Jez Ashurst

Meddling With Melodies.

Sun, 12 Aug 2012 09:25:50 -0400

So, you love your song, you’ve spent days working on the lyrics and the chords, you sing a melody and record it and TADA! The song is finished. You listen to it and play it to people and it’s OK but it’s not ‘grabbing’ people. They can’t put their finger on what the problem is. It sounds OK, nice or worst of all ‘pleasant’. How are we meant to spot the weaknesses in our melodies? It’s like trying to draw with smoke. It’s intangible isn’t it? Either it’s catchy or not. We either nail it or we don’t. Well I wonder if there aren’t a few areas worth looking at to improve our melodies. Let me try to explain.

A melody is a series of notes in time.

Simple isn’t it? No, not really.

When I analyse and try and improve my melodies I look at the following attributes.

The tension and resolve in my note choices
Which beat I start each melodic phrase on
The contrast in range and rhythm between sections of the song
The length of the melodic phrases

Let me expand a bit. The tension and resolve in melody is absolutely fundamental to creating something special. If each note of the melody lands on one of the notes in the underlying triad then it can seem too ‘nice’ or ‘pleasant’ or God forbid- boring. Put simply, if you’re playing a C major chord and you sing the note C, E or G it fits, but can sound too, well…. Blah! Conversely, if too many notes of the melody lie outside the chord below and don’t resolve to where the listener’s ear wants them to go then the melody can seem ‘uncomfortable’ ‘challenging’ and more importantly- hard to sing and to remember.

Let’s take ‘Yesterday’ as an example. The first note of the song (‘yes…) isn’t in the chord below (it’s a second). When this note resolves to the root of the chord (…terday) the listener feels that tension resolve. Ahhh! Feels good doesn’t it? Why not have a look at one of your melodies and see how many notes fit the chords too closely. The notes that build the tension are an important ‘rub’ or ‘grit’ that stops a melody sounding too neat and possibly boring. Does your melody have tension and resolve?

The beat you start the melody on is really important. The earlier you put it, the more momentum and energy the melody will have. Notice how in Katy Perry’s Firework the melody in the verses starts on the second beat of the bar so it feels like the music leads the melody. However, when we get to the chorus the melody leads the chords. Here, it starts with a pickup on the third beat of the bar before the chorus (baby you’re a….). This brings excitement and momentum to the chorus. Also listen to how the chorus melody works primarily with stresses on the beat baby you’re a fire…. These kind of melodies could be described as ‘statement melodies’. They have confidence (especially married to the ascending chords). Why not have a look at one of your melodies and see whether you start each section on different beats? Altering the start point of your melodic phrases is a useful way of giving each section an identity.

The contrast in range between sections of your song is also worth looking at. Often the chorus of a song has the highest notes. This helps it stand out and catch our attention. Also have a look at the intervals between your notes in each section. If one section has a lot of intervals that are one note apart then to contrast that with larger intervals in the next section can be very effective in creating melodic identity. A good example is in The Beatles ‘With A Little Help From My Friends’. The verse has a lot of single step melodies, the bridge has a larger intervallic leap (do you need anybody…..) this is effective in adding interest and variation. It’s worth mentioning the verse starts on the first beat and the bridge starts with a pick up on the 3^rd beat of the last bar. This is the same trick as Firework. Maybe I’m onto something? Both songs also have a strong shift between high legato notes in one section and lower staccato phrases the other. Does your song alter the rhythms between sections like this?

Finally, the length of melodic phrases is pretty vital. If all the phrases in your song are the same length it can get boring. It’s a bit like. If I wrote. Each sentence. the same length. It would get. Quite boring. And predictable. Quite quickly. Often the hooks of successful songs are one are two bar melodic phrases as they can be repeated lots of times! The shorter melodies are often more memorable (with many many exceptions!). Most writers seem tied to writing melodic phrases that are 2, 4 or occasionally 8 bars long. Why not try a 3, 5 or 6 and a half bar melodic phrase? It could keep the interest of the listener.

I’ve only scratched the surface here of the important attributes of a successful melody. Perhaps the most important of all is writing a melody that has a ‘clear sense of direction’. A meandering melody undermines the power of a song like nothing else! It’s like watching a public speaker constantly referring to their notes or losing their place. The listener doubts the veracity of what they are saying. The other massive part of the equation is how well the melody supports the lyric. Perhaps we’ll explore that another time.

Keep on writing!

