Mixed Signals, Track by Track
I started working on what would become "Mixed Signals" back in 2011, right after I released my debut. In fact, by the end of summer that year, I had a CD-R that I listened to in the car that had most of the album demoed.
And then I changed my mind.
Myles had asked why I wasn't recording live drums. I tried to explain that I didn't know how to record or mix drums.
And then, I met Jarod and asked him to join the band and had to find something for him to do. So we wrote new songs that would utilize all five of us, and we figured out ways to record drums, find our harmonies, and sound like a band together.
Finally, five years after "It's Never the Way You Imagine It," we are releasing the first true Traitors album.
In keeping with tradition, I'll first include that original track list of what I was calling "Art Damage."
1. Angels in Paradise
2. Lover + Lass
3. Quickie
4. Cocksure
5. Here's the Thing
6. Meet Me in Atlantis
7. Another Noise
8. To Be Young & On Downers
9. Meathooks
10. Quitters Never Win
As you can see when you compare to the actual tracklist of "Mixed Signals," only three songs ended up making the transition. I had actually performed "Here's the Thing" live at one point, and "Another Noise" is a song I had written years ago for Dylan when we first met. "Meathooks" is still going to blossom, but it will now be part of The White Tomato (the solo album I'm starting work on next). But overall at this point, the songs were more ideas than actual songs.
There were other songs that came and went, "Sour Grapes," "Catalina," and "I Wanna Believe" to name a few, but once it truly became a Traitors album, things shifted. I wanted to write songs that could best utilize the talents of the band members, be fun and easy to play, and follow a sort of narrative suggested by the title "Mixed Signals."
For the nerds, here's the "concept": The first side of the album are the negative signals. Being confused, not feeling good enough in a relationship, not making the right decisions. This is the signal you don't like getting, but we can all identify and commiserate. Meanwhile, the second side, or half of the album, are the positive signals: self-assurance, feelings of real love, mastering the game.
Without further ado, my track-by-track breakdown of "Mixed Signals."
1. All Mixed Up - This was a fairly late addition, very similar to "Digital Representation" on the last album. I think you have to kind of have an idea of the big picture or concept of an album, and then you can know how to properly open it. "Mixed Signals" is like the opening credits of the album. It announces what this side of the album is all about. I love the synth sounds in this one and I love all the vocal interactions. I made sure we all had unique contributions on this one.
2. Someone You've Never Met - This might be my favorite. I think it sounds just like a lost new wave angsty song. I love what Liana did with it, and I love the guitar part and the driving drums. I used to hate the bridge, so I completely changed the sounds but if you see us do it live you'll hear that original bridge cause that's what I had programmed on the Korg Electribe.
3. You Leave Me - At the last minute I bumped this one up a track. I just realized I loved the sound of it, I think I got it pretty polished, and also my Uncle Ronnie said it should be the first single (I had to let him know we already released it as a single over a year ago). I'm still very proud of this one and I love what Jarod did with the video. I didn't really change anything from the single version. It's just had a slight upgrade technology wise.
4. Suckerpunch - I had high hopes for this one, and I really do enjoy it, but I feel like I started it too late and didn't have time to polish it as much. I love what Ronnie did with the guitar, though, and that saved it for me. I completely re-wrote the lyrics, with a lot of help from Liana, last fall on the beach in Uruguay. I think a better producer could have really made it kick ass, but hopefully my version packs a little punch.
5. Burn - I wanted to include this composition by Liana because it was the song that made me want to have her in my band. We've performed it live a lot too, but it was fun to make a really full version that included the live drums, real grand piano (thank to my boss for letting me use hers to record), and guitar, again thanks to my uncle Ronnie.
6. Sprinkles - I wrote this one quite awhile ago, one night at The Palms when - you guessed it - it had started sprinkling. It's definitely a little calculated and twee, but it's one of my favorites. So far, two people very close to me have also said it's their favorite, so we must have done something right! Again, this has live grand piano on it, and Brandon contributed a great guitar part. Jarod sings lead on this one, and Liana came up with the whole opening/closing chant and all the harmonies (I just sing the falsetto melody an octave above Jarod). I just love how it turned out.
7. Mindframe - This starts "side b" of the album, so this is a new chapter. This song is about identifying the uncertainty and forming a solution to the problem. Recognizing that all problems are but temporary situations that you must gain the proper perspective on. And that music can be the remedy to so many of them.
