Music Monday: lets talk about our feelings
2008 March 31
hello!
remember all that about “will you please listen to my music and tell me if its crap” stuff last week? here’s our first installment. its a sneak peak at what i’ll probably be throwing out there to the blog world pretty soon.
but, it’s a “test”… don’t worry! I’M the one being tested.
huh? well, music & lyrics should match, right? the emotion should be the same between the two. i know what emotion i’m aiming for, but you don’t – and i’ve muted the lyrics to make sure you don’t cheat! so you’re feedback will tell me if i hit the target or not!
i wanna know what you “feel” when you hear this 30 sec clip. what “emotion” comes to mind. what do you see, feel, think? get creative. tell me what’s happening here.
ready? click the triangle:
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I feel an expectation of an energetic worship song. A song that will pick me up and usher me into the presence of God.
The crescendo to start it off builds up this swelling in my heart. The tom drums and keys keep it going. Kinda like a good weeping overflow of the heart. Very raw. I like it. But then the way it resolves/comes down… I don’t know, maybe that’s the point the lyrics come in and ease it down again, but just musically it seems a little anti climatic. But having said that,
I really like the first 27 seconds. Solid, tight, developing, moving passionately toward something. I dig, I dig.
Because of the minor key, I sense something dramatic. Something that will build and be on a more serious note. It sounds like it might be the chorus where you are really proclaiming God’s power and might.
I’m expecting something
Hutch: hint – its not the first few seconds of the song… just a clip of it. i’d be real interested to hear what you think after you get the feel of how its placed within the song….. so, THANK you for the feedback!
You want me to consider context?!!
You’ve definitely got my curiosity piqued now.
And just noticed… why is your blog an hour behind? Did it not spring forward? I wish it were just before 8… then I wouldn’t be behind for the morning!
Hutch: i was hoping that my blog would spring forward on its own, but i didn’t…
so now i guess i’m gonna have to try to fix it without breaking it even more! yikes!!!
two words: hope rising
Hey Mandy,
This is the first time I’ve been to your blog, but I’m very interested in what God is doing in your life. I used to work in the music business in Nashville before taking the position of Executive Director at Cross Point church, so I have a weird blend of appreciation for musicians while also learning to understand the church.
Anyway, the emotion I felt when I listened to the clip was a sense of anticipation/hope/possibly struggle, but worthwhile struggle.
Anxious to hear more!
Jenni
sounds to me like the first 6 seconds is the climb, or search, someone is searching for something then at about second 7 or 8 the person gets it, it clicks, theres so much to take it and it’s all at one time…it’s like when you go climbing up a mountain and you finally reach the top, it’s overwhelming so much to see at one time, you try to take in everything so you dont miss anything– yeah definately, but a interesting urgency like theres literally so much to take in, how can i soak it all up in this moment – in my mind if it were a movie the person has just reached the peak throws his/her bag down puts his arms out and is just spinning around and the camera is spinning with him, he closes his eyes and just tilts his head up as he’s spinning closes his eyes and smiles…
Mandy,
Man I LOVE this riff/progression.
I agree with the building/uplifting emotion – not simply because of opening accent up the scale combined with the crescendo – but the actual progression/riffs has this anticipation feel to it.
I’m not sure what the last chord change does emotionally. Like it’s a bit of a let down like it resolves the tension too quickly – it feel like after that last chord like the song is over or like it’s going into a really quite part. The building/tension of the progression feels like you want to release into something big after that. (All this critique is perhaps moot as this is only a small clip and I don’t know where the song goes next.)
But man I love it. I listened to it like 15 times and got out my guitar.
still not gonna give away any details. but i gotta say that this is a VERY helpful bit of feedback. thank you thank you thank you…. i’m gonna have to borrow y’all’s ears more often. wow.
Mandy, take this with a grain of salt because you know my musical abilities (nada, zilch, zero), but here are my thoughts… the music has a sense of anticipation, of searching, of rising emotions and joyful longing. It seems that the “joyful longing” is somewhat fulfilled at the end of the clip, but not entirely, like there is joy mixed with a tinge of disappointment.
