Drums.
June 14, 2011
Here’s a video of me laying down some drums for “The Finches,” The Ladies of Sport’s next single.
http://www.facebook.com/v/1773668747281
Usually the drummer is the “driver” of the band. This is to say, the drummer dictates the groove of the song to the other musicians. It’s easy to pick up the feel when there’s a guy with sticks hitting things forcefully. For this reason, drums are usually among the first things to be recorded.
In the case of The Ladies of Sport, we usually record the song as we’re writing it, so we do things kind of backwards. We use samples of real drums, usually a program called Addictive Drums. These sound so real that they can fool most drummers. But, having a real human being moving air in a room always gives it double the character, as far as I’m concerned. So, for “The Finches” we wrote and recorded everything, and put the drums on when we realized that they would take the song to the next level. I believe we’ve succeeded. Stay tuned for the single in July.
Why Is This OK?
June 6, 2011
We need to have a little chat about a certain set of chords used all too often in pop music. Since we’re living in a text-based medium here, I guess you’ll need to do a little homework first. Watch the video below. If you’ve ever listened to pop music, it’ll be five minutes well spent.
So, I’m sure the music nerds and musically savvy out there didn’t need this video to realize what is going on. SOME of the people writing our songs are lazy as fuck. (Not to mention the people writing our TV Shows and Movies, but I digress). My question to you is, ”Why is this OK?” I’m not sure I have an answer. I mean to say, I’m not really sure why songwriters get away with it. I can, however, tell you why listeners LOVE these chords (from here on known as “The Golden One”).
“Happy, but sad.”
I have heard this phrase said without an ounce of irony. It was only once, and unfortunately not in a context where I could openly laugh. It was a person who didn’t know how to tell me the kind of music they were looking for (and they were paying me). This asinine phrase embodies what makes The Golden One so unique. It’s got a bittersweetness that lets it live with almost any lyric. Lyrics about new love or breakups. Lyrics about new beginnings or the fall of the Roman Empire. Lyrics about adopting a kitten or burying a dog. You get the picture.
Hey songwriters, how about getting inventive? Hey general public, how about having some standards for originality?
Here are some questions that aren’t rhetorical. Who invented The Golden One? Did they not have the scratch to hire a lawyer to sue the first guy to steal it? I’m gonna talk to some people about this, maybe you could too. Let me know what you find out.
P.S., RE: Originality in crafting plot devices in film and TV:
