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“The Bullet With Butterfly Wings” by The Smashing Pumpkins essentially revolves around the use of power chords, or 5th chords, to project a raw, grungy intensity. The chord progression (B5, Em, G5), extracted from the second verse of the song, is prominent throughout. The use of power chords results in a composition that doesn’t transpose to a traditional major or minor key, but fits within a modal framework.

“Yellow” by Coldplay is in the key of G major and employs a mix of diatonic chords, extended chords such as the seventh chords, and the occasional borrowed chord from G minor. The progression presents variations of a common IV-V-I pattern seen in pop and rock music.

“Somewhere Only We Know” by Keane is a softly and tenderly written song that rests primarily on the key of C Major. However, it uses a fair amount of borrowed chords from the parallel minor key, giving it a warm, melancholic tone, which is typical of many pop ballads.

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The song, ‘Across the Universe’ by The Beatles is uniquely complex in its melody and chord progression. The song modulates or shifts key but is rooted mainly in D major. The song utilizes the standard rock/pop song structure of Verse, Chorus, and Outro. The unusual facet of this song’s composition is the use of borrowed chords (non-diatonic chords) that add unexpected twists to an otherwise typical chord progression.

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The Smashing Pumpkins – Disarm – Outro

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Chord Progression

[‘Dsus’, ‘Em7’, ‘Cadd9’, ‘Dsus’, ‘Dsus’, ‘Em7’, ‘Cadd9’, ‘Dsus’, ‘Dsus’, ‘Em7’, ‘Cadd9’, ‘D’, ‘Em7’, ‘D’, ‘Em7’, ‘D’, ‘Em7’, ‘Cadd9’]

Chord Progression Analysis

Here’s the chord progression analysis with the full chord names and their functions:

“`
Dsus (V), Em7 (vi7), Cadd9 (IVadd9), Dsus (V)
Dsus (V), Em7 (vi7), Cadd9 (IVadd9), Dsus (V)
Dsus (V), Em7 (vi7), Cadd9 (IVadd9), D (V)
Em7 (vi7), D (V), Em7 (vi7), D (V)
Em7 (vi7), Cadd9 (IVadd9)
“`

The chord D in the outro serves as the dominant (V) function in G major moving to the vi chord (Em7), which uses the tonic function in this context. The Cadd9 is a subdominant IV chord.

Similar Chord Progressions

– “Wonderwall” by Oasis shares a similar chord progression with its use of suspended and added ninth chords (e.g., Asus4 and Dadd9).
– “With or Without You” by U2 also uses a repeated four-chord progression (D, A, Bm, G).
– “Patience” by Guns N’ Roses contains the same chords, though arranged differently (C, G, A, D).

Please note that while these songs utilize the same chords, proceeding chord order, rhythm instrumentation and lyrical content all contribute in creating distinctively different songs.

Musical Analysis

The sparseness and repetition of this chord progression subtly creates a melancholic and introspective atmosphere contributing to the overall mood of the song. While the song primarily moves diatonically within the G major scale, the recurring Dsus chord creates a sense of unresolved tension that elevates the emotional resonance of the piece.

Overall Analysis

“Disarm” by The Smashing Pumpkins is a piece that showcases a rather common chord progression structure in pop music, but with added embellishments and variations. The featured chords include Dsus, Em7, Cadd9, G, and Dsus/F# with a key signature suggesting that the song is in the key of G major or E minor. The prominent chord in the outro is Dsus which suggests that the song might be interpreted in the D Mixolydian mode. The use of the slash chord (D/F#) diversifies the sound of the progression and adds harmonic richness. This chord progression uses both diatonic and borrowed chords creating a familiar but interesting sound.

Style Analysis

Billy Corgan, the main songwriter for The Smashing Pumpkins, often employs the use of extended and suspended chords (like Dsus and Cadd9), to create a distinctive sound that straddles between alternative rock and pop. This song, like much of their work, combines relatively simple chord progressions with evocative lyrics and a unique sonic landscape.

Chords in the Outro section of Disarm by The Smashing Pumpkins are:

[‘Dsus’, ‘Em7’, ‘Cadd9’, ‘Dsus’, ‘Dsus’, ‘Em7’, ‘Cadd9’, ‘Dsus’, ‘Dsus’, ‘Em7’, ‘Cadd9’, ‘D’, ‘Em7’, ‘D’, ‘Em7’, ‘D’, ‘Em7’, ‘Cadd9’]