The Aeolian Vamp

In A minor

Am – G – F – G — brooding, hypnotic, circular, around 108 BPM.

1. Bar 1 i Am
   A · C · E
   ▶ Hear it
2. Bar 2 bVII G
   G · B · D
   ▶ Hear it
3. Bar 3 bVI F
   F · A · C
   ▶ Hear it
4. Bar 4 bVII G
   G · B · D
   ▶ Hear it

Why it works

The bass moves down a step, down another step, then back up — a rocking gesture rather than a journey. Because the loop returns to ♭VII instead of continuing down, the tonic is never approached from below by a leading tone, so the vamp can repeat indefinitely without demanding resolution. It is closer to a drone with colour changes than a functional progression.

Where you'll hear it

Riff-driven rock, folk-minor, and anything where the harmony should stay out of the way. Add a pedal tonic in the bass and it becomes genuinely modal.

i–♭VII–♭VI–♭VII in every key

The same progression transposed. The roman numerals never change — that is the whole point of writing progressions this way.

Related progressions

• i–♭VI–♭III–♭VII The Minor Axis Progression
• i–♭VII–♭VI–V The Andalusian Cadence
• i–IV The Dorian Vamp