In this weeks lecture, we spoke about sonic prosody and how/why it is used. So what is prosody? prosody is where you really focus every element of your music to a set theme. For instance, you could want to speak about someone on the beach having a good time, drinking a few drinks. To achieve this, I would make sure to write in a major key, which is known for being happy, and then I would think about what instruments would compliment this setting. So an acoustic guitar, drums with brushes bass, ETC. You would also want to focus the lyrics around this area.
For my piece, I came up with the concept of ‘Drowning in your head’. I started off this piece, by sampling a wave sound that I found on youtube, I then EQ’d it, and put the Valhalla room reverb on it to make it sound bigger, and more sad. As the Room reverb colours the source in a melancholy way depending on what preset you use.
For the general feel of this song, I wanted it to feel like you were almost accepting your fate. That you were at peace with it. But then when the song gets more choppy, in verse 2, you’re almost waking up and realising that there’s much more to live for. Which leads into the chorus, where its really full on, full band, soaring vocals, everything. This portrays the feeling that you’re frantically swimming up to try and surface, and you get there, and you’re keeping afloat. But then the song suddenly drops out. We’re back to simply just a really reverbed guitar with intimate vocals. What I wanted to do with this drastic change in energy. Was kind of show what it is like to have a setback from this feeling of motivation and positivity. I believe that I achieved this feeling. But the way that it differs from the beginning of this song, is that straight after this section, we leap into the choppy pre-chorus again. Way sooner than it appeared first. This is you getting into a routine of sorts, picking yourself up, learning how to get yourself out of the pit of despair; and we’re now back at the chorus. We’re back to thriving and staying above water.
Lyrically, this song flowed really well for me. As at the time of writing it. I was really depressed, and I felt hopeless. But if anything this song was almost an outlet for me to express my desire to get out of it.
It genuinely did help me, as it got me feeling more confident about my songwriting ability. I know it’s not the most refined piece of music. But it was the first full song in this genre that I had ever wrote. That, and I wrote and mixed it in around 3-4 hours; And for that, I am proud.
Link to the piece:
Lyrics:
VERSE 1
Sittin in silence alone, the walls hugged with lamplight. Stuck to my phone, just waiting. Waiting for a sign of light waitin for you. As I can’t fall asleep. Your pillows still warm, mine from tears yours from absence. I can’t go on anymore, my head soaked with sadness.
PRE CHORUS
But As I fall in too deep, my heads in quarrel. Cuz I don’t know, where I stand with you no more. Chasin out intrusive thoughts with the light of you. But I don’t see, the otherside
CHORUS
Yeah don’t mind me, I’m slowly losing my mind. Cuz I can’t see, the other side. Yeah don’t kind me, I’m slowly losing my mind, Cuz I can’t cut the strings
To conclude this post. This exercise was great for me. It developed my ability to track tighter, build almost a wall of sound in the verses with the reverb and delay. It also taught me how to program drums, which was something I’ve been wanting to get a hang of for a while now.
It’s also helped me focus my lyric writing around a specific visual imagination.
Haydn Brine - Musician 