Free downloads of: 'IN CLOUD CUCKOOLAND', 'Anonymous', 'Overzealous Work Ethic', and 'Opus.1'

Wednesday 29 June 2011

Evil Eye

Today I sat down at the keyboard and began recording the new piano tune I'd come up with days earlier. After numerous attempts, I managed to get one I was happy with. I then decided to use the 'Evil Eye' lyrics I'd also recently written. The vocals turned out well on the first take, and so I left it at that. I then added some noise in the background to fill out the song a little.

The lyrics themselves are about feeling like that guy that never gets the big break he wants, needs or deserves. The guy who sees those around him accumulating wealth or success and has little chance to do anything about it. The guy who hates others for doing well; or is envious when they have something he wants. The lyrics and experiences are based around thoughts and feelings I have. An example of this is that I don't drive. And when I get fed up of walking and busing it everywhere, I get envious of those who can drive. Sounds stupid, but it is true.

I'll have a double check from time to time to see if I can improve the song in anyway, but I want to keep the songs quite plain and to the point. I also added some french speech behind 'To Scratch an Itch' and edited it a little so it sounds a little basser, as I felt it was sounding a little flat.

So that's another new addition to 'Overzealous Work Ethic'.

Watch this space,
Wullae

www.soundcloud.com/wullaewright
(Available on soundcloud for free download)

Tuesday 28 June 2011

'Overzealous Work Ethic': Future Ideas

As the 'Overzealous Work Ethic' project develops throughout the second half of 2011, I'm going to put up the odds and ends that lead me to come up with the songs, lyrics and music that I do get. I didn't really do this so much with any of the previous projects as I have written about them. I feel this will allow you to get a better idea of the, sometimes, haphazard ways I eventually end up with a finished product. In my phone at the current time, I have a note entitled 'Album ideas: titles, etc...' which I have incorporated certain aspects with the 'Overzealous Work Ethic album ideas' note. This is how the ideas are at the moment:

Description - an idea of an album could be of weird and wacky stories: from made up ones, and real ones. Subject matter is of the weird and sublime, e.g self-combustion.

Art - get the words in scrolls and have the background behind the scrolls all weird pictures etc. Call it something like 'the weird and wonderful'

Album titles

Overzealous work ethic
Satirical Oxymoron
Under the Pyramids

Song titles

To Scratch an Itch
Evil Eye

Song title ideas -

Tuned to the moon
Catalyst
Such is life
Been there, done that
...And all that was left were his shoes (song about self combustion)
Faux Pas
No Guts, No Glory
Sod's Law
See a man about a Dog


Lyrics -

I'm living under the umbrella of Sod's law,
The rain drenches my hair from the inside out, (under the shelter),
I'd be sort of scared to smile and cause a crash,
Gaze at a summer's sky, and it overcasts and shatters,


My sleep-wake cycle is fucked,

When your eyes are whitewashed with a daydream

My bitterness with society, lies not with you alone, but with all you cunts,

Captured in a flash and a click,
Surrounded by passion and printed images,
With my heart on my sleeve,
And mental prowess advancing,

All of these notes have been taken from 2010 onwards. They have been mixed up and I feel they may be able to eventually contribute in some way to the 'Overzealous Work Ethic' project. The description is not the idea that I have now. It still slightly brings in those aspects, but it is more the striving and getting turned down that is the main subject. The other album titles I may use elsewhere. The song titles are good, and are allowing me to write the songs I want to. So, I'll see what happens with all this random information,

Watch this space,
Wullae

www.soundcloud.com/wullaewright
www.wullaewright.bandcamp.com
www.youtube.com/wullaewrightmusic

The Story Behind: Merchant City Man

I hated living in student halls. Well for the most part. At the end of 2006 I moved out of my mum's home, and moved into student halls. Before then I was pretty down and pretty much a whole different person. I dressed differently, thought differently and acted differently. I lived in a highrise student accommodation until around March of 2003, and in these months I had gone from an aggressive, politically-minded, lonely unconfident individual; to someone who had greater confidence, with a fashion sense, and a calmer and happier temperament. I met new people, had relationships, wrote a new style of music that I hadn't touched on before.

