FMP DEVELOPMENT LOG 1

BAND REHEARSALS

For the beginning of the final major project, we first decided as a band that we needed to make having a 30-minute set list our primary focus. The songs that we have so far are: Intro, Lesson Learnt, Illusions, Conscience Alley, Flavour and Deeper Shades. So far, these songs together come up to 22 minutes, this set time does not include talking in between songs, instrumental interludes and the possibility of adding another song to the set if we need to. We are really well rehearsed now and are tight as a band unit, if our show was tomorrow, I am confident that we would be more than capable to do so. Our aim for this week is to write a seventh song that we have a full thirty-minute set list. One we have sorted this, we can start spending the rest of our pod sessions focusing entirely on-stage presence and audience interaction.

We had a few little extra things to add to our disco song, “Flavour” and we have now fully completed the song. Here is a clip of us rehearsing it:

PRODUCTION LESSON

During our production lesson we recorded the drums and guitar for our fourth song “Illusions”. We now have bass, keys, and vocals left to record and we are hoping to get this done perhaps in the next production lesson so that we can start to record “Flavour”.

BAND REHEARSALS

We have started to write our 7th song which we have decided to completely change our song approach to. Ellie will be playing bass, Leila will be playing lead guitar, and I will be lead vocalist, which I am really looking forward to. As this is the last song we are going to write as a band at college, we decided that we wanted to use some writing techniques that we hadn’t considered before to make it more exciting and interesting. So far, the song has a reggae vibe to it, and is called “Hide”. The verses use a lot of staccato and is fast and upbeat, then for the pre-chorus and the chorus we have changed the chords and tempo to make It slow and dreamy. As we were writing it, we were being very productive and positive, but something felt a bit missing, and it felt as though that the verses didn’t fit with the pre-chorus properly. We are going to have a think about the song and come back to it next week. Worse case scenario, we will put a pin in the song and start to write something new instead.

FUNKY FRIDAYS

Funky Fridays is an event where solo artists and bands get to rehearse and perform part of their set list to the first years and the rest of the second years in preparation for the O2 gig and other external performances. We decided to play “Lesson Learnt”, “Flavour”, “Deeper Shades” and “Illusions”. This was the first time we performed “Flavour” and “Illusions” to a live audience and by their reactions, it went fantastically. Everyone seemed to thoroughly enjoy it. Participating in Funky Fridays made me more conscious of my stage presence and movement which I know still needs some work. Once we get our seventh song written, I am going to ask if Novacane can rehearse on stage so that I can become more comfortable with performing in front of an audience. My target is to just look really confident at the O2 and to have as much fun as possible. I want to move around stage a lot more when I sing lead vocal for “Illusions” and our new song which is currently in the works of being written. As a pop-funk band, we want our set to be as engaging and as entertaining as possible.

PERSONAL TARGETS FOR THIS WEEK

I feel as though from being stuck behind the keyboard and only singing backing vocals and harmonies, that I have lost a lot of the soulful tones to my voice. So, this week, I really want to work on trying to get those back. I have been listening to a lot of soul and R&B music for this and I have watched some vocal tutorials as well as this, which I will link below:

SOUL MUSIC I HAVE BEEN LISTENING TO: