Hello revolutionary music makers, I’m Kate Harmony, this is Ray Harmony, and welcome
to Hack Music Theory, where we help you make great music that stands out. If it’s your
first time here, please help yourself to our free book “12 Music Theory Hacks to Learn
Scales & Chords”, which you can download from our website: HackMusicTheory.com. Also,
if you download our free book now, you’ll get the multitrack MIDI file from this Halloween
series in our weekly newsletter on October 25th, and that file includes the lead melody,
chord progression, bass line and drum groove. Alright, it’s time to open your DAW to hack
music theory. But first… tea!
So, in this Halloween series we are revealing the music theory secrets that were used to
make the new American Horror Story theme song sound so spooky! And by the way, if you missed
last week’s lesson, check it out, cos we uncovered the mystery behind their creepy
sounding lead melody. Right, now here are the two theory secrets that make the American
Horror Story bass line so dark:
SECRET 1. IT’S NOT THE BASS
The most shocking thing about their bass line is that it’s not shocking! I know this sounds
totally counterintuitive, but it’s the truth. Seriously, if you mute everything else and
listen to the bass on its own, it’s just a pretty normal bass line. So, what’s making
it sound dark and creepy then? Well, it’s the harmony created by the bass line and the
lead melody playing together. On that note, this melody above our bass line is the lead
melody, which we covered last week. It’s on another track, so it’s muted here, we’re
just using it for reference. Right, so as you learned in last week’s lesson, the ♭6
injects mystery into a melody, and the ♭5 brings the horror. So when the lead melody
plays those notes, it’s essential the bass plays the root note below. Because remember,
the emotion is in the harmony!
SECRET 2. ARPEGGIOS
Okay, you’re probably still thinking: “Yeah but their bass line does sound a little creepy,
there must be something in there?”. Well, there is one small element in the actual bass
line that does make it sound a bit unsettled. What is it? Arpeggios. And by the way, an
arpeggio is when you play a chord one note at a time. By moving through the notes of
a chord like this, it creates movement in the melody, but not the harmony, as you’re
still on the same chord. And when this is done descending (like they do in the American
Horror Story bass line, by playing 5 ♭3 1 of the root chord), it gives us a sinking
feeling that is unsettling in the context of all those creepy sound effects. And also,
their opening arpeggio sounds kinda dark simply because it’s a minor chord.
So, now that you’ve got one section coming together, how do you write the other sections?
Then, how do you transition between them (especially when they’re in different keys)? And then,
how do you structure and arrange your song? These are issues many songwriters and producers
struggle with, and that’s exactly why we made our online apprenticeship course, which
guides you through every step of the music making process, from blank screen to finished
song. So, if you wanna learn our secret method for writing (and finishing) great songs, which
we don’t teach in these free lessons, then sign up now for this one-of-a-kind video course,
at: HackMusicTheory.com
Alright, now let’s have a listen to our spooky bass line that we wrote using these
two theory secrets. Just before the playthrough though, remember, if you download our free
book now, you’ll be added to our mailing list and we’ll send you the multitrack MIDI
file of this example for free on October 25th. Thanks for watching (or listening, if you’re
on the podcast), and we’ll see you next week!