8. To Be Young & On Downers - This one is just a little bit of cheeky fun. I just thought a little about the classic chestnut "youth is wasted on the young" and added my own spin to it. This was one of the earliest ones to be written and played as a full band where I knew it was a good one. Brandon loved this one from the beginning. I hope the album version manages to catch the excitement of the live version. Brandon mixed this one. We recorded live grand piano for this one too, but it didn't work in the context of the entire mix so we took it out and put back in my original synth piano guide.
9. Quickie - Like the previous track, this is one of the three that survived from the original "Art Damage" demo. There are several recorded versions of this song. The album version is a totally new take that I hope people enjoy. Because we've been playing it for so long I thought it would be nice to change this one up a bit.
10. Now I Know What I Want - For a long time this was always going to be the album opener, and maybe it still should be because it probably is the strongest song. But, we released this single and video back in 2014 and so I had honestly even considered dropping it. However I realized that was an error and it flows very nicely here towards the end of the album. This song actually started as a demo I recorded on an iPad in my hotel room in Dusseldorf, Germany, where I was staying for a few days after I had been in London on vacation.
11. Speed Dating - This wasn't really ever meant to go on the album. It's actually a Mannifred LaCroix song, if anyone knows what that means. I borrowed it for a live gig back in 2012 and it sort of got stuck as a Traitors song. I figured I would save it for a b-side or something, but once everyone else added their parts to it, I thought it sounded so great.
12. Quitters Never Win - This song was inspired by my friend, Robin Hall, who is a true champion butt kicker! He's the Kiwi Thunder and he's motivated more people to make better choices in life than probably anyone I know. If you are looking for a personal trainer, you won't find a better one than him. So this song is my interpretation of his spirit, and I just wanted to put this out into the world. Because honestly when I moved to LA I told myself that if I hadn't become rich and famous by the time I was 27, I would quit music and just move back to Kansas. And now, I am much older than 27 and I think that's the most ridiculous thought I've ever had. Because if you're living your dreams, or at least trying to, why the hell would you want to make yourself give up what you enjoy doing? Often times people make poor decisions because it's easier than making the right decisions. I have been guilty of that many times. No matter what you just have to keep moving on, because the one way you know that you won't reach your goal is to give up before you've gotten there.
And then I changed my mind.
Myles had asked why I wasn't recording live drums. I tried to explain that I didn't know how to record or mix drums.
And then, I met Jarod and asked him to join the band and had to find something for him to do. So we wrote new songs that would utilize all five of us, and we figured out ways to record drums, find our harmonies, and sound like a band together.
Finally, five years after "It's Never the Way You Imagine It," we are releasing the first true Traitors album.
In keeping with tradition, I'll first include that original track list of what I was calling "Art Damage."
1. Angels in Paradise
2. Lover + Lass
3. Quickie
4. Cocksure
5. Here's the Thing
6. Meet Me in Atlantis
7. Another Noise
8. To Be Young & On Downers
9. Meathooks
10. Quitters Never Win
As you can see when you compare to the actual tracklist of "Mixed Signals," only three songs ended up making the transition. I had actually performed "Here's the Thing" live at one point, and "Another Noise" is a song I had written years ago for Dylan when we first met. "Meathooks" is still going to blossom, but it will now be part of The White Tomato (the solo album I'm starting work on next). But overall at this point, the songs were more ideas than actual songs.
There were other songs that came and went, "Sour Grapes," "Catalina," and "I Wanna Believe" to name a few, but once it truly became a Traitors album, things shifted. I wanted to write songs that could best utilize the talents of the band members, be fun and easy to play, and follow a sort of narrative suggested by the title "Mixed Signals."
For the nerds, here's the "concept": The first side of the album are the negative signals. Being confused, not feeling good enough in a relationship, not making the right decisions. This is the signal you don't like getting, but we can all identify and commiserate. Meanwhile, the second side, or half of the album, are the positive signals: self-assurance, feelings of real love, mastering the game.
Without further ado, my track-by-track breakdown of "Mixed Signals."
1. All Mixed Up - This was a fairly late addition, very similar to "Digital Representation" on the last album. I think you have to kind of have an idea of the big picture or concept of an album, and then you can know how to properly open it. "Mixed Signals" is like the opening credits of the album. It announces what this side of the album is all about. I love the synth sounds in this one and I love all the vocal interactions. I made sure we all had unique contributions on this one.