“Only Bored If You’re Boring”

Fri, 25 May 2012 05:03:00 -0400

My mum used to say this to me on rainy days when I was moping around the house as a small child. I remember being bored was part of growing up. I wonder when the last time was when you were bored? What seems to be apparent to researchers on creativity and innovation is that boredom is good for you. I’ve been reading a book called ‘Imagination –How Creativity Works’ by Jonah Lehrer and it’s well worth a read if you’re interested in where inspiration and ideas come from.

There are way more many distractions in the world we live in than the one I grew up in. When I was young there was no internet, no mobile phones, half-day closing on Wednesday and all of Sunday? Imagine that! Wow, no wonder I have memories of staring out of my bedroom window tracing the raindrops running down it and trying to guess which would get to the bottom first. Compare this to the world we live in now, this constant background static in - this chatter- means that we experience less silence, solitude and space for ideas to germinate.

This is why that first quiet cup of coffee in the morning or a long bath (technology doesn’t like water), or a run, can spark ideas for me because my brain is empty and waiting to be filled with something from the outside. Whether you call it inspiration, the muse or divine intervention, the genesis of a melody or lyrical idea often depends on these moments of calm. For some people this is traditional meditation, for others it’s a quiet walk somewhere (Dickens used to walk 8 hours a night and he was pretty creative, as well as being an insomniac). Burt Bacharach used to drive in silence to let those synapses loosen a little. However you plan it, try and make time in your day to have nothing to do.

According to research, and also anecdotal evidence from the many song-writers I’ve worked with, the wheels of the unconscious are always turning but often our conscious isn’t aware of this. This might be because we’re busy playing Angry Birds, Facebooking, Tweeting, Texting, calling people or frantically rechecking our emails for the fifteenth time. Sound familiar? It does to me.

So it seems that if you want to feed creativity don’t starve yourself of boredom. Those fifteen minutes of staring out of a window might just save you three hours of slaving away trying to make an uninspired idea sound better. Perhaps my mum’s quote could be re-written as ‘boredom is the father of the most interesting ideas’. I hope this wasn’t too boring to read, no, actually- i hope it was and you drifted off into a more creative place.

The Locked Door Of The Music Industry

Sun, 25 Mar 2012 05:26:47 -0400

I’ve been doing some guest lectures on songwriting recently. One lecture was on ‘writing to pitch sheets’. Pitch sheets are kind of ‘who is looking for songs lists’ that are circulated by the major publishers. it is frowned upon if songwriters pass these around and especially give them to unsigned writers. The elephant in the room at these lectures is the audience thinking and sometimes saying ‘it’s alright for you with your publishing deal but how do we get into this industry? The doors are shut and i’m tired of being ignored’.

Ah yes, the frustration of the unsigned writer. I know it well and I sympathise. I thought long and hard and thought about this conundrum and came up with this answer.

firstly, i wanted to get this chip off everyone’s shoulder. I explained that there was a very good reason that publishers don’t circulate the who’s looking lists to unsigned writers. Unsigned writers are unknown. The publisher has no guarantee that a song sent in by an unsigned writer is available, or even written by them. By that, I mean that if you send in a song that’s perfect for One Direction and by some longshot the publisher thinks it would be great for that artist, the publisher would want to hear you have other amazing songs before making you an offer of a deal, and then you’d probably approach other publishers to get a better offer and then 6 months has passed….. Why would a publisher need this? They already have a roster of writers writing great songs that are available. so what’s the answer?

The answer is to write with up and coming artists. I pointed out to all the students in my lecture that a couple years ago Ed Sheeran most likely played in a pub to 30 people within 20 miles of where they lived (he was playing 200 shows a year). At this point he was talented and unsigned and may have been open to a co-write if approached by a great writer with a good showreel of songs or by a talented fellow performer. Some time in the next 3 months, the newest great unsigned artist will be playing a venue near them and they should be going to see as many gigs as they can to network and discover new talent. If not playing at a venue, these new artists will be on youtube covering songs and trying to make inroads that way.

But that’s the A&R person’s job I hear you cry. It’s your job too. As a songwriter in today’s industry you have to be a songwriter, producer, A&R and hustler sometimes. There may be other skills you can bring to the table to help you get in on the ground floor. I know many songwriters who started off playing guitar, keys or singing (often for free) with new artists. I know other writers that would spend their evenings being the sound engineer at local venues (getting paid to discover new artists!).

