Music & Inspiration
Here you can listen to Seasons and read more about my process when writing each song and EP. You can see the visual and musical inspirations for each EP. You can also read about the idea behind each song, their main inspirations and the creative process (you can find even more images and videos of my process throughout the year on my monthly overviews). From my research paper, I have discovered that overall threatening seasons (autumn and winter) are aligned with sad music whereas less threatening seasons (spring and summer) are aligned with happy music. I wanted to stick to this as much as possible but I didn't want every song in each EP to follow the same mood. I wanted my songs to remain unique, which meant exploring different stories and moods in each season. This is a concept album that explores the theme of the months and seasons by taking different elements and characteristics from songs in my inspiration playlists. I will be using similar characteristics in my own music to help tell the story of each month. My research paper showed me the subjectivity of seasonal music preferences and perceptions, so it's important for me to note that the moods, genres and characteristics that I've associated to each track are all my own. I consider my perceptions of seasonal music to be very similar to the general population, especially after seeing the results of my survey on seasonal perceptions and preferences in music, however I understand that everybody is different and there will be songs on these EPs that some listeners would match with a different season. Below you can listen to my entire album below on SoundCloud which is set to release publicly on the 30th of June. Three of the four EPs have released publicly already, and you can see all of their individual track-listings on Spotify and SoundCloud as I speak more about the making of each season's EP.
Seasons Album
Autumn EP
Visual Inspiration
In terms of visual inspiration, I associate autumn with warm orange and brown tones. It has a slightly darker and sombre environment outdoors, however inside it is cosy and warm. I immediately envisioned falling leaves, pumpkins, rain fall, candles and fireworks. Curating these visuals was really important for the project because I felt like they were good starting off points to write lyrics around or create musical symbolism. Smiling Not Blue sounds very sombre in the lyrics and instrumentation and I based it around an autumnal wedding. Pumpkin Patch features the most autumnal lyrics, which I based around many images in my inspiration board such as falling leaves, owls and, of course, pumpkins. When I Look at You is based around fireworks night in November but they are used as symbolism in a love song. I wanted to keep this imagery to the colours instead of mentioning fireworks because I had another idea for a song that includes fireworks for the Winter EP. You can see the images I used for visual inspiration below.
​Musical Inspirations
I already knew that I wanted two sad songs and one happier song for this EP. The vast majority of the songs featured in my inspiration playlist are sad in mood and the genres are indie, country or pop. There are some different genres that come in every now and then such as soul, alt-rock and folk. I decided to focus on my own inspiration playlist with additional characteristics taken from reflexive and complex genres (classical, blues, country, folk and jazz). You can read more about some of these songs below where I talk about the inspiration behind each song on my EP.
Smiling Not Blue
The Idea -
This was the very first song that I wrote for this project. I was testing out a few different ideas for my project at the time and so this was created during a point where I thought I would be basing the entire album on a year-long story. This songs initial inspiration stemmed from the same inspiration as the entire project, Emma. The story starts with a solemn Mr Woodhouse, extremely upset about the marriage of the family's governess, Miss Taylor. I wanted my year-long story to convey the events following a wedding and so I decided that this would be a nice way to pay homage to the inspiration behind the project and also give me a nice starting point for my own story. After changing my mind about the direction of the project and deciding that each song would follow its own individual story, I knew that I still wanted to keep a wedding themed song. This worked really well for my September song, as it can be viewed as the end of the wedding season.
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Inspirations -
I wanted the lyrics to convey the feeling of loss when someone you love gets married, whether it be a family member or close friend. I didn’t want to centre it around an ex being upset about a marriage, however I guess it could be interpreted that way. There are already plenty of popular songs about that and similar scenarios such as Speak Now by Taylor Swift, Crashed The Wedding by Busted or Don't Marry Her by The Beautiful South. I also knew, before going into writing, that I wanted to use the term “something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue” during the song without it being too obvious. Taylor Swift, who is one of my main autumn inspirations, says that she frequently bases songs around “phrases people say in conversation”. In fact, her own song about a wedding, Speak Now, is a play on the phrase "speak now or forever hold your peace". This is something that I have tried to explore a bit later in the project as well as I think it is a really interesting creative process to have. I haven’t ever written lyrics to the extent that I have during this project, and this has been a great way to get the ball rolling for song ideas.
I wanted this to be one of the more melodramatic sounding songs by giving it a really strong harmony and percussion section. I took inspiration from the instrumentation of songs such as Till Forever Falls Apart, which has some really rich extended chords with piano, guitar and a choir in the background, and This Side of Paradise, which has a steady drum beat adding a dramatic effect and pushing the music along. I intended on having piano, guitar, drums and, instead of a choir, a strings section to add to the emotion of the song. I took inspiration from Only Ones Who Know for the guitar part. I wanted it to ring out alongside the church bell and have the same reverb and tremolo effect. I wanted to bring in some orchestral instruments here too. This links back to the reflexive and complex genre category I spoke about.
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The Process -
Key: C
Chords:
Verse: FMaj7/C, F6/C, CMaj7, CMaj7/G
Pre-Chorus: C, Em, Em, Am/F, Asus4
Chorus: FMaj13, FMaj7, G, FMaj13, FMaj7, G, FMaj13, FMaj7, G, Dm7, Dm7b5, C
Bridge: G7, C6/E
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I usually follow a similar routine when writing a song so this will pop up quite often throughout the discussion of my creative process for each song. I started by finding a chord progression that fit my vision for the song before writing a melody line or lyrics. This is the best way for me to write and I’ve always used this as my routine, only switching it up once in a while.
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I tried out as many extended chords as possible with this one and made sure to experiment with different notes in the bass. I used a sus chord and a half diminished chord to add tension at the end of the pre-chorus leading into the chorus to be resolved and at the very end of the chorus too. The harmony was a really important aspect of this strong as I knew I wanted a certain richness from it which the extended chords provided well. The tension was necessary for a dramatic song such as this.
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Instrumentation was another crucial aspect of this song. As I mentioned, I wanted to take inspiration from the song Till Forever Falls Apart by Ashe and FINNEAS. This song features a lot of guitar and piano which I decided to use in my own song. I wanted the piano to really be the main part in terms of chords and this is backed up by some synth piano which you can also hear isolated in the beginning of the song. I love using synths and electronic keyboards in my music and I try to have them in every track as a way to experiment and fill the noise up in the background. I used the sounds Old-Time Recording Keys Chords and Pulse Echo Lead to do this. These sounds together actually sound quite spooky and remind me of Louie Zong's Ghost Choir series. I've always loved this series and check in every October for his yearly spooky upload! This was done unintentionally and I contemplated taking the synth away entirely, however I like the ghostly sound and I think it suits the theme of the song. Our story-teller is almost haunted by the memories that they have of the bride and it makes the song even more bitter-sweet.
I had Robbie build a piano part using the chords I had written around these synths and I love the way it sounds. It almost follows the vocals lead and he has added in some amazing phrases leading into the chorus. I also decided to add a strings section to this song. I considered a choir, however I felt that the strings would compliment Robbie's vocals better. I started by using the Logic Pro X string instruments, however I later downloaded Spitfire Audio and used the BBC Symphony Orchestra Discover plug-in instead. These left my strings sounding so much more realistic and warm. I researched more into panning and how to place each instrument in an orchestra through the video below. My cello is panned halfway to the right, with the violins and piano towards the left. This helped the track to sound fuller. I have used this plug-in for some other songs in the project too.
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For the guitar I did create a similar effect to the one used in Only Ones Who Know. I added some reverb and tremolo to accomplish this and I love the way it turned out. The EQ really brings out the treble in the track too. I've always liked a wobbly tremolo in a sad song such as this because it makes me think of someone starting to bubble up, just on the verge of tears.
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I contemplated the use of environmental audio loops for all of the songs on this project but I decided that this might be too repetitive. Sometimes I wanted the music to subtly convey the weather and environment of the season rather than having a loop in every song. Instead, I decided that I would start the album with a rain sample and end the album with a brighter sample. I think it's more obvious when you look at my individual EPs that each song represents a month in that season but it might not be so obvious that I'm starting the album off with September. I think most people would assume I'd start with January and I needed to establish that when you listen to the album you're starting with an autumn month. The best way to do this was through rainfall. I found in my research for my paper that most people associated the mention of rainfall in sad songs with autumn (although rain is something I will explore further in the album).
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As I mentioned earlier, I wanted to incorporate the phrase "something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue" into this song. I wanted to find a way to make it more heartbreaking and kind of flip the meaning around from being a phrase associated with a happy day. I also physically flipped the phrase around to symbolise the opposite feelings that the guest who is singing about his sadness to that of the happy bride. 'You smiling not blue, borrowed this moment. Found a new life to reach to, letting the old one down' was the only lyrics I wrote on this song without having a melody line down first. I wrote the melody around this and then wrote a simple dreary melody for the verses. I wanted the melody line to sound more like it belonged in a funeral. I thought that this would be a good way to signify the sadness that the singer feels in the church on what should be a happy occasion.
Pumpkin Patch
The Idea -
When thinking of an October song I immediately knew that I wanted it to be Halloween themed but without it being obvious. The least spooky aspect I could think of was the image of pumpkins. This is the Autumn EP so, obviously, I couldn't have a nice happy song about a pumpkin patch! Instead it's about being broken up with at the pumpkin patch that you visited every year with your partner.
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Inspirations -
I wanted this song to be the most nature inspired out of the three, considering its outdoors setting. In general, the colder months have ended up being based more around holidays, traditions and symbols of the season, whereas the warmer months feel a lot more outdoorsy and natural. This autumnal symbolism stemmed from Stick Season by Noah Kahan and All Too Well (Sad Girl Autumn Version) by Taylor Swift. Stick Season can be interpreted as both an autumnal or wintery song, since Stick Season is a phrase for the period between autumn and winter in Vermont, however I've chosen to include it as part of my autumn inspiration for this project. I like the way that both of these songs use the symbolism of nature dying around them to show the death of a relationship. I liked the idea of painting a sad, dying image around the story of a couple breaking up in a place that was once so special to them. All Too Well has always been viewed as an autumnal song and Taylor Swift realised this, giving her fans what they wanted by releasing a Sad Girl Autumn Version of the song. I liked the vocal harmony in this song and wanted to try to use it here. I felt like it added more depth and could be used to add to the emotion of the song. I also wanted to provoke a sense of melancholic nostalgia, which I feel when listening to Scott Street by Phoebe Bridgers and Memories/ Astronomy by Conan Gray.
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The Process -
Key: C#
Chords:
Verse: C#, G#, A#m, F#
Pre-Chorus: C#, G#, A#m, F#
Chorus: C#, Fm, A#m, F#
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For this song I already had the chorus melody and lyrics in mind before writing the harmony, however I wrote everything else around the chord progression. The feeling that the chord progression gives off reminds me of Scott Street by Phoebe Bridgers, which is really what I was going for. I wanted it to sound bitter-sweet, kind of sad yet slightly hopeful. I think that this is the sound of nostalgia. Our singer is getting lost in the memories of the relationship and that needs to be conveyed by the music. The interval between the first two chords in the verse is actually the same as Scott Street, however the rest of the chord progression is different. The key choice of C# really helped me to do this too, with it having characteristics of despair and lamentation making the song really melancholic. I allowed the chords to be more basic in this one as I wanted the focus to be more on the lyrics.
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I let the rhythm of the guitar create a more interesting harmony. The slow strums at the beginning and end of the song allow the tune to ease in and out of itself slowly. It starts to pick up more in the chorus to reach an emotional crescendo.
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​ I wanted the instrumental riff to be played on kalimba as it gives that sparkly yet cosy sound I wanted for the Autumn EP. I wrote and recorded the kalimba riff before anything else on the track. This was something that I always wanted to include in the project and I think it fits this song really well. I decided to have the guitar play the main harmony, also as a way to make it cosier and give off a more natural feel. A synth strings part also plays over this which I thought added an extra unique feature to an autumn song. I have used synths more often than I had intended at the beginning of the project, especially in the autumn and winter tunes. However, I think this is an aspect of my own creative process that I always really enjoy using and works well for me. I still want the songs to have that sense of my own personal style and creativity while fitting in with the seasons respective aesthetic.
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I decided to use an acoustic guitar to record the chords for this track to mimic the guitar used in All Too Well by Taylor Swift and Stick Season by Noah Kahan. Acoustic sounds are much more prevalent in autumnal and winter music. I think this is because of how natural it sounds compared to the electric guitar, especially when strumming.
I felt like this one fit Toyah Swan's vocals the best as it gives the song a warm quality. I had written a more pop punk song for her called Never The Bride but it didn't really fit with the rest of the EP, I didn't think it would work well with the album track-list and I preferred Smiling Not Blue which fit the same wedding theme for September, so I replaced it with this. I also did backing vocals on this song. Although I'm not a vocalist myself I decided to try it out here. I think it went fairly well, I do think it would have sounded better if I'd used a professional vocalist considering it was my first time singing on anything I was decently happy. I also did some of these backing vocals quite last minute. The day before I submitted it for release I actually added the final 'where I'm falling apart' backing vocals section so it was pretty much the last thing I had added to the EP.
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The lyrics were a really important aspect of this song for me. This was where the majority of the autumnal symbolism was drawn from, as I mentioned earlier.
When I Look At You
The Idea -
This started out as a basic love song following the married couple from Smiling Not Blue, however after deciding to have each song be its own story rather than a shared one, I decided to link it to the firework shows that we see in November. I wanted to do this by making the instrumentation bright and loud and having the lyrics associate colours with the love story. I didn’t want this to explicitly state anything about fireworks, as I had an idea for another song which would do that. My biggest challenge for this song would be subtly symbolising fireworks.
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Inspirations -
The main inspiration for this song was Campus by Vampire Weekend, which is one of the most upbeat songs associated with autumn. It is generally associated with the season because of it’s lyrics about academia, however the inspiration for this song stemmed from the bass section. I wanted to have the bass play the main riff throughout just as it does in Campus. I was inspired by how upbeat the song is as I wanted at least one song on each EP to feature an unexpected characteristic while still tying itself in with the rest of the songs and staying coherent to the season. Similarly I was inspired by the more upbeat sound and the bass of Alrighty Aphrodite. Perhaps, I subconsciously associate the bass with jazz since it's such an important part of the genre and, because jazz falls in the reflexive and complex category, I associate it with autumn
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The Process -
Key: D
Chords:
Verse: A, D, F#m, A, D, F#m, A, D, F#m, A, D
Bass Pre-Chorus: DMaj7
Chorus: DMaj7, GMaj7, F#m7, D/F#, DMaj7, GMaj7, F#m7, D/ F#
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Since I already had most of the lyrics, I went into the process knowing that instrumentation would be the most important symbol of autumn fireworks. This is why I chose to experiment more with the sounds on Logic to find a few different instruments that could convey the fun side of autumn. I wanted the harmony and drums to sound full and colourful. I did this by experimenting with many different synths on Logic to create the sound I was happy with. These synths together sound powerful and glowing, which is the type of sound I was going for in the harmony. I also had Ben play the chords on my Les Paul Epiphone to add some more dimension to the harmony. I mentioned before that acoustic guitar would be better for autumn but I wanted to go against that in this song. I think that the electric guitar helped to personify to bright energy of fireworks that just wouldn't have been the same on an acoustic. It needed a bit more treble and less warmth. I liked how this allowed the song to stand out from the other tracks, showing the fun and upbeat side to autumn that isn't appreciated. Ben also played the drums and the synth solo on this track. When it came to the drums, I asked him to go as mad as he wanted, especially with the crash cymbal, at the end of the song to represent the crashes of the fireworks. I had tried to use samples of actual fireworks in the song, however the sound just didn’t fit right with the music. It was too slow and the notes just didn’t seem to work. Instead I tried to symbolise the whistle of a firework in the more high-pitched synth solo. I think that Ben's Beat Porter's influence really rubbed off on this one and it became more of a disco track than I'd intended but I actually think this also gels really well with the fireworks them. Although it isn't a genre you would associate with the season, it works really well to symbolise the fun and colourful fireworks and the warm feeling of love that the song is all about. I wanted all of my EPs to have that one song that really stands out and isn't expected from the season but still works well with the overall theme. For Autumn, this is that song. In order for this funky instrumentation to work and fit with the rest of the songs in some way, I had to pay very close to the tone of my lyrics.
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Throughout this project lyrics have been a really useful tool to convey the seasons and each songs relation to them. Since I had already written the majority of the lyrics for this song before, I decided on its connection to November and fireworks, I didn't have a lot of room to work with. I took this as a positive, and as a way to use the music as the majority of the seasonal symbolism rather than the lyrics. I include different colours and words associated with bright lights or fire: amber glow, lilac blaze, honey gleam. I specifically used these colours and words to give off feelings of love, warmth and happiness which is exactly what the person singing to us is feeling.
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I wanted Chloe Hawkins to sing this one because she's great at the more upbeat songs. As the lead vocalist in Dysfunctional Function Band, she is very versatile when it comes to different genres. It is sometimes hard to find a vocalist or singer-songwriter that can work well on more of a pop inspired song. She was the very first vocalist I recorded for this project. She did an amazing job at making the melody her own while still sicking to my creative vision. I try my best to convey the melody that I'm going for in a MIDI region on Logic, however it doesn't always sound the way I want it to. Chloe is great at getting the sound just right.
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To create the rich, full, warm sound that I had in mind, I needed to use plenty of extended chords. Some of these extended chords had up to six notes and different inversions. For example the final F#m7 in the chorus consisted of F#, A, C#, E, F#, A and the final D/F chord consisted of F#, A, F#, A, D, F#. I did this so that the chord progression climbed higher and sounded more full of life. I felt like this symbolised the rising of fireworks really well. It was also a good way to separate the verses and choruses from each other, with the verses being used as a way to set up the chorus. It allowed the chorus to sound bigger and more of the centre of the song.
Winter EP
Visual Inspiration
The visual inspiration for this playlist is more cosy and indoors. I pictured glowing fairy lights, a party scene or snowfall. I wanted the music to mirror this glittery, sparkling image that I had in mind so some more synth and synth bells would be introduced in this EP to symbolise that. All of the Christmas images and cosy indoors scenes helped me when writing Bitter Chocolate. I liked the idea of the singer being cosy at home sitting with a blanket on the sofa in front of a fire. The cold outdoor images were more useful when writing Love Kicks In. I wanted to make this song seem icy and tell the story of someone walking through this cold weather. I'd say that the only images that I used for inspiration for Starting Up Again are the ones of friends with their drink glasses, especially the one with the sparklers. I wanted this song to seem shiny and the idea of fireworks was very important for a key lyric in this song.
