On Monday, we began to rehearse To Be Human by MARINA. This went pretty smoothly
because we had one rehearsal from last term in which we started the song. We had a look
at changing the dynamics of the song in order to make it fit our instruments. This is
because the original song had keys, we do not have keys in our band this term so we
started to think of what we could do to replicate this sound. We eventually settled on
using palm muting in the verses in order to keep them quieter like in the original
recording.
On Tuesday at The Studio, Widnes (a performance/ rehearsal space for local
musicians) We continued work on To Be Human. We spent some of this session discussing
what the drums should do as the original does not use an acoustic drum kit. After working
on timings and vocal harmonies in the song we decided to listen to black or white
together to see if we could potentially start putting the song together. Eventually both
guitar player had learnt the beginning of the song and chorus so we went straight into
putting the first two verses and choruses together. Considering the drums were
improvised this went well for our first time rehearsing the song, we then performed the
whole of To Be Human and the first quarter of Black Or White to the rest of our class.
Wednesday’s session was slightly different because we began writing our originals. We
spoke as a class with Liam about chord progressions in pop songs and watched a video
that showed how many pop songs use the exact same chord progression (this is linked
below). Afterwards we were given a sheet with minor chord progressions on. From this
we had to pick the chords in the order of I V VI iv. We chose to do this in the key of E
and then eventually added a drum beat and simple vocal melody with harmony. At the
end of the session, we performed our intro and first two verses without lyrics to the rest
of the class. I had written one verse of lyrics we could potentially use because they just
seemed to fit the song. On Thursday, we rehearsed what we had of all three songs in the
hub. We started to think about what kind of structure we wanted the song to have and
then discussed potential chord for a bridge. After this we had our theory session which
will be important for next week’s practical, in which We had a look at how to write lyrics.
This involved rhyme schemes and how we could write lyrics to fit our given theme. As
individuals, we started to write lyrics potentially for our original using what we had learnt
in the session.
​
The lack of a piano player in our group
affected our approach to our first song To
Be Human and we weren't sure if we
should put one of the guitar players on keys
or not. We eventually decided to keep both guitars to give the song more of a rock feel. I gave the idea to palm mute chords in the verses with barely any drums in order to preserve the crescendo that the song has from verse to chorus.
​
We wanted to start more work on Black Or
White however a lot of the session was
taken up by instrumental players listening
to the song and figuring it out. It was decided that we should rehearse the first two verses and choruses in order to have some part of the song prepared, this is because it is the easiest part of the song to play and put together as a band
​
Our bass player started to struggle playing
because of medical issues meaning for At the end of the week we started to really focus on our individual parts just so that even
quite a few future rehearsals we wont have any bass in the band. though the bass is missing it will not majorly affect our rehearsals because we need to persevere and do our best despite missing one instrument.
​
I learnt that the art of writing lyrics is not always going to be difficult because many
famous songs have nonsense lyrics that hardly make sense. This means that writing for
our original we be a simpler task than i thought because the lyrics do not need to be
overcomplicated they just need to convey a message to our audience.
​
Next week I would like to experiment with the dynamics in our MARINA song a bit more
because it seems to not have much change currently. This will ensure it is interesting to
listen to and prove that we have put much thought and effort into the piece.
I would also like to write more lyrics and begin building our original into a full song so that
throughout the coming weeks we can add little changes and produce a song to a standard
in which the entire band are happy with.
​
​
On Tuesday (at The Studio, Widnes), we started by having a little jam to warm up.
Afterwards, we then began to rehearse our set. The first song we decided to rehearse was
To Be Human by MARINA, this was the first song we had started working on and is so far
our strongest because it is a relatively simple song instrumentally. We spoke about some
potential ideas to change how the dynamics sound in the song such as having the guitars
on a clean setting during the verses and then using a switch pedal in order to have them
be distorted throughout the choruses of the song. Afterwards, we moved on to
rehearsing Black or White by Michael Jackson. This song is currently our harder song in
terms of instrumental parts after the second chorus. However, everybody is working with
their instrumental teachers to resolve this issue.
