The Chainsmokers - Closer | Theory & Arrangement Breakdown

[@j00hnnyandr3]

If The Chainsmokers watch this video, they would be like: "ahh... so that's what we've been doing!"

[@punky2deep]

more like "wtf, our ghost producer explained this differently"

[@daillocruz3606]

Don't think so

[@projectnitefall8058]

silhouette they don't have ghost producers. now artists like tiesto and Steve aoki are a different story.

[@1az3r91]

ProjectNiteFall nah only DVBBS and other artists

[@lazypablo8505]

no,they maybe an asshole but andrew is a great producer.

[@dkjbeats9881]

You're like that one english teacher that makes everything in a novel an extended metaphor that the author never really meant to happen

[@colinbrash]

Rory Matthews I'm confused. Aren't they the same teacher? ;)

[@Chika_Lilac]

Honestly when Chainsmokers wrote the song at the time they just thought it sounded it good. They probably didn't deliberately do all these fancy theories this dude is mentioning.

[@dkjbeats9881]

Fiji Water that's what i mean

[@fishywtf]

100% for sure. lol i have watched edm artists workflow and what they do is that pick a chord and if it sounds good they branch from it but if it sounds trash they try to add extra notes to it. If they like it they will adjust up and down the scale to see what happens. he gives these edm artist too much credit.

[@anxiousmindmusic]

Danny Johnson whether they wrote the metaphor intentionally or not, its there. For some people that just means writing something interesting that comes naturally, but it's still there. Same with music, and we call it ear I suppose.

[@alexcvx3906]

"Does it make a clichè? Only when you get tired of it!". This quote just made my day! You're an awesome dude!

[@alexeskimo4054]

Alex CVX :)

[@zacharybell9925]

Fm7 chord with Db in the bass is a Db9 chord (with the maj7). So I disagree that they're using an Fm chord for the whole song. And whenever the singer is singing starting on Ab, it doesn't mean they're singing in Ab, they can still be singing in Fm and start on Ab.

[@jac4423]

I agree this video isn't truely correct.

[@rapnerd1392]

Wouldn’t it be both Db 9 and a Fm 7/Db slash chord. And if the singer keeps the Ab tonal center then they would be singing in the parallel Ab major. I could be wrong.

[@zacharybell9925]

@@rapnerd1392 The Db itself changes the chord from a minor to major, so I think calling it Fm7/Db, while it may be helpful for pop musicians to play, is incorrect from a music theory perspective. It's like calling a Cmaj7 chord Em/C - the function is incorrect since we just hear it as a Cmaj7 chord. Also, it should be noted that my comment from three years ago says it's a Db9 chord, when it's actually called a Dbmaj9 chord. Hope this helps

[@rapnerd1392]

@@zacharybell9925 I see what you mean.

[@thatrandomfanboy1438]

Video: they're seriously smart with their music Chainsmokers: So i found this sample and edited the hell out of it with this vst i found and then moved these notes around here and added a kick with a snap like this *snaps their fingers* and yeah. We have no idea what this video is talking about.

[@salomositorus9357]

please do Shelter by Porter Robinson and Madeon. i've been their brilliant music fans. trust me they use uncommon chords and scales which common people can't replicate. please :)

[@chriskelly9899]

Chainsmokers: Dang that preset on massive really knows its theory.

[@altastral]

3:43 tiny nitpick - the second octave would be 15, since unison is 1, add 7 to get the first octave of 8, then add another 7 to get 15

[@rapnerd1392]

The 1st goes 1-8 and then the second octave goes from 8-16 you mean. That would be two octaves.

[@altastral]

@@rapnerd1392 what's 8 minus 1 and what's 16 minus 8?

[@rapnerd1392]

@@altastral 8-1=7 and 16-8=8. I'm not sure where you're going with this.

[@altastral]

@@rapnerd1392 you said 1-8 and 8-16 are both octaves, but those ranges span different amounts of notes. it's 1-8 and 8-15.

[@rapnerd1392]

Two octaves of the same scale. So C Major(1st Chord) through B dim(7th chord) then second octave C Major (unison) through B dim (15th chord). Ok, that's true.

[@fka_sophrosyne]

Honestly i'm pretty sure they at least change the chord to E flat major somewhere

[@gojibeatz]

7:27 I thought 'Hit The Road Jack' was about to come on xD

[@Jay-407]

coming from someone with zero knowledge in music theory at all but still manages to produce, do these artists decide what scale/key they will be writing in beforehand or is it something that typically comes as you go? may be a dumb question but I have to ask.

