Uploaded May 2021 | Updated September 2026, 55 minutes ago
I started out trying to write the theme to a Norwegian murder mystery series, but my wife told me it was too happy sounding ... so I threw in some more minor chords and slowed down the track. As I chorded the verse, I realized that I was writing My World is Empty Without You. Oddly enough, as a young child I thought this song was also too happy. The melancholy chords and somber lyrics are betrayed by the quick tempo and cheerful singing (the lyrics delve into the darkness and feelings of depression that can set in after a breakup).
Since I had worked on the project for a few hours, I decided to change gears and move to a cover song, featuring a more manic Diana. My Norwegian murder song shared one of my favourite chord progressions with the Holland–Dozier–Holland tune, a simple relative minor followed by the IV Maj 7 chord. I soon realized that many of the songs I like use this same chord progression, in particular Supertramp's Crime of the Century. I had just recorded the Supertramp song last month, but it was taken down from YouTube by a naive copyright-holder. Even though the Supertramp song is in 6/8 time, I decided to use my own samples, stretch out the timing to 4/4 and add sax and strings to the end of my new cover. The result is a rather long and very depressing melody that should be avoided unless you don't mind slipping into a melancholy mood for 11 and a half minutes!
That's what you get when you record minor chords during a pandemic!
I started out trying to write the theme to a Norwegian murder mystery series, but my wife told me it was too happy sounding ... so I threw in some more minor chords and slowed down the track. As I chorded the verse, I realized that I was writing My World is Empty Without You. Oddly enough, as a young child I thought this song was also too happy. The melancholy chords and somber lyrics are betrayed by the quick tempo and cheerful singing (the lyrics delve into the darkness and feelings of depression that can set in after a breakup).
Since I had worked on the project for a few hours, I decided to change gears and move to a cover song, featuring a more manic Diana. My Norwegian murder song shared one of my favourite chord progressions with the Holland–Dozier–Holland tune, a simple relative minor followed by the IV Maj 7 chord. I soon realized that many of the songs I like use this same chord progression, in particular Supertramp's Crime of the Century. I had just recorded the Supertramp song last month, but it was taken down from YouTube by a naive copyright-holder. Even though the Supertramp song is in 6/8 time, I decided to use my own samples, stretch out the timing to 4/4 and add sax and strings to the end of my new cover. The result is a rather long and very depressing melody that should be avoided unless you don't mind slipping into a melancholy mood for 11 and a half minutes!
That's what you get when you record minor chords during a pandemic!
