I've decided to resurrect this thread for my FAWM attempt. Don't know about an album this month but I am certainly trying to write as much music as possible. So here's what I've managed so far this month.
Slave to the Rhythm is the first complete song I've managed this month. It's been posted here in the Finished Songs sections but I thought I'd post a bit of my writing process for it here. As always I don't know who this is for but I think it could be interesting to someone maybe? Below recordings are SUPER rough noodlings from my iPhone Voice Memos app, which is how I write all my songs now. So below are what I have of my writing process for Slave + the finished article (unmastered):
Usually there's a lot of messing around with chords and tunes recorded before I settle on a melody I'm happy with. You ca hear a bit of that above and also with Dreams Away below. But with Lose Control and Body Politik I basically wrote the whole song before I started recording bits.
With most of these recordings essentially what you'll hear is a 'full' version that is just me making vague noises to the melody, before I go back and write lyrics, and then a rough version with lyrics so I have the tune/structure saved before opening my DAW.
Here is the first song I wrote in February called Body Politik. This had lyrics first and then a tune, which is not my usual process. As a result my first recording of it is with all the words.
Lyrics:
We can go out any night you choose
I’m free now to the end of time
I could be fatally in love with you
You’re the perfect threat, I’m loose a screw
What’s more, we can’t be sure the lights will stay on forever more
Got my finger on your pulse
It gets too high if you get too close
You’ve got my pictures, I’ve got yours
We don’t need to know the score
And sure I feel sick, we’re the body politic – oh oh!
And if they stare who cares? we can’t be tamed
So you thought we'd just forget
I'm not a carcass yet
You've got your friends I've got mine
We ditch them both in the nick of time
You know, these things just grow
Unless you pull them out root and stem
A curled lip, a pile of clothes
You threw yourself in to the river
As if nothing could go wrong
And if they stare who cares? we can't be tamed
Tonight we can't be tamed, who cares?
You know if life's a game we lost it long ago
Then I wrote Slave to the Rhythm (which admittedly I had an idea of a chorus for already). And then last week I came up with a tune which I haven't finished yet, called Dreams Away. I have no idea what this is about yet but I have most of the melody done. You can really hear me struggling to find the melody here so don't judge...
Lastly I wrote this tune called Lose Control last night. I had the 'Lose Control' hook and essentially nothing else but it came pretty fast and I wrote the basic structure of it:
And today I wrote the lyrics and recorded a rough 'full' version:
Lyrics:
Met you down at the football field and I'm sighing
Met you down at the football field and you do not mind
Looking like a bomb hit you
I am here to clear some rubble now
'cause I am out of control
Knowing there's more
A layer beneath your clothes
Give me a pout
I won't be something you don't care about now
Something you don't care about now
And your music makes me lose control
These feelings that are nascent in my bones
Wanna make you lose control and go now
I can make you go now
I can make you go now
And you know it's too late to pretend now
Hide it from our friends now
Can't hide it from our friends now
I wanna make you lose control
Not illegal digging up our dead ground
Not illegal laying down if you do not mind
Not illegal crossing legs
Though it wakes up something deep inside
And I am out of control
I have this thing
I've wanted to hold in my hands
I have nights where all I can think about is you
Where all I can think about is you
And your music makes me lose control
These feelings that are nascent in my bones
Wanna make you lose control and go now
I can make you go now
I can make you go now
It's clear we've started sharing clothes now
Anything goes now
Everybody knows now
I wanna make you lose control
Oh oh oh don't mind
Oh oh oh don't mind
Don't care where you've been now
I can watch you swim now
I can watch you swim
Wanna make you lose control and go now
I can make you go now
I can make you go now
FADE OUT
I'm hoping to record the backing track for this one today before I go away for the weekend, and then maybe get the vocals down next week.
That's the end of my FAWM Diary #1. Thanks
@PaulAds for the inspiration.