The Captain (song)

"The Captain" is a song by the Swedish electronica duo The Knife, from their 2006 album "Silent Shout". It has never been released as a single.

Musicality

The song is six minutes and eight seconds in length, placing it in the high end of Knife songs. The song can be divided clearly into 3 parts:

I: Introduction (0:00-3:00)

The introduction is played on a synthesizer, using a feedback patch, which causes swells of volume on the pitches, and a smooth fading into the next pitch. Towards the end of this movement, a bass synth and very finally a drum machine enter, leading into the vocals.

II: First Verse/Interlude (3:00-4:20)

The first verse tells a third-person perspective of a sea captain returning from a voyage ("long walk" and "long war" in the song). The interlude is where the synthesizer and the drum machine re-enter to take up a driving, steady eighth note beat in the same chord progression as the Intro. This more driving beat could be related to the hustle-bustle of the city and port as opposed to the flowing quiescence of the ocean depicted in the intro.

III: Second Verse/Outro (4:20-6:08)

The second verse gives a story of the sea captain telling stories of his voyage ("one thousand stories and there's always more"). The driving beat continues until close to the end of the song, where it morphs into an outro with a single bass synth and drum machine playing.

Key and Time

The song is in a minor key, presumably D. The time signature is 11/8, giving a rather irregular beat to the song (1-2 1-2 1-2 1-2 1-2-3 count).