[@iamstd2]

I'm pretty sure in most EDM the scale is picked where the most notes work in the sub bass, mostly between D# and G#. I don't think that's taken into much consideration with melodic or pop stuff because there's less bass emphasis.

[@Jay-407]

Dam never viewed it that way. Thanks

[@iamstd2]

Yeah I mean 99.99999% of dubstep is done in F. If you notice, those progressive guys like Alesso and Axwell use high keys like A, B etc and usually in major.

[@rikyriky966]

in pop songs, mainly vocal range of the singer determines the key of the song. If you write a song and give it to a singer to sing, he or she will transpose it immediately if can't sing along.

[@モーティマー真]

I feel like it would be easier to explain in the key of A flat though... cuz the bass notes would make a progression of IV V vi being looped... the triads or added notes on top of the chord can also be understood as an upper structure triad or something... at least, thats what I do very often in my own music.

[@TheBandMan]

松井よしや Ab and Fm are related, the relative minor of Ab is Fm.

[@rapnerd1392]

The way this became clear to me was to learn that both Am and CM have all white keys. Parallel minor to major.

[@charlescampbell2170]

Would love to see a James Blake breakdown!

[@joschaa.7753]

This chord progression is just wrong. Why isn't anyone noticing it?

[@JohnRodDondoyano]

Joscha A. me

[@danielfedca2401]

yeah i notice it since the beginning

[@rikyriky966]

yeah it sounds wrong to me too

[@iammusacznow310]

Actually it does, but idk why he explained that like a guru or something

[@MikelOvalle]

It really is. Sounds nothing like the original.

[@Skyefaux]

This is the channel I need right now.

[@colegilfillan3528]

Benjamin Shurts naebor benj

[@johnnybarama]

The bass note should be c#, d#, F min, d# - in the pre right?! The same as the chorus and the drop?

[@issymy]

Exactly!!! How wrong is that guy. Too much of wrong info. Is more simple than he explains. These are the chords for the whole song. Please people be careful what you think you teach-breakdown.

[@oscar43211234]

how did you create that warm complete feeling starting for 6:12 ?

[@browncoat697]

Bass does a lot for it.

[@Andrew-K]

Great video! Such a catchy song. Can anyone comment on how the scale degrees here pull towards one another since there isn't much of a chord progression? I know 7->1 and 4->3 but what are the chainsmokers doing here? They seem to harp on the same notes for the vocal creating a huge anticipation for resolution. Just wondering what those scale degrees might be.

[@ianyapxw]

.

[@LaraTang]

I was writing my GCSE music comp in F minor aeolian and now I actually know what it means haha thanks for making this video!

[@St0ckwell]

Also you got the 13 theory wrong. When you raise that Db to a D, it becomes dorian, and is therefor the non standard 13. There is no "Fmm13", just Fm13, and then Fm11Maj13 or Fm11Maj6 for the dorian equivalent

[@jacobsecrest1995]

So the song is actually in D flat. then E flat then F m7. Those are the 3 chords...

[@robbietrejo2013]

Jacob Secrest the song is in the scale of A Flat. The song simply begins on the 4 chord of the A Flat scale. If the song was in D Flat, it would start in F sharp.

[@coeurdelion8517]

The bass is so beautiful... but there is one thing that I did not understand (English is not my native language), what are 7th chords ?

[@im_Spade_]

This stuff is amazing. I love just hearing how these songs are put together and I love the parallel you made with cooking. "If you take an ugly flavor and wrap it in a bunch of sweet stuff you have a really rich taste." Thanks for that outlook.

[@ringchamp6543]

Matt, keep these going, you've got a great way of teaching

[@EYTPS]

Someone thought a song by the Chainsmokers needed a 13-minute analysis.... this guy.. and he still didn't answer why this song is categorized as dance

[@punky2deep]

thank you for the great explanation and making me insecucre about my music theory knowledge level :D

[@dennman37]

I love these episodes

[@hacktivator7906]

Can you please, by the name of your awesomeness, do a breakdown of this song: "Dropgun, Lenx & Denx - A Better Love"

[@realraven2000]

6:15 - the squelchy synth sound is there a special name fort this type of sound? I always find it hard to find a good starting preset for synth chetypes like this one.

[@seankhalif850]

tutorials on melodies?

