I Will Follow (U2)

Question 1

Describe the instrumentation. Make four points

Answer 1

Extensive use of delay throughout, which excludes itself from normal electronic processing of bass guitar timbre

Bells and its harmonics are unusually used to consider resonance of the overall timbre. Themes of mystery underneath?

Drums emphasis on 3rd and 7th quavers of first bar with snare, but accents quaver notes 6 and 7 in the second bar

Unusual sounds, like the colliding of glass bottles and the breaking of glass, is heard at the end before the fade out

Question 2

Describe the harmony/ tonality. Make three points

Answer 2

Ambiguous in terms of chords, meaning that they are more roots with an added 4th or 5th and not traditional major or minor

Mostly static because of the open strings’ drone notes played as the accompaniment for the guitar’s minimalistic ostinato

Uses mostly chordal progressions belonging to a diatonic scale throughout rather than the traditional blues oriented patterns

Question 3

Describe the texture. Make four points

Answer 3

Echoes in the vocals and guitar playing the minimalistic ostinato are there to predominantly reinforce the density of the ambience

Guitar playing the minimalistic ostinato and the bass guitar are playing homorhythmically to each other. Continuously driving

Overlapping, sustained sounds due to the echoes and delay effects in the guitars, yet the pulse is driving relentlessly forwards

Even though the actual pitches are created by instrumentation, it is the density of timbre that effectively orchestrates the music

Question 4

Describe the rhythm/ tempo. Make four points

Answer 4

Guitar plays a minimalistic ostinato for the opening bars, with accents on first, fourth and seventh quavers of each bar. Insistent

Relentlessly driving onward towards the abrupt ending in a reckless continuous motion. Reinforces the desire for intense action

Vocalist ‘Bono’ augments the note values, which is often transferred over to the next bar. Creates syncopation against quavers

When texture thins by omitting guitar’s minimalistic ostinato, the bass syncopates its bass line from beneath guitar harmonics