Song267_Doodles

Today's song begins a new album, Week39_Life-Sized Kids. In some ways, I wanted this week to be a continuation of last week's style. Last week consisted of all instrumentals, the changes evolved slowly, and the spaces were large (lots of reverb and synth pads). There are a few reasons that I wanted to continue this style. One, it was pushing me to find new sounds and to alter existing sounds. Two, it was enhancing my editing skills. Three, I'm learning to be more deliberate and precise with instrument placement, sound, E.Q., etc. There are no vocals, and the song structures are not very predictable, so every bit of the arrangement has to be purposeful.

Brandon (Steach) was able to come over and help with today's song. He got here around 1000, and we talked about how we were going to approach this recording session. In that 30-minutes I decided on the album title (I had 3-4 options for this week), and we also outlined some specific ways to continue last week's style without having the exact same sound/mood. These are broad goals, but since each day is from scratch they help to hone the daily process. Goals for this week are: don't use a BPM below 160, (re)incorporate acoustic guitar, make the mood brighter and punchier (last week's was more serious and contemplative), have more abrupt changes (and pauses), utilize more cymbals, continue to make songs that evolve (and don't repeat).

This song, Song267_Doodles, is about 24-28 tracks, took about 5 hours to write and record, and consists of 4-5 different ideas pasted together (all in the same key). Some sections have completely different rhythm sections and their own unique set of instruments, so it was a challenge to keep EQ's and levels consistent. It helped to have a few consistent instruments (such as bass guitar and acoustic guitar), and the cymbals tie each section together nicely. We finished around 1930 and thought we were going to run, then we felt thunder rattle the house...followed by rain. It seems like there's just enough time to eat dinner and catch up on work before it's time to record another song. These days fly.

-Matthew
http://www.anewsongeveryday.com/
matthew@anewsongeveryday.com

-Matthew