Breaking Through the Bubble
I had been recording a song I wrote, "Spinning Daydream," for some time, and reached a point where it was time for the first "second opinion". (In this case, I solicited my wife.) Second opinions are amazing gems, espicially if you've been listening to the same song performed in the same way for some time. Nothing is better for breaking through a bubble you've been recording in, and unlearning the unwanted "muscle memory" that can blind you to a better sound. It can also be a difficult step for some songwriters, as they must be ready to receive and accept criticism.
Home recordists constantly face that challenge -- capturing a sound while it's fresh and avoiding over-tweaking due to an inability to 'hear' what's good and what's bad after a period of time.
How do you perform 'reality checks' with your work, and what kind of audience to you approach with your creative ideas?
As for "Spinning Daydream," I'll be re-recording most of the song to restructure it. The delay is a tad frustrating, but the changes are well worth it.
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Comments
That is so great that you have someone you trust, like your wife, to give you that feedback. I'm in a setting where there are tons of people around me willing to help (college), but most of them are not into the kind of music that I want to be recording. I'm not so sure if their advice or opinion will be tainted with the fact that they're not familiar with my kind of songwriting, or they don't like that style, in particular, or if they can look past that. I'm sure many of them can, but it's hard to know WHO to get your first 2nd opinion from, you know?
Posted by: JennyJ | April 10, 2005 09:37 AM