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Jane Kim
MUSC 410
Final Analysis Paper
The Veldt (Ft. Chris James) By Deadmau5
Deadmau5 (Joel Zimmermann) is an active user of social media who utilizes
various Internet spaces (YouTube, Twitter, blog, etc.) to interact with fans and audiences.
As pertains to his brutally honest personality, he speaks and acts without qualms in
sharing his sometimes radical, even esoteric outlook. This background on deadmau5's
Internet presence is relevant to how this particular track was produced. After deadmau5's
initial unofficial release ofvia several live streams producingThe Veldt, Chris
James, the featured non-celebrity vocal, was among the numerous who responded to
deadmau5s invitation to partake in his production (known as crowdsourcing). Deadmau5
gives James a few seconds of consideration only at others incessant urging during yet
another live stream uploaded on YouTube. The foul-mouthed, cynical critic with low
expectations is completely enraptured by the end of the first phrase, contacts James right
away, then there we have it: the official EP Album released in May 2012. This part of the
music-making process poignantly illustrates how our technologically facilitated world of
immediate accessibility opens up a boundless array of possibilities: meeting people,
sharing media, enhancing productivity, and etc., not to mention producing EDM.
Contrary to recent concerns for technological obsessions potential hindrance of human
capability and imagination, deadmau5 and James' productive synergy is a beautiful
example of how modernity conversely yields innovative ways to create art (instead of
destroying it). Deadmau5s openness to collaborate with anyone, disregarding name value
and fame, is also admirably democratic, especially in todays music industry rampant
with financial incentives and sponsoring.

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Musically, deadmau5 is known for his conservative tendencies, hinging on avantgarde minimalism, largely embodying the sub-genre of progressive music. Beatport
attributes to deadmau5 sub-genres of Minimal, Electro House, Drum & Bass,
Techno, Progressive, House, and Electronica; a Google search brings up similar
keywords: progressive house, electro house, and electronica. In light of these
descriptions, which virtually all the major EDM websites echo, progressive is mentioned
most consistently. Even without this consideration, deadmau5s style adheres most
closely to musical elements defining the particular sub-genre. First, his tracks fall short of
being completely house or techno as they are devoid of houses disco traits and is
stripped of [techno's] black feel or jazzy tinges", (but otherwise, heavily resemble those
genres) (Reynolds 438). Second, specifically concerning The Veldt", virtually none of its
sonic layers sound like actual acoustic instruments; abstract-sounding noises might
describe them best. Third, it is slow-burning in terms of its relatively longer length as
well as its correspondingly protracted, drawn-out manner of the tracks structural
progression (438). This, coupled by deadmau5's minimalism, configures into a trance-like
atmosphere, a level of tension sustained at a pre-orgasmic level. Regardless, this anticlimactic inclination merely lessens (and doesnt entirely eliminate) the peak and its
surrounding fluctuations. Correspondingly, Reynolds defines progressive elements to
consist of inhibitions and checked tendencies (438). The cosmic mood evoked by The
Veldt via various elaborationsto be discussed in subsequent paragraphsaccords with
Reynolds rendition of progressive as trance without the cheesy E-motionalism (437).
"The Veldt" also encompasses musical elements EDM is broadly associated with:
repetition, layering of textures, and digital production. In regards to rhythmic

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composition, accents of local rhythmic figures synergistically integrate into
compelling large-scale groupings or form (Roeder 233). This particular rhythmic quality
is delineated by Roeder to denote music that deemphasizes traditional harmonic or linear
processes, wherein rhythmic form is created via the nature and the interaction of these
continuitiesthe synchronization of pulse streams and rhythmic motives relative to each
other (233). Whether or not Roeder had thought to apply these musical notions to EDM,
this is an apt description of how EDM typically execute pulse streams, embodied also in
The Veldt.
Maintaining an approximate tempo of 115-125 bpm (the usual parameters for
progressive), The Veldt is tightly textured, with heavy compression and ample filtering.
James' vocal first enters roughly one minute into the track, exiting indefinitely with a
little more than a minute and a half left of the track. Although this sketch might lead one
to surmise the track to be symmetrically structured, textures and instrumentation
preceding the vocal entrance and succeeding its exit are not in symmetry. Despite
adhering to EDMs general format of starting with a buildup and ending with a fade-out,
this track diverges in the particular way the intro develops. Unlike EDMs usual intro that
proceeds from the bottom by starting with some sort of underlying bass line, "The Veldt"
starts off with a clear assertion of the main melody (or ostinato/riff played by the main
synth), all by itself. This conspicuous melody, composed of two parallel phrases/ostinati,
in addition to becoming a riff especially when overlapped by the more prominent vocal,
is also a motif or loop in the sense that its presence spawns nearly the entire duration of

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"The Veldt":

At first subdivided as such, at other (later) times in the track, the same rhythm is played
with lesser notes:

While this phrase repeats indefinitely and consistently throughout the track in either of
these forms, the vocal enters at the fifth repeat. During the introductory phase (the first
four reiterations of the ostinato), layers constantly add on (some at the onset of each
repetition, others more often sporadically at other places in the progression and not
necessarily on the downbeats), the most significant of which is the third repetition, when
the classic four-on-the-floor kick-drum enters to supplement the beats.
A subdued buildup progresses coherently until around three minutes into the
track. Intercepted by a break, texture reversely thins out along with a lessening of

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instrumentation and ultimately, of the volume as a whole, too. It soon gradually but
consistently picks up again, this time towards a higher peakwherein lies the tracks
maximum intensity. Beginning from five minutes into the track, volume and
instrumentation perceptibly build up until the vocal re-enters at approximately 5:30 with
more powerenforced also by heightened volume/emphases on beatsthan anywhere
else in the track. At the last verse after the vocal makes its last exit, other layers sustain
the tension a little longer, eventually fading outthough rather unnoticeably, until nearly
the end of the trackfrom eight minutes and on.
A sub-melody, played in similar timbre to the high-synth sounds of the melody,
except perhaps a little more shrill/high-pitched and still delicate but with more of the
chime/bell-like residues marking the resonance of each note, enters at around 1:17,
becoming audible gradually via crescendo seven seconds later. The sub-melody creates
another ostinato, wherein the first measure is repeated multiple times before it is followed
by the second measure (refer to figure below). The first measure is typically repeated
three times; however, it is followed by additional two or three reiterations of a sequence
based off of the general pattern established by the first measure. This sequence (not
drawn) marking the bridge between these two drawn measures is comprised of variations
of the last eighth note, getting higher up than the sequence before. The following (second
measure in the drawing) measure doesnt repeat itself, but leads to a repeat of the whole
phrase, beginning again from the first measure.

This sub-melody persists for most of the song, with the exception of a minute (roughly
between 5:00-6:00) plus the last two minutes of the track, after it fades out indefinitely

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along with other layers, dropping away for the tracks closure. The sub-melody becomes
most pronounced (both in relation to other layers and as compared to its own volume/
clarity/importance in other parts of the track) for the duration of about a minute where the
break section occurs from approximately 3:30 to 4:30. Here, the main melody
temporarily lends the center stage to the sub-melody.
The melody's reappearance at 4:30 signifies a twist in the progression of the track.
Rather than its original indubitable command of the center stage, it is now played in
neither its original volume nor instrument, but at a more subdued level. It reasserts its
presence more fully once sub-melody fades out at around 6:50, followed by the vocals
exit around ten seconds later (7:00). From then on, other layers begin to fade out
conclusively, altogether heralding the tracks gradual closure. The melody, though
revealing itself with more clarity as the texture thins out, isnt completely left alone.
Instead, intermittent decorations accompany it almost through the end, leaving the last
residues at around 8:17 (which are all repetitions of the subsidiary sounds in the sense
that every layer simply decorates as it previously had throughout the whole track).
Although an exhaustive examination of the elaborations would be impractical for
this paper, many are virtual resemblances of percussive instruments. However, they fall
short of being genuinely imitative due to the apparent machine-like edits accompanying
each quasi-instrumental sound. Elaborations before the vocal entrance make their first
appearances, respectively, at 0:15 (possibly high-synth sounds, but at a static pitch and
unmoving, regular interval and vacillating subtly in volume), 0:18 (delayed cymbal
effects, starting out barely noticeable but in an immediate crescendo), 0:25 (snare drum,
in similar crescendo effect but muted overall), and more. Purposely offbeat hi-hat sounds

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and crash cymbals are some of the other conspicuous sounds. Played in correspondence
with the vocal, decorative notes dramatize lyrical moments. For instance, at around 1:40
and 4:10, bells ring along the syllables of "happy technology". Cosmic percussive sounds
often emphasize beats/rhythm without regards to the broader scheme of the tracks
buildup; similarly, rather than coalescing into unified dynamic fluctuations, volume
alterations are executed independently by each layer without pre-planned simultaneity.
Intermittently at a micro level but regularly and uniformly on a macro level, decrescendos
often lead straight to (temporal) disappearances of a particular layeralso known as
decays and cut offsand crescendos are utilized as gradual appearances. These musical
effects, compounded by ample use of reverbs, depict consistent vacillations between
sounding distant and closer, on-and-off, like the imagery of a flickering, ambient light.
Lyrics of "The Veldt" have almost been taken verbatim from Ray Bradbury's short
story of the same title it was based off of. Poetic and potent, it does a flawless job of
linking the musical elements to themes of Bradbury's "The Veldt", convincing listeners of
what deadmau5 seems to have had in mindin terms of both what he thought and sought
to portray from the story and how he wanted his music to convey these abstractions. The
shocking ending that concludes the story, though seemingly absurd, chillingly insinuates
that such a scenario may be closer to reality than we are ready to admit. The stylistic
layering of textures through fleeting presences, further enunciated through the crescendo
entrances and decrescendo exits, infuses a futuristic surrealism provoked by modernity
with a tinge of existentialism pertaining to humans vulnerability in relation to, ironically,
our own creations (technology).

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A remarkable feature of The Veldt is how the multiplicity of layers stacks up:
never overdone but simply sustained in a soft, artful manner. The sonic fusion between
the melody, sub-melody and myriad percussive decorations effectively encompass the
ambient atmosphere evoked by the vocal. It may appear to be thickly textured due to the
sheer variety of sound qualities; yet, the ephemeral presence of many subsidiary layers
produces a thin sound overall. The episodically emerging analogue sound quality
encapsulates a cross between a classic instrument and a machine. Its brightness, primarily
on behalf of the bells/chimes, is slightly reminiscent of children around whom Bradburys
story revolves around. Yet, in those sounds one might also feel a pungent melancholia
perhaps lamenting the purported innocence characteristic of children, which simply
portrays their sheer loss of humanity.

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Bibliography
Deadmau5 Discovers Chris James on Twitter for The Veldt March 20, 2012. Perf. Joel
Zimmermann. YouTube, 2012. Film. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=iqur
YVWg7-g>.
Keller, Robert, Mapping the Soundscape: Rhythm and Formal Structure in Electronic
Dance Music (2003). Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations.
Paper 3239.
Reynolds, Simon (2012-03-01). Energy Flash: A Journey Through Rave Music and
Dance Culture (p. 56, 437-438). Soft Skull Press. Kindle Edition.
Roeder, John. 2001. Pulse Streams and Problems of Grouping and Metrical Dissonance
in Bartks With Drums and Pipes. Music Theory Online 7.1 (January):
p. 1.1 -9.3.