This Is Gonna Be Our Year (demo)

I'm really happy with how this one turned out. It's probably the one that wound up being the least rushed, and it shows.

This is the one I think makes the best case for going to town on it - just drenching it in strings, keys and BVs, the full Pet Sounds.

Leave The Blinds Open

The electrics might sound a bit off on this one; I decided to try recording them by using my Sonic Port doohickey to mic an amp rather than going direct into Garageband. Never again.

This was done using one of the cajon players in Garageband. I actually envisaged it using a nice brushed snare sound, but none of the Garageband drummers have anything like that for some reason.

Things I'd like to add:
*Violin
*Keys (not sure is organ or piano would work better)
*BVs?

Sheffield Song

This goes a bit wonky at the end, because not only are time signature and tempo changes in the Garageband app global, the drummer track is directly tied to them. Imagine the swung coda has some fantastically jazzy drumming going on underneath it all, and is also played by someone who can keep time.

Are the lyrics too mean? It's supposed to be a bit of (not-so-)light self-mockery, but I'm wary it might be a bit tin-eared in an age of mass job losses.

Things I'd like to add:
*Piano
*Solo (maybe violin, maybe keys)
*BVs?

Keeping Calm And Carrying On

These Streets

This is lower-quality than the others; I finished writing it at about quarter to eleven at night and dashed a quick version off in the twenty minutes before my Dad went to sleep in the next room.

I think this would sound lovely with a full string quartet, but I'm not sure my budget will stretch that far; maybe solo violin and backing vocals?

The Good That You Can Do

Another one with the blasted cajon player; Garageband, get better drum sounds.

This was my attempt to write something like a folk ballad, hence why it doesn't have a chorus; I also haven't added any electric guitars on this, because I like the idea of this one being more acoustic in nature.

Things I'd like to add:
*Violin(s?)
*Some type of squeezebox sound

Devizes And Back In A Day

This was another one where I just wanted a nice brushed snare sound; however, even the cajon sounded absolute gash on this, so I just dialled in literally the most basic, boring drumbeat imaginable and left it at that.

I only recorded one electric for this, which I think works okay, but I've left it panned to one side to give the vocals some room which might leave it sounding a bit unbalanced.

Things I'd like to add:
*Violin(s)
*BVs

Endless And Blue

This was actually a lot of fun to do. The bass is recorded on Full Piezo, which (due to being a passive circuit) is woefully underpowered, hence why it sounds so weedy. Learning curve, and all that.

I get a bit of a Bedlam Six vibe off this version, although I'm not convinced by the lyrics. Something about them just feels a bit by-the-numbers, and I'm not sure what.

Things I'd like to add to this:
*Organ
*Violin (solo?)

Late March In Springwood

That's it, I'm converted. Loud Is Fun.

Very much an in-the-moment bit of writing this. The lyrics aren't the most insightful I've written, but considering how inarticulate I usually am when I'm angry it's practically Shakespeare.

Things I'd like to add:
*Swirly Hammond organ
*Solo (Violin? Keys?)

The Dreadful Algebra

The riff stays. I don't care what anyone says.

Things I'd like to add:
*Keys
*BVs

Zephyr Brigade

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