Whats The Typical Setting For You When You Write Songs?

[Roymega]

I have a hard time finishing songs because I tend to lose my rhythm that I had first started with...

Which brings me to my question; what do you guys usually write your music to? A backing track? A metronome? The sounds of silence? lol..

[porcellainBitch]

the sound of silence...i love to sit somewhere quiet and just lose myself in the words.

at some point though i have to get my guitar and try whether the lyrics actually work as a song or if they turn out to be another poem...

but the actual writing doesn't work anywhere but a place i can get lost in...

[john]

hey

Similar. I like peace and quiet, although that said I also like writing drafts if I am out and about, specially in open air cafe's etc.

[ColinFreakwave]

Melodies and riffs come all the time, inspired by whatever sounds or music I've heard that day. I just whistle or hum them into a dictaphone. ...So usually there are all sorts of ambient sounds around on the tape or file - traffic, street noises, the kettle boiling... Music is NEVER audible in the background though. -Obviously any other music would put me off the idea I was trying to capture.

Lyrics are totally different however. Usually it's silence apart from whichever instrument I am using to play the idea I'm putting the lyrics to. Lyric writing is also always accompanied by frustration! ...but I guess that's not a sound!

Why don't you use some kind of dictaphone to tap out or hum the rhythm you are thinking of first? That way you can keep referring back to it and check that you're still getting it right.

[Roymega]

thanks for all the great tidbits guys! I think I'm starting to figure my inner melody out!!

[john]

Hey Ryan

What environment do you currently write in?

[Roymega]

Hey Ryan

What environment do you currently write in?

Oh all kinds haha... I pretty much just use the environment I'm in at the moment... whether it be lying in bed, listening to music, just looking outside, etc etc. Inspiration comes in all shapes and sizes

[john]

so why do you think you have a hard time finishing songs then?

[Roymega]

so why do you think you have a hard time finishing songs then?

Well probably because I don't have a band with me... just my thoughts, pen and paper, and an acoustic guitar [smiley=acoustic.gif]

[datsdniv]

HI!

99% of my attempted songs never make it beyound 4 lines,so rather than posting here I should probably start a topic on techniques that doesn`t work,to rule things out

However,With such a "scorecard"I guess-at one point or another- it was inevitable for me to start asking questions regarding my own abilty.:)Maybe My true talent layed elsvere.. but after concidering curling and other "sports"that doesn`t ecxlude people suffering from

a little stronger gravitational pull than most athletes,I decided to try to find patterns and similarityes for the handful of songs that actually made it all the way to what i concidered finished,beeing good or bad not meaning a thing..

And I actually found some similarities,most of them appearing a littlebit to often in the songs faling as well,and had to be concidered"Inconclusive" , like just playing my guitar while sort of daydreaming without anything concrete ideas in mind,feeling relaxed,red wine,not to much mess in my place, and such..

However,one thing caught my attention..With a few ecxeptions,my completed songs tended to start with me coming up with the verse first rather than chorus..I always thought the other way arround was most common..As mentioned I never really plan to write a song,its more of a coincidence when words and chords "fit"I dont know if that might be the reason,but as mentioned some songs starting with chorus was completed,I`m not quite sure why,but for some reason the "verse first"-songs moves smooth from verse to chorus and back to verse,while "chorus first"seem forced somehow..

Anyway;after I found out this,I improved my "success-rate" with about 0%....:)Thing is,Since I just play arround randomly with words and chords,I`m not able to make any real use of my "discoveries".somethimes what I come up with sounds like a verse,sometimes it sounds like a chorus.....

So,to put things short:HELP!If anone have thoughts regarding this I would love to hear them..

datsdniv

Edited July 17, 2009 by datsdniv

[Nightwolf]

Ryan,

My Main reason for getting recording started was all the Songs I lost along the way. Now as soon as I have a bit I want to keep I lay down a rough cut so I don't lose it.

[Roymega]

Ryan,

My Main reason for getting recording started was all the Songs I lost along the way. Now as soon as I have a bit I want to keep I lay down a rough cut so I don't lose it.

I've started venturing down this road with the crappy USB mic that I have and my PC. The only problem I run in to is I've never actually sang my songs in bands prior, because I tend to concetrate on the guitar.. I don't know if this is typical for a musician (writing lyrics and playing the guitar but not singing?..) but it seems to be the "hurdle" I'm facing at the moment. Sounds childish, and it is, but I've always been afraid of people hearing me sing

[Lilflirt]

hmm,thats a good question sometimes i may here a beat sometimes a word or phrase comes to mind,mood also affeats my abilty to right,i also freestyle songs

[Jim622]

I have the same problem. I have some songs that I consider fairly good, at least I'm impressed they

came out of me, but I don't have the confidence to sing. I will when i think no one can hear. I tried

recording vocals once or twice and it s very discouraging.

[JamTimeMusic]

Me singing and my co-writer playing the guitar and my small home studio or anywhere really. Add total belief that a great song is about to be written and you got a great song.