It’s beautiful, and I love it. My foot was tapping and my head was bobbing – great stuff!
I feel like I needed to start running right off the bat. Something powerful and dramatic that would inspire me to fight harder and worship with more intention.
The clip builds a sense of expectation in me. There’s a curiosity rising to “see” what’s on the other side. Something that says, “but wait ’til you hear this…”
I also feel a sense of something building. The clip has a dramatic start although the tempo(?) seems a little slow for me. The keyboard(?) music doesn’t sound smooth flowing to me, sorry the best description I could think of. I also agree with Billy Chia that the last part may “resolve the tension” a little too quickly.
The clip does make me want to hear what is coming next.
“Where I am is dark and hopeless, but I choose to have hope. I choose to believe even though evidence is screaming ‘lost’. This last bit of strength I have, I will use to keep my head above the water until I don’t have to struggle anymore.”
That’s kind of the path my thoughts took…..
I agree with others, there is an air of anticipation. But I also hear struggle…almost a raw emotion against/toward something persistent. I could see it almost going toward rage with the addition of a strong electric guitar and angry lyrics. I’m guessing you’re not going that direction? I do love it…it’s quite captivating.
A birthing, growing…realization or awareness and the last long note just screams LORD to me.
very interesting very interesting!!!!! this is the most fun i’ve had since thursday.
I need to post quicker.
Everybody took my thoughts.
This to me sounds like it’s entering the bridge, or something. I love love love love the toms. They sure help the progression. If it was a snare, it’d suck- but the toms?! Beaautiful. And the rhythm of the guitar goes along nicely with those toms, I think there’s a tiny bit of tempo right in the beginning with the guitar, but it’s hard to tell. It is mixed nicely.
What emotion did I feel? Since it has a driving beat (very good, by the way), it gets my heart racing. It sounds desperate, it sounds progressive, like there’s going to be this intense moment in the song when it is (and the audience) is allowed to breath and the simplicity of it all doesn’t necessarily take you by surprise, but is welcomed.
After all, crescendos must come before decrescendos. Looking forward to hearing this.
Just for kicks, the second time you do the piano step down with the same notes twice dun dun; dun dun; dun,dun; dun dun (I can hear it in my head, but writing a note isn’t so easy haha), you could even add just a touch higher harmony to that- fifths.
Because the piano stands out, as it should, but in a slightly awkward way- it’s not as smooth as it could be. Putting another harmony might make it sound better perhaps. I dunno, you could mess around with it anyway.
(The rythm part that sounds a tinnny bit slow was the down strum that first time you did it when the cymbals come in)
power & glory of God
Becca:
i’m VERY interested in your ear for that 5th harmony… piano riff notes = G, F#, E, A. adding your 5th with the G brings out the D that’s filling that section…. i like parts of the sound, but i’m not sure if the 5ths will carry or crash with other parts of the chord progression (Em, C, D)…
tinkering.
oh – and the final master will bring out the strings more, which will pull the piano back. this was just a quick bounce without all the EQing on the final mix – that might do that piano some good as well…. we’ll see!!! i’ve listened to this so much i’m having a hard time hearing it anymore…..
so, you’re ears are helping – thank you!
well really to come after the previous poster…well I just don’t know what to say…anyhooo, I love the music and loved what everyone said about it. Now when I hear music I “cartoon” in my head (thats what my dad calls my inner visualizations). Anyway, what I saw was very standing on a mountain or cliff or something and feeling wind around me and feeling as if I were to fly. Very cool.
Way cool -
That opening, rising riff reminded me of Crowder … and honestly, I felt more of a stirring, an intercession type, pressing into God. I felt like I needed to turn it up way loud … and I could see Christine Potter doing “her thing” … I’m kinda w/ Billy … I would’ve just liked to have stayed in that tension for a LONG TIME … the way the clip ends makes me feel like “oh man, it’s done”?
Helpful?
Fred: yes. always helpful… thank you!
anticipation.
impassioned–from a lower place, or a place of mediocrity even, just moving into something new…hope rising