This is my final track, it is a rock song. It features drums, bass, 3 different synthesizers and an electric guitar. The song is in 4/4 and is 120 bpm. The song’s structure is: Intro, verse 1, verse 2, verse 3, verse 4, breakdown/drum solo, verse 1, verse 2, outro. I added a distortion effect to the electric guitar, and changed the EQ so everything sounds more punchy. I also was considering adding reverb to the drums, however with the time that I had I decided not to as it would take too long to make it sound good. I am happy with this track as I think it sounds good and is quite catchy, however there are some issues with it.
Firstly I created an intro which involves an electric guitar and a drum kit. The intro is 8 bars long. It has the guitar playing a simple riff, which lasts 2 bars. The guitar plays on the 1 and the 3 of the first bar. So the rest of the time is filled up by the drums. The intro is a sort of drum solo, with the drums being the main part of it. The fills keep on getting progressively more complicated until the first verse comes in. It switches between using the snare and bass drum, to using the toms. I think this is a good part of the song, as it sounds good, is catchy and doesn’t drag on too long. However I could’ve
After that I created the first verse, which includes drums, bass, the “Bright Punchy Synth” and an electric guitar. I created the drum beat first, which uses the cowbell, bass drum and snare drum. The verse lasts 12 bars. The cowbell plays on every quarter note, the snare drum on every 2 and 4 and the bass drum plays on 1 and inbetween the snare drum hits. The bass line links in with the drum beat. Then the synth and the guitar riff play the same thing. Which is on the 1 and 3 of every bar, they are ringing the chords out. The fourth bar of the verse is different from the first 3 bars, as there is a drum fill and all the other instruments follow the drums. There is a drum fill at the end of the verse to I am happy with this verse as it is catchy and sounds good and it also has a good bass line. However I could’ve done a more complex guitar riff.
I then created the 2nd verse, which is quite different to the first verse. It includes drums, bass and an electric I didn’t include a synthesizer as I didn’t think it needed it as it sounded good without it. The verse lasts 12 bars like the last one. The drum beat uses a ride bell instead of a cowbell, and is on the off beat instead of on the beat. The snare drum is on every 2 and 4, and the bass drum on every 1 and 3. The bass and drums play their own thing, however they still work with each other even though they aren’t following each other. The bass line isn’t a simple bass line. The guitar is again doing a simple riff, playing on the 1 and 3. However it is different from the first verse’s guitar riff as it is holding the notes until the next one plays, instead of just just strumming the notes. I am again happy with this verse as it is catchy and sounds good and is different from the first verse so it isn’t copying it. However I could make a different guitar riff as it is very similar to the first verse and is simple. I could also add a synth, even though it doesn’t need it, it could sound good. Also making the bass and drums follow each other and be more similar so it sounds smoother.
The third verse is very similar to the first verse. The drums, bass, guitar and “Bright Punchy Snyth” all play the same as before. I added another synthesizer called the “Analog Funk” which plays a similar beat to the bass, just missing a note at the end. I think this adds to the verse as it makes it sound nicer and more full. However it isn’t different enough to the first verse. It has the same beats and riffs to the first verse, so I could’ve made it similar to the first verse but different enough to make it sound like a different verse. It is still a catchy verse that sounds good though.
I then created a fourth verse which is like the second verse. It has the same drums, bass and guitar. It is similar with what I did with the third verse. However I added 2 synthesizers this time. The “Bright Punchy Synth” does the same as it does in the other verses, I added it so it has a familiar sound to the other verses and fills out this verse a bit more. I also added another Synth named the “Elastic Lead.” This sounds sort of similar to the other synth that is playing, but different enough for it to stand out. It also plays differently to the other synth, it plays at the end of the bar and on the 1 of every bar. It adds a nice sound to the verse. However this has the same issues as the third verse, with it not being very different from the 2nd verse. It sounds good, but it doesn’t stand out as its own verse, it just feels like a repeat of verse 2. I could’ve made different parts, or made it sound different in any way.
After that, I created a breakdown. This breakdown has the same structure as the intro, it also lasts 8 bars. With the guitar playing on 1 and 3 of the first bar, and letting the drums do the rest in 2nd bar and the end of the first bar. With this part, I did more complicated fills compared to the intro. This sounds good, and gives the song a needed break from the verses. However if I had more time, I would’ve spent more time on the drum fills, as even though they don’t sound awful, they could’ve been better. They are a bit messy and could sound more clean. Apart from that, I think this is a good part, it sounds good, slows the song down a bit and the part doesn’t drag on.
This verse is a repeat of the first verse, however it is half the length. So it is 8 bars long. I did this because if it was a full length verse, it would drag on way too much and it wouldn’t be good to hear the verse for the third time and it be a really long verse. I did the same with the verse after, as it is the 2nd verse again, just half the length. I think that these two verses are good, as they sound good and they don’t drag on too much. However if I had more time I would’ve changed any of the instruments’ parts to make them sound a bit different.
Finally, I created the outro. The outro is a new part of the song that only includes the ass and drums. I decided to only include the bass and drums as they work really well together. The bass plays a 3 notes around the 2 and the 4 of the bar, it plays a note before, after and on the 2 and the 4 of each bar. The drums just riffed over this beat, I improvised when I recorded the drum beat over it and it sounded good. It lasts 8 bars, and for the last 4 bars there is a fade out. I think the fade out sounds very good and sounds better than if it just stopped. This outro is good, however I could’ve made the drums more consistent and not improvised over it. It does sound for a short ending and the fade out is nice.
All in all I am happy with the track I have created, with the time that I had and the fact that I am new to the software. There could be improvements, such as the guitar parts and the third and fourth verse, however I think it is catchy and sounds good.
Peer Review
The score I have been asked to review worked extremely well with the video that accompanied it, the harmonies of the string instruments with the piano made the score have such a grandiose feeling which was only extended with the video. I personally preferred the B section as the violins had much more diverse notes that made for an interesting melody and chord progression, the string instruments were also used well as they were not always playing, allowing the piano to create a peaceful ambience before bringing them back into the score, the only criticism I have is some notes tend to cut out abruptly, other than that I enjoyed this score.
Reviewed by Thomas Taylor