cover image source: MakeAGIF.com
Interpolation! That's a word you don't hear every day... According to Wikipedia:
In popular music, interpolation (also called a replayed sample) refers to using a melody—or portions of a melody (often with modified lyrics)—from a previously recorded song but re-recording the melody instead of directly sampling it. Interpolation is often used when the artist or label who owns the recording of the music declines to license the sample, or if licensing the piece of music is considered too costly.
If you're like me, you're probs thinking what?! No sampling?! Don't worry, I'm not gonna be a stickler about it... as far as I'm concerned samples are allowed here. I'm just looking for music that references other pre-existing music in some way that is fresh or interesting. It can be an interpolation, a sample... even a cover or an answer song will do! And for all those that are struggling to think up interpolations, I got a list for ya here. Of course, feel free to color outside the lines and suggest any music you've been into recently.
How we do
In this weekly series, folks can chime in and drop links to whatever it is they've been listening to recently + browse others' suggestions. You can follow the suggested genre if you'd like, but don't feel confined to it; you're free to suggest whatever you wanna. 🙌
If you're interested in having other discussions about music, consider following the aptly named #music discussions organization.
Now, lemme hear your favorite interpolations! 👂
Note: you can embed a link to your song using the following syntax {% embed https://... %}. This should work for most common platforms!
Looking forward to listening to y'all's suggestions! 🎶
🚨p.s. Check out @rachelfazio's sister series to Music Monday, called Podcast Palooza!🚨
Top comments (18)
I struggled trying to understand that, haha. But I've got one I think...
Not sure if this is the original, but it has to be one of the oldest, and both have a huge resemblance.
Haha, all good! The concept of interpolation is definitely a difficult one.
First off, I love the songs that you sent over. These are freaking great.
I think rather than an interpolation, Michael Bublé is actually doing a full "cover" of "On an Evening in Roma (Sott'er celo de Roma)"
This video here does a pretty good job of explaining the difference between covering, interpolating, and sampling a song from a legal perspective.
In short though, usually an interpolation is just when you play (physically play, i.e. not sample) a small snippet of a song within your own song to reference it. Oftentimes, you'll see guitarists in jam bands do it... they're playing a song and then start improvising and might quickly reference another song by playing a little short snippet of the song. That'd be interpolation!
I'm going to make an analogy to writing... Covering a song is a bit like going to write a post and copying someone else's post in it's entirety, whereas interpolating a song is more like quoting a sentence from someone else's post and putting it in your own original post.
Hope that makes sense!
Okay, I think I've got it now, thanks for the video, haha.
Yeah, from time to time you knwo, I hear music and I know that I know the melody from somewhere else... right now I can't fin an example of that but now I get it.
SoI guess that sampling is a thing that tochno and house artists do a lot?
Interesting!
Exactly!
Sampling is def something that techno & house musicians do a bunch. Also, hip hop is big on sampling. The origins of hip hop were built on sampling... you'd have someone DJ'ing records, physically looping the breakbeat in a funk song, and an MC (rapper) rhyming on top of it.
Here's a quick video talking about how it all happened. 🙂
On the note of techno and house musicians, I think Daft Punk is a group that really took sampling to an awesomely artistic place. Here's a video about their album Discovery and why what they did is so special!
Very interesting videos! The story about Hip-hop was very cool, and the Daft Punk video was extremely insane!
I had to hear Face to Face after watching that part.
Thanks fo watching, Rodrigo!
I get pretty siked about music and can go a little overboard with the suggestions sometimes 😅, so appreciate you taking the time to check out both!
I get you, music is something I couldn't live without, If I had to choose between music and web development I would have a really hard time making that choice.
BTW, I have a friend that is a huge fan of Daft Punk, for sure I'll send him that video. Thank you!
Ok, there's one on that list I like, and it's the title track from Come On Feel The Illinois by Sufjan Stevens. It's a cracking album, but it's always jumped out at me the way it copies The Cure in the middle for no apparent reason.
I can't really think of any others.
Wow, this is so dope! I need to listen Sufjan Stevens again... been too damn long and his stuff is just so complex and interesting. 😀
I know it's not interpolation, but the piano part in this song kinda reminds me of Linus And Lucy by Vince Guaraldi Trio.
In any case, this is a great example, Ben! Appreciate ya chiming in. 🙂
I know it's late, but I got another one:
Hey There Ophelia by MC Lars is a retelling of Hamlet set to an interpolated version of Screamager by Therapy. And it's good!
Never too late! Honestly, I like to go back and revisit these, so keep'em coming. This is a fun one btw!
Super late here (It's Friyay the 10th), but this week I've been listening to
LCD Soundsystem
Spotify
Google Music
Awww man, one of my all-time favorite bands! Good shoutout.
As for interpolations, LCD arguably has a lot of them (or at least near interpolations)... they are masters of referencing old music. 🙂
One of my favorite things that they did, which is kinda like an interpolation, but may technically be called something else... on their album This is Happening, they begin with a banger of a song called "Dance Yrself Clean":
And there's this vocal harmonyhappening throughout where he's singing "aaaaaaaaa AAAAHHHHHHH AHHAAaaaa"...
And then later on for the last song of the album, "Home" that same harmony comes back. It kinda bookends the album. I love it! Wish more albums were crafted this thoughtfully!
I saw this recently in my feed and wondered what the heck "the lick" was:
If you're like me and wanna appreciate this awesome interpolation, check out this video:
I saw a bunch of YouTube shorts this weekend by LUXXURY about interpolation in music, so that's where this topic is coming from.
Here's one of the videos featuring Bowie:
Does David Bowie “Starman” Sound FAMILIAR? 🌈 - YouTube
Have you heard this melody before...perhaps somewhere, IDK, over the rainbow? 🌈
Check out the whole playlist of interpolation examples here!
Awww yayeah! I just stumbled upon another interpolation.
The Poppy Girls Song from The Wiz — a movie I absolutely loved as a kid:
... interpolates the bassline from "For the Love of Money" by the O'Jay's:
Both songs are also written by the same dude, a badass bassist by the name of Anthony Jackson. 🔥
The beat keeps me going when I am working! 🎵
Oh heck yeah!! Such a classic.
What a great music video too. I'd never seen this but I love the cowboy references! I never really thought of this song like that, but now that I'm seeing this video I can hear the whip crack and the backup vocal similarities to old westerns, haha. Pretty dang cool!