Wednesday’s session consisted of us learning how to turn our originals from major keys
into minor. We watched some videos on how changing the tonality of the song could give
the song an entirely different meaning. We then went into practice rooms with a given
sheet of minor chord progressions and transposed our original into a minor key. This
session didn't feel as productive as it could have been because making the song minor
made it sound very depressing and sad, this actually affected the mood of the entire band
while playing/ singing it. Our original was originally in the key of E, this then changed to E
minor. We decided to keep our original in the key of E and started work on a bridge and
potential chorus.
The last session of the week was on Thursday. This session began with “Artist of the
week”, we looked at Insane Clown Posse and the history behind hip-hop, rap and the
band itself. I found this very interesting because the first apparent recording of a rap was
around 1950 with rock n roll and blues becoming popular. When it came to rehearsal, we
tried to be productive however the microphones were not working properly and kept
feeding back. We tried as hard as we could to work around this but didn't really get much
done.
​
One of our major issues is that nobody has
yet learnt Black or White which is making it
difficult for us to progress our set. Everybody is working with their instrumental teachers in order to sort the harder parts of the song and have this ready for rehearsal.
​
Another issue is that we still have not had
chance to utilise the switch pedals for both
guitars in To Be Human because we would
like the verses to have clean guitar and
then switch to distortion in the choruses. When we are able to, we would like to use the switch pedals in the hub and just ensure that both guitars sound good together on both settings.
​
We had an issue when writing the bridge
for our original because it just wasn't fitting
well with what we had for the verses. We kept brainstorming ideas and discussed what can be done in future sessions.
​
This week I have learnt that contributing ideas to your band mates is very worthwhile.
This makes sure your voice is heard and gives you a chance to change any things that
don't sound right to you or any creative ideas that you have that may improve the set.
I also learnt that changing a song’s key can change the meaning by a lot. For example,
Every breathe you take by The Police sounded very stalker like when put into a minor key.
​
Next week, i think that we should really focus on the second half of Black or White in
order to spend more time on stage presence and our original. Everybody needs to be
looking at their parts for this song and working hard on learning them in order to
complete our set.
I also would like to work on some potential choreography with Eva in order to enhance
our stage presence during Black or White given the genre. Given that Michael Jackson is a
staple in the pop music industry, we would like to ensure our rendition of the song
conveys the same emotion as the artist did when performing live.
​
​
In our session on Monday, we went straight into practice rooms and started discussing
what we should do with our songs. One of the discussions was about our original because
we were thinking of making it acoustic with no drums seeing as our drummer is drumming
for three different bands. We again went through what we have for To Be Human and
decided to leave that song alone because we need to focus on the other two for now, this
is due to them not being finished yet compared to the MARINA song. After this, we went
on to rehearse what we have of Black or white and decided it is time for us to complete
the song so that we have our two covers and can put more work into our original.
Wednesday's session did not start off being productive. We had decided to completely
redo our original using acoustic guitars but could not come up with anything that we liked
or that was to our standards in the time we had. After spending half of the session on this,
we moved on to finishing Black or White because everybody had learnt the rest of the
song at home and in their instrumental lessons. For the time being, I did the rap part
because our guitar player has not yet gotten to figuring out the vocal melody in the song
for this part. We managed to finish the entire song, but all agreed that synth/ keys are still
needed so we have requested help from our classes keyboard player. We also decided to
go through To be human once to freshen our memories on how we play the song. We
then performed Black or white to the class.
On Thursday, we began the session by doing “Artist of the week”. In which, we discussed
Motown and the pros/cons of a 360-degree contract. When it was time to rehearse, we
started to jam for a little bit until we accidentally brought something together. One of our
guitarists (Ryan) was playing on an electric guitar with a delay effect and we really liked
the sound of what he was playing so then our other guitarist (Leo) started to add some
rhythm. As the song was starting to sound pretty psychedelic, I started to add in some
percussion with a shaker and then we added in bass and drums. The piece we had started
to form was enjoyed by the entire band, so we have decided to keep this and start work
on vocals for it in the next session.
​
At the start of Wednesday's session nobody
was being productive because we could not
think of any ideas for an acoustic original.
This caused the entire band to feel
bored/unmotivated because we felt as
though there was not much we could do. We decided to move on from the original and work on Black or white to boost everybody’s energy and complete the song. This made us feel slightly more accomplished after the session had ended because we had wanted to add the ending onto the song for a while.
