Michael Brennan

Music 1020
Lynn Brown
April 11 2015
Band of Mighty Souls as recorded by Folk Hogan (2014)
Tempo: The Tempo is about 140 bpm, with 4 beats per bar.
Form: After an eight bar intro, the song alternates between verse and chorus sections. The
verse sections each have their own unique lyrics. The chorus sections each differ slightly, but
always end with Were a band of mighty souls! The form also includes a bridge after the third
verse, to tie together the two separate timelines of the song. Those timelines being how the
band formed, and what the band will do now that it has formed. After the final verse is an outro,
which is similar to the chorus, but is longer with unique vocals.
Features: The song begins with a banjo, mandolin, bass trio, and is shortly followed with the
beginning of the lyrics. The A form softly sets the setting and creates a story for the song. During
some sections of the song all the members participate in the vocals where they all shout that
theyre a Band of Mighty Souls. The Bridge (3:26) features an accordion solo.

The song boasts a complicated composition of time, where certain sections are deliberately
slowed down and sped up, to change the pace in accordance with the story of the song. The
first change can be noted (0:55) when the drums are first heard in the first verse. Then again,
after a couple quick drum rolls the drummer changes the sound of the symbols. Similar to when
the drums were first heard. Then the form changes again at the beginning of the chorus (1:20)
and the drums pace seems to be at its highest point.

The second verse changes the drum pattern from the first, where the symbols are not stressed
at the end of the verse like they were in the first one. The third verse follows this same pattern.
The final verse has a significantly different form from the others. The drums are rolling, and the
bass is pronounced. However, the instrumentalists are are participating in the vocals instead of
playing, then (4:06) the mandolin begins again. After the final chorus (4:34) the outro begins, the
form in this section is similar to the chorus, with different vocals.
Lyrics: This Folk-Punk song from Utah is a metaphorical story about how the band
was formed, and how they stand up to the world of music. The Verse sections are
dedicated to explaining the story. The chorus sections tie to each individual verse with unique
vocals, but always end with Were a band of mighty souls! The first verse (0:55) uses the
metaphor of the Norse god Thor to explain how the singer acquired his accordion. The second
verse (2:03) tells the story of a role model for the band. The third verse (2:44) is a rather vague
depiction of how they acquired their van to get to their shows. The final verse (3:53 - 4:34) stops
telling the story of how they formed, and changes to say what they will do now that they are a
mighty band. The music is fast, with a distinctly acoustic sound, which compliments the raw
story the lyrics are telling.
Production Information: Produced by Mike Sasich, at Man vs Music Studio in Salt Lake City.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FfkwfKjEAvw
Lyrics: http://www.reverbnation.com/FOLKHOGAN/songs
Genre Information: This song should be associated with Chapter 15 in the book. While the
instruments give the song a very distinct Folk sound, the lyrics and style are not similar enough
to the songs in the Folk chapter. However, the other songs from this artist would more closely
associate with Folk than Punk. Songs like Larry the Legend and Skeleton Scramble have a
distinctly different sound which makes them more Folk.