A JOURNEY OF A THOUSAND MILES by Matt.
Welcome to the first Breaking Orbit Blog (BOB). The idea is to give you some insight into the world of Breaking Orbit. You will enter the black holes which are the minds of the songwriters and share some of the inspiration and creativity involved in our writing process. Journey with us as we prepare to enter the studio to record the second half of album #2, and beyond.
When I was trying to think of content for this, the very first BOB, my brain felt the familiar sensation of when trying to write the first line of a song. I know all the wonders that await me outside that door but I just can't find the key. The more I thought about this concept I realised that this feeling is probably easy for a wide audience to relate to whether it be; writing a song, painting a picture, designing a house, writing a book, starting a relationship, raising a child, even your own life in itself may have been difficult to 'begin' - so I thought discussing this concept would be a good place to start.
There is so much good content for the middle but just can't decide the best way to begin. Do I go for something big and bold? Do I go for something subtle? Do I throw out the Joker? Or do I hold back and wait for my moment? As the old saying goes "the journey of a thousand miles starts with one step". It is easy to fall into the trap of losing ideas into the ether being unable to create the first step. While the ideas fester in your mind waiting for the perfect introduction to light they remain simply that....ideas.... And the more time that passes the less relevant they may seem as your frame of mind can change, like a waking dream.
So, it turns out, the journey of a thousand miles doesn't start with a single step. The journey of a thousand miles has started a long time before you take the first step. Otherwise how would you know the journey was going to be a thousand miles? The minute you hook an idea from inside that ocean of your mind, and pull it towards the surface, is the minute the journey starts. If you don't know how to take the first step then maybe the idea needs more development. Take the second or third step....or tenth step. As all the pieces start falling into place it will become obvious what the first step was meant to be. You never know, when you get to the end it just might be a good place to start....
This is a similar path that a lot of our songwriting follows. It's not about setting out to write the perfect song, it's about grabbing an idea that could be as simple as a mathematical rhythm pattern, a vocal melody, a bass line or a guitar lead and building the concept around it. Soon you end up with pieces that turn into sections and finally form the structure. Once the structure is in place, the "feel" of the song becomes more apparent and the inspiration for lyrical content flows. Following this process means that the music is a combined creation and is matched to lyrics. The beauty of being in smoothly functioning band with 4 song writers, is that it doesn't matter if you don't have the answer to how the pieces you have found are going to fit together. There are 3 other minds at work on it, sharing the same vision. It is a long process but a rewarding one.
