[Martinswede]

Hi all 4000+ members!

Recently I've asked my self why there are so few unfinished songs
in my notebook. It used to be about 50/50 finished/unfinished. Now
it's about 80/20.

Are you familiar with finishing more songs the more experienced you get?
I'm not saying I'm good at it, but I've done this for 15 years. Could there be
that the emotional content of a song is more developed and that as you
have a start it contains so much substance that it easier develops into a
song?

I'm just curious.

Martin

[Wicked Deeds]

It's got to be different for everyone. I haven't got a single unfinished song.

I guess  that's down to experience of writing for 35 years. I think, if we devote enough hours to writing, we learn to complete ideas. I would not now, move on to another project without finishing the last.  It's a little bit like painting a picture. once a song is complete, I can then take out a new pristine canvass and. begin to paint again without the clutter of knowing I have an incomplete work. That is quite liberating because my thought process is dedicated to the new project.  

All of my songs are based on strong emotions. I think that is the driving force behind composition. If that's your writing style, I think it is experience that allows us to harness that emotion and craft those feelings/ideas into a song.

The main obstacle to writing is a busy lifestyle. Almost everything takes presidence  over writing at the moment.

I'm relocating to a new town and taking up a new job soon. I'm hoping that life settles down for me and maybe, I will then find time to devote to writing music.  No doubt I will have many new experiences that will evoke strong emotions. once I find the time, I'll be compelled to write about many things that are about to happen.

Good thread Martin.

Paul

[Skub]

Yo Martin.

Sometimes defining when a song is actually finished is an inexact science.

Is it when you have a complete melody,but not all of the lyrics?

Is it when you have some lyrics and some idea of melody?

Is it when you have a complete lyric and struggle to fit a melody?

Is it when you have a complete song,but haven't recorded it yet?

Is it recorded,but still a work in progress on the production and arranging front?

Then,there are those songs that you imagine are finished and you suddenly get an idea you want to add,or change.

Generally,if I get a song mastered,I'm done with it.

As Paul said,we all work differently towards the same goal. I usually have a bank of lyrics,or lyric lines/ideas. I scribble these down on random bits of paper when they occur to me. While playing the guitar,a riff or a chord progression may come along and develop into the early structure of a song.

Normally,I'd say I'm similar to Paul,as I work at a piece until it's at least a whole song...finished may be a while yet. 

Lately,because of the advent of Logic in my life,I may have several songs in various states of repair,simply because a daw allows you to do this. So the way I write is evolving and including anything that gets the juices flowing.

I hope I muddied the waters a little more with all that bollocks. 

[pompeyjazz]

Good point Davy regarding Daws. I usually have a few songs hanging around in various stages of development. Some I never return to but others, I may have an idea months later and then finish the song. Different for everyone I guess

[PaulyX]

Interesting thread.  For me it's going the other way... I'm getting MORE unfinished songs the longer I spend doing this, but that's partly because I terminate more when I can see they aren't going to be up to scratch (so I guess they are 'finished' in one sense...).  Occasionally though I will go back to them and recycle the best line or two into something completely different, sometimes pulling together scraps of lyrics from several dead songs.  So maybe they are not unfinished, just part of the compost heap that nourishes other future songs that will get finished.  And it's the same for me with the DAW effect... got another little compost heap of riffs etc going on there.

[Gill]

Opposite. The more experience I get out of completing songs the more unfinished ones I get on the other hand, because I feel there are elements in the unfinished that I've learned about that aren't there so there's more to complete (like tick boxes)

[dill]

Opposite.

Ditto. Honestly my writing has become far more erratic in the last 5 years or so. I was prolific when I was teenager in terms of quantity (not necessarily quality!), but the more experienced I got, the more fickle my moments of inspiration were. I've always been more of a passive writer than a regimented one anyway, but these days I'm much more beholden to random waves of motivation and inspiration than before. As a result, I have so many fragments of ideas and beginnings of songs and poems that I either abandon, or spend months trying to finish (on and off).

[Martinswede]

Hi!

I wasn't sure how this thread would turn out since it was based on a
fairly open question but in my opinion there has been many interesting
posts.

Regarding when a song is finished I'd say it's very much up to the composer
to decide. I write chords and lyrics the rest is improvised when I record.

I've come to the understanding that there are far more superior daw:s than
my Studio One 3 Artist (that I thought was expensive). (Now it has cost me about
20 cents/day so it's not a fortune spent).

That aside I'm not a big fan of making a puzzle out of musical ideas.
The words and the music often works because the act inside
a concept relating to each other. Eg the lyrical content of the verse gives the chorus
meaning. But when it comes to chord structures I find looking at older songs might give
you new inspiration. Maybe you see completely new melodies from the same chords.

Thank you for your input!

Martin

[Gill]

Opposite.

Ditto. Honestly my writing has become far more erratic in the last 5 years or so. I was prolific when I was teenager in terms of quantity (not necessarily quality!), but the more experienced I got, the more fickle my moments of inspiration were. I've always been more of a passive writer than a regimented one anyway, but these days I'm much more beholden to random waves of motivation and inspiration than before. As a result, I have so many fragments of ideas and beginnings of songs and poems that I either abandon, or spend months trying to finish (on and off).

Indeed!   

[adamfarr]

It may be a bit like dating. As a young person, there are all sorts of potential mates and (failed) experiments are part of the process. As an older person, not only are you more aware of what may work but you have a bit more experience in recognising it...

[Martinswede]

I think I understand your point adamfarr.
Another thing I'd like to add is.
Understanding a songs uniqueness and doing your best to develop it.

All of this also relates to the commercial aspect of it.
A few nice lines or a melody might be good on it's own and
usable in a number of potential songs. Or they might be right
for just that song and will feel misplaced if used in other songs.
So if you're aiming commercially, spending a nice (in Sweden at least) summer
day like this just writing lyrics and looking for strong and meaningful
lines in them could be as fun, no funnier, than the Sunday newspaper
crossword puzzle.

Enjoy the last days of May!

Martin