“Out the hollows where the swallows nest”

This song makes me think of my 18 year old son and that growing up thing he is going through. The realization that a lot of it is bullshit.

Not in a very fourth mood, rah, rah, flags.

So I got up early and did some vocal work on a silly little cover Towers. It’s one of those Bon songs that work out really well on the mandolin for some strange reason. It also features a delicious harmony. I don’t get the harmony quite right. I do my own thing, but I think it works well enough.

This is really an exploration of recording stuff. I got a Mac book for a Christmas and I am just figuring out how I like to record, here in my spaces, with my equipment. I’m not really going for professional. I’m going for authentic. It’s allows some experimentation that is hard to achieve with just one instrument and one voice, especially when I have a hard time doing both at the same time.

This little track focuses on layering voices. It has been a struggle to figure out how to record my voice. I have a high voice. I have a strong voice. It is always uncomfortable listening to your own voice so that is something to get used to. I have experimented with singing close to the mic like you are suppose to and I hate it. I prefer being well off the mic. A foot or two. And adjusting the levels if needed later.

The later section of this recording has me going up to what is the vocal equivalent of a falsetto. Those upper notes are not full notes, To me they feel closed off and not open. I think this protects the vocal cords a little. And I’m not sure if I could sing that B on a full note? I think I can but I don’t love how it sounds. The falsetto thing allows me to approach the note more gently.

So I’m posing this experimentation here. Not sure if I will post this eleswhere. It’s really about learning how to do this through messing around and less about the product. The upper falsetto in two harmonic layers does sound cool. I have to think about that. I’m super proud of that ending note. Vocal it can be tricky landed two parts of the same ending note. And I think I accomplished it.