It’s all very well turning up to Wembley in your England kit, standing by the tunnel and hoping someone will give you a game, but it’s much more likely you’ll get a Sunday league game and work through the ranks that way. The music industry is no different. This lack of interest in your songs isn’t because you’re not a great writer-the bottom line is that banging on the locked door of the music industry is a waste of time. What you have to realise is you come through the floor.

lojinx: mikeviola: have you heard Tim Christensen? well… one...

Sun, 25 Mar 2012 05:01:12 -0400

lojinx:

mikeviola:

have you heard Tim Christensen? well… one in 4 Danes have.. he’s a big star over there and justifiably so. he’s a monster singer, guitar player and song writer. he invited me to play a concert in Copenhagen at the Vega on June 18th, Paul McCartney’s 70th birthday. we are both Macca bags so we decided to do RAM in it’s entirety, take a break, and do 13 or so songs from Paul’s catalog. and here’s the kicker. Tracy Bonham is coming along too. our Linda! since we’re all fans of each other’s work it’s going to be a love fest extraordinaire. so… come to Copenhagen… it’s only happening once. I’ll be yapping about this in days to come.. and more specifics wil be posted here or at mikeviola.com but for now… just wanted to let you know! lvmv

yes yes yes

"I like beautiful melodies telling me terrible things."

Sun, 25 Mar 2012 04:59:44 -0400

“I like beautiful melodies telling me terrible things.”

- Tom Waits (via seabois)

Big Star Third - A concert performance of Big Star's legendary Sister Lovers album

Sun, 04 Mar 2012 13:12:22 -0500

Big Star Third - A concert performance of Big Star's legendary Sister Lovers album:

lojinx:

A fully-orchestrated performance of Big Star’s legendary album Sister Lovers featuring Mitch Easter, Jody Stephens, Chris Stamey, Ken Stringfellow and Mike Mills (R.E.M.).

Big Star’s third album has long been revered by musicians and critics as one of the most mysterious and influential records ever made. Its fragile, achingly beautiful songs have never been properly performed - but now an all-star band has unearthed the original string and wind orchestrations for this one-off London show.

Big Star - Take Care

Special guests:

Brendan Benson (The Raconteurs)
Norman Blake (Teenage Fanclub)
John Bramwell (I Am Kloot)
Ira Kaplan (Yo La Tengo)
Sondre Lerche
Alexis Taylor (Hot Chip)
Sharon Van Etten

‘Big Star aren’t just rock’s greatest cult band; they were arguably rock’s first cult band’ Pitchfork

‘A single remarkable evening.’ Mojo

RSVP to this event on Facebook here!

Good Things Come To Those Who Wait.....

Wed, 29 Feb 2012 10:45:40 -0500

But the shitty stuff seems to turn up almost straight away….

I’m paraphrasing the very funny Rich Hall here but i think it is true that most of the people i know who are having any kind of success in music (or in anything artistic) have struggled along the way and many times have wondered how long it was going to take before they got some somewhere. It seems to me that no one who got there ever wondered If they were going to get there though. They were all single-minded enough to overcome rejection.

It always takes longer than you think to get anywhere worth going to. The obstacles appear at the first corner and this can be disheartening. If you’re having a hard time realising your dream then I hope you find solace that almost anyone who has embarked on that perilous journey has had dark days too.

Jezx

Duesenberg Mike Campbell Starplayer TV

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 15:50:32 -0500

Duesenberg Mike Campbell Starplayer TV

How many songs in a guitar?

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 15:48:36 -0500

It’s a little known fact that some guitars have lots of songs in them and some don’t. It isn’t based on how much the guitar costs or how old it is (some vintage guitars have had all their songs milked already) it just depends on what mood it puts the player in when strummed. I’m pleased to say my new Duesenberg Mike Campbell Starplayer TV is full of songs ready to come out. I’ll put a picture up. It’s gorgeous

Footnote: Midi keyboards only come with one song and i’m sorry to say it’s Axel F by Harald Faltermeyer. They do come loaded with the keyboard solo from Van Halen’s Jump though.

http://sixfouronefive.blogspot.com/

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 20:03:38 -0500

http://sixfouronefive.blogspot.com/

Great blog about the rise of the 6 4 1 5 chord progression

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 20:02:00 -0500

http://sixfouronefive.blogspot.com/

Tip Of The Day

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 19:58:30 -0500

Sing any song you are stuck on in the style of Michael McDonald. No, it doesn’t help you get unstuck but it will very likely cheer you up and remind you what an inherently silly craft this songwriting is.

