2013, September 13). Dubstep 101: A U.S. Primer . Retrieved from Spin:http://www.spin.com/2011/09/dubstep-101-us-primer/
Haithcoat,R.(2012,June19).Here'sScientificProofThatDubstepMakesYouWanttoKillPeople.LAWeekly.
How to Ableton. (2011, September 11). How To Make Skrillexy Vocals. Retrieved fromYouTube:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEWuO4e9VEU
kvraudio.com.(2013,September14).FamousSongs,VstandPresetstheyuse!Retrievedfromkvraudio.com:https://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=341956
Leatherman,B.(2011,December15).BassInvasion.MiamiNewTimes,p.41.Melia, A. (2015, July 13). Full Length Interview with DnB Producer Reso. (Producertech,
Interviewer)Nedrow,R.(2008,October12).7.00!!!OMG!!!NEWPB!OMG!!OMG!!!SOCLOSETOSIX!!
OOMMGG!!! Retrieved from YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j54yGxuk0yo
NonStop2k. (2011, December 27). MIDI of Skrillex - Scary Monsters And Nice Sprites(Dubstep).RetrievedfromNonStop2k:https://www.nonstop2k.com/midi-files/7035-skrillex-scary-monsters-and-nice-sprites-midi.html
RecordingIndustryAssociationofAmerica.(2016,July11).Gold&Platinum.RetrievedfromRecording Industry Association of America: https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&se=scary+monsters+#search_section
Skism.(2016,August19).TheEvolutionOfTheBassDrop:DubstepwithSKisM.(U.Dubstep,Interviewer)
VoltPunk.(2016,January26).SkrillexScaryMonstersandNiceSpritesBassGrowlTutorial-FM8 + Ableton Live 9. Retrieved from YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6c6EXT2x1dA