​
Another problem we faced on Wednesday
was the fact that some of black or white
felt empty and as though something else
had to be done. We then realised it was
because we need keys/synth before the rap
section. This is because that part in the
song that cannot be played by any
instrumentalist other than keys currently
due to the speed. In order to solve this issue, we have requested that the keys player from the other band could have a look at learning the song if possible. We think adding the synth will truly make the song sound better and a lot more put together than it is currently.
​
In Black or white the rap part is supposed
to be done by Ryan, however he has not yet
been able to learn it. This is because the To help, I attempted the rap in this session so that we knew when it ended to go back into the chorus. This went pretty well as I was able
melody and “flow” of this verse is rather difficult to remember. to follow the melody and make the rap fit where it is supposed to in the song.
​
Over the past week, I have learnt that it is okay to have ideas and scrap them. However,
this can lead to some difficulties when coming up with new ideas, like in our session on
Monday.
As a group we have all also learnt how to easily communicate ideas to each other, this
means that when the project has finished everybody will satisfied with our final version of
the set.
​
Next week, i am going to complete my project diary at the end of every session. This
will ensure that everything we have just done is fresh in my mind and I do not have to
worry about remembering all of this by the end of the week.
By next week, I am hoping that we can get further with the writing of our original. I will
help do this by researching some psychedelic song lyrics as well as melodies/harmonies.
Something else I will do is look at different techniques used when producing and
performing a song that is psychedelic so that we can really convey a message through
the genre we have chosen.
​
​
In Monday’s session, we decided to continue work on our original. This was successful
because we managed to come up with a verse and a chorus instrumentally, this meant
we had no vocals yet. I started to think about what kind of vocal sound we wanted on top
of our instrumental and ended up just improvising with different vocal sounds in order to
have some kind of idea for vocals. We then performed this at the end of the session to
the rest of the class and received feedback from Craig over teams.
Tuesday’s session at the studio was very productive. We added lots to our original,
including vocals. We also rehearsed Black or white in order to have small breaks from the
original because the part needed to lead into the rap section was not complete. For the
original, I had all the instrumentalists play what we had and started using some pre
written lyrics by Ryan. I then started to come to terms with a melody and wrote some
new lyrics to fit the given theme better as well as the melody. Due to the lyrics and
meaning, we decided to name the song “Hey! Officer” This came together quite quickly
after the lyrics were made because they just came to me naturally while putting the song
together. We also had some feedback from Liam and changed some of the dynamics
towards the end of the song to show off the vocal harmonies in the chorus.
In Wednesday’s session we decided we needed to start trying to fix leading up to the rap
section of Black or white. However, we fist went over the original again so that everybody
was familiar with what they were playing and satisfied with the song in general. I also had
to add in two more lines to each verse because our guitarists needed to get back to the B
chord in the progression in order to go straight into the chorus. With the original lyrics
they couldn't do this as the verse was too short and cut the chord progression in an
unusual place. When it came to working on Black or white we tried to figure out what we
could do seeing as we can not have any synth. Our options were : a triplet drum fill, a
slide down the guitar fret board OR one guitarist learning a simplified version of the part.
We tried all of these and decided the easiest option was to do a guitar slide down the
fretboard.
On Thursday, we knew that we should continue work on the transition to the rap in Black
or white . However, we did not have long to do this because we had “Artist of the week”
before our actual rehearsal began. This week we looked at Kate Bush and the use of a CMI
(computer music instrument) and the Evalution of drum pads and their influence on
music especially in the 1980s. We tried B.O.W from the beginning but then repeated the
transition to the rap over and over again until we got it right. There ended up being some
band conflict so I removed myself from the session. However later, we figured out that
the vocals come in before the drums after the guitar slide.
​
We were worried that we would not be
able to prepare a full original in the time
given. This is because we decided to
completely change our song last week as
we felt unmotivated with our other
original. We have dedicated almost all of the time we have in practical sessions to our original, this has made sure that we have an entire song and not just half of one that still needed lots of work
​
We can’t seem to sort out what is
happening in Black or white because we do
not have any synth to do the transition into
the rap section. This is a huge struggle for We have been given some simpler alternatives to include in this section. We are currently still in the process of getting this to work but it will be sorted by the deadline.
us because its too fast for any of our instrumentalists to play on their guitars.
