Music Theory Alchemy

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“Landslide” by The Smashing Pumpkins is a subtly complicated piece of music. At first glance, the chord progression may seem simple, but it actually incorporates a number of rich musical techniques that give the song its iconic depth and emotional resonance. The song follows a simple yet powerful chord progression and relies heavily on the interplay between the root C major chord, the G6, and the Am minor. There is a recurring theme of returning to the G6, which creates tension and suggests feelings of melancholy or introspection.

“Tonight, Tonight” by The Smashing Pumpkins is a rock song happy to embrace classical music tropes. An orchestral, string-heavy arrangement propels the song, surrounding the listener with a rich tapestry of sound. The grandiose sound of the full orchestra is bolstered by the band’s dual guitars and Billy Corgan’s characteristic singing.

The Smashing Pumpkins – Landslide – Chords

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Chord Progression

[‘A’, ‘D’, ‘G’, ‘B’]

Chord Progression Analysis

The chord progression provided ‘A, D, G, B’ would usually translate to the chords in the key of D Major as: A Major (V), D Major (I), G Major (IV), B Minor (vi), however without the exact voicing of these chords or the full structure, the following analysis would be limited.

Deeper into the song, the progression seems to be around C Major to G6 to Am, which constitutes a IV-I-ii progression in the key of G Major. Considering the D/F# as the V chord with the third in the bass (first inversion), the progression becomes IV-I-ii-V. The Em serves as the vi chord.

“`
G Major (‘I Major’)
C Major (‘IV Major’)
A Minor (‘ii minor’)
D Major / F# (‘V Major / third in the bass’)
E Minor (‘vi minor’)
G6 (‘I sixth’)
“`

Similar Chord Progressions

1. “Let It Be” by The Beatles follows a similar chord progression. The key is C Major and the chords are: C (I), G (V), Am (vi), F (IV).
2. The song “No Woman, No Cry” by Bob Marley also has a comparable progression in the key of C Major: C (I), G (V), Am (vi), F (IV).
3. The classic “Stand by Me” by Ben E. King mirrors this progression in a different key, A Major: A (I), F#m (vi), D (IV), E (V).

All three songs share a common, timeless progression that delivers the IV-I-ii-V or I-vi-IV-V chord changes, which can evoke strong emotional responses from listeners.

Musical Analysis

The constant variation between major and minor chords creates an interesting blend of consonant and dissonant sounds, evoking powerful emotions and adding intensity to the narrative of the lyrics. The alternating pattern of major and minor chords lends to the emotive quality of the song.

Overall Analysis

“Landslide” by The Smashing Pumpkins is a cover of the original song by Fleetwood Mac, and it blends rock and folk styles. The song features a variety of chords which predominantly mixes major and minor chords to evoke strong emotions. The simple yet effective chord progression emphasizes the sentiment of the lyrics, illustrating the theme of introspection and feeling a loss of control.

Style Analysis

The chord progression adopts a folk-rock athmosphere that is signature to The Smashing Pumpkins’ style, that embraces melancholic lyrics and delivers them in a vocally distinct way. The induced falling and rising melodies in this song perfectly blends with the sentiments of the lyrics, causing them to appear more introspective and poignant.

Chords in the Chords section of Landslide by The Smashing Pumpkins are:

[‘A’, ‘D’, ‘G’, ‘B’]