[@BachCounterpoint]

Love your videos, but I find that many theory teachers don't address a key aspect of musical complexity: rhythm. Why is that? Surely the rhythm does heaps of the work

[@browncoat697]

Rhythm is a lot harder to analyze because with melody/harmony we have distinct and easily described concepts like consonance and dissonance, various scales and modes, all that stuff, while with rhythm it's basically "uh, time signatures and syncopation lmao." Often, certain rhythmic patterns are associated with genre, especially in pop music - early jazz loved the Charleston rhythm (dotted quarter + eighth note), modern pop loves that hemiola-ish clave rhythm (dotted quarter + dotted quarter + quarter, see Cheap Thrills by Sia), bossa nova has specific rhythmic patterns on drum kit that you're basically expected to play if you're playing bossa nova, etc. It's to the point where as a drummer you're simply expected to know if someone says "hey, can you give me some kind of reggae feel?" you're just expected to have a lot of emphasis on beat one rather than the backbeat and to use tons of syncopated hi-hat stuff because that's what reggae sounds like.

[@gcnubian]

The double octave is actually not the "16th" but rather a "15th." In Italian, these two intervals are called, "ottava" and "quidicesima," hence the spelling in music of "8va" and "15ma." Great video! I appreciate your work here!

[@666Vandel666]

oh man how can something be so complicated yet so simple at the same time thank you for the videos I'm learning a lot :)

[@aris8628]

Me (trying to make a song, with no music theory)*be like: wth this is so complicated, i just need to bring helpers in fl studio, and just fill what i see and just hear what is match to my ears. Hmm does anyone same like me?

[@jesuschristianfernandezcos2039]

traduccion please!

[@Diserpier]

The best teacher around the world !! I watched the video where you explain the Runaway theory and a couple days ago I tried to make the same with this song (Closer). Now you put a video about this. I've learn much because when I watched this video I realize my supositions weren't so far. Thank you soo much!!

[@DjJohnnyTheripper]

i am strigling wiht m my cords.. usually it ends up alwa the same.. about not knowing how to end something.. or.. i dont know the right chord to use.. the ssoun d production is so big that i get lost within the making.. :(

[@dabs1372]

İ have been watching these; conclusion is that mess with your basses guys. İt works.

[@junseokim3734]

can u tell me what midi keyboard that is?

[@PyramindSF]

Native Instruments Komplete Kontrol S49

[@junseokim3734]

Pyramind :D ty!

[@klipnity]

0:40 It's actually called Future Bass :)

[@kodoaok626]

Sir, Now I dont know to read sheet music, don't know music theory.But I write lyrics and sing myself.I want to share those with people undergoing my same feeling.I started seeing breakdown song videos as they would help but i don't understand.I started to play guitar.Can you help me with my journey,what I should learn first. I'm from India,from remote village.

[@seanissomething]

So the happiest sounding song of the year is in a minor scale? This disproves everything I thought I knew about music... :(

[@michaeljamescollins6800]

I am absolutely so happy that this channel is active. You guys rock! keep it up!

[@kashtr1935]

can you do ain't giving up by craig david

[@4rbuz241]

Take a major chord, go up one tone, another one but in minor, then go back and loop it

[@andeeee6050]

"that's a whole damn scale in a chord" lmao

[@Impennybee]

This is the first video i have watched from u, and im so freaking glad i found your channel! This is exactly what i need, cant wait to spend the whole night watching ur vids! :D thanks!

[@Fre3flyOfficial]

I wouldn't have guessed that such a simple-sounding track is actually so complex :)

[@ksrr23]

DO YOUNG BY THE CHAINSMOKERS!!! I dont get how the mix the melody with the chords

[@diandramadhan]

Next level of psychologic

[@oddsphere]

You do really well at explaining the music, thanks for the dope vid!

[@VaylewMusic]

I think the most complex thing in music is make a simple track. And simple tracks are the most popular ones.

[@quincysbusstop1729]

VaylewMusic, actually music tracks that you can easily hum with your mouth or you can just imagine, people find it easy and interesting... that's all, I guess

[@Iamcluster12]

This guy rocks, learning so much from these videos. Keep them coming!

[@JustChazOrr]

I could watch this all day. You sir are perfect.

[@0neTwo0neTwo]

"don't mess with sevens"

[@WHOWHENWHYY]

we love you Mat!!!

[@elatiik4843]

can u give us the midi??

[@St0ckwell]

There is no "Fminor79", just fmin9. If you played it with no 7 it would be fmadd9

[@joshphillips3171]

Listen to a couple of Julian Calor's newest songs, the chord progressions are amazing!!!

[@lari0108]

I absolutely love these videos! Learnt so much in so little time

[@allforit101]

The bassline is 4-4/5/6-6/5 then repeat. Please upvote so people dont play bassline wrong. You can clearly hear it go Db-Db/Eb/F-F/Eb and repeat.

