help with some theory - Too High

[Jay]

ummm....i'm sort of going out on a limb here because i know a lot about sections of theory, but my knowledge is so incomplete that i get confused easily...plus i dont have my guitar with me so this is to the best of my memory...

but in the song Too High....the chorus has a C and a D....so that would imply that the song is in G (or Em i guess), right? plus it starts out on a G. BUT...the verse is Bb, Ab, G, Ab....but the Ab and the Bb are not in the key of G...what's going on with this? is the verse in a different key?

because he also has that octave G droning during the Ab, Bb on the verse, which is even more confusing, unless he is playing it lorcrian (sp?) or some weird shit....

that is all....

[fatjack]

dont try to hurt yourself too much dude

it simply changes keys, i dont know the song, but from the chords you gave it changes keys. the verse is in Ab if the chords are Ab, Bb and G. its not illegal to change keys in the middle of a song

and why did you think it was in locrian?

[Jay]

because it's not chords. the verse is individual notes:

Code: Select all

Verse
Let bass notes ring and alternate pick the 5's
E:----------------------------------------------------
B:----------------------------------------------------
G:----------------------------------------------------
D:-----5--5-5-5------5-5-5-------5--5-5-5------5-5-5--
A:----------------------------------------------------
E:-6--------------6----------4--------------4---------
   3   2  2 2 2   3  2 2 2   1   2  2 2 2   1  2 2 2

E:----------------------------------------------------
B:----------------------------------------------------
G:----------------------------------------------------
D:-----5--5-5-5------5-5-5-------5--5-5-5------5-5-5--
A:----------------------------------------------------
E:-3--------------3----------4--------------4---------
   1   4  4 4 4   1  4 4 4   2   4  4 4 4   2  4 4 4

but with a G ringing throughout. and i didn't mean locrian specifically, i just pulled a random mode out of my ass....because here it looks like the G is the 3rd degree of some scale....with Ab being the 4, and Bb being the 5....but then how does that make sense with the Am, C, D chorus?

i have trouble fitting that together....unless of course it does change keys. in that case, what key is it in? still Ab?

[fatjack]

because it's not chords. the verse is individual notes:

Code: Select all

Verse
Let bass notes ring and alternate pick the 5's
E:----------------------------------------------------
B:----------------------------------------------------
G:----------------------------------------------------
D:-----5--5-5-5------5-5-5-------5--5-5-5------5-5-5--
A:----------------------------------------------------
E:-6--------------6----------4--------------4---------
   3   2  2 2 2   3  2 2 2   1   2  2 2 2   1  2 2 2

E:----------------------------------------------------
B:----------------------------------------------------
G:----------------------------------------------------
D:-----5--5-5-5------5-5-5-------5--5-5-5------5-5-5--
A:----------------------------------------------------
E:-3--------------3----------4--------------4---------
   1   4  4 4 4   1  4 4 4   2   4  4 4 4   2  4 4 4

but with a G ringing throughout. and i didn't mean locrian specifically, i just pulled a random mode out of my ass....because here it looks like the G is the 3rd degree of some scale....with Ab being the 4, and Bb being the 5....but then how does that make sense with the Am, C, D chorus?

i have trouble fitting that together....unless of course it does change keys. in that case, what key is it in? still Ab?

you are right about the scale degrees, i was assuming which chords were which. but from the tab i can tell now

its in Eb

[Jay]

so is it just that the verse is in Eb and the chorus is in G?

sigh...i hate theory. do they have like "music theory for dummies" or something?

[fatjack]

so is it just that the verse is in Eb and the chorus is in G?

exactly

[dixiechicken]

They do have music theory for dummies...actually.

[Jay]

maybe i should buy it.

[gravedigger]

this is not a very good example to discuss theory over. Like Jay said, the verse section is not chords but simply notes or intervals I should say. then the chorus is Am, C, F, D, Em then intervals again that lead into that verse G octave. so in my opinion the song is in......G or maybe Gm. probably both.

yeah that's it both!

[fatjack]

this is not a very good example to discuss theory over. Like Jay said, the verse section is not chords but simply notes or intervals I should say. then the chorus is Am, C, F, D, Em then intervals again that lead into that verse G octave. so in my opinion the song is in......G or maybe Gm. probably both.

yeah that's it both!

i dont see any Gm in the song, if i could get a full tab, i could tell you exactly whats going on

[Jay]

the full tab is on the site...

[gravedigger]

all i know is that it's definately not in Eb. the verse is either Bb or Gm. come to think of it, I believe its valid to say that the whole song is in Gm.

[fatjack]

i think its safe to say that it doesn't stay diatonic to any key at all considering it has every single note in it besides Db. aint no scales with eleven notes

if you broke up by parts you could stick each part in a few different keys

[Jay]

how can any of it at all be in Gm? it's got an Ab in in the verse, and the chorus has C and D.

[fatjack]

how can any of it at all be in Gm? it's got an Ab in in the verse, and the chorus has C and D.

its not exactly G Minor in the parts he's talking about. it would be G Phrygian