2. Someone You've Never Met - This might be my favorite. I think it sounds just like a lost new wave angsty song. I love what Liana did with it, and I love the guitar part and the driving drums. I used to hate the bridge, so I completely changed the sounds but if you see us do it live you'll hear that original bridge cause that's what I had programmed on the Korg Electribe.
3. You Leave Me - At the last minute I bumped this one up a track. I just realized I loved the sound of it, I think I got it pretty polished, and also my Uncle Ronnie said it should be the first single (I had to let him know we already released it as a single over a year ago). I'm still very proud of this one and I love what Jarod did with the video. I didn't really change anything from the single version. It's just had a slight upgrade technology wise.
4. Suckerpunch - I had high hopes for this one, and I really do enjoy it, but I feel like I started it too late and didn't have time to polish it as much. I love what Ronnie did with the guitar, though, and that saved it for me. I completely re-wrote the lyrics, with a lot of help from Liana, last fall on the beach in Uruguay. I think a better producer could have really made it kick ass, but hopefully my version packs a little punch.
5. Burn - I wanted to include this composition by Liana because it was the song that made me want to have her in my band. We've performed it live a lot too, but it was fun to make a really full version that included the live drums, real grand piano (thank to my boss for letting me use hers to record), and guitar, again thanks to my uncle Ronnie.
6. Sprinkles - I wrote this one quite awhile ago, one night at The Palms when - you guessed it - it had started sprinkling. It's definitely a little calculated and twee, but it's one of my favorites. So far, two people very close to me have also said it's their favorite, so we must have done something right! Again, this has live grand piano on it, and Brandon contributed a great guitar part. Jarod sings lead on this one, and Liana came up with the whole opening/closing chant and all the harmonies (I just sing the falsetto melody an octave above Jarod). I just love how it turned out.
7. Mindframe - This starts "side b" of the album, so this is a new chapter. This song is about identifying the uncertainty and forming a solution to the problem. Recognizing that all problems are but temporary situations that you must gain the proper perspective on. And that music can be the remedy to so many of them.
8. To Be Young & On Downers - This one is just a little bit of cheeky fun. I just thought a little about the classic chestnut "youth is wasted on the young" and added my own spin to it. This was one of the earliest ones to be written and played as a full band where I knew it was a good one. Brandon loved this one from the beginning. I hope the album version manages to catch the excitement of the live version. Brandon mixed this one. We recorded live grand piano for this one too, but it didn't work in the context of the entire mix so we took it out and put back in my original synth piano guide.
9. Quickie - Like the previous track, this is one of the three that survived from the original "Art Damage" demo. There are several recorded versions of this song. The album version is a totally new take that I hope people enjoy. Because we've been playing it for so long I thought it would be nice to change this one up a bit.
10. Now I Know What I Want - For a long time this was always going to be the album opener, and maybe it still should be because it probably is the strongest song. But, we released this single and video back in 2014 and so I had honestly even considered dropping it. However I realized that was an error and it flows very nicely here towards the end of the album. This song actually started as a demo I recorded on an iPad in my hotel room in Dusseldorf, Germany, where I was staying for a few days after I had been in London on vacation.
11. Speed Dating - This wasn't really ever meant to go on the album. It's actually a Mannifred LaCroix song, if anyone knows what that means. I borrowed it for a live gig back in 2012 and it sort of got stuck as a Traitors song. I figured I would save it for a b-side or something, but once everyone else added their parts to it, I thought it sounded so great.
12. Quitters Never Win - This song was inspired by my friend, Robin Hall, who is a true champion butt kicker! He's the Kiwi Thunder and he's motivated more people to make better choices in life than probably anyone I know. If you are looking for a personal trainer, you won't find a better one than him. So this song is my interpretation of his spirit, and I just wanted to put this out into the world. Because honestly when I moved to LA I told myself that if I hadn't become rich and famous by the time I was 27, I would quit music and just move back to Kansas. And now, I am much older than 27 and I think that's the most ridiculous thought I've ever had. Because if you're living your dreams, or at least trying to, why the hell would you want to make yourself give up what you enjoy doing? Often times people make poor decisions because it's easier than making the right decisions. I have been guilty of that many times. No matter what you just have to keep moving on, because the one way you know that you won't reach your goal is to give up before you've gotten there.
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