I later moved to another student accommodation, in the Merchant City area of Glasgow City Centre. From April 2007 onwards, this was the time I felt myself become me. I wrote Thursday 5th April 2007 @ 11.51am, in Queens Park, overlooking the city. I got my tattoo that day. And so in the summer of '07 - apart from working, I relaxed and enjoyed life. I wore sunglasses - which I never did; I relaxed in the sun for a tan - which I never did. I was relaxed and content. Up to this point in my musical writing, I'd never written anything happy. It was all dark, depressing or even disturbing.

As the summer progressed, I'd listen to 'summer' tunes (or that I would regard as summer tunes) such as Bloc Party's 'Silent Alarm' and the Stereophonics 'Performance and Cocktails'. I would listen to 'I wouldn't believe you radio' by the Stereophonics, and kept thinking that I'd like to write something that cool and upbeat. So one night, staring out my window watching the distant traffic through the gaps between the highrise buildings, with my feet on my desk, I began writing the guitar tune. I got the basic chord, but I felt they needed jazzy up and so I added little licks inbetween them. And that was how the tune came to be.

The lyrics I wrote over a short period of time, based on all my experiences I had in the Merchant City area. I use to pop into Tesco and the staff would look at me like a dick; I'd walk down the street and everyone would be trying their best to look like cat-walk models; the streets would shine in the sunshine; the heat would carass my body; I'd buy smoothies and junk food and go home and watch 'Scarface' three times in a row. It was a beautiful time. Those were the days.

One vivid memory I have - which is the last verse in the song Merchant City Man, is of an old man. As I walked back from wherever I had been, I turned a corner and saw an old man dancing and singing loudly. I have no idea if he were drunk or not, but he sang with real passion. Every word. So I wrote him into the song. And the Merchant City Man with his hat, that's me.

Merchant City Man

When I'm running around this city,
I feel it's damn to pretty for my eyes,
All the gorgeous people staring,
I just grin and bare it and walk on by,

I get served by a miserable few,
All I did was buy a smoothie and ice,
What's wrong with being nice,
I see vanity it makes bulk
I let the sun stroke over my face, over my shades

And what does it mean to me,
To be where I want to be,
In the sky,

I might smile when nothing is funny,
But that's fine, I want to be a looney for a while,
While it lasts,
The shadows walk those groovy steps,
No common sense, bad dress sense, makes no sense at all,

Merchant city man with his hat,
Escape, berate the man singing out loud,
But he's so proud

And what does it mean to me,
To be where I want to be,
In the sky,

Written May/June 2007

Since then I have made three seperate recordings of this song: in 2007, 2009, 2011. I have performed it numerous times at gigs and it gets a good reaction. The most recent version is on 'Opus. 1', free to download at bandcamp.

Those were happy days,

Watch this space for more 'The story behind...',
Wullae

www.wullaewright.bandcamp.com
www.soundcloud.com/wullaewright
www.youtube.com/wullaewrightmusic

Monday 27 June 2011

Overzealous Work Ethic: A description and new lyrics

I realise that I have put up artwork and lyrics for the new project entitled 'Overzealous Work Ethic' and not elaborated or explained what the new idea is about.

'Overzealous Work Ethic' is a quote I took from the television show 'Lost'. The character Sawyer describes Hurley as having an '...overzealous work ethic...'. The humorous aspect of the expression in the show touched a nerve with me, and I immediately wrote it down wishing to use it later. I thought it would be a good title for an album, but wasn't sure about using it.

So later I am struggling to come up with any new ideas. 'Anonymous' is at an end, and I am absolutely delighted with how it sits as a collection of songs, but I needed something new. Something different. I tried recording an acoustic tune with a dance beat. I thought, that's a cool route to go down, acoustic songs with dance beats. Quite simple. But then I thought it is too similar to Opus. 1 and so would get a little boring. So I pondered over ideas, but still nothing.

