New demos
http://www.angelfire.com/creep/gsmile/
Demos for the album I'm currently working on. "Egg Shell" and "World's Pressin' Down" are the latest.
"Egg Shell" was written Wednesday afternoon before I went out to see a movie. I got the idea on the bus home from doing errands, went home and wrote it in under 20 minutes and had it recorded before din-din. I'll probably add some ambient electric guitar and maybe double the 12 string. I want to keep it sparse though, not too many more additions, although I think the vocal could be a bit creepier. I wanted to do something that sounded sweet but with some slightly eerie lyrics. The rhythm is a bit deceptive too...I don't think I've ever done anything in this time signature before...I'm not even sure what time it's in, but I know it's not 4/4 or even 3/4. That's me on an Irish Penny Whistle in the break, btw.
"World's Pressin' Down" is an older song from about May or June of this year. It reflects the head space I was in at the time; one of my most autobiographical lyrics to be sure. This is the first recording of the song, but this was done as sort of a reference point. The album version is going to be totally rerecorded with more emphasis on Neil Young-style rock. This was inspired by "Time Fades Away" by Neil, but Trevor thought it sounded like early solo George Harrison. Come to think of it, the strumming pattern is really reminiscent of "My Sweet Lord". I really like the lazy vocals on parts of this.
"Old Emotions" is appropriately an old song. I wrote this in my last year of high school as a song that my friend Matt Rhompf could sing harmony to. We recorded a demo in my school's band annex, but we never did anything else with it. I originally intended this version to be a simple acoustic and vocal arrangement for my friend Michelle to learn the harmony to, but as usual, I got a little carried away with the overdubs! Musically, this sounds like a lost Smidgen track; this was written in between the "In Step" and "What Time's The Wedding" albums, so that makes sense. I'm really proud of the guitar solo on this one...bit of a cow-poke twang to it. This probably won't fit the tone of the rest of the album, so it might get dropped. But who knows, it could sound good sandwiched in between some of the darker stuff.
"Soap & Water" was written after I had purchased "Time The Revelator" by Gillian Welch, and it was my attempt to do something along the lines of her folky/bluesy/appalachian style. Obviously I'm not religious at all, but I like assuming a role for some songs, and I think most people can generally relate to the story of a bad man trying to redeem himself. I had the previously mentioned Michelle sing backups on this one at an Open Mike. I might get her to reprise that role for the album version, although I like the overdubbed harmonies. Maybe I'll try to get a fiddle player on this one too. Again this was intended as a rough guide for Michelle, but this sounds nearly finished!
I've got some other songs stockpiled that I want to record, but most of the album still needs to be written. I hope to have it done in January. *fingers crossed*
Demos for the album I'm currently working on. "Egg Shell" and "World's Pressin' Down" are the latest.
"Egg Shell" was written Wednesday afternoon before I went out to see a movie. I got the idea on the bus home from doing errands, went home and wrote it in under 20 minutes and had it recorded before din-din. I'll probably add some ambient electric guitar and maybe double the 12 string. I want to keep it sparse though, not too many more additions, although I think the vocal could be a bit creepier. I wanted to do something that sounded sweet but with some slightly eerie lyrics. The rhythm is a bit deceptive too...I don't think I've ever done anything in this time signature before...I'm not even sure what time it's in, but I know it's not 4/4 or even 3/4. That's me on an Irish Penny Whistle in the break, btw.
"World's Pressin' Down" is an older song from about May or June of this year. It reflects the head space I was in at the time; one of my most autobiographical lyrics to be sure. This is the first recording of the song, but this was done as sort of a reference point. The album version is going to be totally rerecorded with more emphasis on Neil Young-style rock. This was inspired by "Time Fades Away" by Neil, but Trevor thought it sounded like early solo George Harrison. Come to think of it, the strumming pattern is really reminiscent of "My Sweet Lord". I really like the lazy vocals on parts of this.
"Old Emotions" is appropriately an old song. I wrote this in my last year of high school as a song that my friend Matt Rhompf could sing harmony to. We recorded a demo in my school's band annex, but we never did anything else with it. I originally intended this version to be a simple acoustic and vocal arrangement for my friend Michelle to learn the harmony to, but as usual, I got a little carried away with the overdubs! Musically, this sounds like a lost Smidgen track; this was written in between the "In Step" and "What Time's The Wedding" albums, so that makes sense. I'm really proud of the guitar solo on this one...bit of a cow-poke twang to it. This probably won't fit the tone of the rest of the album, so it might get dropped. But who knows, it could sound good sandwiched in between some of the darker stuff.
"Soap & Water" was written after I had purchased "Time The Revelator" by Gillian Welch, and it was my attempt to do something along the lines of her folky/bluesy/appalachian style. Obviously I'm not religious at all, but I like assuming a role for some songs, and I think most people can generally relate to the story of a bad man trying to redeem himself. I had the previously mentioned Michelle sing backups on this one at an Open Mike. I might get her to reprise that role for the album version, although I like the overdubbed harmonies. Maybe I'll try to get a fiddle player on this one too. Again this was intended as a rough guide for Michelle, but this sounds nearly finished!
I've got some other songs stockpiled that I want to record, but most of the album still needs to be written. I hope to have it done in January. *fingers crossed*