It's been a busy Fall and Winter, coming on the heels of my last full-length album, Pattern Recognition. I've always had some project or other keeping me busy as the cold has been keeping me indoors. And, for the most part, I've been really inspired. Even before Pattern Recognition was published, during the window between sending it in to my distributor and publication, I had new songs going. When I was less busy writing for the album, I kept myself going by taking on a challenge my step-dad put to me. He's often asked me how I expect to get a job composing for film or television if I don't have a soundtrack to submit. I've often thought that some filmmaker would hear my work, get interested, and hire me on, because it's kind of a chicken-or-the-egg thing, right? How do I write a soundtrack to something unless I get hired to do it. Well, my step-dad's suggestion has been to make some sort of sample. Edit some video together or shoot something, then score it. He also put forth a particular challenge: to score his favorite poem, "Ulysses," by Alfred Tennyson.
I was coming off an album that was largely ambient-neoclassical, with less weird synths and electric guitars than I usually use. I'd placed a lot of focus on strings arrangements, but I found myself returning to the piano. I'd been heading down a more acoustic path, and that's what I felt would fit well with a "soundtrack" vibe. I was also asked by my step-dad to "keep in mind you aren't writing for twenty-somethings." I didn't point out that most twenty-somethings don't listen to instrumental music. I've taken a look at the demographics on streaming sites and found that my music mostly appeals to the 40-50 age range. But, well, he's in his late seventies, and I've always been somewhat ahead of my time, so I guess we meet in the middle somewhere, right? Anyway, I decided to write something that's a bit different for me, and to keep a mostly acoustic mindset.
"Ulysses" has a lot of mariner-and-the-sea metaphors and imagery going on, so I felt immediately pulled in the direction of using swelling strings to convey the sea, and to use tinkling plucked guitar strings for the wind. I kept things simple, swelling and ebbing at first, but I feel the poem gradually builds in intensity. So I had simple acoustic drums and piano building in complexity. From listening to other soundtracks, I decided I need to use rapid staccato strings more in my music. So they help bring the song to its crescendo. I had the criticism that the song builds and doesn't really go anywhere. I felt that was kind of unjust, as I feel the climax and its conclusion are satisfying, but eh, to each their own, right? Every opinion is valid (unless it's not mine).
There was the thought of inserting a voiceover of the poem in the song. I was on the fence about it, even put it forth to a British friend (the voice has to be British, you see) but I guess he was busy at the time. I thought of turning to a friend who's a radio personality with a voice for it - I really didn't want to do the reading myself. Anyway, he isn't British. Nothing really panned out, and like I said, I was on the fence about it anyway. In the end, I decided to let the music stand on its own. I never did share it with my step-dad. His point was that I send it to filmmakers. I also learned later that he was thinking of twenty minutes of music for every couple of lines, which would make it longer than any motion picture length score, and I had written three minutes of music for a poem it would take less than three minutes to recite. So, different expectations, you know? I haven't sent it to any filmmakers, or outright said it was a soundtrack for a poem, except for here and now, and in posts for the song in particular, but I thought it would make a nice intro. It was set as track 01 on Sunward from pretty much the beginning.
"Never Been to San Francisco" was written about the same time. It was something that I kept coming back to and toying around with. Originally it was inspired by the piano intro of Tori Amos' "Muhammad My Friend," but I just haven't got the practice of writing something for piano that intricate for an extended period. I ended up just rewriting the piano in a few different ways and structuring the song around these variations. That's how my writing style works a lot of the time, if you haven't noticed. "Counterintuitive" and "Toes" are much the same way. Again in "San Francisco" you hear me trying out those bursts of rapidly staccato strings that were used in "Ulysses." And apparently I liked that tinkling of guitar strings so much that I used something similar in "Counterintuitive."
