Nicholas Lutsko
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Week #2 Update: 11/5 - 11/10
🕑 Added 2023-11-11 17:50:38 +0000 UTCCiao!
Big Nick here with this week's report.
Sunday 11/5
I was excited to dive in on this new song 'Come Again,' but I received a round of notes on this Ren & Stimpy theme song around 9 am. I can go into specifics another time, but they requested some pretty substantial changes. I spent the day reworking the piece, trying to get it out of the way so I could get back to the other new song.
Monday 11/6
I woke up and put finishing touches on the second stab at the Ren & Stimpy thing. I was stuck in Ren & Stimpy mode for the remainder of the day, so I didn't get much done on 'Come Again.' I should receive word on whether or not I've got the job early this upcoming week. Fingers crossed!
Tuesday 11/7
I picked up where I left off on Friday and started tracking the second verse of 'Come Again.' I started falling into old habits and spent way too much time experimenting with textural elements rather than focusing on getting a full skeleton of the song down. By the end of the day, I was frustrated with my progress and decided that the new goal is to finish a song a week. I'm far more productive when I have concrete goals and saying them out loud helps hold me accountable.
Wednesday 11/8
Wednesday was my big breakthrough day on 'Come Again.' I wrote a bridge that thematically ties it together in a way that I'm really happy with. The song is pretty bleak lyrically, but the bridge provides a silver lining that ends things on more of a hopeful note.
I'm not sure anyone else will be able to make sense of this, but to me, the song feels like if 'Dracula Can Get Wet' had a baby with 'Salt.' And then that baby had a baby with the '70s. There are flourishes that remind me of Peter Gabriel, Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne and Bruce Springsteen, but I'm not sure how apparent they'll be to anyone else. You put all of those guys together in a blender and suddenly it doesn't sound like any of them.
Thursday 11/9
Now that I had the full skeleton written and recorded, I listened on my phone over and over and wrote down notes. The biggest thing that was bugging me was a lack of variation in the vocal harmonies, so I spent most of the day tracking new vocals and mixing things differently in an attempt to keep things interesting and less repetitive.
Friday 11/10
I finished a week of work on this song by expanding and fleshing out the climax. I sent a draft to the band for their feedback and any potential contributions. I'm loving where this one is at, but I'm excited to step away and start focusing on the next one.
Can't wait for you all to hear.
Ciao,
(Big) Nick
Comments
Thaddeus Carpenter
Just went back to the 4/13 livestream and listened to the acoustic version of this song while reading these past two posts. I already really dug the song and had listened to it a lot, but I found a way deeper appreciation for it after reading all this. So excited for this album and for the fully produced full band version of this track.
Molly Rosen
I'm excited to hear this one. Since you released Obituary, I've been really digging the "bleak but hopeful" vibe and wishing there would be more of that to come. Keep it Salty, Big Nick!
Cooley
I can totally get behind DCGW and Salt's baby having a baby with the 70's. Salt is my favorite song so any of its kin are friends of mine.
