Sunday 7 February 2010

Song 6 - "Demon"

On 3rd December 2009, my third and our sixth song "Demon" was sent as a demo to New Zealand - only 67 days after first suggesting the idea to Rob, and this was going to be the song that would bring us to the half way point of completing the project.

The song itself is one I had worked on previously but wanted to re-record the piano part as it was originally conceived on my older keyboard (a Yamaha PSR 8000 for anyone who is interested). The piano sound on the Roland Fantom is far superior - as is the entire keyboard. I also was not pleased with the first vocal track I had attempted and so wanted to re-do that too, plus get a decent guitarist playing along with the song as my original efforts fell about 2 light years short of Hendrix, although I am playing the acoustic guitars on this one.

The song is a personal one for me - and I am not going to broadcast the reasons why in this forum - you can guess at those yourselves - either from the clip or the full track if you get the complete album. It is basically a 12-bar but in a minor key which puts a different twist on it.

Rob thought I had just sent through a track called Demo as all previous ones had been given that tag - e.g. "The Last Goodbye- demo". I just thought calling the first attempt of this one "Demon demo" lookied a bit silly but it would seem that for the benefit of those on the other side of the world, I should have done!!

Apart from wanting the snare drum louder, more effects on the vocal, a faded ending and pointing out 2 duff notes on the piano track - Rob loved it!! I stuck to my guns about not wanting a faded end. I think Rob only wanted it to fade as the ending as it is sounds a bit scrappy - but I had got used to it and wanted to keep it that way. That boy has ears like a hawk - it was pointless sending him a "that will do" effort, because if a bird tweeted outside in the middle of my recording, he heard it.

So the very next day, vocal effects were added and the piano corrected, but the snare volume I could do nothing about as it was recorded on a previous keyboard (as mentioned). We settled on just raising the level of the entire rhythm track. Nine days later on 13th December, Rob sent the additions through. He had added a really good rocky guitar chord pattern and, as ever, the lead guitar was spot on. I was very pleased with the result.

It was when I was replying to tell him so that I first suggested the title of the album "Antipodes" - meaning an opposite point on the globe - appropriate. Rob loved it and found some artwork for the album cover - things were indeed progressing.

Here is the clip of "Demon".


2 comments:

  1. Aha - a track I'm at least a little familiar with. I still have my copy of the original efforts here and just listened to compare. Nicely improved, but keeping the original vibe of the song. Like it :)

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  2. When this one popped into my inbox I thought it read Demo, ha! I later realised it was Demon the title of the song! Demon Demo would have spelled it out for us lot down under you know Paul.

    Once again this song was quite different to Paul's other two tracks, and I thought, "this guy is full of surprises" The lyric was very different, Demons, Monster's and Devils, and even a swear word in there! (Richard will tell you how I feel about swearing in songs Paul) but seeing as your my mums brother, I decided to let you off. The song had an Alan Parsons vibe going on, (some of their up tempo stuff) and it didn't take me long to find what I wanted to add into the song by way of guitar, and I do dig this song because it is quite different - which I like!

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