Say What You Mean – Song Preview – The Second Spirit
“Say What You Mean” is a song about being second in a long distance relationship. Oh, and the girl couldn’t be honest to save her life. I wrote this when I was in crunch time with Joe Gilder’s EP challenge which was a blast. It didn’t take long to write, I think I wrote it in a couple days.
The verse is really in 6/4 but I think my brother Justin Stills found a way to play it straight on the drums which sounds very pleasing. My friend Lance Miller played the keyboard pads in the background.
I really wanted the background instruments to not be really noticeable but in there. I got this idea from Jack Johnson’s song “Sitting, Waiting, Wishing”. It was like the song sounds personal and acoustic but if you listen closely, there is a lot going on in it. So that is what I was trying to achieve. A personal up close acoustic song but with the whole band there.
“Say What You Mean” will be released 11-08-2016 as a single. It will also be on my album Modern Life which is going to be released on 11-15-2016.
The fifth and final track featured within this EP takes the music to a different direction, introducing an upbeat and colorful acoustic guitar melodies that echoes 70s folk-rock. This song takes the project’s experimental and creative essence, stripping it of the layers of synth and distortion, but still marking the forward-thinking and diverse approach to songwriting.