{"id":148733230,"date":"2024-09-11T12:30:43","date_gmt":"2024-09-11T12:30:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lazyandentitled.org\/?p=148733230"},"modified":"2024-09-11T12:30:43","modified_gmt":"2024-09-11T12:30:43","slug":"what-makes-this-song-rip-chon-waterslide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lazyandentitled.org\/?p=148733230","title":{"rendered":"What Makes This Song Rip: Chon &amp; &quot;Waterslide&quot;"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">&#8220;River god laughing at the water that tickles him&#8221; &#8211; Henri de R\u00e9gnier, quoted in the score of &#8220;Jeux D&#8217;eau&#8221; by Maurice Ravel<\/h2><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Last National Poetry Month, we <a href=\"https:\/\/shipwreckedsailor.substack.com\/p\/the-poem-i-recommend-if-you-dont\">close read<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/shipwreckedsailor.substack.com\/p\/lets-close-read-another-poem?utm_source=publication-search\">some poems<\/a>. Recently, I\u2019ve been <a href=\"https:\/\/shipwreckedsailor.substack.com\/p\/albums-i-loved-in-high-school-blink?utm_source=publication-search\">looking<\/a> at <a href=\"https:\/\/shipwreckedsailor.substack.com\/p\/albums-i-loved-in-high-school-nofx?utm_source=publication-search\">albums<\/a> I <a href=\"https:\/\/shipwreckedsailor.substack.com\/p\/albums-i-loved-in-high-school-mxpx?utm_source=publication-search\">loved in high school<\/a>. The most recent crop of those turned a little <a href=\"https:\/\/shipwreckedsailor.substack.com\/p\/albums-i-loved-in-high-school-relient?utm_source=publication-search\">shame-filled<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/shipwreckedsailor.substack.com\/p\/albums-i-loved-in-high-school-slick?utm_source=publication-search\">maybe mean<\/a>. So I thought it might be nice to close-read some songs I really like. Talk about <em>why<\/em> I think they are cool. <\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Breaking this into sub-categories\u2014it worked at <em>Cracked<\/em>, it works for <em>The Line Break<\/em>, and it\u2019s a good way to organize thoughts. Most chord progressions are four chords, so we\u2019ll do four categories: general vibe, structure, chords, and moments of sublime. Those all make sense at face value right? Thanks, readers, I knew I could trust you.<\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">First song? Chon\u2019s \u201cWaterslide.\u201d You knew this was coming. <\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"CHON - Waterslide (Official Music Video)\" width=\"790\" height=\"444\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/JQcp3UWQOmM?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>General Vibe<\/strong><\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Summer. Ocean waves you can hear from the skate park but maybe not see. Some sort of drink with lots of ice and lime. A summer afternoon that, when the sun starts to set, you realize <em>oh yeah it\u2019s like 8:30 damn the sun sets so late in the summer<\/em>. Yo is Ryan having a party tonight? We should go to Ryan\u2019s place. You wanna get stoned and play <em>Dr. Mario<\/em> first? Siiiiiick but dude <em>I am<\/em> going to try to talk to Emily at the party tonight so we can\u2019t forget to go. What\u2019s that? Yes we can go kayaking tomorrow. <\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Structure<\/strong><\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Way to earn your title. This song flows from riff to riff seamlessly, never feeling like \u201chere\u2019s a loose collection of cool stuff we wrote that\u2019s hard to play so you know we\u2019re good at guitars.\u201d Chon structures their guitars like the left and right hand of a piano\u2014low and high notes far apart then closer together, chords and countermelodies intertwining, and maybe the coolest thing: the intro (:37 &#8211; :47 and 1:13 &#8211; 1:34 in the video) is a 16-bar phrase, but it doesn\u2019t simply repeat itself. It\u2019s not a solo, though\u2014it\u2019s a riff. One guitar goes from chords to harmonies, and then both are into some hybrid picking wildness that glides up and down notes like, y\u2019know. <\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/667a8fbd-c035-404f-a596-e502085f2277_800x600.jpeg\" alt=\"File:Water slide and pool.jpg\"\/><\/figure><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By the two-minute mark, we\u2019ve gone into what Mark Hoppus would deem \u201cthe slow, pretty part.\u201d But even that\u2019s not the only slow pretty part (2:50). There are kinda two bridges, without the song feeling like it\u2019s veering too far off from the chorus. There is always momentum. <\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/4c4e56f4-344a-4173-b0f6-b043906f54ab_450x600.jpeg\" alt=\"File:Mark Hoppus 2019.jpg\"\/><\/figure><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We loop back to the main riff (would it be the chorus? Sure!) and we\u2019re out in four minutes. This is a perfect four-minute song because I honestly thought it was a three-minute song. Nothing is wasted, nothing feels overindulgent. It just tells its story and then ends on a descending slowdown into a ringing A6. What more could you ask?<\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Chords<\/strong><\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Oooooh let\u2019s talk about that 6th chord. If a chord is the 1-3-5 of a scale (C-E-G in the key of C, the worst key), then a 6th chord would have the notes C-E-G-A. Funnily enough, so would an A minor 7 chord, the relative minor of the key. But a 6th chord, despite having all the minor notes, is played with a major root note. It\u2019s like it\u2019s both major and minor at the same time. 6th chords are fucking rad! Wait until I have an excuse to talk about 69 chords. <\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/c54dbc64-2472-47c8-b97a-8e3503991d09_800x600.jpeg\" alt=\"File:Acorde.jpg\"\/><\/figure><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Another progression of note is the intro\/chorus goes IV &#8211; V &#8211; I &#8211; vi, or A &#8211; B &#8211; E &#8211; C#m (I tend to think of this song in E, although it feints towards A quite a bit. Keys are more like guidelines than anything. Like \u201cHey Joe\u201d is in E but only two of its chords are diatonic. Diatonic means \u201cin key.