Inspiration From Unexpected Sources

I already said yesterday how I didn't realise I'd find a song behind the beat I laid down and for me a really fun, upbeat song too with my first kind of fast bass work.  Anyway I've been listening to it an I'm really thinking there is so much potential in it.

The bass itself obviously I've just looped the riff but it has so much room to move and expand, keep the riff yes but add some extra little flourishes to pad it out and add more interest.  Then the guitar, at the moment it's straight electric with a funky feel but I'm really feeling slide guitar on this one.  I've never done it but that's the way I push myself with these is to try something new and learn how.  Even if it's bad it will be on step closer anyway.

The piano is really fun against the bass and I reckon there could be some opportunity to flesh that out too.  The drums I think I might need to change the kit as although it's fun it's not right and then add some really cool drum fills that I would need to work on rather than my bog standard go to ones.

Then ... the bass solo, my first.  It's going to be hard to figure it out but again it's all about pushing right.  I'm sensing so much that could happen with this song and it would definitely be a step away from anything I've done to date and that's probably one of my biggest inspirations for doing it.

Today is Zak guitar lesson day *cue massive grin* and I'm going to be trying hard with the soloing.  It's baby steps and on this I'm going to need him to be so patient with me, it's starting to come together but it is so so so frustrating like having the answer on the tip of your tongue but not quite getting it no matter how hard you try.  That's exactly how I feel with this, I understand but when I start to play my head and fingers just lose it and out comes the noodling or worse.  But every now and then I do a fun little line - every now and then - and that's more than I was doing before so it's starting to seep through subconsciously and that's actually better than thinking about it.  When I do one I stop and try to think about what I did so I can build on it.  At the moment it's all good then 20 mins later I've totally forgotten but the more I do these the more I'll remember, recognise and understand and the more they'll become second nature.

I will be 100% honest I'm getting a little overwhelmed by the sheer number of songs that are now in progress stage with more finding their way out but I just think it's more value to chase 100 ideas that are incomplete than to have 5 that are complete because this is how I'm learning and pushing.  Eventually I'll have the skills to get these to a stage very quickly where it's full concept and then it will be much easier to dip back in and rework the individual parts.  Until then I just need to keep practising and working hard.

It is a lovely, lovely feeling to be finally doing this.  It's been a constant frustration for me as you know and I'm a long way from being finally through that particular barrier but even just being able to do these quick Instagram songs and then recognising where they can go is a big leap forward.  The next step is to be able to structure them to a full song as fast as I build the quick song because that's when Tom & Zak and start to push me technically within what I've already built.