I don't like what I get inspired to write

iqi616

iqi616

Yet another Mike
I don't like what I get inspired to write. I seem only to be inspired to write about the seedy side of life and in a disturbingly positive tone at that.

The first problem is that I'm too embarrassed to let anyone I know hear the songs and certainly not my wife and son.

The second problem is that anything else I try to write sounds contrived because it is not inspired.

If the words inspire a good melody, I'll record just an instrumental so that only I know what the music is about but when the melody can't stand on its own without the lyrics, the song just sits in my head like a half-digested meal.

I'd like to write uplifting songs about the things I enjoy in life (music and family) but the inspiration just doesn't come. There's obviously a lack of angst in my home life but a suppressed prurient interest in life on the other side of the tracks.

Any suggestions?
 
Remeber, YOU are YOUR own worst critic. Noone else is going to take anything you do as seriously as you do. Just do it and dont worry about what anyone else thinks, you are here to please yourself and noone else.
 
iq....................


Your second paragraph or third sentence is what bothers me most........You simply can't have that attitude in any of the arts.....Listen to Dragonworks and forget about what everyone else thinks


BTW, I would like to say that if you are indeed embarrased about what your writing then you are probably on the right track in terms of self expression......I would follow that path and see where it leads.....Chances are the reason your embarrased about it is because it truely represents you....

Many people have an innacurrate view of themselves e.g. they like to think that they are someone else.........Someone who doesn't get embarrassed, someone who is tough, Someone who is this that and the other thing...However, this imagined someone or self is seldom ever who they really are......And because of this faulty perception of self, their art suffers in that it is never an accurate self expression....Self Expression is the essence of all art...music being no exception........

I heard someone on this board say once that the biggest problem home recorders have is that they "try to make a track into something it is not." I agree with that....And I also suspect that the reason everyone does this is because they have faulty self perceptions and expect their tracks to conform to their faulty perception of themselves....And so they make changes trying to force their music into something that reflects "who they want to be" and not who they are........

Ok, enough ranting....:)




-nave
 
Thanks for the support :) I guess I'll just have to go with the flow.

I've visited the other side of the tracks for a look around in my younger days and there's just so much more to write about there than safe middle-class family life. Not that I'm complaining about my lot, it's one thing to satisfy your curiosity about street-life and another thing altogether to be stuck there with no way out.

I caught a documentary the other night about former neo-nazi skinheads in the UK. It's one thing to look down on them with their sick attitudes but the average suburbian has absolutely no idea what it's like to grow up in the environment they grew up in. Anyone would develop strange attitudes under the same circumstances. One of the guys was seriously trying to come to terms with his violent nature through counselling but it is violence that enabled him to survive his upbringing.

See, there are several songs in there but I can't find any songs in choosing schools for my kid or getting the rust fixed on my car.

Maybe I just need to be more subtle in my lyrics. I don't want to quash my anger too much but I won't educate the middle classes by screaming at them. I suppose I need to find a way to ease people out of their cozy shells of "contentment" so that they can see what I see without them realizing that they're getting a different perspective. However, contentment is so pervasive that some people think that "Born in the USA" is an update on "The Star Spangled Banner" and "Made in England" is an update on "Land of Hope and Glory".
 
What do you do for a living?
What are your Hobbies?
What do you believe in spiritually?
Do your children ever teach you something special by there innocence?
Do you really NOTICEyour kids? Really HEAR what they are saying?
Wat did you dream of doing when you were a child?
Are you doing it?
If you aren't, Why not?

Those are all questions that have endless songs through out.
Sometimes I don't feel inspied to write things that make me proud either, But usually it is because my focus is skewed in some way, usually it is because I am being selfish (not saying that you are, that is just me). It is human nature unfortunatley to desire and think about the things we don't have, or haven't experienced recently.When this happens to me, I simply make a mental note to start concentrating on the things I am blessed with and the things that make me happy. Sometimes it feels as if I am not in control of my thoughts, But I am - I just have to fight for them sometimes. :)

Take control of your inspiration - Be in charge of your thoughts .
That is just my advice. Life is stagnant? Start doing things differently. Take a different route to work. Start running and not know your destination (too lazy? sometimes I am, drive then). Go someplace random and meet somebody new. Notice somebody at work that you have never noticed before. Compliment a total stranger. climb a tree.

Matt
 
I agree that those are questions that can inspire songs but they don't seem to in me. While no-one's home life is ever perfect, I'm pretty settled in mine. In general we get along fine and are able to express ourselves pretty well. I love my wife and son and I have no problem telling them or anyone else that.

