I wanted to make an epic pop record. I wanted the music to fire off every neuron that convinced a body it was a good idea to dance, run really fast, stand taller.
My co-producer, Jonny Tobin, and I spent a lot of time layering sounds to achieve this bigness. Maybe this was our “Wall of Sound” record.
In all of the layering Jonny and I did, some of the material we worked so hard on had to be felt more than heard. There is only so much one can bring a listener’s attention to in a single mix.
With that in mind, I thought it might be fun to pull out some of the lesser heard instrumental arrangements from LoZ so you can hear them in isolation. You can tune into some of these subtler details and then dive back into the album and see if your ear picks up on anything new.
At first glance, this may seem like a music nerd deep dive.
It is.
But I also think this kind of listening can bring an added richness to the music. After hearing the isolated string arrangement on Michael Jackson’s Rock With You for the first time the song glowed with new grandeur for me.
Maybe this seems a little navel-gazey, but we are living in a time when a record comes and goes in the blink of an eye. An artifact someone has spent years of their life on can disappear without anyone noticing. There is always something new (or something old) that we can switch our increasingly split attentions to with the swipe of our finger.
We spent many months (for me, years) on LoZ and I think it’s okay to stand up and be advocates for our work.
If nobody is leaking my stems, I may as well do it.
In my own life, I am progressively trying to slow down and re-visit to discover the depths I couldn’t possibly have waded into upon a first watch or listen.
So here is an invitation to slow down and listen a little closer.
Enjoy.
love,
David
Stems
At the top of this publication are the triumphant harmonized synth lines Jonny Tobin recorded for 1,000. In the mix we opted for the warmth of the vocal harmonies to take precedent but I love the way these synth lines weave and jubilantly sing together.
Listen to the album version below. These synths lines start at 0:35.
Apple Music
Spotify
Layers of LoZ