Appendices
Deep Listening and What to Study Next
Artists to analyze for each skill in the course, and where to go after Song 4.
Suggested deep-listening list
Analyze, do not just enjoy. Use the analysis checklist from Appendix A.
| Skill | Listen to |
|---|---|
| Riffcraft | Black Sabbath, Metallica, Rage Against the Machine |
| Odd meters and rhythm | Tool, Soundgarden, Meshuggah |
| Twin-guitar harmony | Iron Maiden, Thin Lizzy |
| Pop form and prosody | The Beatles, Max Martin-era hits, Taylor Swift |
| Borrowed chords and poignancy | Radiohead, The Beatles |
| Dynamics and arrangement | Led Zeppelin, Nirvana, Porcupine Tree |
| Modal rock | Santana (Dorian), Pink Floyd, Joe Satriani (Lydian) |
| Minor-key harmony | Dire Straits, Opeth, Muse |
| Melodic soloing | David Gilmour, Slash, Gary Moore |
Add artists who sing in your own language. Prosody is easiest to study in the language you think in.
What to study after this course
| Topic | Why |
|---|---|
| Counterpoint basics | For weaving two guitar parts or a bass line and a melody together |
| Jazz harmony | Tritone substitutions and altered dominants, for more advanced color |
| Orchestration | If your interest in film-style writing grows |
| Mixing fundamentals | To finish your demos properly |
| Transcription | Working out whole songs and solos by ear is the best ongoing training there is |
| Rhythm studies | Polyrhythm and odd-meter writing, if progressive music attracts you |
Keep going
The course ends and the routine does not: one finished song a week, one analyzed song a week, five minutes of ear training a day.