St Vincent's new song's chorus is being accused of ripping off Nirvana

[willbo]

the St Vincent song chorus -

https://youtu.be/VQ9iAlm-sJ8?t=94

the Nirvana chorus -

https://youtu.be/qv96yJYhk3M?t=58

personally, I really like the St Vincent song and I don't really care about the Nirvana song that much. I don't even know if it was a deliberate homage.

I think "steals" like this can be interesting though, because think how much music the average person hears by their adult life, on radio, tv, outside, etc. How can a musician possibly know if a melody in their head is original or something they heard years ago?

[PlanktonSideburns]

Yea not boved

Not like St Vincent has been taking reverberation and sampling unknowns

Musically, its not really something so unique that no one else had done it before or after the nirvana thing

You have to give them all back in the end, as someone once said (not me please don't sue me)

[Neomod]

There are different things going on in the basslines, synth melody and I like Annie more than Nirvana therefore..

NOT GUILTY.

She was on the Sodajerker podcast recently and sounded much less precious than has been documented in other recent interviews.

Admittedly, they were being effusive in their praise. 

I also like the fact that she looks like a young Shelley Duvall in that video.

[famethrowa]

Er yeah I don't think "I like her better and she looks nice" stands up well in court! I tend to think it's kinda blatant actually, people have been sued for less than that. But if it's just a quotation, part of the performance then maybe ok.

[willbo]

I'd be interested to know what kind of melodies inspired Kurt to write the chant on the original now...

[Neomod]

Er yeah I don't think "I like her better and she looks nice" stands up well in court! I tend to think it's kinda blatant actually, people have been sued for less than that. But if it's just a quotation, part of the performance then maybe ok.

You're not the judge of me.

[Claude the Racecar Driving Rockstar Super Sleuth]

It is very, very similar sounding (certainly a lot closer than Blurred Lines was to that Marvin Gaye number) but it wouldn't surprise me if it was some sort of generic musical scale or something. I don't know what St. Vincent was listening to at the time, but the release of a new Nirvana tune was a pretty big deal, so it's easy to believe that she would have heard it at some point. Then again, that makes it harder to believe she'd think she could get away with such an obvious copy.

From what I've heard, I like her music more than that of John Grant. They both seem to be permanent fixtures on 6Music.

[Pauline Walnuts]

Did Nirvana ever create a single riff or melody?

Couldn't listen to Nevermind for that nagging, now where have I heard before feeling.

Mind you that was 30 odd years ago.

[Claude the Racecar Driving Rockstar Super Sleuth]

Nirvana did, of course, face similar accusations of ripping off Come As You Are from Eighties by Killing Joke.

One of those horrible 'you're an old git' realisations: the gap between now and the release of You Know You're Right is about twice as long as between then and Nirvana's heyday.

[thecuriousorange]

Sorry that's barely an anything.

[Video Game Fan 2000]

She's so embarrassing. Her latest gimmick is so bad. I don't know how people stand it. A career of going all in trends from six years previously over and over and having the $$$ to force it through.

One of the other songs on this latest album I swear rips of a Bettie Davis song but I can't quite match it up. 

Did Nirvana ever create a single riff or melody?

ANEURYSM

[willbo]

She's so embarrassing. Her latest gimmick is so bad. I don't know how people stand it. A career of going all in trends from six years previously over and over and having the $$$ to force it through.

One of the other songs on this latest album I swear rips of a Bettie Davis song but I can't quite match it up. 

ANEURYSM

is this a "mr agreeable" homage to fit in with the NME/melody maker nostalgia goin' on here right now?

[chveik]

all the songs she could have ripped off...



plain

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

Musically, its not really something so unique that no one else had done it before or after the nirvana thing

It's just a standard - get ready for some incisive music journalism - vaguely raga-influenced descending melody. Late '60s western psychedelic music was full of melodies and riffs along similar lines.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=teW0ve5R4VY

If anyone is being ripped off here, it's the Indian lads.

[willbo]

image not showing

[chveik]

well they were called NIRVANA after all

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

image not showing

It's a YouTube link to a Sixties psychedelic song by The Savage Resurrection.

[Vitamin C]

Image still not showing. Can you sort it?

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

(All) apologies, that link works for me. It's really not worth clicking on, though, I was only making a vague comparison. But here you go, hopefully.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=teW0ve5R4VY

See. Told you. Not worth it.

[willbo]

No..it was my image that wasn't showing. It was a funny meme I tried to post. The video works for me, interesting song

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

Ah right. Well I've made a right old soapy arse of myself here.

[badaids]

Sorry that's barely an anything.

This.

[Cuellar]

I don't like St Vincent anymore because she's a member of the alt-right, so I'm siding with Nirvana on this one

[pigamus]

When did the St Vincent backlash start then? Everyone said she was a genius a few years back

[drummersaredeaf]

I'd like to think I'm a pioneer in that I went right off her in 2014. Actor and Strange Mercy are GREAT, the Byrne collab is an interesting curiosity, but the acclaimed self titled album is BAD. It sounds like 3-4 decent tracks and the back half of it is like songs Garbage would put out as B sides. Plus that year cancelled the entire UK tour to go on SNL and my two hour drive on a Saturday was moved to a Wednesday as a result. And at that show the PA died for twenty mins during the first song.

Thinking about it, that's when she started the silly theatrical stage moves for which Byrne is surely responsible.

[willbo]

personally I found her previous stuff a bit cool and intense for me, but I quite like the new singles.

[PlanktonSideburns]

When did the St Vincent backlash start then? Everyone said she was a genius a few years back

Probably then

[willbo]

I don't like St Vincent anymore because she's a member of the alt-right, so I'm siding with Nirvana on this one

I can see the confusion, but that's not a Pepe meme next to her, it's Talking Heads frontman David Byrne.

[madhair60]

blatant rip off. hope she loses everything

[dr beat]

Never understood why she hasn't had backing singers called The Grenadines.