New music: Stars Across the Night Time
Writing and recording A song at home
My latest song Stars Across the Night Time released last Friday 3rd October and so here I am, writing another journal entry to share my thoughts on the song, as well as the writing and recording process. Be warned! Unless you have a keen interest in songwriting and home studio production techniques, this will likely be quite a tiresome article. I would therefore advise you to excuse yourself from this journal entry and go about your day having avoided such dreariness. Otherwise… do read on.
Genesis
I’ve been on somewhat of a protacted run. Sporadically releasing stand-alone songs rather than fully realised albums. In part this has been due to something of a displacement in my personal life, which saw me suddenly and almost inexplicably transported to a new living situation. Additionally, a renewed focus on my professional career has meant creativity has, as a necessity, had to come second. However, times are near at hand when a more agreeable balance can be restored. At such time, it is my intention to begin working on a third album.
However, for now, here we are. Releasing standalone songs as and when chance allows. I must say as well that there is a certain freedom that has come with this approach. Less pressure to perfect or to produce things with the cohesion necessary for an album that could be considered ‘good.’ Songs like Frog King (one of my personal favourites from the recent cycle) may not necessarily have been seen through, otherwise.
Writing & recording
The most recent excercise in this endeavour, Stars Across the Night Time, started to take shape during a late Summer holiday in August. I had set myself the goal of taking a few short days to write and record a song. Setting myself a deadline to ensure that, whatever happened, something would arise. Having been dedicating a great deal of free time to taking up the ukulele and practicing with it often, I opted to write for the instrument primarily. Initially, I spent the days playing around with chord ideas, humming melodies and taking regular breaks to walk around in the woods in the hopes that perhaps the trees and rivers might provide some inspiration.
Eventually I landed on a chord progression and basic melody I liked. In my case, as a songwriter, these are the key ingredients that must necessarily come first usually in order to inspire themes, imagary and lyrics. This is less of a strict rule as much as it is just the way it tends to happen for me. Chords. Melody. Lyrics. These elements then inform the final arrangement and production.
I won’t explain the lyrics. The idea of artists explaining their work, to my mind, undercuts the work itself, which should stand on it’s own. Other than to say they are personal to myself, and in that sense others may find their own meaning in them.
Having all the essential ingredients assembled, I spent a couple of days recording the parts, beginning with sloppy strummed ukulele, adding bass and electric guitar, plugged directly into my audio interface for an intentionally dry sound. The electric guitar overdubs were semi-improvised and it was at this juncture that I decided not to include it at all in the first verse. I enjoyed the idea of just having the vocal and ukulele in the first verse, then bringing everything in for the first chorus. Vocals were recorded separately to this basic track.
As things started to take shape, it seemed right for this recording to remain as basic and unmodified as possible. Beside some basic eq, there was no excessive treatment of the recording in terms of reverb or other gimmicks. The arrangement was likewise kept very basic. No string parts or vocal harmonies. Just solo vocal to carry the melody with a notably pitchy head voice delivery.
Being pleased with this initial mix (and running short of time) I called it quits on the project and went about the business of getting it into distribution. I went back to the woods and made some photos for the cover, posing with my ukulele amongst the trees, since they had, after all, provided a not insignificant amount of inspiration.
PROMOTION
In an effort to thank the modest pool of subscribers to my email list, I decided to make available to them an exclusive early download of the track, including the instrumental track and a printable chord/lyric sheet. This was sent out ahead of the full release. I liked the idea of giving people something for free, and what better than their own high quality download of the track and some other goodies to play with? I don’t expect anyone will record their own cover using the chord sheet, but perhaps I will be pleasantly surprised?
Conclusion
I enjoyed the process of writing this song. Sometimes these things become tiresome and overlaboured in my experience, but this one seemed to come together in a satisfying way. I am very pleased with the final song, and this marks a success in my mind. I do, after all, write and record the songs for myself first and foremost. As I said at the outset, I am now looking forward to working on my third album as the next goal.