I was still in somewhat of a "soundtrack" mindset when I was writing "San Francisco," so it's largely acoustic and has some shifting moods. But "Counterintuitive" and "Toes," while using the method-of-variations writing style that I employed in "San Francisco," found me returning to using electronic sounds. They're pretty mellow, however. Even though Sunward was turning out to be acoustically themed, they felt better suited for that EP, when I finally decided there were going to be two EPs. That was a painful tug-of-war, deciding on an album or two EPs. You can tell which side of the fence I finally landed on. What both options had in common (I had playlists for each) was that they ended with "Toes." Not really sure why. I wasn't even sure if I was going to share "Toes." I don't think it's by any means an example of my best work. It was mostly written because it was amusing me at the time, but it continues to amuse me, and it kept growing on me. I hope it provides some relaxation for folks, as that's its primary goal. To just provide some stimulation with the variations, and to provide comfort with its repetition. And I like the beats. I think the beats worked out quite well, and the swells of electronics were particularly inspired.
The name "Toes" came to me because it was written around the same time as "San Francisco," which had been going by the name "Twinkle." So, "Twinkle" and "Toes," get it? Twinkle toes. It just never changed.
Now, while writing for Pattern Recognition, I had stripped down "Why Can't We Have Nice Things?" to a "Naked" version without beats, synths (almost entirely), electric guitars, or the blaring bassoon, and included it as a bonus track on a version of Pattern exclusive to my Snail Tunes store. I decided early on that I wanted to make it more accessible to people, and that it would be included on my next project. But I took it the next level by putting beats back into it, but this time oriented around hand drums, toms, and other acoustic sounds. So the "Naked" version is still exclusive to that version of Pattern Recognition. I'm sharing the "Acoustic" version here, instead.
Similarly to "Why Can't We Have Nice Things?" I thought a couple of my newer songs could stand well on their own without electronic sounds. Those would be "Pulses Intertwined" and "Pierced Heart," of course. With their neoclassical-like piano and strings, I felt you could strip away the electric guitars, synths, and beats, and still have complete songs. With the acoustic sounds of "Ulysses," "San Francisco," and "Why Can't We Have Nice Things?" it seemed only natural to include them on Sunward. And as long as I was stripping songs down to their neoclassical elements, I thought it would be interesting to try on a much older song, "The Nocturnal Dervish." I'd already been finally getting around to making the "Simpler Mix" that I'd been thinking of doing pretty much since I published the "Simplified Mix," and I was inspired to try it out with its barest bones. I think this worked out quite well. With some of the subtle changes I'd made for the "Simpler Mix," I made a "Naked" version. I had to keep the "theremin"-like synth that provides the melody for a large chunk of the song, and I translated the electric bass to an upright for the end of the song where the bass is a necessity, but it all worked out quite well, and I really wanted to share it. So it's a hidden bonus track on Sunward at Snail Tunes, but to make it a little more widely accessible, I've included it here for you as well.
You can find the standard version of Sunward at Amazon, Google Play, iTunes and Apple Music, Spotify, TIDAL, Deezer, YouTube and YouTube Music, Napster, and iHeartRadio.
I was really torn about whether to put out a full-length album or two EPs, so I worked on both until it was decided, which was uncomfortably close to when I sent the EPs on to the distributor. When I was working on the album playlist, I found myself integrating two different styles. I'd been continuing down the ambient-neoclassical path set before me on Pattern Recognition when writing "Ulysses" and "Never Been To San Francisco," then found myself doing almost a complete one-eighty. I wrote a two-handed neoclassical piano piece, but it was demanding electronic beats and electric guitars. It was also a bit darker than anything I'd written in a while, and the synths I found myself inspired toward were rather abrasive. I found myself writing as if for my sixth album, Dialectical Observations, but with some of the techniques I'd picked up while working on Pattern Recognition, and I thought this was perhaps the most inspired piece I'd worked on in quite sometime. It came out in a rush, and I found myself wanting to share "Pulses Intertwined" almost right away. I was sending it in to radio stations and hosts when I should have been promoting for Pattern - it felt that done and that complete, that quickly. The single was released, belatedly, about two months later, after it was aired by pretty much every entity I'd sent it to. It was, of course, the first preview of what would be coming on my next project.
