Unusual Hypermeter in Pop Music

01 Apr 2024

What is hypermeter? I like this explanation:

So in a bar of 4/4, we tend to feel the first beat as really strong, the second beat as pretty weak, the third beat as pretty strong but not as strong as the first, and the final beat as weak again. Hypermeter is what happens when we feel the downbeats of entire measures in terms of “strong and weak.” So in a four bar hypermeasure, we feel the downbeat of m. 1 as really strong, the downbeat of m. 2 as pretty weak, the downbeat of m. 3 as pretty strong but not as strong as m. 1, and the downbeat of m. 4 as weak again. It’s hearing meter operating on a level higher than the bar.

One famous example is “Hey Ya” by Outkast. We see in the first verse the looping chord progression follows a pattern of 6 measures, with the fourth measure being half as long as the other ones:

[measure 1: 4/4] My baby don’t
[measure 2: 4/4] mess around because she
[measure 3: 4/4] loves me so
[measure 4: 2/4] And this I
[measure 5 4/4] know fo
[measure 6: 4/4] (uh)

Though some people have tried to theorize the song as being in 22/4 time, I think it makes more sense to think of it as being in 4/4, lasting 6 measures, the fourth of which is in 2/4. It doesn’t actually feel that weird because it’s all even - if you’re trying to stomp your foot to it, there is still an even pulse. It’s only if you actually try to count to it that you notice the weird half measure and additional measures.

Adding or removing one measure is less common. Off the top of my head, I can think of two examples. (Both are in 4/4, no half measures or unusual time signatures.)

First is “I’ll Stand By You”, a 1994 song by the Pretenders. The chorus stretches over 3 measures before repeating itself.

I’ll stand by [measure 1 begins] you. I’ll stand by [measure 2 begins] you. Won’t let nobody [measure 3 begins] hurt you, I’ll stand by [loop back to measure 1] you…

For a 5 bar hypermeter, we have “Underwater Fantasy” by Graham Gouldman from the 1980 animated film “Animalympics.” Graham Gouldman was a member of the band 10cc.

[measure 1] Under the water where the [mesaure 2] seaweed grows [measure 3] There is a world of fasci[measure 4]nation [measure 5] [instrumental]

The beginning of each verse has an extra instrumental measure.

Do listeners notice this sort of thing? These two songs always through me off just a little. Playing with hypermeter can be an easy way to add a little interest to a piece, as it breaks your expectations of grouping by 4 measures. Odd hypermeter even more so. If you’re a pop songwriter and feeling bored, try playing around with hypermeter to change the momentum of the song.

Tags: music, music theory