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Song tells a Story - but does it need to be
an Abstract novel?
For
a musician, your songs are your art. They are the physical embodiment of your
creative gifts. Every bit of anger, happiness, angst, joy, pain, elation, knowledge
or humour goes into the story known as your song. You write and re-write it, scouring
over each note and word…perfecting it for recording and live performance. But
when you play it for others, you’re not getting the reaction you expected. Your
friends, fans and family seem less than enthusiastic as they dully respond, “Yeah.
That was…um…good.” How could this be? You poured your soul into this piece. This
was your “Stairway To Heaven”! This was your “Smells Like Team Spirit”! It’s a
lyrically amazing ode about the persecution of pagan midwives in grass hut tribes!
It flows, it breathes, and it’s seven and a half minutes of pure musical perfection!
Whoa. Stop right there, Mozart. You wrote a seven and a half minute song
about the persecution of pagan midwives in grass hut tribes and you’re wondering
why you’re thirteen year-old cousin fell asleep in the middle of the fourth verse?
You wrote a seven and a half minute song about the persecution of pagan midwives
in grass hut tribes and you’re confused as to why your drummer’s girlfriend began
calling her friends on her cell phone before the song had reached its bridge?
It may be hard to believe when you’re penning an opus such as this, but
the normal human brain is wired a little differently than an accomplished musician’s,
like yourself. And although music is art, it’s also popular culture and the goal
should be for others to enjoy your creative efforts as much as you do.
So,
how can you make sure that your writing experience is as positive as your audience’s
listening experience? What can you, as musicians do, to eliminate aspects of your
songs that may alienate, confuse or just plain bore your fans?
The following
are a few tips that may add success to your songwriting experience:
1.)
After Four Minutes, It Becomes Background Music---Music aficionado’s aside, the
average person has roughly the attention span of a young adult hummingbird. As
a songwriter, you need to grab your audience’s attention and hold it until the
end of the song before they flit off to something else more interesting to them.
Although four minutes (or less) may seem like the blink of an eye when a songwriter
is storytelling, it’s a very long time to expect your run-of-the-mill club-goer
or web-surfer to stay fixated on your music.
2.) Tell Your Story As Directly
As Possible---We all love allusions, allegories, vague references, and subtle
metaphors but use them sparingly or become a beat poet. A little abstractness
goes a long way when writing a popular song. Song lyrics fly into people’s minds
as quickly as the bassist plucks out quarter notes. If you make your lyrics too
complicated, then your audience may still be trying to figure out the verse when
you’re already playing the chorus. This could prompt the average listener to tune
out your masterpiece, order another beer and switch on their Ipod.
3.)
If English Is Your First Language, Use It In Your Song---It’s great that you’re
an educated, cultured, artistic intellectual sponge. But remember that most people
who hear your music are not book worms or art whores. Big, involved words make
for memorable song lyrics but use them occasionaly. It’s good for your fans to
ponder the meaning of a particular lyric but give them too many to ponder and
they’ll get so caught up in the words that they may forget your song.
4.)
Obscure Musicality Can Be Confusing Too---Lyrics aren’t the only way to confuse
the average listener. Obscure time signatures, discordant instrumentation and
avant guard drum lines may seem like genius to your fellow musicians, but if your
listeners can’t tap and/or hum along, you may find yourself only invited to perform
in underground opium bars where the audience members have all had one too many
hash brownie.
If you’re not sure where to begin, start simple. Write a
short, but sweet, song that packs an emotional punch in a universal way. Write
about something everyone is familiar with: love, politics, lifestyle issues or
the sociology of being a human being on the planet. Once people have fallen in
love with your music, it will be easier to get them to give the extra listen to
your more complicated, artistic pieces.
Remember that just because a song
is popular or easily understood, doesn’t mean that it’s not good creativity. Art
is subjective, and truly in the eye of the beholder. Your least favorite song
could be someone else’s favorite. You never have to stop being creative or artistic,
just acknowledge that there’s an audience out there that wants to hear what you
have to say…but they’ll need to be able to comprehend it first.
About
the Author Sheena
Metal is a radio host, producer, promoter, music supervisor, consultant, columnist,
journalist and musician. Her syndicated radio program, Music Highway Radio, airs
on over 700 affiliates to more than 126 million listeners. Her musicians’ assistance
program, Music Highway, boasts over 10,000 members. She currently promotes numerous
live shows weekly in the Los Angeles Area, where she resides.
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