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 "Cold" - Musical Analysis 2#


    2000's grunge rock era unveiled some amazing, underrated bands. My all-time favorite band is called Crossfade. Years ago, when I discovered Crossfade, the music truly opened me up to the potential of rock that expanded past simple Metallica, Slayer, or Ozzy Osbourne. The most inspiring part of this band is the lead singer, Ed Sloan, and his personal journey through depression into finding God and now making Christian music. My favorite song by Crossfade has to be a song called "Cold". Sadly, the overall album was rated 2.5 out of 5 for their generic sound, but that still does not ruin the enjoyment I find in the band. The song was released in 2004 and the band originates from Columbia, South Carolina. 


Crossfade - Cold - YouTube




                                                                                                  

  Lyrics 

     One of my favorite parts about the song Cold is the emotional lyrics. The lyrics can relate to many listeners because the song speaks about moving on from a relationship where he didn't care about the girl. The meaning is communicating through the lyrics "I never meant to be so cold" which is the singer apologizing for being blunt and numb towards emotions. Though the song's lyrics seem to be intricate, my personal favorite part about "Cold" is the simple plain expression of the singer's apology. Ed Sloans voice fits perfectly with the guitar and drums especially within the first minute of the song. The song review on Crossfade - Crossfade (album review 2) | Sputnikmusic said," It does have good vocals as well as a strong chorus, but it’s such a clichéd song for that matter."


Cords

    The cords consist of mainly strumming and a pull-off to hammer-combo. The chorus consists of the same 4 chords being strummed in a pattern. The notable part of the chorus is the slower progression of strumming. The guitarists do an amazing job keeping the pace of the song and switching notes on the drum kicks. Around 1:50 in the song we get a quick acoustic guitar glimpse before the solo which adds a great variation of distortion to a soft strumming tone. My favorite part is the quick solo because it gives the song an interesting switch from strumming to individual picking. 


Melody 

    "Cold" consists of a very simple melody which is easily recognizable. The song opens up into the singer's voice and down picking the open E string giving a sharp and heavy tone. Within the first minute of the song, we reach part of the chorus. The song starts in the intro and exactly like chorus, verse, chorus, solo, bridge, and finally the outro. The simple and same strumming patterns repeated throughout the song creates an easy melody to memorize. My favorite part of the melody is the chorus being played with the singer's voice which creates amplifies the vocals. The song review on Crossfade - Crossfade (album review 2) | Sputnikmusic said," It does have good vocals as well as a strong chorus" and I completely agree. 


Beat

    The beat of the song is 148 bpm in a drop B tuning which mixes with the drums perfectly. The song is slightly repetitive but that makes it all the more enjoyable for me because of the simplicity. The drums stay at around a constant pace and mix with guitar perfectly in the first chorus. No double kick is used which provides a softer and more friendly tone than other metal songs. Around 1:40 in the song the drums stop and allow an acoustic guitar to strum before kicking in again. The drums and guitar harmonize all throughout and create an amazing beat to listen to. Personally, I love the beat because it creates a slow rock tone but also allows heavy strumming from the guitars.


Range

    The range in the song between the instruments and vocals is amazing. The guitar riffs have the same tone as the singer's' vocals which helps the overall song to have a good rhythm. In each chorus is where you really hear the range of Eds voice and the high chord strumming from the guitars. In my opinion, the range of the singer's voice and guitar individualize the drums which creates an overall amazing sounding tune. The range and melody interlope and provides one awesome song. 


Sources:

Cold Tab by Crossfade | Songsterr Tabs with Rhythm Ed Sloan tab revised 3/26/16.  Crossfade - Crossfade (album review 2) | Sputnikmusic February 2nd, 2013, Toondude. 

    


 

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