For me the things that seem to inspire me to write are the things that are outside my control. Things in the world outside. Things where I have a greater understanding that other middle-class suburbians just don't seem to get. They don't tend to (or like to) walk in other people's shoes. They don't understand that their reality is a cocoon from the harsh reality that other people face every day of their lives. They have sufficient spare time to worry about what other people "should not" be doing when those other people spend every waking moment just surviving. These are the things I find hard to express in speech and I think that is what drives me to try to express them in song.

I think this discussion has been very helpful in showing me why my inspiration comes from where it does and why it doesn't come from where I would like it to. I'm obviously an angst writer rather than a muse writer so I think I have to just go with the flow and who knows, once I've had my say on the things that make me angry, maybe songs that are driven by more positive emotions will come out. I think by holding back, I'm suppressing my potential.
 
Hmmm,

I think I have a better understanding of where you are coming from now, So what makes you embarresed about being more sensative to the world around you and being angry at those that don't? I actually think that is quite an admirable trait. I wish more people would take note at those trying to survive instead of telling them what they shouldn't be doing. But, I guess I don't really know your writing style or musical genre so I really don't know how the end result song would sound. I bet you could write it in a way that would not be too offensive to your wife and son though. That is actually a pretty cool topic, and I would like to see the lyrics when you done if you don't mind. Thanks for sharing and I hope things turn out well for you.

Matt
 
I get embarrassed because I tend to be pretty up-front and gritty. Not punk but fairly aggressive. "Music your mother wouldn't like" as a 70s UK radio show used to be called.

Now that I know I need to follow my inspiration, I need to work out how to express myself in a way that will arouse the curiosity of the listener, not push them away. Be a Goebbels rather than a Hitler if you'll excuse the distateful metaphor. I think I need to try to hook them in with a catchy chorus and then let them realize what the song is about after they start to pay attention to the verses.

I want to avoid the Ralph McTell "Streets of London" singer-songwriter sound. My natural leaning musically is towards dance music and that's another challenge because apart from rap, dance music is usually about love, sex, music, or dancing. Still, that would make mine different.
 
iqi,

Interesting "dilema" :)

What it reminds me of is that people are NOT 2 dimensional. Most middle class folks have the same internal "what the hell is this?" feeling going on but don't have a way to communicate that with each other.

The trick, I think, is to find out how to let loose with something that isn't really in the middle-class mode without feeling or projecting that it threatens the somewhat fragile "peace" that makes middle class life so bland.

Its natural. Middle class life isn't all there is to life and most folks know it. Not that you have to throw the baby out with the bath water, but a little stirring of the nest is good for everyone's head- otherwise they make the mistake of thinking that they ARE 2 dimensional and cut themselves off from a lot that life has to offer.

Take courage! That is part of what music is for and its a very safe way for you to express those ideas. If it makes other people uncomfortable, just laugh, smile, and talk about your younger days and how your kids remind you of what you used to be like. :)

Take care,
Chris
 
Hey man!
If you're well, let's say, more mature, you'd have lots of experiences! I mean, there are so much things you can write about when you're older (seems to me, I'm almost 23 so what the heck would I know):

* Kids growing up
* Back in the days-songs about memories
* Make a song about how you expected life to be at 23, and how
this turned out to be
* Why not make a song about your rusty car:

(Hoochie-coochieman blues-kinda-song)
I got a rusty chevy
Parked across the street
It had limited warranty
So now I'm stuck with this shiiiiiit

Damn ol' rusty chevy
Why you treat me so baaaaaaaad
You made me pay so much
But you make me feel so saaaaaaad

I'm still paying for this sucker
When I got it 'made people go "wow"
But now it's a rusty *ucker
I can see right trough it now!

You see? Okay, it's not very good, but just to give you an idea...
Dirk Demon
 
good thread

I think Chris is right; most "middle class" (isn't that most of us?) people have dark, existential angst-ridden conversations with themselves just like you do. You shouldn't presume to know what is in another's heart.

You don't need to be concerned with HOW your song will affect people, or whether it will teach them anything or whatever. Caring about other people and worrying what they will think of you is not the same thing (you want the former but not the latter). Of course you want your song to affect people, but the way to do that is to express authentically the feelings or ideas that are in your own mind and heart.
 
There was a song called "Shine" in Australia written by a young 15 year old girl.
It made her a household name Vanessa Amorose. The original song had the word die instead of shine.
One simple word change made all the difference.

I find many of my songs depressing probably because I was feeling depressed when I wrote it.

I find that if I put some up temp music on to get me going it helps.
A bit of unfamiliar stuff should do the trick.

But everyone is different.

ciao

BronwynH :listeningmusic:
 
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