"Wherever You Go"...Finished!

So I did end up adding a few backing vocal tracks as well as doubling the lead vocals. It is now a finished song which can be listened to by anyone...even YOU!

Listen on the player embedded on the right side of this page ----->

or

Go to the song page and read the lyrics if you're into that kind of thing. Don't forget to "Like" it.

Anyway, thanks for listening and I hope you enjoy it. I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Vocals Recorded

"Wherever You Go" has vocals! This was the last major missing piece of the Here Nor There puzzle. I recorded and mixed over the weekend but didn't have time to really listen for problems until the bus ride this morning. As is not usually the case after a first mix, it sounded really good with fresh ears this morning. I still may want to go back and do some vocal doubling or create some new harmonies, but it could actually be complete at this point. Like I said, this was the last major task left. From here it's just listening and making minor adjustments until it's as perfect as I am capable of or patient enough to make it.

Once I am fairly certain that I've got an acceptable mix, I'll get this song up on the webs so people can hear it.

To The Last

"Wherever You Go" is the last song awaiting completion. Last night I went over the lyrics that I'd written a very long time ago and took stock of what was there. It turns out there are more lyrics than I can fit into the song, so it's a matter of figuring out what to cut, what to keep, what changes to make, and what order to put it all in. I'm excited to hear how this one turns out. It's kind of an odd song in a way that I can't explain. It has an unusual melody and rhythm in the verse that is carried along by semi-syncopated guitar riff and a echoing electronic beep of sorts. The strings and backing vocals are laden with reverb to give it an ambient feel that I am really enjoying. The chorus is my favorite part. It's quite catchy and keeps the song from being only a sonic experiment.

This is one of those where I'm not sure where it came from or what it is exactly. All I know is, there it is...and I like it.

It's hard to say what other people might think of it. Maybe they'll love it. Maybe they won't. I'm curious to find out.

Progress

I've been working my way down the list, trying to get everything that needs to be done...done. "Take Our Chances" is officially finished. "Castles In the Sand" is officially finished. "Drifting Away" is the next major mixing project on my list. And when that's done I just need to finish recording vocals for "Wherever You Go" and then complete a final mix of it.

It really is getting close now.

All That's Left to Do

Here is my short "to do" list of items remaining to be finished.

• Take Our Chances - Worked on it a bit more last night. It's in a good place right now. This mix might even be finished. Need to listen to it a bit more.
• Castles In the Sand - The mix needs major work. This could take a while or could happen very quickly...you never know with these things.
• Drifting Away - Mix needs work. Again, this could be very difficult or very easy and quick.
• Wherever You Go - Instruments are all mixed and sounding great. Lyrics need to be finalized and vocals recorded.
• Comfort Me - I'm not sure what needs to be done here. Maybe nothing. Maybe something.

And once all of that is done...

• Mastering of all tracks - I need to adjust volume and levels and determine track beginnings and endings and any overlaps of the two and basically lay out the structure of the album before burning a master copy.

And finally...

• Artwork - The artwork is mostly finished. The CD booklet will include all lyrics this time around. I haven't been able to finish laying this out yet since I haven't finalized the lyrics for "Wherever You Go". I also would like to get a recent photo of myself to include somewhere in the packaging. As of now there are no photos of myself, which may be a good thing. I may have Desta take some photos and see what we come up with.

Looking at all of those items it is becoming apparent that I won't be able to get that all done in the 6 days I have left until my self-imposed deadline of September 28th. Even still, I am pleased with the progress in the past few days and feel good about getting everything completed at some point. I really just want to finish this and get it out of the way so I can move on to better things. This has been a 5 year project and much of this album does not represent where I am at now as a songwriter. I can't wait to move on to the next stage of my work. If you're reading this, thanks for sticking around. I have great hope for the future...stay tuned.

James