My life at the moment isn't in the best shape it could be: putting on weight, needing to look for new work, disputes with people, low financial income, etc, etc. An endless list of negatives. With all this, it has been bringing me down quite a bit. I have ben feeling helpless, frustrated and undermotivated. As a person, I try my hardest to get my standard of living better, but I always feel like I get the shit end of the stick.

I had a set of lyrics sitting entitled 'To Scratch an Itch' written in october time 2010. I had never used them, and read them over. I thought they were actually really good and honest. I put it first to an acoustic tune I had written, but didn't think it worked too well. So I went back to the drawing board, and thought about recording an old piano I had and loved, and adding the lyrics to it. So I did. And it turned out to be a good move.

The day after recording the tune I was in the mood to try and make some art for it, but hand drawn and painted, not graphic. I had an idea of making the art look like a Harry Houdini poster I found on the net when I was considering ideas for new album titles and art. So I took inspiration from this, drew it in ink, coloured with highlighters and permanent pen, and painted. I drew a bowel hat I have, and wrote a French phrase next to it taken from Rene Magritte. The end result made me think of some old French artist or something, and I thought it was perfect for what I wanted to do now, and gave me some direction.

So I started looking at the title 'Overzealous Work Ethic' and what it means to me. The theme behind it will be in regards to those people who try and do their best but always seem to get nowhere. It is a realistic album about pursuing your dreams, and not getting where you want to be. Some of the songs will be about me, from my own thoughts, feelings and experiences, and other songs will be about similar situations or people. I have written two new sets of lyrics in a similar vain, one about being envious and jealous of those with wealth entitled 'Evil Eye' and the other is about the fictional story of a Busker who has been pursuing their dream of getting a record deal his whole life, to eventually die without ever achieving it, entitled 'The Busker'

Evil Eye

I can't get near negotiating with the big bucks
See, I'm neither upper nor middle, I'm the lowest of the low

You rub your notes, with the queens face on,
I rub sticks, fire, and burn my house down,
I hear what you say, there's envious undertones,
But it's how I feel, it's what I see,
It's who I am, and what I'll always be

At the bottom of a ladder
I have my own glass ceiling,
There's nothing at the end of the rainbow,
Well for me anyway

You rub your notes, with the queens face on,
I rub sticks, fire, and burn my house down,
I hear what you say, there's envious undertones,
But it's how I feel, it's what I see,
It's who I am, and what I'll always be

Written June 2011

The Busker

'I want to make it in this world' he proclaimed,
And with that, he left with his life hanging over his shoulder,
Everyday the same routine, counting pennies in his newly purchased cap,

'When will I get my big break?' He would quizz,
Staring into a glass half empty,
The routine depletes, the enthusiasm the same,
And as the aging cap holds together by each hand stitched strand,
Ambition lingers, the pennies wain,

The busker passionately screamed,
He never gave up, but no one understood,
Those songs that were so close to his heart,
He never fulfilled his dreams, and died an empty man,

'I don't understand?' He sadly weeps,
Staring at wrickled hands, with youthful eyes,
His six string companion has seen better days,
The trusted cap which tirelessly remains,
And as he remembers those forgotten days,
And the lyrics that made him feel alive,
He takes his final breath, and his final bow,

Written Monday 26th June 2011 on the bus

I have a piano tune I'm working on and wish to use with Evil Eye, but it is still a work-in-progress. 'To Scratch an Itch' isn't finished yet, as I would like to either try and put some brass behind the piano, or use noises of either an old frenchman talking or the sounds of a French bar or street scene. I think it would create a nice atmopshere behind the music.

Watch this space,
Wullae

www.wullaewright.bandcamp.com
www.soundcloud.com/wullaewright

Saturday 25 June 2011

To Scratch an Itch

This is a new song even though the lyrics were written in 2010, and the piano tune written in 2005. It is about being honest with people about how you are feeling, and them throwing your feelings back in your face. It is currently a work-in-progress. I don't think I will do a lot more to it, just maybe put some sounds in for atmosphere. It is the first song of the new project 'Overzealous Work Ethic'.

