Ahh, for once I had a weekend set aside for rest and relaxation. My husband and I decided to forego most organized activities and just hang out at home, run some errands and play in the studio.
On Saturday, we had breakfast at about 12:30 p.m., which set the tone for a low-key day. We ran around to the health food store, the home improvement store, Target and a drum shop. Somewhere in there we managed to go to my old drummer’s house and pick up my music gear.
As we went back and forth from home, we kept encountering two sets of gung-ho neighbors who seem to spend every waking moment working on their houses and grounds. It makes us feel a little embarrassed to see them working and working and working when we haven’t even bothered to plant flowers this year yet. At least our lawn guy keeps our yard looking good otherwise.
As we drove around on Saturday, I kept listening to the two songs for which I planned to write lyrics over the weekend. On Sunday morning, I woke up early and immediately thought of a good first line for one of the songs. That told me what the song was about (being haunted, if you’re curious), and I spent the next couple of hours writing the rest of it.
I was anxious to record the vocals, but we had plans to take my stepmother out to lunch and to see a local history documentary. After a lovely afternoon, we finally settled into the studio around 5:00 p.m. and I managed a good enough recording to at least show my new collaborator what I’m capable of lyrically and vocally. My husband layered on some effects, mixed it down, saved it as an MP3 and uploaded it to YouSendIt so I could forward it to the guitarist.
He called within the hour. As soon as I answered the phone, I started spewing excuses, "It’s a rough recording…I know the verses sound a little Disturbed-y…the vocals are mixed too hot…I meant to get more than one done…" Gah! What’s wrong with me? It wasn’t 100% perfect, but I did a good job and I know it. Why do I let musical stuff suck the confidence right out of me?
Luckily, it was clear that he was impressed, and we made plans to get together next weekend so he can bring me a bunch more songs that are just guitar right now. My husband is interested in playing on the tracks and recording us, so it looks like I’m in a band again. Now all we need is a bass player.
All that wrapped up in time for us to watch "Desperate Housewives" and "The Sopranos" before we went to bed. I’m looking forward to being less of a slave to the TV now that summer is almost upon us.
I can already feel that this is going to be a busy work week. I have lots of writing to do on a variety of projects. However, I may take Friday off, so that should balance everything nicely.
How’s the week looking for you?
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