Bellyache

Background

For this week’s post, I decided to dive into Billie Eilish’s song Bellyache as it is a very diverse song and filled with a ton of musical elements which create an awesome sound that honestly gave me goosebumps the first time I listened to it. This is Eilish’s fifth song and was released February 24, 2017 as the second single from her debut album Don’t Smile at Me (Barlow 2017). I do want to include a background of the song: how and why it was written, and the meaning behind the song. I believe that understanding why a song was written–beyond the fact that it makes money and is an art-form for the artist–helps in analyzing the musical elements of the song which are supplemented by the lyrics. Understanding why a song sounds the way it does is only accomplished through understanding the lyrics, and I find that for this song in particular reading through the lyrics is a must (I provided the lyrics and the music video so that you can watch the video, listen to the song, and then read the lyrics for a well-rounded understanding of the song before I analyze the musical elements)!

Considering this, “Bellyache” at first glance seems like another edgy teen to young adult grunge-pop song. However, after researching this song, the lyrics make way more sense then the first time I heard the song. I found a small excerpt from an interview with Billie Eilish in Teen Vogue where she explained what the inspiration was for this song. In the interview, Billie states that the song is in the “perspective of a sociopath, who is left with her actions, regretting these resulting in committing suicide;” thus, the meaning of this song is not necessarily relatable to most people however, the lyrics tell a story. This is not something mainstream artists are doing right now, so this is a refreshing take on new musical content. Beyond the persona Eilish creates with the lyrics, the song seems to be more about the idea of remorse and guilt of actions and consequences. This can be seen in the two last verses of the chorus “thought that I’d feel better / but now I have a bellyache” which shows that the actions taken have consequences and the persona feels guilty because of their actions. With this in mind, let’s look at the elements of music which take this song to another level.

Analysis

Texture

The song starts out with a simple drum beat and guitar riff, which is monophonic in nature. Approximately twenty seconds into the song it switches to a homophonic texture between the original accompaniment and Eilish’s voice. When the chorus hits, the texture returns to monophonic with the synthesized beat and her voice. This change back to monophonic creates a sort of emphasis on the lyrics of the song as there are less musical layers for the listener to process, thus this is Eilish’s way of centering the focus of her music on the meaning of the lyrics and not on instrumentation.

Timbre & Dynamics

Overall, the timbre of this song, for myself, paints a sort of splatter paint painting in my mind. In the beginning, the song begins in the mid-range register which is quite normal for a song and the accompanying guitar and base are also similar in range. Also, in the beginning the song seems quiet and almost secretive in sound. During the pre-chorus, the timbre shifts to a mid to high range register which in turn also shifts the tone of the song; it sounds very airy and light and increases slightly in volume. However, when the chorus hits the whole song shifts to a higher register and the dynamics of the song shift. The songs bass seems to get louder during the chorus and her voice gets lighter, but also more forceful in how she accentuates the lyrics–they seem more pointed and short. This repeats itself throughout the song, and at the end all parts come together and then end abruptly.

Melody & Harmony

Overall the melody of this song is quite simple as anyone is able to sing along quite easily. Throughout the entire song, there really isn’t a place where the melody is disjunct, in my opinion it is entirely conjunct. However, the harmony is a different story. The best place for harmony in this song is whenever Eilish sings the verse “Where’s my mind?” as wherever this is in the song bursts out in a consonance harmony that is ultra-pleasing to the ear and, for me personally, gives me goosebumps sometimes. The combination of melody and harmony in this song makes it feel almost dream like–there is a heavy bass which constantly beats throughout the whole song like a heartbeat and the way the melody is sung feels light and airy, just like dreams can feel like. During the chorus, the beat shifts to a more extreme up and down beat which is more intense than the rest of the song. This along with the melody and harmony of the guitar and vocal layering all add to a very unique explosion of sound for the audience to experience.

Lyrics

[Intro]

Mind

Mind

[Verse 1]

Sittin’ all alone

Mouth full of gum

In the driveway

My friends aren’t far

In the back of my car

Lay their bodies

[Pre-Chorus]

Where’s my mind?

Where’s my mind?

[Verse 2]

They’ll be here pretty soon

Lookin’ through my room

For the money

I’m bitin’ my nails

I’m too young to go to jail

It’s kinda funny

[Pre-Chorus]

Where’s my mind?

Where’s my mind?

Where’s my mind?

Where’s my mind?

[Chorus]

Maybe it’s in the gutter

Where I left my lover

What an expensive fake

My V is for Vendetta

Thought that I’d feel better

But now I got a bellyache

(Mind)

[Verse 3]

Everything I do

The way I wear my noose

Like a necklace

I wanna make ’em scared

Like I could be anywhere

Like I’m reckless

[Pre-Chorus]

I lost my mind

I don’t mind

Where’s my mind?

Where’s my mind?

[Chorus]

Maybe it’s in the gutter

Where I left my lover

What an expensive fake

My V is for Vendetta

Thought that I’d feel better

But now I got a bellyache

(Bellyache, bellyache, bellyache, bellyache

Bellyache, bellyache)

Maybe it’s in the gutter

Where I left my lover

What an expensive fake

My V is for Vendetta

Thought that I’d feel better

But now I got a bellyache

Works Cited

Barlow, Eve. “Billie Eilish’s ‘Bellyache’ Is Totally Psycho and Perfectly Pop.” Vice, VICE, 24 Feb. 2017, www.vice.com/en_us/article/9a8xja/billie-eilishs-bellyache-is-totally-psycho-and-perfectly-pop.

Teen Vogue. Billie Eilish Creates the Soundtrack to Her Life | Teen Vogue. Billie Eilish Creates the Soundtrack to Her Life | Teen Vogue, YouTube, 5 Dec. 2017, www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOrv50LDDNY&feature=youtu.be&t=3m30s.