The process

I was cleaning out my hard drive this morning because my computer has been running slow due to all the junk I have on it (movies, music, pictures, etc.) and found a bunch of demo tracks I recorded over the past year. Some of them great...some of them....well, not so great. ;)

I haven't really ever been the person to share much of the process of how I write, but I always enjoy reading and listening to demos from other artists/bands so I thought I'd share a song.

First, I should say that I never really used to make "demos" in a studio for any album or do "pre-production," until the past year. I am not exactly sure why I haven't, but my process of demo-ing had been to record bits and pieces of song ideas or lyric ideas either into a tape recorder I have had since college (though carrying tapes around can get heavy), or record it onto a tiny digital recorder. Then I just piece them all together like a puzzle and record ideas over and over on tapes until I am happy with it. This process I love and hate. It's like a really good crossword puzzle where it's so difficult that you want to give up but yet you can't stop because you want to finish it. In the end you stop and think "Yes! I did it!"

I am also probably the least tech savy person out there when it comes to recording music. I got a ProTools Mbox a few years ago as a gift and never made much use of it. Though, I have started using Garage Band more which is nice.

Before working on this latest group of tracks, I was blessed to know some amazing people who allowed me studio time to record song ideas. I had three demo sessions over the past year and probably recorded enough songs for a full album that will most likely never see the light of day.

One session that stands out was last fall at Soul Sound Studio in Kaneohe, HI. I was back home in Hawaii for a week and my friend Shawn Livingston Moseley, who owns the studio, invited me in to record with just an acoustic guitar, live, no click track...just straight forward songs and help me sort out my ideas. It was so wonderful to have that time to work with my friend and have those ideas documented.

Here is one of those tracks called "Blue." I have played this song live a few times and it seems to be a favorite with a lot of people so I thought I would share it. I wrote it when I moved to Portland in 2010 and the weather had just started to turn from Summer to Fall. The song has since changed some lyrically and melodically, but this was in the beginning stages.  Sorry...this one didn't make it to the upcoming EP...but maybe in the future. In the meantime, click here and feel free to take a listen and enjoy a stripped-down track. -Lots of love, xxMontclairexx
(Photo by Toni Wong)