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About This Track
“Machine Gun” is a single by Portishead, released in 2008. The song presents a rather raw, industrial sound and troubled lyrics. The promotional video features the band playing the song at the studio. The 12-inch vinyl was out on April 14, while a digital version was made available from Portishead.co.uk from April 10, 2008.
The song begins with a theme featuring electronic snare and kick drum kit sounds, as well as a snippet of a C# minor chord, which is used throughout the entire song. These sounds feature distortion, hall-style reverb and heavy compression, which mimick the sound of a machine gun.
The vocals feature a three-note melodic cell, evident at the chorus (“If only I could see”). This cell is sequenced (“You turn myself to me”) and also used in inversion (“recognise”). The verses’ vocal lines use notes from the C# dorian scale, which contrasts to the chorus’ usage of the C# aeolian scale.
At 2:42 the song is broken up by a section that features new timbres; notably an electronic snare sound that is deeper in pitch. However, the recurring ‘machine gun’ theme is still present in this section. This is followed by a section featuring the original electronic drum timbres with a difference; tape delay is applied to the drum kit sounds. During this section, the feedback time of the delay is varied.
The final section introduces a synthesizer solo. The timbre of the synthesizer is reminiscent of Vangelis’ usage of synthesized brass. It is the sole section of the song that features a solid harmonic foundation. The chord progression is: C# minor - B major/C# - A major - C# minor.
The song begins with a theme featuring electronic snare and kick drum kit sounds, as well as a snippet of a C# minor chord, which is used throughout the entire song. These sounds feature distortion, hall-style reverb and heavy compression, which mimick the sound of a machine gun.
The vocals feature a three-note melodic cell, evident at the chorus (“If only I could see”). This cell is sequenced (“You turn myself to me”) and also used in inversion (“recognise”). The verses’ vocal lines use notes from the C# dorian scale, which contrasts to the chorus’ usage of the C# aeolian scale.
At 2:42 the song is broken up by a section that features new timbres; notably an electronic snare sound that is deeper in pitch. However, the recurring ‘machine gun’ theme is still present in this section. This is followed by a section featuring the original electronic drum timbres with a difference; tape delay is applied to the drum kit sounds. During this section, the feedback time of the delay is varied.
The final section introduces a synthesizer solo. The timbre of the synthesizer is reminiscent of Vangelis’ usage of synthesized brass. It is the sole section of the song that features a solid harmonic foundation. The chord progression is: C# minor - B major/C# - A major - C# minor.
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Albums featuring this track
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Third
Portishead
Buy- Download Album
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- Juno $10.99
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- Amazon $9.87
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Machine Gun
Portishead Buy- Download Album
- Amazon MP3 Search
- 7digital Search
- Juno $1.49
- iTunes Search
- Buy Album
- Amazon $7.64
- eBay Search
-
Third (Non EU Version)
Portishead Buy- Download Album
- Amazon MP3 Search
- 7digital Search
- iTunes
- Buy Album
- Amazon Search
- eBay Search
-
Third (EU Version)
Portishead Buy- Download Album
- Amazon MP3 Search
- 7digital Search
- iTunes Search
- Buy Album
- Amazon Search
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Shouts
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MyLifeAsBitch wrote:
eargasm.
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tavitooo wrote:
deberia de hacer una cancion con Bjork
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CommanderGrief wrote:
Not hearing the greatness. Quite boring if you ask me.
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pitglo wrote:
repeat and repeat, again and again... perfect.[2]
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AoNanami wrote:
дайте две! *з*
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MADBOATZ wrote:
THIS IS STILL MY JUMPOFF.
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I0000days wrote:
One of the best songs of the 00s
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JustChewIt wrote:
идеальная композиция. просто идеальная...
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Zaratoth wrote:
Metro: Last Light <3 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEbfJFsYvNU
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melloboros wrote:
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MoreDakka (2)
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Mouth_Paint wrote:
Beautiful.
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theZoyya wrote:
repeat and repeat, again and again... perfect.
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Drolin wrote:
Amazing industrial experience.
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wrandyvelasquez wrote:
No decent song belongs anywhere near a Transformer movie. This song is much more than a decent song. [2]
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tavitooo wrote:
4:03 this part is so so sorprendente!! agudiza mis oidos!!
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Melinnoe wrote:
Braulio De Castro
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shagski wrote:
best from portishead imo
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Takkak wrote:
that bass
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fifteen-blows wrote:
No decent song belongs anywhere near a Transformer movie. This song is much more than a decent song.
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kurt111 wrote:
This song belongs in a Transformer movie. [2]
Track Stats
1,578,649 Scrobbles
319,665 Listeners
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Recent Activity
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DetectiveNets, LoriO1 and ChaosTheoryTing loved Portishead – Machine Gun. yesterday evening
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Doodle-Bird added Machine Gun to Doodle-Bird’s library. Wednesday evening
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Merk0579 added Machine Gun to their Loved Tracks. Wednesday evening
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missmae85 added Machine Gun to missmae85’s library. Wednesday evening
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missmae85 added Machine Gun to the playlist. Wednesday evening
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lexymonster, uliss_23, KRZCHF and 7 other people loved Portishead – Machine Gun. Wednesday afternoon
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iwishiwereagirl added Machine Gun to iwishiwereagirl’s library. Tuesday morning
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MyLifeAsBitch, Fun_Dragon_Den, Karry_ and 15 other people loved Portishead – Machine Gun. Tuesday morning
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mungui_zero added Machine Gun to the playlist Baked. Saturday evening
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Dysglossie, dokhy, AllSimple13 and 28 other people loved Portishead – Machine Gun. Saturday evening
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