Song-A-Day 2022

Xenophobic Tourism

As has happened previously this month, this is not the song I started with. I had an idea, and had started trying to find sounds when I realized that what I had in my head was going to need an earlier start and a lot more prep work. Around midnight I decided to switch gears, but wasn’t entirely sure where that would lead me. This type of sound wash ambient is nice in what it brings to you can change entirely based on what you bring to it. Try this experiment: play this track and then try shifting your mental … Continue reading

Worlds Apart

We’re in the home stretch. Less than a week left, and I’m tired, but also generally pleased with the month’s progress to date. The danger now is running out of steam, either in the form of ideas or just the energy to hit the record button. The energy of this track reflects my energy level as I sat down to write. Cover day, with all of its own odd stresses, drained my reserves to some degree, and I really was planning on a nice quiet piece. I don’t necessarily try to make the sequence of songs have an emotional/energy arc, … Continue reading

Villa Greenleaf Community Orchestra

February 22 is the traditional day for cover songs. These can be fun, but they can also be a lot of stress. It’s bad enough when I’m murdering my own compositions, but I worry a bit when I’m committing attempted murder on someone else’s. It’s natural to want to sing or play a song you like, and with somewhere between 15 and 30 tracks being posted every day, there’s bound to be something catchy. But this is where my philosophy on covers potentially comes into conflict with the spirit of the community. In my opinion, and it is only my … Continue reading

Unregistered System

This is a really important track. Big thing to say, I know, but it is. Not because it’s the best composition ever, or a perfectly mixed thing, or anything like that. It’s important because this track is the exact reason I do Song-A-Day. In fact, this track is the reason I write music at all. Yesterday, I spent more time mixing and finalizing Transcendental Existentialism than planned, normal life went on, and I didn’t start composition until around 7 or 8 pm. Sitting down to write, I really wasn’t sure where things would go. I was just about to ask … Continue reading

Transcendental Existentialism

Another journey back in time. I got a late start on today’s track and puttered around for a long time trying to decide what I was going to do. As has been my pattern, it started out ambient, then did something else, then circled back to ambient, and on and on. The vocal samples are what finally gave me an anchor to build around. My studio’s in pretty good shape, at least operationally. Aesthetically, it’s a huge mess, but that’s an upcoming project. I’ve noticed that I’ve been relying more and more heavily on software, and when I do get … Continue reading