Victor Palacios

Hi, dear Songstuff members!

I'm Victor, singer and bassist of post-punk & western band Model Slaves from Palma de Mallorca in Spain. I'm also a teacher of English as a foreign language.

Songwriting in English is a passion that derives from and complements my other passion and source of income, i.e. teaching English as a foreign language to teenagers and young adults.

Until some time ago, I used to fit words into a melody. I didn't care much about the effectiveness of the lyrics and how powerful they are as the engine of a song.

A year ago I started digging into Pat Pattison's Writing Better Lyrics and I started reviewing my own work under a new light. There were so many resources that were already familiar from my college literature subjects that I wasn't considering at all!

Songwriting for me now is something that still always starts with a melody fluttering about in my mind. But something has changed. Now I devote a lot of time to providing an anchor to the music and intertwining both music and lyrics together.

First of all, I need a title for the song. Then I write a short story that fits the title. Finally, I rewrite the story in terms of senses (hearing, smell, taste, touch, visual, organic, kinesthetic, psychological). Only when all this work is done do I move on to writing the actual lyrics.

However, I don't think this is enough. There comes a point when the endless writing and editing needs to stop. When you are stuck with a song, maybe it is just because it is ripe for some external critique!

Also, when learning the in and outs of songwriting with Pattison's manual I have been confronted with many examples of wonderful songwriting craft. As a result, I have started to pay attention to lyrics when I listen to a song, when previously I would focus mainly on the melody. Songstuff has so much to offer in this respect, because you can learn from the ways of other writers and at the same time offer them your constructive critique.

Cheers,

Victor Palacios

Hey Victor,

I'm glad Songstuff has it's part to play. We are pasionate about making songs be as good as they can be (amongst other things). The point is not to make every song have exceptional and exemplary lyrics, but to make the lyrics appropriate and effective. They need to fulfill their role within the song to the highest possible standard.

The lyrical needs of a club dance song are quite different from those of a folk ballad. I used to present the case that for different genres lyrics were more or less important, but the truth is that the lyrics are just as important in both.... what changes is the function and purpose changes.

Going back to the club dance song, the purpose is to support the simple expression of one emotion and conveying a simple but strong concept. This tends to be encapsulated within a key phrase, normally the main hook. The lyrics of a folk ballad tell a story, convey a series of compex emotions etc. The complexity of the message tends to be deeper. Both types of lyrics can reveal more on contemplation, but that is far more likely within the folk ballad framework.

However in both cases the role of the lyrics is vital. Music is a vital emotional expression engine powering the song, but the detail is layered on by the lyrics. The combination of the two can be greater than the sum of the two parts. By that I mean that a song is a unique combination of both words and music. Both are an important part of the whole. When you combine the two a new and powerful object is created. Something that has the potential to be far more effective, far more appealing than the lyrics in isolation and the music in isolation.

Pat's work is excellent. He's a great teacher. I am happy whether your interest and passion was ignited here, in one of Pat's courses, reading books or on your own as a writer. At Songstuff we have many articles and supporting materials, in addition to the ability to give and get critique on our works and mixing with our peers as writers. We try to build more and more value into what we offer.

I don't do all that Pat does, and I am sure that he doesn't do all that I do. The important thing is to learn about concepts, ideas, processes and tools, that can help us create better songs, more easily and with more confidence that we finish what we start... ie creating a song becomes a more predictable experience (in terms of finishing a good song, not that the song is predictable!).

All good.... however, on a different note... this is your status message stream.... it tends to be good for short messages about what you are doing, thoughts of the day etc. a bit like tweets. For longer personal messages I would encourage you to start a blog on Songstuff (very easy to do, just let me or another staff member know if you need help). They are both great ways to talk to an audience.

For more general engagement with the community, I recommend using the discussion forums themselves. ie, instead of posting to your status stream, or posting to your SOngstuff blog, you create topics or reply to exisiting topics on the forums themselves.

I thouroughly recommend making a first post by creating a topic in the "Introduce Yourself" board. Otherwise, browse the boards listed on the main community home page.

There are loads of other features for you to explore, but the staff are a helpful bunch and more than willing to help. You can always reach staff, or other members, more privately using teh PM system... just go to their member page and click on "message".

Welcome again!