News.

02.17.12 : Rules

Today was a day of recovery. No caffeine, lots of tea and water, vitamins, food, rest, and even a trip out into the world for dog food and groceries! My appetite came back (hooray!) and I took it easy until almost 8:30, when I realized I should probably start today’s song.

The last few songs were pretty intense, emotionally, and took a lot out of me. I never really thought of writing songs or being creative as something that could burn calories or drain my energy, until I recorded “Saboteur” last fall. If you were a Kickstarter Backer, then you read my daily blog posts during that process and I’m sure you picked up on how exhausting the process was! Three weeks straight in the studio, working day-in and day-out, in total concentration.

But it’s not the the hours or the performing that’s the most tiring — it’s the actual effort it takes to think about the songs and feel the emotions that the songs evoke. Sad songs are particularly draining, if you’re sensitive to that kind of thing (which I am). Sad music hits me in the center of my heart and squeezes it like a boa constrictor.

So anyway, these past few songs (actually almost all of the songs) I’ve written and recorded (meaning: listened to over and over for hours each night) have taken a lot out of me and today I just couldn’t bear the thought of trying to write another song that might force me to think about the meaning of life or the existence of true love or outer space or something.

I decided that I would set a few rules for myself to make today’s session a little bit more fun, and take the pressure off. Rules have always helped me in songwriting, to not get too caught up in finite details or spend too much time over-thinking things. They also help me branch out creatively and try new things. It would be like someone giving me a blank canvas and a bunch of random paints and tools and telling me to paint a specific picture. For tonight’s song, I gave myself a two-hour time limit to write, record, and mix the song (usually it’s taken me anywhere from three to seven hours). I decided I would start with the beat rather than a piano or guitar part, and I told myself that I had to go with whatever the first thing was that I played. So the first part you hear in this song was the very first thing that my hand did when it touched the keyboard.

The bottom line is: Sometimes you just need some techno music to help you break out of a mood.