How do you know if a song is finished? And, what if (trigger warning) some songs are never finished? What then? Do you release or perform it in an incomplete state? Do you load it on the hard drive, next to all the other half-baked loaves, and hope that one day it will get the attention it deserves?
In this month’s Session Notes blog, Pro7ect founder and songwriter Lisa Fitz dives deep into the subterranean musical universe of songwriting closure and will try to shine some light on the ‘finishing that song’ dilemma.
Firstly, how do you define ‘a finished song’? Is it finished at the writing stage, where you are happy with it in a performative sense? Is finished at the demoing stage, where you are happy with the basic recording and contented to move on to the next idea? Or is a song only ever really finished when it’s released?
As songwriters it is important that we understand these three critically distinct junctures in a song’s life, and respect their successes, and their limitations. If we can’t differentiate between these multiple levels of completion, we could end up in a right funk.
Unfortunately, most songwriters have ten times more practice starting songs than finishing them. Here are some Top Tips to help you find some clarity in the pursuit of songwriting closure.
1. Try something different: Thinking outside the box is sometimes a difficult thing to do, especially when we have invested time and creative energy in a song that isn’t really working. You know in your gut if an idea is starting to feel a little safe or boring (ouch), but I believe that opposition is opportunity and if you give yourself licence to try some different approaches you might be surprised where the idea will lead you.
Pro7ect Headline Producer Charlie Deakin-Davis’ New Year’s resolution to ‘Finish every song I start’ has led Charlie to explore random and new songwriting and production idea’s that they’d never have otherwise entertained. Like adding some jungle breakbeats to an Indi-guitar part. Long story short, but this idea has led to Charlie being invited to play at a festival at the Southbank Centre! This is a great example of how one random thought can lead you to a huge opportunity.
2. Stop doing it all alone: If you want to be the best at every aspect of songwriting and music production, well, good luck! It could take several lifetimes to achieve this lonely goal (even Prince collaborated) and you may struggle to finish anything satisfactorily. There are many roles required to write, record and release a song, from musical proficiency to production, postproduction, mixing, mastering, promotion and live performance. Asking for help and working with other artists is not only good for our mental health, but it can propel a project forward faster.
But finding the right people to work with can be difficult. The best way to find people to work with is by actually working with them, and an easy way to jump this hurdle is by going to a songwriting camp. Pro7ect songwriting retreats at Rockfield Studios have been putting like-minded artists and producers together in the room for 8 years now, and the results speak for themselves: over 100 songs written and recorded by 123 artists over 7 years with 17 releases, 4 sync’s, 3 albums produced, and many collaborative songwriting and production opportunities made through our community. Lots of musical babies… no real babies yet (that we know of).
3. Give yourself a deadline: What’s the end goal? Whether it’s completing a song to demo quality, or fully-fledged release, it is good practice to give yourself a manageable goal. To reach the top you need to get to base-camp first and your songwriting career will be much more sustainable if your goals are clear.
You could try starting with little goals like finishing a song section, or writing a chord progression before you move on to a new idea. Alternatively, you could give yourself a drop-deadline (like commercial artists have to work to) to force yourself through the net of procrastination and indecision to get the song completed. This process doesn’t work for everyone but it’s an interesting experiment to try.
4. Get organised: I know how difficult it is to mine old ideas in the archived folders on the hard drive, or to look through your old songbooks. It’s like an Aladdin’s cave. As songwriters we are usually forwards looking and trying new idea’s, rather than re-visiting older ones. If you can put a side some time to delve into the depths of your songwriting past, categorise and catalogue your work to date you may well find some diamonds in there just waiting to be polished.
5. Stay in your lane: It’s helpful to stay focused on the job in hand, whether that be writing a killer top-line or recording a great guitar sound. As artists we often race ahead of ourselves and start thinking about production whilst we are still writing the song, or the music video before the lyrics are finished. It’s good to remind yourself regularly what the actual job is that you are doing if your creativity starts wandering off into different directions. Thinking too far ahead can distract you from the creative flow of simply writing the song.
In my opinion a song is never really finished, just abandoned. I’ve committed songs to ‘forever’ by recording them only to hear them evolve in very different ways when they are played live over many years… then I’ve recorded them again and so on. In my opinion the fluidity of this artform is unique and exciting and as we learn our craft, and grow as people, so to do our songs evolve.
Dates and Prices for Pro7ect 2023 are:
18th - 22nd July 2023 - £1,695
Masterclass:
22nd July 2023: 10am - 5pm - £195
With Gethin Pearson and Lisa Fitzgibbon
To find out more and to apply for a place at Pro7ect 2023, please visit www.pro7ect.com.