New Song - Supermarket Superstars - Power POP.

I wrote this song;

And recorded, mixed and mastered it yesterday. I thought these were the dumbest lyrics ever when I wrote them down, but I think they turned into a pretty good pop song.....

Just going to show that in pop music, lyrical content is maybe 4th most important thing, behind hook, melody and rhythm...

What do you think?

Supermarket Superstars

Catchy and fun...sounds a little like XTC is influencing you more on this one? I like the synth sound you use and wanted more of it...at times I almost want to hear horns playing lines here and there during the chorus...

I think I would also prefer that you write an ending rather than fade out...

It really sounds like you and Todzilla ought to be in a band together...! Wait, maybe you're actually the same person.

I think this way for all music not just 'pop'. But I think I'm a minority when it comes to this.

I actually am just now getting into XTC - I'm not sure how I made it this long without even knowing they existed, but I did.... I just 'discovered' them less than a month ago, and I'm loving the album I have.

My influences for this song, if any, were Fountains of Wayne and Jellyfish. My songs and style are pretty much the result of failing in my attempt to copy their style....

I am a Toddzilla fan, and as a matter of fact, my name is also Todd.. I'd love to collaborate with him, but he seems to be the complete package - I'm not sure he needs any collaborators. He's also a much better lyricist and musician than I am, so I'd have little or nothing to add....

I hadn't written a song ever with a fade out, and it's something that I've always wanted to do... I like the way it works in this song, and may never do it again. A lot of great songs have faded out, and I don't necessarily equate a fade out with a failed ending... Sometimes, it can be an ending. I just don't want to hear it track after track for sure...

Thanks for the listen.

I like your stuff and you shouldn't sell yourself short in comparing yourself to Todzilla - you're both amazingly good.

My initiation to XTC came with the song "Senses Working Overtime". Check it out sometime. What's great about it is that there isn't a wasted note or perfunctory idea in it. It's like five good songs in one. It maybe sounds dated these days so it might not have the impact on you that it had on me when I heard it in the early 80s. But truly there's tons of great songs throughout their catalog. And if you're into retro psychedelic (and even if you're not!), you must also check out the 'Dukes of Stratosphear' cd which is XTC pretending to be another band.

I like the vocal - especially the overlapping lines/harmony on the chorus. Drums (especially fills) are good. I'd like more variation in the guitar - it just seems to be playing the same (doo-wop) chords in the same (stiff downstroke) rhythm in both the verse and the chorus. The chord progression (mostly voiced on the guitar) is kind of static and there isn't a lot of harmonic support - more keyboard would probably help.

As far as XTC - they were (according to Andy Partridge the band is "well and truly in the fridge") a great band. I had a roommate in college who listened to "Living Through Another Cuba" every morning when he took a shower - the fact that I can still enjoy listening to the song is a testament to how great XTC really were.

Thanks for the listen, rsadasiv.....

The Chords in the verse are

G/Bm/C/D on quarter notes, and the ones in the Chorus are

G/D/Bm/C/F on eighth notes, swung, with a different guitar sound...

So yea, they are similar... Before I started adding vocals, the two parts sounded amazingly different - once the sonic landscape of the song started to fill in, it became harder and harder to get the to sections (guitar wise) to sound that different without killing the chorus vocals..... I might try some keys, but I was hoping the vocals would be enough to set the chorus apart from the verse.... Two people have suggested horns in the last two choruses, so that might be an option too....

Thanks again!

Where the harmony parts generated mechanically or did you actually sing them all and over dub them? The vocals sound like 60s soft rock. ala cryin shames in alot of ways.

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Nope. I sang them all. Here is a mixdown I did A Capella from about the second line of the second verse to the end of the chorus.....

http://www.skyrippersystems.com/temp/Harmony_Mixdown.mp3

Nope. I sang them all. Here is a mixdown I did A Capella from about the second line of the second verse to the end of the chorus..... http://www.skyrippersystems.com/temp/Harmony_Mixdown.mp3

Very good .... and i mean that. Great job on the vocals. I am in the process of trying to teach myself to sing harmony. I am making progress but dont have it anyways developed to the level you do. I have good stuborn streek so hopfully i can get there..... I was lucky enough to play in a band when i was young with 3 chamber choir singers. Those guys could nail pretty well any harmony part that they wanted... They ate the cryin shames stuff up ... as well as the rest of the groups from that era. I feel very fortunate to have been able to play keys for a band with that much vocal talent... its not often you can land your ass in a band with three singers who can pull that stuff off ....as i am sure you well know. One great singer isn one thing ,, 3 gets tougher lol. I just keep recording stuff and spend time laying down the second vocal part and then the third. I am at that stage where sometimes it works and sometimes its ugly lol. Is it one of those things you just sorta have a major breakthough and you say hmm how did make this so hard? Great harmony is one thing i miss about modern rock... I must admit i have become a country music fan just becasue they have the harmony like back in the day. again great job. rat

Good song.

Nope. I sang them all. Here is a mixdown I did A Capella from about the second line of the second verse to the end of the chorus..... http://www.skyrippersystems.com/temp/Harmony_Mixdown.mp3

I found this very entertaining...great job on those harmonies.

Thanks... Most of the people I know who can sing harmony well, have practiced a lot....

One of the things I do is to only sing along with a song on the radio if I'm going to sing the harmony part.... Even if one doesn't exist....I sing harmony. I am to the point now where I can step up and sing a first harmony part without rehearsal, provided I know the melody before hand.... The third isn't so easy, and if I really want to nail a tight chord, I have to practice.... Because of my poor hearing, pitch is an issue, so you'll hear (in that track even) it take me a moment to hone in on the right note sometimes.. (check out 'kiss' at the end of the verse...

Anyway, just practice is about all you can do, I guess. Thanks again!

Thanks sir...

Glad you liked it. I appreciate you listening.....

i like it, it reminds me of "Lost in the supermarket" by the Clash

maybe its just because of the word supermarket in it but i think its cool. the vocals sound cool btw!!

i like it, it reminds me of "Lost in the supermarket" by the Clash maybe its just because of the word supermarket in it but i think its cool. the vocals sound cool btw!!

Thanks man!!! I appreciate your comments.

Thanks... Most of the people I know who can sing harmony well, have practiced a lot....

 

Yup i can see that .....and i intend to practice alot at it, Its a skill i want to have in my bag of tricks. To me vocal harmony is what culls out the pugs from the good bands. I look at vocal harmony in a band is worth an extra 3 to 4 hundred dollars a gig. rat

Pretty good song and impressive recording of it.

I'm a bit jealous:o because I rarely record {censored} these days and I have lost my ability to make melodies.... for the moment:o

Tamoore, what effects are you using on your vocals on this song and/or how are you tweaking the EQ for the vocals.. I am trying to figure out how to better mix vocals in my songs. BTW sounds great, I like it.