Almost every post in this blog says the same thing: I haven't posted an update for a while due to work travel. This post is no different, since I spent most of the past week and a half in Vancouver, BC for work.
Before leaving for Canada, I'd submitted my November updates to Brian. As of the time I'm typing this they haven't been posted at the Commuter Challenge website yet, and I'm thankful for that because they're pretty meager. I'm happy enough with one of the songs (the one I'm calling song #3 for now) even though it only has two vocal verses (out of three planned) written and recorded but no chorus or bridge. On the other hand, song #4 is barely even a skeleton. I'd decided to try something with accordion and distorted electric guitar and it sounded horrible, so I completely scrapped it and emailed Brian some Garageband bass loops I'd hastily pasted together. Song #4 is hardly a demo version of anything, but I'm still going to claim that it's officially a demo in order to avoid the harsh penalty of our mutual extortion pact.
Another disappointment is that I have not yet submitted anything to SongFight, but I'm thinking that song #3 will become an entry for this week's SongFight (if I can get my act together and complete it). The title has to be "Grim Reality" and it is due Wednesday morning (10DEC2014). I have no work travel between now and then, and I intend to spend most of this weekend working on the songs, so I should be able to finish something.
So let's take stock:
Song #1 is my cover version of "Butterfly" by CandyShoppe. At the bare minimum, I need to insert Andy's vocals (or re-do the vocals entirely) and tweak the levels on everything.
Song #2 is mostly done as far as the backing music is concerned, but I still have no lyrics or vocal melody worked out. I know that will take some time and effort.
Song #3 has a solid base to build upon, and I'm going to try to get it essentially finished this weekend so that I can submit it to SongFight as "Grim Reality". I need to write another verse and the chorus.
Song #4 barely even exists, but I'm going to take the approach I described in my last post and try to come up with a simple and catchy tune. I'm thinking distorted guitar, uncomplicated bassline, straightforward drumbeat, and a lot of vocal harmonies if I can manage. I am even thinking of making the words more or less random in order to illustrate the point that I'd brought up in my previous post.
CD cover art: I haven't even started this, but I'm thinking of ripping off Wayne White's style to the best of my limited abilities. In the late 90s or maybe the early 00s I saw a painting by him entitled "Spooky Western 2000" on display at a diner called Fred 62 in Los Angeles, and I thought it was brilliant. While looking for an online image of that painting to link to for this blog, I found out that it is currently in the collection of film and music video director Charles Stone III. Neither of them will ever find or read this blog, but on the off chance they do: Mr. White, please forgive me if I attempt an inept and derivative imitation of your style for my fake CD cover art for my fake EP CD. And Mr. Stone: I admire your work, and I love that painting, please post a pic of "Spooky Western 2000" online somewhere, even if only in the background of one of your selfies.
Anyway, there is a lot for me to do in the next 25 days. This weekend I intend to finish song #3 (probably "Grim Reality" for SongFight). I will try to work the recordings of Andy's voice into the "Butterfly" cover and/or re-record the vocals this weekend, too. After that I can work on and off (depending on work travel and etc) weeknights and weekends until Xmas. From Xmas until New Year's Eve I'll be able to devote a lot more time to this project because I'll be off work that entire time.
I apologize for the continuing lack of photos in this blog. I highly recommend clicking on that Wayne White link to check out his work, or even just do a Google image search to see great examples.
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