Its only a song after all

Neve

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 16:24:08 -0500

loving my new 1073 pre amp. Ok, nerd post officially over.

Jezx

Lana Del Rey

Sun, 22 Jan 2012 03:47:33 -0500

I can’t help feeling that if an unsuccessful male singer had rewritten their past and changed their image the backlash wouldn’t be so intense. Artists re-inventing themselves is no new thing. Katy Perry had a similar re-invention as an artist after making a Christian record as Katy Hudson. Perhaps the real issue is the pressure put on female artists to be sexy, glamorous and/or provocative to sell records?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2012/jan/21/lana-del-rey-pop

Unsung heros and heroines

Sat, 21 Jan 2012 07:22:03 -0500

Perhaps there should be an international day of recognition for all those long-suffering citizens who are tragically in a relationship with a musician? These people put up with sporadic or no income, constant changes of plans, a partner who is self-obsessed and driven and who is almost certainly deluded as to the amount of talent they have. Never mind the house full of guitars, equipment and general junk, the tours and the certain knowledge that when things go wrong- they will have to pick the fragile artist back up again and tell them ’ you’re amazing!’

Without these forgiving, understanding and possibly crazy people- where would be be?

Jezx

Jezashurst.com

Sun, 15 Jan 2012 11:49:47 -0500

Hi there and happy new year. I’ve finally given up on Myspace and bought the domain Jez Ashurst. I’ll be Making this site a bit more snazzy and putting up some songs up here.

Hope 2012 is a great one for you

Jezx

Songs Of The Year

Tue, 27 Dec 2011 04:43:48 -0500

Happy Christmas everyone, hope you had a great one. Here’s a couple of songs i really loved this year. They’re kind of predictable i guess but i just fell in love with them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HO1OV5B_JDw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UVNT4wvIGY

What were your faves?

What about albums i hear you say? More to follow…..

Mixer Matosis

Thu, 15 Sep 2011 06:19:00 -0400

Hello all, today I thought I’d talk a little bit about mixing the demo. I’ve been watching a lot of Pensado’s Place on youtube and it’s been really informative to see how the pros do it. So, assuming you’ve recorded everything OK and you have a good arrangement here’s how I would approach a mix.

The first thing to be aware of is that a good mix will probably take some time. Most professional mixers with years of experience will take a day to mix something so I wouldn’t expect to get it done quickly.

The first thing I do is to set out my mix layout in Logic or Pro Tools and colour code it. It sounds dull but I think it saves time in the long run. I personally run vertically down the page starting with drums (I colour them brown, a hangover from my days in cubase), bass (dark blue) Guitars (various greens) Keys (all manner of pinks and purples) Lead Vocals (red) and BVs (yellows and oranges). I suppose my idea is that the bassier elements are coloured darker. A tidy mix page saves time!

Next thing I do is to tidy any timing, tuning, fades and delete stuff that shouldn’t be there. Often I kind of mix as I record so I don’t zero the faders and start from scratch (unless it sounds like pants), I just work with what’s there.

I will route all my tracks to subgroups (drums, guitars, BVs, etc) and finally all to an aux I call mix on which I would put a limiter. I don’t put anything on the master buss. This is because if I want to import a reference track, I can send this to the master buss and easily A/B without the reference track having any more limiting applied.

After all this prep, I am then ready to mix. I don’t have a set way to mix. I am always conscious that the vocal needs space to sit so most of what I’m doing is shelving eq to make sure that instruments that don’t need to be filling up the bottom end don’t, and panning to make sure that instruments in the same mid range register as the vocal aren’t fighting with it.

As for plugins, I don’t have any that I use all the time. I don’t have any channel strips saved. On a general level I often take a bit of low mid out of the vocal and lots of other instruments too. Mixes seem to build up a lot of mud between 180-350 Hz. I often put an Waves Rbass on the bass or kick drum if the very bottom of the mix is light.

The elements of the mix that take the most time are the vocal sound and FX and gluing the kit and bass together so the bottom end is right. Everything else seems a lot easier to place if these two elements are working.

Finally, I wouldn’t listen too loud, I would take regular breaks and remember to listen to lots of reference stuff too!

Happy mixing!

Map Of Metal

Wed, 14 Sep 2011 09:45:42 -0400

Map Of Metal

Mixed

Wed, 14 Sep 2011 06:52:22 -0400

Just a catch up on the song i mixed yesterday, sounds great now! Feedback from artist and other writer is good too. Just shows that sometimes you have to go back to the beginning to get to the end.