Songwriting Analysis: Pet Shop Boys “Love, etc.”

Pet Shop Boys: Yes

Here is one of the relatively recent hits from Pet Shop Boys’ long and distinguished career (despite me being a guitarist, I’m a closet Pethead and I have adored them since their 1st album).  The songwriting team capable of producing that many hits obviously knows what they’re doing.  Here are the pieces of songwriting wisdom I gained from this song:

  • The verse melody has a very distinct rhythmic motif which helps make that section catchy and memorable.
  • The chorus section uses the classic call-and-response structure, where each part can stay simple yet the combination makes it stand out.
  • There is a small section between the 1st chorus and the 2nd verse, which is unique to that part — don’t assume that after chorus you go back to an intro or a verse, experiment!  Put small surprises within a song but deviating away from the predictable verse-chorus patterns.