Song: Dominion Road

Artist: The Mutton Birds

Album: The Mutton Birds

Release date: 1992

Genre: Rock

Key: E Major 

Chords in Key:

I

ii

iii

IV

V

vi

vii

E

F#m

G#m

A

B

C#m

D#°

 

Dominion Road is written for vocals, guitar, bass, and drums.

Intro/Verse

The intro begins with a lead guitar motif, which is also used as a post-chorus. The meter of the song is more complex than it first appears. It could be interpreted as two bars of 6/4 followed by a bar of 4/4, adding up to a 16 crotchet beat pattern. However, the underlying drum groove is a standard 4/4 pattern, meaning the correct interpretation is probably that it simply has some chords which last six crotchet beats, and some which last two or four. The song begins on the dominant, which is unusual as it is conventional for most pieces of music to end on the tonic.

Verse

The verse uses the same basic chords and the intro as a verse break between the two halves of the verse. Again the use of bars 6/4 is present, however this adds up to 48 crotchet beats and is divisible by four, meaning 4/4 is still likely the correct interpretation for the overall piece. The verse is harmonically simple, using the tonic, subdominant and dominant chords, although the half after the verse break uses a modified ending.

Chorus

(Modulation to B Major):

Chords in Key:

I

ii

iii

IV

V

vi

vii

B

C#m

D#m

E

F#

G#m

A#°


The chorus subtly shifts to B Major, making the modulation not immediately obvious. This is due to the song often using the dominant as the tonal centre (an argument could be made for the song being in B Mixolydian rather than E Major overall, although this is a matter of interpretation).

The chorus avoids the complicated meters from the intro and verse break, adding to the feeling that the song has come “home” and stabilised. This is emphasised by the dynamic shift of the guitars which are now palm-muting the chords, while the drums become less complicated. The effect draws the listener in as the song feels quieter and demands more attention while not actually dropping in volume.

The bridge has an ad-lib guitar solo over the top of simple vocals which provide a counter melody.

 

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