"Pulses Intertwined" represented a shift in writing style for me. First, it was taken in a darker direction, as evident in "Dark Highways." And I was back to using synths, electric guitars, and electronic beats in "Pierced Heart." These two songs felt like siblings to "Pulses." "Pierced Heart" was written using pretty much the same formula of neoclassical piano surrounded by post-industrial elements. "Dark Highways" and "Pierced Heart" were included as bonus tracks on a Patreon exclusive version of the single for "Pulses Intertwined," and all three were bonus tracks on the Snail Tunes version of Dialectical Observations (Remastered). I just couldn't keep a lid on those songs for very long. I think I showed great restraint in making them exclusive to those versions of the single and the album.
As I wrote more songs following "Pulses Intertwined" that were darker, edgier, or higher-energy, it became apparent that splitting a potential album into Sunward and Moonward (the names were picked out before a decision was made) was the way to go. "Elation" sounded as though it could have been on Pattern Recognition, and maybe because of that it could have been on Sunward, except that it had a mile-wide streak of metal running through it. And even though "Counterintuitive" has electric guitars in it, "Elation" wasn't nearly mellow enough for Sunward. "Thump!" (not the most imaginative title, but I never felt like it needed changing) like "Elation" was a bit lighter in tone than "Pulses," "Highways," or "Pierced," but it has heavy electronic beats, making it, well, too heavy for Sunward. And "Self-Righteous" was calling to mind Dialectical Observations' "Movement," definitely too industrial for Moonward's light-hearted sister.
The two EPs found themselves balancing each other out at every step, and just when I thought that perhaps I shouldn't include one of the acoustic versions of Sunward to make them even at six tracks each, I started writing "Pulsar Song." While listening to a song on a soundtrack for a television show - I can't remember what, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't part of the instrumental score - I was struck by the exceedingly simple electric guitar riff that the song was built around. There was no reason why I couldn't do the same, or why I should feel "bad" about doing so. It was one of those times I had to remind myself that complexity doesn't necessarily make for a good song; that a song can be impactful even if it's simple. And, thanks to that song, I already had a simple, stately electric guitar riff stuck in my head. I went ahead and recorded it, and other simple elements began to build themselves around it. It quickly began to grow on me, and after translating the piano to cello halfway through, and then picking up the pace of the beats, I was sold on it. Kind of last-minute, I had a song that was a fitting second track to transition from the ambience of "Dark Highways" to the higher energy of the rest of the EP. And I had evened Moonward out with Sunward, so that all of the acoustic versions could be included and still have a matching number of tracks.
Now, pretty much ever since publishing "The Nocturnal Dervish (Simplified Mix)," I had felt torn about some of the additions I made to it after putting so much emphasis on simplifying it. There would almost certainly be a simplified "Simplified Mix," and the time came when I had finished writing songs for Sunward and Moonward. The time was long overdue, actually, since upon listening to Nothing Left To Lose I really wanted to remaster the song as well. I'd just grown increasingly dissatisfied with it, and wanted also to breathe new life back into one of my songs that has long been one of my most popular. So I combed through it's instrumentation. I wanted to be careful not to change too much, but I adjusted the volume and position of a note here and there, particularly in the piano and bass. I thought a lot of it withstood the test of time rather well. No changes felt necessary for the synths or most of the strings, and when it came to both, I didn't want to chance ruining a good thing by obsessing or rerecording. I changed the position of a couple of cello notes, and that was it. And I rerecorded the closing piano chords, and I'm actually really happy with that. All around, I'm extremely happy with how it all turned out. And it made the "Naked" version that much better. But I like to think that this is "The Nocturnal Dervish" as it's meant to be heard, remastered and reinvigorated. It's been included as a hidden bonus track on the Snail Tunes version of Moonward, but again, I wanted to make it a little more widely accessible, so here it is:
"Pulses Intertwined" represented a shift in writing style for me. First, it was taken in a darker direction, as evident in "Dark Highways." And I was back to using synths, electric guitars, and electronic beats in "Pierced Heart." These two songs felt like siblings to "Pulses." "Pierced Heart" was written using pretty much the same formula of neoclassical piano surrounded by post-industrial elements. "Dark Highways" and "Pierced Heart" were included as bonus tracks on a Patreon exclusive version of the single for "Pulses Intertwined," and all three were bonus tracks on the Snail Tunes version of Dialectical Observations (Remastered). I just couldn't keep a lid on those songs for very long. I think I showed great restraint in making them exclusive to those versions of the single and the album.