To Scratch an Itch

Yeh sure, you can crack a joke,
But you are emotionally stunted
Your smile hides everthing that is you,
Tell me your story, or pretend it didn't happen,

I'll say sorry, when I don't mean it
I'll make up, when I didn't break it up,
I don't care anymore, you have pushed me to far, in a smelly corner,

There are some feelings in life,
You find too difficult to express,
For you, it's all of them,
I hurt inside, but ignornance is bliss,

I could unscrew my head, and nothing would fall out
All the energy has left me, I feel older, none the wiser, a shadow of my former self

Like someone has replaced my short-term memory with someones nightmares,
My head hurts sometimes, and I can't soothe it,
Numb, ever so numb, sombre thoughts all glum,

There are some feelings in life,
You find too difficult to express,
For you, it's all of them,
I hurt inside, but ignornance is bliss,

Written from end of October time, 2010

I also have another set of lyrics and have a new piano tune in the making at the moment. So...
Watch this space,
Wullae

www.wullaewright.bandcamp.com
www.soundcloud.com/wullaewright
www.youtube.com/wullaewrightmusic

New Art: Overzealous Work Ethic



Saturday 11 June 2011

Opus. 1, and Sockpuppet, Juxtaposition and You can make money without doing evil

I'll try and start this as far back as I can remember. The most recent posts to this are the ones regarding Opus. 1. So I'll start there.

I had got quite a few Opus. 1 songs finished in the two days I dedicated to it. I, however, wanted to add more. So over the next few weeks after the day 1 and 2 in the last Opus. 1 blog post, I had recorded some more songs including: Be Lucky (you made me smile when nothing else could), Armed for Revolution and Psychology of War. They all turned out fairly well, as I recorded them on the same settings etc. However with a few of the last ones the volumes are a little too high. Nonetheless, they all sounds pretty good. I have 20 songs for it now, but I have gone back and forwards thinking what to do with it and I've decided to only add songs to Opus. 1 that are a) a good recording, b) are not well known, performed tracks and c) songs that are the best acoustic sounding. So for instance, I recorded a piano version of the 'In Cloud Cuckooland' song 'House of Mirrors'; however, I don't feel it would fit at all, or convey the mood I'd be going for. I had come up with a quick album cover for Opus. 1, purely to be able to fire some of the songs on youtube, previously mentioned in the old post. However since then - and if you see my last post, I finally made a cover for Opus. 1 I am quite happy with. The styles of ink drawing, graphic art, photography and collage, all cover the years and styles of art from 2000 onwards. I think it sums it all up rather well. This is again, like most things a work in progress. At the moment though, I'm very happy with it.

So now I will move on to Anonymous, which for a period of time had nothing going on. It had stopped for a period after recording the songs 'Turn on, Boot up, Jack in', 'Clean Slate Program' and 'Dot-com Bubble'. I didn't really know what else I wanted to do with it. I had started the song 'Sockpuppet', which sounded nothing like the end result. I won't go through all the different things I did to record and complete all the new songs, but I'll briefly go over them. I have completed three new songs and have recordings on the internet: 'Sockpuppet', 'Juxtaposition' and 'You can make money without doing evil'.

I began work on 'Sockpuppet' and cut up some sounds and beats to create the underlying beat. They I added the bass riff which was quite difficult to come up with due to the timing of the beat. I then added a guitar riff throughout it, but decided to only use it towards the middle to end of the song. I managed to record the vocals and wanted the melody to be slightly shouty and broken up. I then cut up the vocal and messed about with this. I had a finished version like this, but then I decided to put a rock beat in to break the song up and not make it sound like lots of the other songs I have. And I am very happy with the end result. Quite simple, but good.

