I was playing the chords from Pyramania by The Alan Parsons Project. In the verse from 0:17 the chords are E, Bm7, E, Bm7, C#, A#, G, B. I get the first four chords, E and Bm7 fit in the same scale. But I don't understand how they can go from there to the following C# and the other chords. Please help? I want to understand how to write these genius progressions.
Here is a link to the song
As you said, the first four chords can be understood as chords from E mixolydian. Note that from then on the chords follow a downward movement in minor thirds (at least enharmonically): E => C# => A#/Bb => G and from there to B, the V of E. The downward movement in minor thirds is equivalent to going from a minor scale to its relative major scale (and that's also the way I hear it). Note that C# minor is the relative minor scale of E major; so by moving from E major / C# minor to C# major you effectively change from minor to major. This same 'trick' is done 3 times in a row.