\u201d Can you see why I\u2019m not an actual music journalist?)<\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"What Key is Hey Joe in?\" width=\"790\" height=\"444\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/DVvmALPu5TU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Anyway, that VI &#8211; V &#8211; I &#8211; iv prog is a TRAP. Go ahead, start playing it. Doesn\u2019t it feel like a merry-go-round that\u2019s not going too fast, but you still can\u2019t get off? <\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Brendan and I tried to write a song with that prog one time and got stuck in a loop for hours. Eventually, we got out, and the finished song made it to our ska album. But we were stuck like one of Lassie\u2019s friends down a well. Kudos to Chon for getting out so cleanly. <\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Moments of Sublime<\/strong><\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That part in the intro\/chorus where they hit that high chord\u2014it\u2019s a the \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=g8HxirtezmI\">Burnt Jamb<\/a>\u201d chord, a D major 7 going 7th fret-7th fret-9th fret on the three strings\u2014before falling back down the scale. The first time you hear it is at :45 in the video. LOVE that chord.<\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Any time one guitar is playing something and then the other guitar jumps in and harmonizes. God I love guitar harmonies. <\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That rocks-against-aluminum-siding snare drum at 1:13, then the way Nathan adds the ride cymbal at 1:18. <\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The snare tone throughout. <\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The energy behind the snare fill at 1:39. <\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The bass going nuts when the guitars switch to ringing chords between 1:34 &#8211; 1:56. This was Chon\u2019s first record without longtime bassist Drew Pelisek. If there\u2019s one gripe I have about this <em>perfect<\/em> record? I think the bass could be turned up a bit. Session musician <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Anthony_Crawford_(bassist)\">Anthony Crawford<\/a> plays on this record and absolutely kills it, but it took me a few listens to really hear what he\u2019s doing. Let\u2019s give Anthony Crawford some love, here\u2019s Chon playing \u201cPetal\u201d live and it leads into an Anthony Crawford bass solo that <em>rips<\/em> (he was playing live with them for the album release in LA).<\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"CHON - Live at El Rey Theater 6\/8\/2019\" width=\"790\" height=\"444\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/f3FxqSBjASA?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Back to \u201cWaterslide:\u201d the half-time riff at 2:23. Jesus sacrificed himself on the cross so you could have that riff. That riff is why I called this section \u201cmoments of sublime.\u201d We\u2019re always chasing perfect moments in music and this is one of them. <\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Speaking of chasing moments\u2014Erick\u2019s wrong note beginning to his solo at 2:51. Apparently that chromatic run at 2:59 makes Mario crack up every time he hears it. You gotta have fun with music, especially if you\u2019re about to rip a guitar solo. Guitar solos are inherently self-indulgent and could stand to be taken down a peg. The Chon boys are out here to have fun with it. <\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>WRAP IT UP B<\/strong><\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/91df8e5f-6201-4ece-b7b4-345aa7da1a35_686x600.jpeg\" alt=\"File:Guillermo D\u00edaz.jpg\"\/><\/figure><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s my favorite front-to-back song on my favorite record. It\u2019s been my favorite record since I first heard it in 2017. I usually have favorite records last anywhere between three and 10 years, idk, haven\u2019t thought too much about the timeline. If someone were to ask me \u201cwhat\u2019s your favorite band like\u201d I would play them \u201cWaterslide.\u201d There\u2019s a skateboarding and <em>Super Smash Bros<\/em>-playing dog in the video. There\u2019s a pool party in the video. Mario has a purple flower guitar in the video. D.C. al Coda (that\u2019s musician for <em>go back and repeat again<\/em>) to the \u201cGeneral Vibe\u201d section. <\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This song <em>rips<\/em>. <\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sorry you got an email, <\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Chris<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;River god laughing at the water that tickles him&#8221; &#8211; Henri de R\u00e9gnier, quoted in the score of &#8220;Jeux D&#8217;eau&#8221; by Maurice Ravel<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-148733230","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lazyandentitled.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148733230","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lazyandentitled.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lazyandentitled.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lazyandentitled.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lazyandentitled.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=148733230"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lazyandentitled.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148733230\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lazyandentitled.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=148733230"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lazyandentitled.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=148733230"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lazyandentitled.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=148733230"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}