I started writing this Rock Opera sometime in the early-2010's. I don't really remember the exact date. I had recently been listening to The Who's Tommy and Quadrophenia and was very caught up in the overall flow of the music. I wanted to capture a similar essence with a story of my own.
It took me a while to get started. I didn't have a clue what to write about at first. It wasn't until I happened to be playing guitar one day, and played two of my older songs 'Farther Away' and 'Boy' back-to-back that I got an idea. The two songs fit well together musically, and the seeds of a story began. 'Farther Away' was written as a grade 12 English project. Instead of writing a book report, I was able to convince my English teacher to write a song about Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood and this rock opera has been heavily influenced by it. 'Boy', on the other hand, was an unnamed song from I don't even know when (yes, I know, I'm terrible at naming things). I first remember playing it during a lunch hour in Grade 9, though it probably did not have any lyrics back then. It was simply a song complaining about relationships, as highschool students are wont to do. I have also rewritten parts of its intro many times. From these two songs, I started writing.
Progress was slow until I started grad school at CMU. I was in the music and tech department and had the opportunity to take composition lessons as part of the program. It was here that my teacher, Nancy Galbraith, convinced me to leave my comfort zone and expand the arrangements. At first, I was just going to write it for my typical four piece band, but it got expanded to include the flute, viola, trumpet, percussion, and four part SATB vocals. I also made more progress here due to actually having weekly lessons where I was expected to make progress.
Now that I've finished writing all the songs and recorded the demos, what now? Well, I'm still not 100% completed. If you haven't noticed yet, I'm pretty terrible at naming things. Almost every song needs a new name, not to even mention the name of the whole thing. I am also not 100% happy with all of the lyrics, so some of them may still change. There are a few arrangement issues as well. From there? Get it recorded I guess. Turn it into a musical?
Anyways, I hope you enjoy the demos (despite the fact that I'm singing all the parts, including the female vocals). I'd love to hear any feedback, questions, comments, etc, you have!
It took me a while to get started. I didn't have a clue what to write about at first. It wasn't until I happened to be playing guitar one day, and played two of my older songs 'Farther Away' and 'Boy' back-to-back that I got an idea. The two songs fit well together musically, and the seeds of a story began. 'Farther Away' was written as a grade 12 English project. Instead of writing a book report, I was able to convince my English teacher to write a song about Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood and this rock opera has been heavily influenced by it. 'Boy', on the other hand, was an unnamed song from I don't even know when (yes, I know, I'm terrible at naming things). I first remember playing it during a lunch hour in Grade 9, though it probably did not have any lyrics back then. It was simply a song complaining about relationships, as highschool students are wont to do. I have also rewritten parts of its intro many times. From these two songs, I started writing.
Progress was slow until I started grad school at CMU. I was in the music and tech department and had the opportunity to take composition lessons as part of the program. It was here that my teacher, Nancy Galbraith, convinced me to leave my comfort zone and expand the arrangements. At first, I was just going to write it for my typical four piece band, but it got expanded to include the flute, viola, trumpet, percussion, and four part SATB vocals. I also made more progress here due to actually having weekly lessons where I was expected to make progress.
Now that I've finished writing all the songs and recorded the demos, what now? Well, I'm still not 100% completed. If you haven't noticed yet, I'm pretty terrible at naming things. Almost every song needs a new name, not to even mention the name of the whole thing. I am also not 100% happy with all of the lyrics, so some of them may still change. There are a few arrangement issues as well. From there? Get it recorded I guess. Turn it into a musical?
Anyways, I hope you enjoy the demos (despite the fact that I'm singing all the parts, including the female vocals). I'd love to hear any feedback, questions, comments, etc, you have!
1. | Farther Away | Andrew Russell Band | 4:16 | |
2. | Here We Are | Andrew Russell Band | 3:27 | |
3. | Boy | Andrew Russell Band | 4:47 | |
4. | Parents | Andrew Russell Band | 5:07 | |
5. | Friends => The Meeting | Andrew Russell Band | 10:04 | |
6. | Losing => Looking Back | Andrew Russell Band | 9:19 | |
7. | Owner | Andrew Russell Band | 4:00 | |
8. | Escape | Andrew Russell Band | 4:12 | |
9. | Dusty Road | Andrew Russell Band | 3:58 | |
10. | Lost Soul | Andrew Russell Band | 5:00 | |
11. | New Life | Andrew Russell Band | 9:02 |