Sometimes, it begins with a spark…

A Spark was meant to have a bit of an edge to it, musically speaking. I was looking for songs that would explode, but I also wanted the explosions to be just a little bit on the sharp side, while still possessing a strong emotional element. I also wanted to make sure that although I was walking up to an edge, this album isn’t about jumping off, in terms of aggressiveness.

As I’ve written before, I see the Life Is My Soundtrack’s music as a spectrum, and I’m trying to be as open to that idea as I can while I’m writing. By that, I mean that music can be made up of varying degrees of different characteristics. It doesn’t have to be as simple as “happy,” or “sad” (though it CAN be that simple, if that’s what the song requires). Sometimes, different emotions or ideas come together that might not seem like they’ll work together, but when you’re finished and you step back, there it is. Somehow it just works. As I look back on A Spark, I’m really happy with the balance of edge and beauty that it became.

Related Links:

Listen to A Spark on Spotify: HERE

Purchase A Spark on Bandcamp: HERE

Early concepts of 11 songs that helped inspire the Life Is My Soundtrack series…

Inspiration, Vol. 01 is the first entry in a series within the Life Is My Soundtrack universe, featuring early and or alternate versions of songs that have been released. In Vol. 01, songs from sever albums are represented, including A Silver Cloud, After Violet, Whispers, Nostalgia, Gold, Flight, and A View.

It was quite a nostalgic experience going through countless recording sessions and years of material to put together this album. It also reminded me of how much music I’ve written that I haven’t revisited. And though I settled on only 11 songs for Vol. 01, I found countless others that will hopefully come to see the light of day!

Related Links:

Listen to Inspiration, Vol. 01 on Spotify: HERE

Purchase Inspiration, Vol. 01 on Bandcamp: HERE

Some time ago, a thought occurred to me. Over the years, I’ve spent countless hours writing and recording different material, only a very small fraction of which ends up being released. Songs go through different shapes and forms as I try and work through the writing process, and what I release is often not very close to where I started.

In thinking about this idea, I realized that I have dozens (if not hundreds) of recording sessions of different songs that exist in different states. I decided to spend some time going through them and listening to each one. What I found was a lot of early drafts of songs that were later released, as well as all sorts of sketches of songs or short pieces that are in different states of completion, and have only been heard by myself. I also found that I really enjoyed listening to the great majority of it, which led me to the creation of the Inspiration series.

The Inspiration series is a chance for me to share songs early in their inception, in the midst of creation. As I develop new songs, so many things change between the beginning and the end. Some parts are added, some are taken away. Sometimes the key changes, and sometimes it’s the tempo. Sometimes it’s instruments, and quite often it’s the arrangement. There are so many variables in play that what I start with is almost never what I end up with, and this is a chance to share this look behind the scenes with you!

Light, uplifting songs to take you away…

Pollen is the result of demoing out some ideas, looking for songs that had a bit of energy to them, but also a lightness. I also took some inspiration from the image of the butterfly that I ended up using for the cover. I wrote all 4 songs at once, and felt like they fit together really well. I think my favorite track from the album is “Inception.”

Related Links:

Listen to Pollen on Spotify: HERE

Purchase Pollen on Bandcamp: HERE

Remixes of “Whispers,” reimagined and recorded at 432Hz…

The original Whispers was really well received, and I wanted to revisit it. Near that same time period, I was experimenting with alternate tunings and de-tunings, and it seemed like Whispers might be a good place to try some things out.

I settled on tuning down from A-440Hz to A-432Hz, and used much different, synth-based sounds, resulting in a difference that felt right to me. I realize that 8Hz isn’t a dramatic difference, but I enjoy its slightly lower frequency, and look forward to revisiting 432Hz again in the future.

Related Links:

Listen to Whispers (432Hz Remixes) on Spotify: HERE

Purchase Whispers (432Hz Remixes) on Bandcamp: HERE

Reflective songs to spark your imagination…

A View was the first big release after Gold, and continued the expansion of Life Is My Soundtrack’s spectrum. The songs are a little more reflective and maybe a little bit darker than my previous releases (especially Gold), but also a step forward in the stylistic expansion of Life Is My Soundtrack. A View also led to one of my favorite songs that I’ve written: Halcyon Nights.

Related Links:

Listen to A View on Spotify: HERE

Purchase A View on Bandcamp: HERE

Soar above the clouds, looking down at the earth below…

Shortly after Gold was finished, I was hungry get back to recording, but a bit hesitant to take on a full album. I settled on exploring a demo I had worked on a ways back, and the result was Flight. The song came together quickly, and listening to it now, I enjoy its movement and the mix of a driving beat against ambient-style synths.

Flight was a fun song to work on, that also helped me transition from the months of working on Gold into my next album, A View.

Related Links:

Listen to Flight on Spotify: HERE

Purchase Flight on Bandcamp: HERE

8 instrumental, anthemic songs to inspire your life…

Gold is a really important part of Life Is My Soundtrack’s history, and in many ways, began an expansion of what I’ve always wanted it to be. The paragraph below is taken from an interview from when Gold was first released, and does a good job of summing up my thoughts on what the album means to me.

“Music has a huge spectrum, and I want to dive in and explore it. The previous releases in the series have been slow, minimal, mostly ambient songs, and Gold is a bit of a departure, with its tracks feeling bit more anthemic. I want to continue to explore bigger music in future releases, and Gold is the beginning of a bridge to the next destination. I will (of course) also continue to also make smaller pieces as well, but that’s the nature of the spectrum.”

Related Links:

Listen to Gold on Spotify: HERE

Purchase Gold on Bandcamp: HERE

Journey back to a distant time where long forgotten memories come back to life…

The idea for Nostalgia came about in the middle of writing and recording Gold. I was probably about half way through production, and the idea for a few new songs came to me rather suddenly. I felt they they didn’t quite fit with the feeling I was going for with Gold, but I felt compelled to take a break from that album and record these 4 new songs.

I was also inspired by the picture that I used for the artwork to the album. It was taken by my grandfather, who was leaving on a boat with my grandmother and my mom to go live and work in Brazil. All the people on the dock are other family members who were looking on and wishing them well on their new adventure.

I spent a lot of time looking at that picture when I was recording, and feel like it was a strong influence on how the album turned out.

Related Links:

Listen to Nostalgia on Spotify: HERE

Purchase Nostalgia on Bandcamp: HERE

Whispers (9:10) is a duo of delicate, minimalist songs that combine to evoke the sounds of quiet whispers…

The concept of Whispers came to me quite unexpectedly, and it seemed like a great opportunity to begin to work on some shorter pieces. My previous album (A Starless Night) clocked in at just under one hour in length, and I’d been feeling a pull to start spending some time crafting shorter songs. I was also very inspired by the pictured I ended up using for the artwork. It seemed like it would fit well with soft piano melodies, and helped the album come together quickly.

Related Links:

Listen to Whispers on Spotify: HERE

Purchase Whispers on Bandcamp: HERE