Song-A-Day 2019

I started yesterday’s entry discussing how the song I had been working on felt rushed and would benefit from some finesse instead of being the blunt instrument it was becoming. That turned out to be correct, though it happened in a way that I didn’t really expect. Going into the studio, I had intended to open the previous project, rework the lyrics a bit, and try again, but with much more time to shape and polish. Instead, I opened a new, blank project and brought in a bank of tracks routed to some of my hardware synths. It wasn’t a … Continue reading

For the last few years, I’ve tried to employ a “no negative posts” rule for my conduct on social media. For the most part, I’ve been successful, though the snark does slip through from time to time. It’s often a knee-jerk response to something, or I thought of something funny that lets my inner cynic grab the mic for a second. As time has gone on, I’ve realized that very few people actually care about anything I have to say, which was simultaneously demoralizing and liberating. It hasn’t stopped me from writing responses and comments when I see logical fallacies, … Continue reading

We had a rare day where it snowed continuously from sunup to sundown. It was a lazy Sunday, and Mary and I enjoyed watching the snowfall through the front windows while drinking coffee, reading, and chatting. Periodically, the wind would kick up and snow would blow in multiple directions simultaneously. At one point, Mary said, “now that’s perfect snow globe snow!” The peacefulness of the day definitely comes through in Snow Globe. I initially sat down thinking I’d be writing a solo piano piece, but the melodic line headed squarely into music box territory. I do have some more realistic … Continue reading

One of the most amazing things about Song-A-Day is the overwhelming volume and quality of the music, with the equivalent of a full album posted almost every single day. The styles vary wildly, and even if it’s not a style you enjoy, there’s always something to enjoy or learn. It’s the learning that’s been the most unexpected benefit of participation for me. There are some truly monster talents putting up radio-ready tunes, and every day there are useful production, arrangement, and writing techniques to learn. Even better, everyone happily answers questions ranging from “what pedal did you use?” to “how … Continue reading

The beginning of week three, and the first time this month that I’ve actually hit a wall. I’ve thought I was about to on a couple of occasions, but something always showed up when I got into the studio. For this track, though, I was in rapid-fire, ADD noodle mode for about an hour. My hands kept going for default chord patterns, things I played in high school, I think I even played about half of Bach’s Minuet in G Major. I spun through sounds. I tried different synths. I threw a drum beat on. Nothing. That’s not to say … Continue reading