Jody Whitesides

Tag: creative process in music production

  • From Sparse Demo to Full Studio Sound: The Story of “Femke”

    From Sparse Demo to Full Studio Sound: The Story of “Femke”

    If you were keeping tabs on the song order, you might have noticed that I started alphabetically. However, today I’ve already broken ranks. The second song finalized is Femke. No rhyme or reason why on that, it is what it is.

    In this song I made lyrical tweaks to the second verse. I also made a lyrical change to the first line of the chorus. It now makes a bit more sense to an outsider view about someone you might know and the changes all recorded on the demo. Musically I didn’t find a need to tweak any of the melody. I will be adding a few elements in the studio that are beyond what is in the demo. I keep the arrangement fairly sparse. But instead of drum and orchestral samples, I’ll be bringing in the real thing. More human that way.

    What song will come next and when will it get finalized? Only the shadow knows. For now, you are in the know knowing that the second song finalized is Femke.

    Stay tuned.

    — Jody

  • The Brutal Yet Beautiful Process of Cutting Tracks

    The Brutal Yet Beautiful Process of Cutting Tracks

    Here’s my thanks to everyone that took the time to vote on the songs. It started with 70. Then came to 32. Now it’s down to 18. From here on out, I’ll be tweaking and massaging the songs that are left. Of the 18 left, at least 6 will fall by the wayside. They might become b-sides to singles. What will be left are 12 super potent songs that will be sheer awesomeness.

    I’m excited to have brought fans in on the process of picking out the songs. The beauty is allowing all to see the process we songwriters go through to create words and sounds you get upon final release. A process that can take a ridiculous amount of time and effort.

    I appreciate the time and effort that was put into the listening and voting as well. I know it takes a good chunk of time to listen to 70 songs and give an opinion on them. Then to do it again on 32 songs.

    My next step as it goes is to take time going back over songs with a fine tooth comb and make some adjustments. Figure out if the key of each song is the best it can be. If there is a need for anything else in the arrangements and how they need to transpire. Once this is figured out it will be time to head into the studio and begin the recording process.

    Stay tuned.

    — Jody

  • Be in the Room Where It Happens… Almost

    There’s less than a week left in a cool little project of putting your ears to good use. I’ve been having you the Unity 42 fan to help pick the songs that will be presented on the next CD. It started with over 70 songs and has been an adventure getting them down to a studio manageable amount of 12. What I’m saying is song voting is coming to an end.

    It will end on the 30th of June.

    After which comes my process of going through the chosen songs to make tweaks to the arrangement, tempo, and any lyrical content that may need modifying. Once that’s done I should be heading into the studio with a band of friends to knock out the recordings. It’s exciting to have all this going on.

    Thanks to everyone that has been participating. If you have participated yet – why not?

    — Jody

© 1997-2025 ON RECORDS