[@allforit101]

Those are the actual notes of the bassline, not the actual chords btw, for anyone that wants and needs to get technical. Other than that great vid guys! :D

[@martinshewfelt1236]

So glad to have found this channel!

[@jordanconover8522]

Matt I love the video, I like what you're doing for artists and I look forward to watching a lot more of your previous and upcoming videos! thanks for all your help :)

[@Wowl98]

Why does this video have no subtitle? :(

[@hudsonhoward4114]

what is this guys email?

[@PyramindSF]

[e-mail]

[@danhengemihle]

u sure about f minor? sounds like g#?

[@bernardodeleon131]

Yeah this is definitely g# Major and not f minor.

[@gcnubian]

1) This is most definitely f minor. 2) Fortunately, G# Major is not a key (thank GOD).

[@RaghunathRajaram]

Ab Major (Not G# Major) is the relative Major of F minor, so it's easy to get confused between the two, as they share the same notes. However, if you listen carefully to the song you'll notice that most of the melodies resolve back to F. And as you can see from the explanation in this video, that pretty much the entire song revolves around variations of the Fm chord.

[@CitrusCG]

this is so good.

[@dericc8611]

Love these breakdowns Matt!! Thank you so much for doing them! Love your style! :D Cheers.

[@AdnanAlsannaa]

You're amazing!!! I love how you do pop music.

[@Jay-407]

dude your videos are amazing. so mad ive just now found it

[@Papi.Labouche]

Can we suggest songs? If so can you break down a song called Jump by Astrid S some day :)

[@anitabws4]

2:09 F ALIEN. Or is it aolean?

[@marvincyk]

Thank you! Please continue to do these!

[@MrCri95inter]

00:57 wait is that stewie griffin talking? lol

[@tudorhulban2817]

thank you for the video. the keyboard sounds sexy when you hit it hard.

[@DNVRNV]

Yeah, inspired!

[@itshamiiid]

dude, Matt, i have alot of respect for your work and kwnoledge. but the verse part, your chords are so different than what the original sounds like. I searched other videos and saw different chords which sounds more like the original. cheers

[@liamtheboi9309]

You sir, are a magnificent teacher :)

[@DistrictScooterBoy1]

WOULD LOVE THE WEEKND BREAKDOWN

[@TheLumaister]

Interesting breakdown of the song, but the emphasis on the submediant (Db Major), being at the beginning of every repetition of the chord progression, leads me to think of the piece as being in Db Lydian. Although this is modally identical to F Aeolian, as it is to Ab Ionian, I can't help but think there should have been more emphasis on how the upper voices of the chord are less important than the bass voice for identifying chords. Regardless I love how you are applying some theory to more popular music. Keep it up.

[@wilihey1425]

This is really helpful for learning, thanks a lot for those videos

[@Versus61]

Nice video. I'd appreciate you taking a closer look at...actually complex progressions tho. I know taste is not really debatable, but a Theory & Aarrangement Breakdown of EDM / Pop-Chart music is somewhat pointless as (arguably) 10-yo music students could come up with those ideas.

[@ProductionsA2]

when you run out of ideas for making videos: pyramind: chainsmokers....

[@mayanksaxena6575]

went over my head ......swoosh !!!!😂

[@chaoticspear]

Your videos are so f*cking good man. Love watching you break songs down. Nice one!!

[@th3h3artship]

This theory video was fabulous haha

[@fr3727]

Great videos man! Keep them coming

[@Ph3_n1x]

Awesome breakdowns please keep up the good work

[@skellzzed8255]

Breaking down the arrangement of the Chainsmokers? I too can break down a straight line.

[@PyramindSF]

HAHA gotim

[@juniorpittTV]

*HEYYY........................................................................................................................................................* I love your style 😉

[@rrgert4]

this guy is awesome

[@stevesimpson9394]

Awesome vid, thank you.

[@carimabdala]

1:41 okay.... I'm subscribing XD

[@PyramindSF]

:D thanks!

[@srjoy101]

9:16

[@dpbrinkm]

this is amazing! so much info! thank you!

[@siroswald3188]

very well done, loving this series

[@DeanLotter]

Awesome tutorial! :)

[@sahilb9685]

*Seven ! Seven !! Seven !!! Seven !!!!*

[@beautifulsongswithlyrics7461]

It is just a copy of Over my head by The Fray.

[@josephcosenza-weaver6012]

yo, you're the same guy from the yung turks?

[@sdrozo]

yes!