Musical Inspiration
I wanted all of the themes of this EP to be more depressing, however I wanted the music to sound slightly different. I wanted the music of one song to sound sad and for one to sound happy. I also decided on trying to create a song that sounded more bittersweet, kind of in the middle of happy and sad. Again, most of these songs are sad love songs, which I have used when writing my own lyrics based around different stories of sadness and love. I continued to focus on my own inspiration playlist with additional characteristics taken from reflexive and complex genres, such as the classical music instrumentation I had explored in the previous EP. To create an idea of a party scene, I also decided to stray away from the reflexive and complex grouping in one song by adding some more synth-pop inspiration to this playlist too.
Bitter Chocolate
The Idea -
As my December song, there was no way I couldn't incorporate Christmas somehow. I wanted to write it about a couple going through a turbulent time during the holidays but I wanted to make it as minimally Christmassy as possible and decided early on that I would only mention the holiday once or twice. This is similar to Stop the Cavalry by Jona Lewie, after his record label decided to market it as a Christmas song from the one line 'wish I was at home for Christmas'. I wanted it to surround a snowy indoors wintry scene more than anything else. I knew it had to sound cosy and as dramatically heartbreaking as Smiling Not Blue. I wanted to bring in my orchestra plug-in a bit more for this one to really amp up the emotion and create much more depth.
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The Inspiration -
The main inspiration I drew from general Christmas music was in the instrumentation, with some glittery sounding synth bells and an orchestra section. However, I have been using strings for a few of my other songs based in the colder months as I though it would be fitting to use them. I used a trumpet, through the Spirfire Audio BBC Symphony Orchestra Discover plug-in, in this song after being inspired by Stop The Cavalry to add it to the strings I was planning on using anyway. I was also inspired to use 3/4 time by songs such as Happy Xmas (War Is Over) by John Lennon, Perfect by Ed Sheeran and Stuck With U by Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande. Perfect and Stuck With U are great examples of songs I've used for inspiration that don't have anything to do with Christmas. Perfect has been associated with the winter season mainly due to its snowy, ski resort music video. Stuck With U isn't as popular as a winter song, being written in May 2020 as a response to the lockdown, however I associate it with the season because of its message of staying indoors and the 3/4 time signature.
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The Process -
Key: D
Chords:
Verse: D, Bm, G6, Gm7, A, D, Bm, G6, Gm7, D
Pre-Chorus: A, F
Chorus/ Bridge: D, G, A, C#dim, Bm, G, A, C#dim, D
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I wrote the chords as a foundation for this song and the melody actually followed very shortly after. This was one of the easiest songs to find a melody for which is probably because the chorus is quite repetitive. The chords often stray away from the key of the song, especially in the pre-chorus to provide some tension before heading into the chorus.
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Instrumentation was, again, incredibly important to me here. I wanted to bring in some synths into this song and the synth bells were perfect for this. They bring a really glittery, sparkling, cold sound to the introduction which I absolutely love. I also have another synth that sounds almost like a cold whistle floating in the air. I think that altogether this sound really helps to symbolise snowflakes, which is a reoccurring theme throughout this EP and is explored in different ways after this song.
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I wanted the vocals to sound cold which I did by adding some extra reverb. I think it helps to make the vocal tracks sound more airy and light. I did this for all of the Winter tracks, but mainly the two slower ones.
Starting Up Again
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The Idea -
I wanted this song to surround the topic of failing to stick to habits and resolutions. I knew that I wanted it to be a party song, making it the most upbeat out of the Winter songs. I always love a song that can get people dancing but still convey such a sombre message, sometimes without anybody even noticing!
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Inspiration -
I was actually inspired by Last Christmas for this one because I wanted to start incorporating electronic drums in this season and it was a great example of the basic yet solid sound I was looking for. I wanted the drums to stray away from the kit that was used during Autumn more and more each season, signifying the change to more electronic music as the seasons move forward. This song is also a good example of a party tune that can get people up and dancing, but at the same time convey a more disheartening message. I was inspired by the synth instrumentation in this song and the Pet Shop Boy's cover of Always on My Mind. I associate this song to winter because it's one of the few non-Christmas songs that made it as a Christmas number 1 in 1987. I've also seen it being used in many Wintery adverts such as the 2019 Burberry ad or the 2021 Guinness ad. I had also recently just started listening to Habits by Genevieve Stokes, which I have actually added to the spring inspiration playlist, as the music itself doesn't fit with the winter vibe I'm going for. Although it has been used as spring inspiration I think it really brought about the idea for the habits theme of the song. Stokes song is more about trying to get over someone that you're in an on-and-off relationship with and constantly failing. I wanted mine to be about the constant repetition of setting new years resolutions and then failing to stick to them year after year.
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The Process -
Key: D
Chords:
Instrumental/ Verse/ Pre-Chorus: DMaj7, Bm7, Em7, AMaj7
Chorus: DMaj7, A(add9), A6, DMaj7, A(add9), A6
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This song isn't connected to Christmas at all, unlike the small connection in the previous song, but I think that the punchy 80s kit is quite reminiscent of the winter season because of the popularity of Last Christmas and its association to winter. I took a lot of inspiration from this song when writing. I wrote it in the same key and wanted a similar bell-like riff at the start. I decided to have this riff match the verse rather than the chorus just as something a little different from any of my other instrumental sections.
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I really enjoyed writing the lyrics for this song. It actually contains one of my favourite lyrics out of the entire project: 'fireworks aren't permanent light fixtures'. I wanted this lyric to convey that the new year reminds us to start all of these healthy habits that we're unlikely to carry on. This new beginning in the form of a celebration won't be there through the entire year
Love Kicks In
The Idea -
This was actually a really difficult month to find an idea for. The obvious choice is Valentines, so I knew it had to be a love song of sorts, but most of my songs have been based around the feeling of love anyway! I decided this one on a crush because unrequited love is not something I'd based any of the songs on and I thought it correlated with the Valentines theme well.
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Inspiration -
I wanted this one to be, not necessarily happy sounding, but slightly more upbeat and hopeful than Bitter Chocolate. I didn't want it to match the dance tune of Starting Up Again though. I took most inspiration from Real Peach and Wildest Dreams from my Winter inspiration playlist. I wanted this to have drums to keep a steady beat but nothing too heavy. I like the simple pounding beat that Wildest Dreams has throughout and wanted something similar. Also similarly to this song I wanted a lot of strings going on in the background. I switched this up a bit by adding synth strings to fit my slightly more electronic theme for this EP. I liked the idea of using the synths more in Winter to separate the songs from Autumn. I think that they add a sparkling quality that was really important to include to make this song colder than the likes of Pumpkin Patch. The lyrical theme of the song is also similar but this is more of a coincidence rather than inspiration since I had already decided on a story for these lyrics.
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The Process -
Key: A
Chords:
Instrumental/ Verse: A, E
Chorus: D5, A, Dsus2, A
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I initially had the lyrics follow the story of a high school crush which you can find here. I changed this to make the song a bit more general for listeners, so the crush is now based on someone that the singer frequently sees on their daily routine. I still wanted it to have a wintry theme, so I based the scenery of the lyrics around a snowy theme. I wanted to mirror the rosy cheeks that someone gets when infatuated by someone with the rosy cheeks that they get on a cold day. This is where the album starts to focus a bit more on the outdoors aspect of the seasons. This has been touched on in previous songs which mention the weather of Autumn and Winter, but it really becomes most prominent here.
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This track also has more reverb on the vocals to make it sound breathier, almost as if Chloe is singing in the cold winter air. I also wanted to include the echo to mirror a cold breeze, especially towards the end of the song where the vocal tracks are all repeating on top of one another.
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The instrumentation for this song was more sparse, because I wanted the vocals to carry it rather than having the drums or harmony pave the way. I wanted to use repetitive harp and synth strings tracks for the main riff that crops up throughout the song. This is supposed to symbolise a flurry of cold, sharp snowflakes. It's also so repetitive to show the never-ending loop of falling in love that the singer goes through every year. It makes the song sound really laid-back and the instrumentation fits really well with Chloe's soft and soulful voice.
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I used the orchestra's stringed instruments again to match the romantic nature of the song.
Spring EP
The visual inspiration for this EP is definitely much more outdoorsy than the previous two. It is also distinctly brighter than autumn and winter too. I wanted to make the music sound as bright as the overall visual inspiration looks. I was inspired by cottagecore images of mushrooms for the first track, Mushroom in a Meadow. Bloom is mostly based around flowers which is prominent in the lyrics. Both of these songs are the brightest on the EP from all of the different colours featured on these images. The slightly darker song is Flooded Fantasy, which was inspired by April showers. The images that I saved conveying rain still have a certain brightness about them. I want to make sure that this song is still hopeful and conveys the message of new beginnings but still has that sadness that the rain brings. This will be done through the instrumentation, using an array of synths to convey a bittersweet feeling.
Visual Inspiration
Musical Inspiration
The music in my inspiration playlist is much lighter than the previous two EPs. I would say that the genres featured here are much softer than the others as well. Some genres included are R&B and Indie-Pop/ Synth-Pop which is what I wanted to recreate in this EP. These are genres that I really enjoy listening to. I wanted to focus more on the guitar and synths for these songs but I also wanted to explore more of the orchestra in some of them too. There are a lot of horns used in some of the more R&B tunes in this playlist which I wanted to explore. You can also see that I added the Disney song Little April Shower. Going into this EP I knew that I wanted two upbeat songs and one downbeat one and this was my inspiration behind my April song on the EP. You can read more about this below.
Mushroom in a Meadow
The Idea -
I wanted this song to be from the perspective of either a plant or animal. I chose a mushroom because I thought I could shape a song around a mushroom's sense of feeling insecure and insignificant when surrounded by a meadow full of beautiful flowers and fauna, and learning to love itself over time. The mushroom is now trying to convince us that we don't have to be scared of it and that we should choose to hang out with this unique little guy instead of the typical flowers we see in the meadow. With these EPs being based around nature, I felt that at least one song should personify the environment to its full potential.
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Inspiration -
I took the most inspiration from No Other Like You and Matilda for this song. The instrumentation for No Other Like You is a lot like the sound I wanted from Bloom so I decided to include that kind of bright electric guitar sound in Mushroom too. Matilda has a nice simple guitar part throughout which inspired me for my instrumental picking at the beginning of the song. The theme of Matilda is also quite similar about moving on and growing. This song follows that theme but which some very unique lyrics from the perspective of a plain mushroom in a meadow. I really took most inspiration from the visual inspiration of the season for this one. In fact, this is probably the song that I have used the most visual inspiration for in the entire album. I feel like this gave a fresh perspective when songwriting.
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The Process -
Key: C
Chords:
Chorus: C, Am, G, C, Am, C
Verse: C, Am, C, G
Pre-Chorus: C, Dm, Em, Dm, Fmaj7, Dm
Bridge: C, Am, G, F
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I originally recorded the entirety of this song with acoustic guitar, however I decided to keep the acoustic picking pattern at the start but replace the rhythm guitar with electric. I felt like this suit the entire vibe of the EP better and suited the synth harmony in the background well. I put a similar delay effect on this guitar as I did in Bloom. I mention later in my discussion of Bloom how this personified growth to me. It feels like the sound is opening up on itself which is what the song is all about. I also think it adds an extra unique sound to the song. The lyrics mention that this mushroom glows during the night so I felt that it should have more of an electric sound about it rather than just natural acoustic. This mushroom is saying how unnatural it feels and how that's alright. I feel like it also shows that separation we start to hear between the Autumn/ Winter and Spring/ Summer EPs. It kind of introduces the listener to the fact that we're in the brighter seasons now and that sounds around us are beginning to change.
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Most of the rest of the instrumentation is very Kirsty typical. There are some layers of synth in the background giving the harmony a unique sound. I also decided to add a high pitched flute in the background as the sounds of the meadow. To me, this personified the bird song that you hear on sunny spring days out in the wilderness. This is the only musical personification I really use in this song because a lot of the natural theme comes through in the lyrics. There are plenty of mentions of flowers and fauna in this song. I can't think of a line I wrote where there isn't! Since I decided to write this song from the perspective of a mushroom I decided that it would probably want to get its point across to us through conversation which is why these lyrics are so important. It's almost like it's pleading its case as to why we should be it's friend and the journey it's gone through to get to where it is today.
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This song is the most indie-pop out of all three with it's instrumentation and lyrical theme. I originally wanted it to sound more like a Cavetown song such as Lemon Boy or Boys Will be Bugs and I always think of spring when I listen to their music. It's always so bright yet angsty at the same time. Once I started recording though I brought in these other inspirations so it strayed away from this sound. If it did have this Cavetown sound that I had previously wanted way back in September/ October when I was first writing ideas for these songs then I would have had Robbie Horn record vocals on it. He has covered some Cavetown before and has the right tone to get that angst across in the lyrics. From the indie-pop genre I found myself in though, I decided that Toyah Swan would be a better match, having recorded similar sounding songs with her before in previous ensemble classes. Unfortunately she wasn't free so I recorded Ceara instead and I was thrilled with the vocals she sent me. I was honestly not very happy with the track without vocals and worried that the end product wouldn't sound the way I wanted it to at all but she totally nailed it and it is now my favourite song on the EP.
Flooded Fantasy
The Idea -
When thinking of April, I immediately pictured rain fall. I wanted it to follow the story of a relationship that is just starting out, with one person asking the other if they will stick with them through the highs and the lows. They aren't convinced that they will. Since April can have pockets of sunshine and then rain fall I though that this was a fitting story for the month. I immediately knew that the April rainfall would be the perfect setting for my sad song on this EP. It helps to separate out the upbeat songs while still giving that message of new beginnings that come with the end of a relationship.
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Inspiration -
The first song that sprung to mind for me was Little April Shower from the film Bambi. I liked the way that the music imitated rainfall and wind and wanted to do the same in my own music. I wanted my rain scene to be a little calmer than the one that Little April Shower conveys, however still build up to a crescendo near the end. I also wanted it to be much more modern with loads of different synth sounds that you could find in songs by indie/ bedroom-pop artists such as Rex Orange County.
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The Process -
Key: A
Chords:
Verse: A, D, G#dim, F#m, E
Chorus: A, F#m, A, F#m, F#m, F#m, F#m, A, F#m
Bridge: A, F#m, A, F#m, A, F#m
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Instrumentation was very important in this one. My chords are played by an Artificial Harp because I thought that the soft plucking sound would be best to support the rest of the instruments. I wanted to layer some synth bells and synth lead sounds at the beginning. I used the Test Tone Oscillator Lead for my main synth melody which plays a steady rhythm of quavers to mirror rain drops. I also had a Calming Bells synth with an arpeggiator playing a constant pattern throughout the song to show the ongoing rain. I also featured a Digital Raindrops synth in the choruses and bridge to add to the dynamics. There are a few other synth tracks layered in there to add to the depth of the song.
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Similarly to my other more emotional songs, I decided to add an orchestral section further into the song to symbolise the rain getting heavier. I took this inspiration from Little April Shower. The string instruments are all either played long, to add depth to the song, or as pizzicato, to mirror the short cold raindrops. There aren't any drums in this song because I wanted to keep it as simple as possible, however, there is a section of long crash cymbals leading to the crescendo at the end of the song. I added in some last minute electric guitar towards the end of the song to pick it up a bit more. I think that this helps to add a certain brightness to the tune.
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I think that the instrumentation of the song creates a bittersweet atmosphere. The brighter guitar and some of the more uplifting bell synth parts help to do this. This was important because I felt that it needed to be told apart from the sad songs of Autumn and Winter.
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I felt that the process for this song was fairly simple considering it is mainly made up of MIDI instruments. This is similar to my summer songs which are also very MIDI heavy.
Bloom
The Idea -
Bloom is from the perspective of a person telling their friend that, although they've seen them go through their worst, they know that they're on the road to a much brighter future. They are letting them know that they don't have to worry about anything and just need to allow themselves to grown and bloom. This is really my one song that is totally inspired by flowers and their growth during spring. I wanted to bring in loads of natural themes in the lyrics
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Inspiration -
This drew the most inspiration from the song Never Forget You which is also themed around friendship. I also was heavily inspired by Put Your Records On which is also more of a hyping up song about self love and confidence. I had Lola O'Dorel in mind when writing this song because these songs really fit her style. In fact she has actually covered Put Your Records On before so I knew it would work really well with her voice. I used a similar theme to both of these when writing my lyrics and choosing instrumentation for the song. I wanted to experiment more with the horn section of my BBC Symphony Orchestra plugin as these are instruments that are prominent in these songs.​
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The Process -
Key: B/ C#
Chords:
Verse: B, F#
Pre-Chorus: B, F#, B, F#aug, F#
Chorus: B, G#m, F#, B, G#m, F#, G#m, F#, G#m, F#, B
Bridge: G#m, F#, G#m, F#, G#m, F#, G#m, F#, C#
Key Change Chorus: C#, A#m, G#, C#, A#m, G#, A#m, G, A#m, G, C
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The process for Bloom was one of the hardest for me. I wanted it to be quite laid back and not too busy with instruments so I decided to stick to just guitar and synth/ bells for the chords. I also wanted to bring in a brass section which builds up more towards the end. This drew inspiration from the trumpets in Put Your Records On. I think that the brass adds a certain brightness to a tune and this was one of the more R&B inspired songs. I wanted the guitar to sound as bloomy as possible, almost as if it was coming to life. I decided that a delay would be a good way to do this. It actually reminded me of a flower opening up in the spring but I don't think this is as obvious as the musical symbolism in previous songs. The brightness is definitely there which comes from the bright and colourful key of B and that key change to C#, lifting the song up at the end. I wanted a key change in this song because of the whole idea of growth. What better way to symbolise it that a jump up in the key?
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I also used an augmented chord to create and solve tension in the pre-chorus. It really adds a push into the chorus and it helps to make the rest of the song sound even more relaxing.
As it was heading towards R&B, I initially wanted Lola O'Dorel to sing on this one as that is her signature style. I wrote this with her in mind. However, unfortunately she was very busy with her own tour once recording started on Spring and so I ended up recording Chloe Hawkins on it instead. I'm still really happy with the outcome and her voice suits the laid back tune really well. The only issue I had in the voice was that she added in an extra s on the end of the lyric 'clear'. She had done this in the recording for Starting up Again as well and I didn't like how it changes the flow of the song. It was another easy fix, however, by using automation. I have to say that one of my strengths in audio mixing is finding solutions to issues like this. In the past I've had to use binaural panning to fix stereo audio recordings sent through to me remotely by vocalists. I only do last minute fixes such as these if they are 100% necessary and can't be re-recorded. I do well at hiding these fixes in recordings and I don't believe they are ever noticeable. I also always get a second opinion by asking someone if they can tell me where they think the automation is. If it's obvious they will be able to notice it immediately but most of the time they can't figure it out. This was the case for both of these automations.
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Summer EP
Visual Inspiration
This is the brightest of all of the EPs visually. Focussing on bright sunshine, golden beaches and juicy fruits, this has some really colourful inspiration behind it. I decided that this EP would be filled with upbeat songs to match it's bright and colourful nature. I wanted most of the songs to surround this imagery of a beach theme or of a sunny cobblestone beachside town. I wanted one of my songs to be more club themed as a lot of my friends had mentioned that they associate clubbing with summer so they would expect a song to match that vibe. The song The Mirrorball is inspired by a clubbing experience during an exotic holiday which is where these summer night themes come in as well. It is the darker of the three songs for this reason however I did want it to remain upbeat. Hello Girl and Dreaming Of are more beach-themed.
Musical Inspiration
I drew a huge amount of inspiration from Pop and Indie-Pop songs when writing this EP. They are all really energetic and uplifting, and remind me of the bright and fun season. This is the season that I always make my own playlist for every year and they tend to feature a lot of the songs from this playlist with some extras added in that I found through other summer playlists or from my friends suggestions. This EP is will not be publicly released until the 26th of May 2023, therefore there is a SoundCloud link to the music rather than Spotify.
The Mirrorball
The Idea -
I had some discussions with friends before actually starting this project, just to see what their opinions were on the kind of music they would interpret each season with. Many of them found it harder to explain autumn, winter or spring but they immediately came up with music for summer. Most of them said club music and upbeat pop songs. I wanted this one to be styled more as a song you would hear at a club and decided to theme it around that too. I feel like most of my friends associated summer with clubbing because it is when they are most free to go out.
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Inspiration -
I was inspired by songs such as Don't Call Me Up, Levitating and Summer Night City. I love ABBA and I'm a big fan of the musical Mamma Mia so when I hear Summer Night City, although it isn't in the musical soundtrack, I always think of a night out in Greece. This visual correlation really helped me when thinking of a story to tell in my own song. I wanted it to be about a woman who has just broken up with her ex and is getting ready to go out for a night of clubbing with her friends. This is where I also got inspiration from Don't Call Me Up which is about exactly that scenario. This song is also very repetitive throughout and follows a really basic structure. Levitating is similar to this with the same four chords playing through the entire song.
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The Process -
Key: None
Chords: C, D#, F, D#
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All of my Summer songs are fairly basic. This did give me a relaxing ending to this project work-wise, however there is an actual reason behind the simplicity of these songs. They are inspired by basic pop songs. Some scoff at the simplicity and repetitiveness of these types of songs, but I personally really like all of the songs I've added to my inspiration playlist. If repetitiveness works to create an ear-worm of a tune, then so be it!
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This song is definitely the most basic of them all and that's because it's mostly inspired by clubbing and the repetitive bass driven music that goes along with it. I used an arpeggiator to really help to drive the beat along in the harmony. It doesn't have a set key, if anything it is just in C but with a sharpened D. I played just four notes on the arpeggiator after being inspired by Levitating to have a really basic and repetitive structure like this. I also ended up using my first instrumental loop of the entire project. I found a funky drum loop in the Logic library that suited the vibe really well. I did edit this slightly at the start to create more of a muffled sound and added in some cymbal risers to add more depth to it, but other than that the drum track really did all of the work for me. Loops are something that I explore in Hello Girl as well.
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This was the most basic process I have for any song. Once I had the idea and lyrics down for this one it was pretty easy going from then on out. The lyrics were actually probably the hardest part. Trying to find a basic line that I was happy with being repeated. I got to be a bit more imaginative in the verses but for the choruses I remained repetitive. This was a challenge to me because I feel like I have so much to say and get across in a song. The structure of the Autumn and Winter EPs gave me this opportunity to explore lyrical imagery. I think it was a good challenge to set myself though because it allowed me to include only what was important and gave me a better idea of how to write a more catchy modern pop-inspired song. I allowed Ceara to have a little more creative freedom with this song than the others. She stuck with the majority of the melody lines that I gave her but she did at some extra repetition. She actually had a sore throat while recording because she hadn't had the chance to recover from the Beat Porters gig the week before, but the raspy sound actually helped the song a lot. I used a few different effects on the voice and had a more distorted vocal track running in the background. I also added a lot of delay to her improvised harmonies at the beginning of the song. She also sang an extra section of chorus at the beginning which I EQ'd to make it sound duller and added loads of pitch correction to make sound more robotic which I think worked really well in the intro. It made the whole thing sound more electronic which is the sound I was going for. Although they weren't on my inspiration playlist, I had Believe by Cher and the intro to Untouchable by Girls Aloud in mind when mixing this section.
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At the very end of the mixing and mastering process for this track I decided to add in a track skipping effect on the drums at the end of the intro and to finish the track by making it sound like a turntable slowing down. I always wanted to experiment with the Remix FX in Logic and this was the perfect song on the project to do it with. There is one synth lead section used heading into the final chorus and the very end of the song that I panned from side to side which I also think makes it sound more immersive and as though you can feel the music, almost like you do in a club from the volume. Again, although it isn't on my inspiration playlist, I had another Girls Aloud song in mind while mixing this section, Sound Of The Underground. I haven't added these songs to my initial playlist because I think it's important to see how inspiration can come in the spur of the moment while mixing. These effects really help add to the theme of clubbing with the idea of a DJ really driving the songs harmony. I feel like the pounding bass sounds in my arpeggiators had a similar impact on the track. I made it very bass prominent, with the same bass-line being constant and pounding throughout. This helped the song to sound darker and I think it better conveyed the idea that this song is taking place on a summer night. It is supposed to sound darker than the other, beach themed and brighter, songs. Although this song was really simple, I'd say that its most important factors are the harmony, instrumentation and these effects that were mixed into the track to give it that electronic, club feel.
Hello Girl
The Idea -
This song is about a short-term summer fling that went wrong. This song is based around those We Are Never Getting Back Together type songs, where one half of the relationship just wants to move on from the whole thing while the other keeps calling them up begging to get back together with them.
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Inspiration -
I was inspired by We Are Never Getting Back Together by Taylor Swift for the theme of the song but musically I was inspired more by California Gurls by Katy Perry and Cheerleader - Felix Jaehn Remix Edit by OMI and Felix Jaehn. I wanted there to be a 00s pop style rap in this song because I felt like it would fit the theme really well and for it to have a recognisable melody.
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The Process -
Key: C
Chords: C, F, Am, G
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I made the chord progression one of the most basic ones found in popular music (I - IV - vi - V). I feel like any short, 4 chord, chord progression is very reminiscent of basic pop, especially ones that start on the tonic and end on the fifth. This repetitive and basic chord progression plays throughout the song much like in The Mirrorball. For the harmony I really just layered some more synths and arpeggiators to create a sound I was happy with.
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I added in a few Logic loops to this project. Ben created the final electronic drum part for me as it's an area that I lack in and he has been creating MIDI drum tracks like this for years now. After putting down the MIDI we picked out a drum loop to run through the rest of the track together.
After he finished with the drums I cut out some sections where I wanted it to be quiet and added in some more loops. There are a couple of riser effects during the rap section which I think just adds a bit more depth to the drums. I also added in a very quiet funky bass guitar loop at the beginning of the rap but it is barely noticeable.
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The introduction and outro melody is played by synths and a horn section. I decided to add the horn section in because of the inspiration I took from Cheerleader.
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Most of the rest of my inspiration can be found in all of the different vocal parts. I wanted the rap to be quite similar rhythmically and vocally to Snoop Dogg's rap in California Gurls and Camilo totally understood where I was coming from. The rap section is from the perspective of the guy that keeps calling our singer and trying to get back together with her. I recorded a demo of the rap on the track for him to follow along with during recording but I ended up keeping it in the background of the track because I think it gave it that extra layer that it needed to stand out. I also think that the female voice being present is reminiscent of the theme of the song, almost following along in a mocking way with the guy who won't get the message to leave her alone. I like the way he says 'let's get off the fence' because I think it's really reminiscent of that vocal sound. I immediately knew that I wanted Camilo to do the rap in this song because I've heard him rapping before with our function band and he brought the perfect sound. Chloe H also knew the sound I wanted and delivered a strong pop-inspired performance. I was also inspired by Taylor Swift's We Are Never Getting Back Together because of it's telephone vocals in the bridge. I decided to add a telephone effect to part of Camilo's rap to suggest that this is a phone call that we're hearing. I also had my friend, Georgia King, who is studying acting, do a short voice-over at the beginning of the song. This was totally inspired by the bridge in We Are Never Getting Back Together. I gave her a really basic brief on the type of thing I wanted: your ex won't stop calling you after you've broken up with him and he's starting to really get on your nerves. I let her improvise and run however she wanted to with that. I've known Georgia for almost a decade now and she is really talented when it comes to all things performance so I trusted her to improvise something really good for this project. She gave me two options to choose from, either angry or just over it. I decided that the angry one was perhaps too much for a pop song like this. It would fit really well in a pop punk song but since this was a brighter tune I decided to go with the second option. In this second take she sounds annoyed by the fact she keeps getting calls from the same person and I personally think that she sounds kind of sorry for him that he is embarrassing himself like this. I like to think of Georgia (in the intro), Chloe (the lead vocalist) and me (featured as backing in the rap) as three separate women who are going through the same story. This could be with the same guy or it could be perceived as three separate relationships, depending on what the listener wants to think.
Dreaming Of
The Idea -
I wanted a more indie-pop inspired song on the EP, which is where Dreaming Of stemmed from. I wanted a bright positive song to end the EP on and I decided that it should be centred around friendship. I wanted to write a song around a group of friends that are living together near a beach. It has quite an unrealistic message of this dream life of no work and just chilling on the beach all the time but sometimes you need to escape reality. What better way than to listen to an upbeat song filled with beachy vibes?
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Inspiration -
This one was inspired by the indie-pop songs in my inspiration playlist and the beachy photos on my Pinterest inspiration board. Some songs that I was inspired by for this one were: It's Called: Freefall, honey, Sundress, Misfits, July (Later On) and Summer Girl. I wouldn't say that any one of these songs gave more inspiration than any others. I think that they all sound quite similar, especially in terms of instrumentation.
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The Process -
Key: A
Chords:
Verse: A, F#m, D
Pre-Chorus: D, G#dim
Chorus: A, G#dim, F#m, A, F#m, A
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This is actually my favourite song on the entire album. It's also my favourite of the summer songs because of its style. The other two are very repetitive to follow the genres of club and pop music whereas this one, while still following a basic structure, has much more depth in the lyrics, harmony and instrumentation. As I said before, I like these repetitive pop tunes but when choosing something to listen to I tend to go towards indie-pop, especially in summer.
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I didn't draw inspiration from any particular song out of the ones I mentioned. It was more the entire genre that really inspired me and the theme of the beach. I decided that one aspect of the music, that would be necessary for this inspiration to really shine within the song, was guitar. Ben loves playing funky rhythm guitar and that's been a main focus of his own creative project this year. He is much better at rhythm guitar than me, with my strengths lying in fingerstyle from my classical background in secondary school. I play the solo on this song and the chords that run throughout, but Ben plays those higher inversions in he chorus. These really helped to add a brightness to the track and gave much more depth to the harmony entirely. I also wanted to include a steel pan drum solo. This is a little different from what I'm used to including in a solo, usually focussing on guitar or synths, but I really wanted an instrument from the Caribbean to feature in this bright song. I wanted it to feel like a tropical beach and I felt like the best way to do this was to include a bright sounding instrument which originated from one of the islands. I used MIDI for this but I really think that I got it to sound fairly realistic in the mix. I added a bit more reverb that usual to make it sound like a live recording and I also copied it on the marimba from the BBC Symphony Orchestra plug-in. I wasn't happy with how the steel drums were sounding on their own so I beefed it up with the marimba to make it sound more realistic and bright. This solo copies some of the line found in the guitar solo but it expands on it more.
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As I mentioned way back at the start of the project, I wanted to end the album with a brighter, more summery, audio loop. I found the perfect beach loop with the ocean and seagulls in the background and I thought it would be a great way to end the album. I started it by using another water-based sample in Smiling Not Blue, rain, so I thought it would fit in nicely by using the same theme of water while making it much brighter.