​
An issue I have faced is not being able to
record my progress when rehearsing at
home. I need to do this to contribute to my
initial self assessment. I am going to record my singing lessons and set a reminder on my phone to attempt recording myself rehearsing at home.
​
This week I have learnt that lyrics do not have to be something you think about too much.
As soon as I came up with an image in my mind for the song and what I wanted it to be
about, lyrics came flowing out of my mind and I was able to write suitable verses and
choruses that are catchy and memorable.
I have also learnt that as a band sometimes we need to accept that when something is
difficult it requires team effort and enthusiasm to get it done. You also need to persevere
even if it means repeating one part of a song about ten times until it is done correctly,
This will help in the long term because we will have obtained the ability to work our way
through difficult songs together.
​
Next week I would like to make sure Black or white is completely finished so that we
can figure out in which order we would like to play our set at the gig. This will help
everybody to feel more accomplished in our songs and will leave room to focus on
things other than this one song. Although the transition to the rap section is very
difficult to do perfectly within a few tries, I think we can do it.
I also think we need to go over the verses in the original again because of the extra
lyrics added in Wednesday’s session. This allowed the instrumentalists to get back the
chord they needed to in order to go into the chorus. I want us all to be sure of how this
sounds and ensuring the new lyrics fit the melody properly.
​
​
On Monday’s session, we decided it was best to go over our original as we are recording it
on Tuesday. We spent the entire session going over the original and making sure our
drummer was sure of the fill he was going to do after the quiet chorus, in order for
everybody to come back in. We then went outside and performed the song to Craig just
to ensure the song is ready.
On Tuesday’s session, it was time to record Hey! Officer . We had to run through the song
quite a few times before we decided on the final take, this was because there was an
issue with the drums after the quiet part of the song. Seeing as our drummer is drumming
for multiple bands the stress he felt was understood by the band so we decided to just
persevere until we got a recording we were happy with. When this was fixed we decided
on a final take. I then had to put my vocals over it. This only took me two takes because I
didn’t like the first one, I felt as though there wasn’t enough emotion in my voice meaning
the message of the song wasn’t being conveyed properly. Afterwards, Eva recorded her
harmony vocals in one take, we all agreed this sounded perfect and ready to mix.
In Wednesday’s session we decided to again continue work on Black or White by Michael
Jackson. We did come to an agreement eventually that the drums should come in on the
crash cymbal in order to emphasise the entrance of the rap section. This worked very well
in my opinion, and also added the desired effect into the song. We rehearsed this part
multiple times over and over to ensure that we all knew what to do and decided the best
way for everyone to come in was a simple nod from me when I was about to start the
vocals. This helps with the timing of the instrumental section. Another thing we looked at
was stage presence for in this song. Eva and I started to look at some choreography to
match our vocals throughout the song as it is an upbeat pop song. We need to become
familiar with dancing on stage so that we don’t look or feel uncomfortable when
performing.
Thursdays session was different the rest of the week. We spent a lot of the session on
“Artist of the week” because we were looking at effects and how to manipulate sounds
for when we produce our originals. We spoke about how reverb can make vocals sound
smoother especially in longer notes as they may fluctuate slightly, this is normal and can
be fixed in the production process unless you want to keep it. Afterwards, we spent a
little time to relax and jam some songs before getting into our set. We looked at Hey!
Officer once and then went into Black or White, again. The reason we keep rehearsing
this song is because it is our favourite yet also our hardest song. We want it to be our
strongest song despite it being difficult for instrumentalists in some parts. For the most
part, this was successful. Being inspired by “Artist of the week” I tried to see what we
could do on the PA in terms of vocal effects. When going through the original I added
some slight vocal delay onto the microphones, however this wasn’t very audible for some
reason.
​
When rehearsing the original, we had
issues with a drum fill right after our quiet
chorus. This caused some confusion for our
drummer. We went over this part multiple times and added a bass walkdown in order to indicate when the drums needed to come back in.
