Of Spies & Semitones

The melody for this was written about two weeks ago. I’ve been casually working it and reworking it to find the right mix, right accompaniment and correct context for a video.

As for the creative process:

I started with sequencing drums, bass and then created multiple semitone bass lines until I had a beefier background. I came up with the melody using the ‘garage band’ piano. The sound wasn’t full enough so I decided to add more keys and liked it for what it was; a fun little tune that offered a welcome distraction to our hardworking homeschoolers.

When I sat down with my guitar to really lay this out, I struggled to find the right tone. Every creative angle I tried didn’t work. Because of this, I made the decision to mute the keys, cutting the riff down to just bass, drums and piano.

Once I’d done this the song started to come together. I worked the guitar in and then went back to the piano to add a bridge and intro; hence the high F semibreve in the introduction and finish.

After I’d mixed the instruments, I noticed a serious hole in the sound. If you listen closely you’ll hear a wave of air, another layer of bass, and a slight melodic echo. This was created by morphing three separate drum, keys and a guitar tracks.

What I’m happy with is how the piano and guitar ended up sounding together. For now, I’m content with the sound-bed, lead and bass.

What I could improve on is not having the main riff appear as often as it does. I’m conscious of it repeating too much to the point where it starts to sound, as my youngest son pointed out with another tune I was doing the other day, “like a broken record”. I don’t think this song does that.

Thus I present to you, this.

(Side note: due to lack of availability of models, I made an executive decision, and filled in for my own “photo-shoot”. I advance to you an apology for it – on the bright side, it doesn’t take away from the music too much. For the best sound experience, headphones or good speakers are recommended.)

Happy Friday, folks.