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The Trials & Tribulations of The Unsigned #2: Where Do I Begin?

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At the beginning usually. Music is almost like a diamond - it has many facets at the same time. As with a diamond there are so many shiny sparkly facets that you can look at and consider but the one thing that counts is the staple of all decent musicians - the songs they write. So metaphorically speaking - if a song is a diamond, the cut better be good!

Good songs can usually be ’stripped back’ to their bare bones and still sound great. Their structure, lyrical content and message is usually clear, they’re catchy and if you play a song and can’t remember it half an hour later it probably isn’t memorable enough for someone else to remember either.

It depends, I suppose, on what type of song you would aim to create. Maybe you are thinking of writing something for the first time, or you could be a serious writer - in any case the type of song you end up writing will be different from the next person who picks up a pen and paper. Try not to strive for your work to sound like ‘the song that was number one last week’ or a rehash of something that’s already out there. Find your own sound and style, work with what you have already, flex your creative muscles and just write!

Sure, the major recording artists that don’t pen most of their own material have their hit records crafted for them, but without those songs and the overall appeal of the artist they probably wouldn’t have achieved such success. These artists all have one thing in common - the song is key.

Your work doesn’t need to follow any specific ‘formula’ or structure, i.e ‘the chorus will definitely go there, there should be a bridge here’ etc. A song should be created using your instinct, not a set of rules laid out beforehand to tell you where the chorus or verse should go. Like most things in life try to trust your instincts - indeed what feels right to you will usually sound right too.

The best way to start thinking about writing something is to get inspired. What moves you? - subjects, issues you are passionate about are a good way to vent some of your expressive talents into something productive. Not only do you get the benefit of writing about something you care deeply about, chances are that the message of your produced work will also be more poignant. Stick to writing something concise and to the point. Don’t get too carried away rambling on about small points, keep on track. Sometimes it may be necessary to re-write/edit lyrics, sometimes you may come back to songs months later after they’ve been ‘floating’ around your brain for a bit. Other songs get written in half an hour. Whatever feels right is the best way to determine what you should do with the writing. If you start something and feel ‘pushed’ to finish it or can’t seem to find the right thing to say leave it all for a while and come back to the song fresh and ready to explore the potential of the lyrics. Seeing your writing in a different light is sometimes all that’s needed to get inspired. Not all songs happen ‘overnight’.

Just as Metallica do not write songs about ‘pink elephants’ and ‘cream cakes’ you too will want to define your overall sound to the listener to make your music identifiable to them. If you are already an established artist/band you will be thinking about writing material that fits the sound of your overall style and creative direction. There will be areas of subject matter you may not venture into and probably with good reason, if you are a rock band you write rock songs, ballads and killer riff epics - cream cakes were never ‘rock’ enough anyway. You can really experiment, unleash your quirky or fun side, you can write about whatever you like. If you’re writing for your own enjoyment you can of course do this. The point I’m trying to make here is that major recording artists have to write in specific genres to fit their image. You don’t have to and you have the creative freedom to find your own sound in the process.

Maybe the most important thing is not to end up with something that doesn’t reflect where you want to be heading in terms of your own vision. Some songs do not make the grade and get ’shelved’. This is fine, and sometimes necessary. Car manufacturers don’t send out their end product without the right parts stuck on and neither should you. You can however learn from these ’shelved’ songs. As a writer it’s your job to write and part of getting the good songs to work is also realising that the less than perfect songs don’t have to make it off the page and onto a record, afterall you can accept that something is not good enough or isn’t right in the long run. Just like the car that got built with the wrong engine your songs can’t always be 100% ready to be let out into the world. The car will probably be kept for inspection, and for someone to ask “where did it go wrong? What can be changed to make it better?”

So, some songs make it out into the world, others stay close to where they were written and never see the light of day. Writing a song without heart is like painting a picture without a canvas, if the heart isn’t there why bother? Think of how other people could connect emotionally with your work, what they may take from it, what it means to them. If you can write something that makes people think, feel, cry or laugh you’re onto something! Whether you write an angry death metal thrash fest of a song or a sad and pretty little ditty how can it possibly be wrong if it came from your heart?

So, I hope you will take something away from this small piece of writing, and that you consider above all else that the song is key. So go get your pens out and make for the paper too!

Written by Emma Rugg - April 2008
Read more: Guest Columns, Emma Rugg