As I wrote more songs following "Pulses Intertwined" that were darker, edgier, or higher-energy, it became apparent that splitting a potential album into Sunward and Moonward (the names were picked out before a decision was made) was the way to go. "Elation" sounded as though it could have been on Pattern Recognition, and maybe because of that it could have been on Sunward, except that it had a mile-wide streak of metal running through it. And even though "Counterintuitive" has electric guitars in it, "Elation" wasn't nearly mellow enough for Sunward. "Thump!" (not the most imaginative title, but I never felt like it needed changing) like "Elation" was a bit lighter in tone than "Pulses," "Highways," or "Pierced," but it has heavy electronic beats, making it, well, too heavy for Sunward. And "Self-Righteous" was calling to mind Dialectical Observations' "Movement," definitely too industrial for Moonward's light-hearted sister.
The two EPs found themselves balancing each other out at every step, and just when I thought that perhaps I shouldn't include one of the acoustic versions of Sunward to make them even at six tracks each, I started writing "Pulsar Song." While listening to a song on a soundtrack for a television show - I can't remember what, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't part of the instrumental score - I was struck by the exceedingly simple electric guitar riff that the song was built around. There was no reason why I couldn't do the same, or why I should feel "bad" about doing so. It was one of those times I had to remind myself that complexity doesn't necessarily make for a good song; that a song can be impactful even if it's simple. And, thanks to that song, I already had a simple, stately electric guitar riff stuck in my head. I went ahead and recorded it, and other simple elements began to build themselves around it. It quickly began to grow on me, and after translating the piano to cello halfway through, and then picking up the pace of the beats, I was sold on it. Kind of last-minute, I had a song that was a fitting second track to transition from the ambience of "Dark Highways" to the higher energy of the rest of the EP. And I had evened Moonward out with Sunward, so that all of the acoustic versions could be included and still have a matching number of tracks.
Now, pretty much ever since publishing "The Nocturnal Dervish (Simplified Mix)," I had felt torn about some of the additions I made to it after putting so much emphasis on simplifying it. There would almost certainly be a simplified "Simplified Mix," and the time came when I had finished writing songs for Sunward and Moonward. The time was long overdue, actually, since upon listening to Nothing Left To Lose I really wanted to remaster the song as well. I'd just grown increasingly dissatisfied with it, and wanted also to breathe new life back into one of my songs that has long been one of my most popular. So I combed through it's instrumentation. I wanted to be careful not to change too much, but I adjusted the volume and position of a note here and there, particularly in the piano and bass. I thought a lot of it withstood the test of time rather well. No changes felt necessary for the synths or most of the strings, and when it came to both, I didn't want to chance ruining a good thing by obsessing or rerecording. I changed the position of a couple of cello notes, and that was it. And I rerecorded the closing piano chords, and I'm actually really happy with that. All around, I'm extremely happy with how it all turned out. And it made the "Naked" version that much better. But I like to think that this is "The Nocturnal Dervish" as it's meant to be heard, remastered and reinvigorated. It's been included as a hidden bonus track on the Snail Tunes version of Moonward, but again, I wanted to make it a little more widely accessible, so here it is:
I also like to make all of my blog readers feel a little extra special, so I hope the inclusion of these two bonuses do the appropriate stroking. Enjoy!
The standard version of Moonward can also be found at Amazon, Google Play, iTunes and Apple Music, Spotify, TIDAL, Deezer, YouTube and YouTube Music, Napster, and iHeartRadio.
I hope these two EPs sate your appetites for my music for a while. I've already written and recorded two new songs, and have a third and fourth in the works, toward my next project, which will be a full-length album, with material from Sunward and Moonward, and original songs. Until then, may your inner snails remain resilient and determined!
