I've used the blog format to showcase my writing and my poetry, though I have yet to take advantage of the medium in unveiling my greatest passion, music. I see myself first and foremost as a musician and that is where my artistic energies are focussed. I also adore the art and trade of composition, so I would like to explain my thought process when penning and composing my humble musical creations. I suppose you can see me as the magician who unveils the tricks of his trade (though I assure you I am no magician).
The song I will be unveiling tonight is, as the title suggests, I Am a Liar. I Am a Liar possesses numerous genesises, all of which would be exacting to express, but I would like to break down the logic of my recording process (as poor as it is). The initial guitar riff, originating in Dm, is the backbone of the piece. It is where the melodic lines, both vocally and instrumentally, grow. The riff is in-itself melodic, building upon the Dm and the Gm7th chord structure, but its potential I believe is unveiled within the lead guitar line, which is importantly incredibly repetitive, and the vocal melody, which, through its use of octavus jumps, adds depth to the piece. It allows the listener to be engaged. The engagement is incredibly important for the structure and the layers within the song are by design repetitive. The Song is built upon the classic verse-chorus-verse structure, allowing for a vocal coda built upon the layered verse.
The lead guitar line, which slightly echoes the initial song riff, is as mentioned before repetitive by design. It is built to link the chorus to the verse, allowing the initial melodic tendencies of the song to still exist above the changed chordal structure of the chorus. The lead line does not change, chaining every aspect of the song within the confinements of the initial melody. The phrasing of the lead line is also important. It cannot be exact to the original riff or it will fail to bleed forth from the pack, difficult to do when dealing with the shoegaze esc rhythm guitar that is purposefully layered to muddle the first guitar. The rhythm guitar by all intents and purposes is meant to make everything sound muddy and hard to distinguish. Built upon three chords, mainly Cm, the rhythm is drenched with heavy reverb and layered with an exaggerated delay/echo, ensuring that one chord bleeds into another, making it messy and hard to distinguish, such adding another layer of sound vital to the width and depth of the song. The rhythm guitar is removed when the chorus is played, but the basic feedback remains, adding a slightly different soundscape and allowing the lead guitar to shimmer through.
The bass line and the (fake) string section are intrinsically linked. They are separated by a fifth, building a basic (power) chord and driving the song forward, but also allowing the bass to fill out and appear less monotonous (which it is). The bass is simplified to allow the hip-hop influenced beat to sound un-alien (to mixed results I must admit). At the very least, it allows the poor hip-hop beat to feel less arduous, and drives the song forward. The drums are vital for the pacing of the song, driving the song and adding tension to the work (again with mixed results).
Lastly the guitar solo. In all honestly the solo is a work of repetitive improvisation. I improvised a guitar solo over the verse section over and over, slowly piecing together specific phrases and note clusters I enjoyed aesthetically. Once piecing together 3 or 4 parts, I than improvised those tools overtop until a satisfactory take was created. Possibly the quickest and enjoyable process of the song.
If you are interested in hearing the song, just click on the link below to my personal Soundcloud, entitled Winged Flight. There you will find other songs, which I will hopefully explain in detail on another date.
Cheers
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