"Soul Meets Body" Musical Analysis


"Soul Meets Body" by Death Cab for Cutie is part of their album Plans. It is a blend of indie rock and indie pop. It was released August 8, 2005 and written/composed by Benjamin Gibbard and produced by guitarist Chris Walla. The are from the United States. It reached #1 on the US Adult Alternative Songs and #60 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in 2005-2006 (Billboard).

While listening to this song, I get swept into the acoustics of the guitar, the catchy melody, and like Elsa Bray wrote in The Independent, ""a melody softly soaring through my atmosphere" summing up the effect it has on its listener." I couldn't agree more. The way this song can be played on repeat and to relate to certain lyrics and interpreting them into your own meaning "...where soul meets body" could have so many meanings to it and for me it means you are meeting yourself where you are. You are becoming one with yourself and learning to "... let the sun wrap its arms around me" and be happy about where you are.

"Soul Meets Body" has a tempo of 128 BPM. It also has 4 beats per bar. It has a run time of 3 minutes and 49 seconds (Songbpm). There are great guitar, piano, and drums throughout the whole song, that really elevates the vocals. There is a bell in the beginning of the song that adds to the timbre of the song and makes it smooth and graceful. Throughout the song, there is the same guitar strumming pattern but it changes tune.

The way the vocals play off of the instruments scratch a part of my brain that makes it so I can listen to it on repeat. Specifically, "And I do believe it's true / That there are roads left in both of our shoes / But if the silence takes you, then I hope it takes me too" The way his voice is higher up in pitch and staggers throughout the verse (I believe it is called transposition) is one of my favorite things to hear in music I think.

Overall, this song is upbeat and I sing along every single time. While Ben Gibbard wrote this about his girlfriend at the time, I feel like so many other people can relate to this song in many different ways (I feel like this true for every song since we all have different opinions and world views)😁


Bray, Elisa. “Death Cab for Cutie, Koko, London.” The Independent, Independent Digital News and Media, 23 July 2008, www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/death-cab-for-cutie-koko-london-875665.html.

“BPM and Key for Soul Meets Body by Death Cab for Cutie: Tempo for Soul Meets Body: Songbpm.” SongBPM, songbpm.com/@death-cab-for-cutie/soul-meets-body#:~:text=Soul%20Meets%20Body%20is%20a,of%204%20beats%20per%20bar. Accessed Sept. 2024.

“Death Cab for Cutie: Biography, Music & News.” Billboard, www.billboard.com/artist/death-cab-for-cutie/chart-history/hsi/. Accessed Sept. 2024.

Death Cab for Cutie. “Death Cab for Cutie - Soul Meets Body (Video).” YouTube, YouTube, www.youtube.com/watch?v=uizQVriWp8M. Accessed Sept. 2024.

Comments

  1. Garett, I had not heard this song before this post, and I truly enjoyed this song and will be sure to take a more thorough look into Death Cab for Cutie's music. I liked the part where they harmonized in different octaves to make a better melody. I also enjoyed the tempo. The tempo running at about 128 bpm is a little over double what the average person's resting heart rate is, so it is good for making people want to dance and bring up their mood. I think that you spent a lot of time thinking about this discussion board, and it is presented well. I enjoyed seeing the inverted color scheme. I believe that you would enjoy music by Cody Jinks, Alan Jackson, and Rhianna.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I never really thought about the BPM and tempo of a song and how it correlates to heartbeat and why certain music makes you feel a certain way. I have listened to a quite a few of Alan Jacksons songs as well as Rhianna. Cody Jinks on the other hand, the first I listened to him was your musical analysis.

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Intro

Jenny (I Wanna Ruin Our Friendship) Musical Analysis