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Air - Mike Mills (2004)
The song has three sections. The 4/4 first section has a very plain synth sound playing a wandering theme of 16th notes, over acoustic guitar, very reminiscent of Bach or it may even be a borrowed Bach theme.
This is pleasant enough, but it's rudely interrupted by a piano: also playing 16th notes, but over a 9/8 time, in an insistent repeating pattern. The 9/8 confuses us, and we struggle to resolve what has happened, partly because some of the underlying percussive sounds haven't changed since the opening. Are we stuck here?
As suddenly as the piano arrived, it leaves; now the song returns to 4/4 in recovery, and the original acoustic guitar background is back. Everything is calm now.
Strings enter, filling out the sound. They take time to tentatively graduate to 16th notes, but when they finally do, they are playing the original wandering theme.
It's the payoff. Everything has led to this. The plain vanilla analog synth that established the theme has been replaced by organic, human orchestration, and it's remarkable and beautiful.
This song is a beautiful morning, interrupted by a rude thunderstorm, returning slowly to beams of sun until the full glory of the day is with us.
This song has made me cry.
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