Sockpuppet

A sockpuppet persona,
Under a masquerade of lies,
Her despicable disgrace,
Behind a little boy's eyes

Her final words, are of the vulnerable
Strikes a chord, with even the toughest heart,
"You’re the kind of boy a girl would kill herself over."
The sockpuppet took her life, before it could start

The victim was at an age
Where her life bloomed and blossomed,
The sockpuppet's evil game,
Left her wilting in a cupboard,

The sockpuppet, an alias called josh,
Raised the girl's spirits with gentle words,
Flipped the coin, darkened her esteem,
A joke, a hoax, an online maim,
(Available to download for free on bandcamp)

'Juxtaposition' came next. I was up late, until about 3am in the morning. I couldn't sleep, got up and went on the computer. Plugged my pendrive in with different sample beats on it. I took one noise and beat and repeated it, in a very simple way. Then I added another beat. Then another. And another. I layered it this way until I had about 15 different beats layered, and I took beats out and put some in as the song progressed. It sounded amazing. The next day, I added to it: put dubstep and other noises into a tune for the beats. I then put the lyrics I had written for it to the song, they worked out well on first take. Then added a guitar solo after the first chorus and one at the end. I edited the guitar solos to make stops and starts. And that it was it. Done. Quite simply done, but sounds great. I feel it is one of the best 'Anonymous' songs.

Juxtaposition

The line begins to blur
Don't know their arse from their elbow,
Reality sinks in,
It's all the more pityful

A second chance at life,
Even when your first has not transpired,
Juxtaposition, and you'll see, nothing has changed,

Ironic personalities,
Of people you'll never be
Obese ugly truths
Streamlined nonsense, awake to see

A second chance at life,
Even when your first has not transpired,
Juxtaposition, and you'll see, nothing has changed,
Failure to be, who you wanted to be,
To live either side of a coin, in a room, with a machine
(Listen to 'Juxtaposition' on youtube)

After this I began work on 'You can make money without doing evil'. This was a set of lyrics about google that didn't have a title. So I decided to use this title, which was a lyric I left out. So, I began by starting with a very simple beat and noise. I wanted something different from 'Juxtaposition'. So I added to this song, in a similar way to the previous song, but in a different way order. I added a simple bass line, simple guitar riff to beef up the bass. Then added a cool lead riff throughout the song. I then added vocals, cut them up, etc, and made it more interesting. Then I made three solos, which I think are all incredibly good. The first one on the song is made up of dubstep notes; the second is made up of noises and scratch and decks samples; and the third is a guitar solo, which at points I have edited and cut up, to make it jump. The end edited song sounds great, and very different from 'Juxtaposition'.

You can make money without doing evil

A connected web of information
Your tiny robots pick me apart,

A brain constructed of tiny boxes,
Update now, don't be evil,

Stop tracking everything I do,
Watching me on your internal cctv,

Your hundreds of servers pollute us,
The terrorists, what happens if they get you,

You know me better than I do,
You film my house from up in space,

Tell everyone around the world about me,
Have an e-mail, blog, ebook, on us,

We know what you want,
We know everything about you,

Hold your information for decades,
Stalk and track and watch and laugh at you,

A couple of lab rats,
Biting through cables,

Honeing information perfection
(Listen to 'You can make money without doing evil' on youtube)

So at this point, as I post this, I have got 20 songs on 'Anonymous'. I am wondering whether to finish the album now, or make a few more songs for it. I'm incredibly pleased with the collection of songs and how they sound. I have captured the internet in the way I would have liked. However I still haven't covered all the subject matter I would have liked at the moment, so I want to do that first. It's more than likely I'll add more to it. On bandcamp I have 14 of the 20 songs up for free download now. At home we only have an internet pendrive with a max of 400MB to use in a month, and the connection is poor, and hence why all 20 are not up. But I will get there. All will be available for free download. But there may be more to come. I also have some ideas for a new project. So we'll see what happens there. And that's it. Nothing more new to add. Yet.

Watch this space,
Wullae

www.wullaewright.bandcamp.com
www.youtube.com/wullaewrightmusic
www.soundcloud.com/wullaewright
www.myspace.com/wullaewright
www.twitter.com/wullaewright