​
We also still had problems with the drums
in Black or White. This meant the song was
still incomplete unless we fixed this. We rehearsed the song multiple times until we were happy with the result of the rehearsal. This worked because everybody
was then clear on what to look out for audibly and visually.
​
Another issue was the stage presence of
the group. Nobody really knows what to do
during our set given our songs etc. Evan
and I looked uncomfortable when dancing
as this is something we aren’t used to. We spoke about what to do in order to make our performance more interesting visually throughout the songs.
​
In this session I have learnt that rehearsing certain things over and over again will
eventually prove useful. This is because the more we rehearse things the longer we will
remember them, so much so that it will become basically muscle memory.
​
I want to look at making sure our set is within our given time slot. This means we will be
aware of how quick changeovers need to be between bands/songs.
I would also like to work on our stage presence as it does not feel like anybody is
moving as much as they should.
​
​
On Monday’s session, we started to discuss timings for our songs. In order to ensure our
set was timed well we rehearsed what was to be said between songs and such. This then
led us to discussing the entire band’s stage presence. We made a point that the songs
needed more passion than we had previously performed them with. This meant us doing
an exercise in which we played as though the songs were much more intense feeling. I
told everyone to act as though the MARINA song, To be human was a heavy rock song and
not pop. We had fun doing this and it was definitely worth doing in the session.
On Tuesday, we had our studio rehearsal session. Unfortunately, I was ill and could not
participate vocally as much as I had hoped to. This then led to a alack in stage presence
and vocals because I did not want to overuse my voice in the session while having a sore
throat. We started to time our set, taking into consideration that we will have a twelve
minute time slot at the gig. At first our set was around 12 minutes 40 but I did not leave
time for setting up within that time. This meant that when we came to perform for the
rest of the class and were timed by Liam, our set came to over thirteen minutes because
of how long it took to set up.
Wednesday’s session was crucial as we had to discuss what to cut in our set in order to
shorten it. The entire band decided to cut To be human down to just three verses and two
choruses. This would save us time and meant that we did not have to play the entirety of
the song as almost all of the band dislikes this piece. At the end of the session, we had to
perform and record our time. When we had finished our set (including setting up and
talking to the audience), it only came up to around eleven minutes maximum. This works
out well as the other band’s set goes over twelve minutes. By doing this, we are ensuring
the gig moves smoothly and finishes as on time as possible.
On Thursday, I was feeling much better compared to the rest of the week. This meant i
was able to take part more in the rehearsal. We again did work on stage presence after
doing Artist of the week. This week we looked at Melanie Martinez and her unique
concept of stage characters and presence. Melanie likes to play characters on stage that
correspond with her music, in order to convey a storyline originally about her character
Crybaby. Liam then said he would like to see us all adapting some kid of stage personality
whether it be subtle or not. This got me thinking of things that I could personally do to
create a unique stage personality. In rehearsal, we had fun with ideas about stage
presence while being spatially aware of the room and the stage at the studio. We also
discussed how we can use the space on the stage at the studio to our advantage.
​
I was ill for a lot of this weak. This affected
my vocal quality as well as participation
through the week as I did not want to tire
my voice before the gig. In some harder sections, I had Eva take over such as the shouting part in Black or White. This meant we were still able to do all songs and rehearse.
​
We had issues with the timing of our set
because our original song is almost 5
minutes long. This meant we were running
over twelve minutes. We decided to cut To be human shorter in order to perform our entire set without running over into the 20 minute interval.
​
As a band, we felt uninspired stage
presence wise. This meant that everybody
appeared bored and as though we did not
want to be performing. In some rehearsals, we had fun with moving about instead of everybody feeling self conscious and judged. This then led to everybody feeling a lot more confident when communicating with each other on stage.
​
I have learnt that having fun as a band on stage can really add to the presence on stage
during our songs. Even if we do not enjoy certain songs, making the most of being on
stage can change the entire feeling of the song and band as a whole.
​
​
The next session is right before the gig. I want everybody to relax and have fun with
what we are doing because we are all doing it together as a team, not individuals.
I would also just like to perfect our timing and ensure everything is still running
smoothly for the gig on Tuesday.
​