Week #3 - Out of the Box and Into the Frying Pan - New Song - Stop N' Start

So week 3's challenge was to break outta the box of your songwriting habits. As with anything in life  we can get stuck in the same pattern the same habits and sometimes those habits are good things but sometimes interesting songs can come out of a different appoarch. Christopher Ward gave us some great examples of songs that didn't fit into the conventional mold of songwriting, his hit song "Love Is" which was Alannah Myles first single doesn't rhyme at all in the verses. I tried not rhyming my verses that was hard! The most popular songs tend to fit a structure of VERSE-CHORUS-VERSE-CHORUS-BRIDGE-CHORUS and this works a lot of time but there are great songs that don't follow that form "Please Mr. Postman", "Doggin' Around" and "Spirit in the Dark" are some examples.

I have noticed in my own songwriting that I tend to gravitate towards slow or mid tempo songs partially it's my very basic piano playing that leads me in this direction and I also like singing songs like that. So I decided right away that I was gonna do an uptempo song, I got my song idea while waiting for the bus so I recorded the basic chorus into my phone at a bus stop. Once I got home and had time to flesh out the idea I decided to work with a drum track (this also is out of my comfort zone) but it really helped to keep me in time and write an uptempo song. I also decided to try out some different at home recording setups not with much success at all kinda felt like I was in the frying pan with this one so I went back to doing a very basic rough recording just using my Macbook Pro. This whole challenge is about challenging yourself as a songwriter so thinking down the line I may record some of these songs professionally with a band and all the trimmings!!! :D Would love your feedback on which songs you like that would help me decide which songs to put on my EP ;)

Here are the lyrics and soundcloud link to original song for week 3 "Stop n' Start"
https://soundcloud.com/emilymacmusic1/stop-n-start-rough-cut

Stop N’ Start by Emily MacLeod

It’s Always Stop Start Stop Start

StopStartStopStartStopStart

You’re getting in your way and driving yourself crazy with this

Stop Start Stop

One Step Forward

Two Steps Back

Running Sideways

Getting Off Track

Start to Slip

Start to Slack

Trippping on out into a panic attack

It’s Always Stop Start Stop Start

StopStartStopStartStopStart

You’re getting in your way and driving yourself crazy with this

Stop Start Stop

Wind it Up

And Back Again

Here we Go

Ball n’ Chain

Not your style

Not your plan

Running in Circles against the grain

Hold on, hold on, I think we need to break it down now...

What if you could change this?

What would be possible?

If you put your foot on the gas never let go

It’s Always Stop Start Stop Start

StopStartStopStartStopStart

You’re getting in your way and driving yourself crazy with this

Stop Start Stop

Copyright Emily MacLeod 2014