The working title for this song was "Tangled Chords" because the initial marimba progression idea used a bunch of inverted chords (including the main chord with the 7th on the bottom, hehe). In the process of making it, I grew a lot and made sense of the chords and melodies so they are no longer tangled.

The goal with this song was to create a strong B-section to make a song (in chorus-verse structure) that really progresses. (Writing mostly dance music, it is all too easy to get caught in Loop Land with the A-section... as we all learn...the A-section is more powerful with a contrasting B-section).
I also was successful in creating a stripped A-section. I had A2 in the song twice but ended up cutting the second pass to keep the song under the target length and keep it focussed on the progression between A and B. It was painful to cut a good section, but I felt relieved once I did it because it released the burden of trying to make it work and fit everything.

I did a lot of acoustic recordings for this one. It took a long time to play the parts well enough to use. There are up to 3 marimba layers in A, and 2 in B. I also recorded snare, djembe, shaker, and ride. I am working to get my rhythm back to where it was in the days of marching band and also fighting to understand how to deal with latency (cause you know I played that last cut PERFECTLY, even though it sounds like poo hehe).

This was another good exercise in defining what "done" looks like and taking the steps to get there... not focussing too much on any one part or trying to make things perfect. I am writing this sentence with 20 minutes before deadline. It feels great to know that I can finish it in time (I knew this at various points during the week). On to the quick master before I upload.

Cheers!

Tags: botanicus, chill hop, marimba, organic, piano, week 3 2022, View by:botanicus