Over

Over
Written and Recorded 2012

For my second post, I want to share a more recent piece of work. This is a song that I originally wrote for a band I had started in 2011 called Of the North. It was performed many times over the two and a half years that band existed and in various setups. The recording that we have here was a demo I created for my bandmates to learn their parts.

• This song spawned from the opening guitar riff. From there I adapted that progression to work for the verse, but more drawn out.
• The verse melody and content was always my favorite. Three verses, each about very different people. Probably some of the better verses I've written.
• The chorus never quite clicked for me. Part of that stems from it being the last thing created for the song. It's like the last puzzle piece that isn't formed quite right, but I jammed it in there anyways for the sake of completion. 
• Near the end of the song's life, I tried creating an arrangement that took out the chorus and used the Outro "Ohs" section as a chorus. Though never performed, it came a lot closer to the desired effect of the song than this one. It sounded more like a sea shanty, which is never a bad thing.
• The songs that were written for Of the North are a great illustration on how recording goes hand in hand with my writing. During this time especially, I would start with a guitar and complete an entire demo in a sitting or two. My vision of what the overall song should have sounded like was so strong that I put it all down, similar to jotting down notes in the margin of a sheet of paper. 
• Obviously that kind of vision and recording can look like an attempt at control, but I assure you that was never the intention. It's hard to describe why I needed to do it. I could just hear all of the parts working together in the moment and wanted it all down before I forgot. It's incredibly exciting when it happens.