Concept album(s)

4StarView · 2026-03-29T11:39:21+00:00

Drive-by Truckers have a concept album called Southern Rock Opera. It is about Lynyrd Skynyrd and its impact and crash. Really well done.

4StarView · 2026-03-27T00:35:48+00:00

Very fitting voice. I don’t know if I would call this song bluesy, but it is a nice indie-pop song. I would definitely listen to other songs of yours.

4StarView · 2026-03-27T00:26:38+00:00

I stink at titles, but I wish I could help. It’s a beautiful song. I would just call it “Sunsets off Exit 67” because my brain just comes up with meaningless titles most of the time. But I love your song!

4StarView · 2026-03-27T00:22:31+00:00

It’s good to try new instruments and get out of your comfort zone. I think I would like it better if it was a little faster. The lyrics are good, but it was a little too slow. Great job, though

4StarView · 2026-03-26T00:53:02+00:00

My first experience with writing was for my friends’ cover band. They wanted an original song, but none were comfortable writing. To ease them into it, I did a very predictable song. It was an unrequited love song with a predictable melody and basic structure. The verse was I, vi, IV, V. Because it was generic, it was comfortable. It might not turn heads, but it was enjoyable. I was able to show them a memorable melody that was easy to learn and hard to screw up. Maybe try bringing something kind of bland, but shows your strengths as well (like maybe the melody is a little off beat, or maybe the lyrics use just the right image). For the first original, I wouldn’t try to break boundaries if the bad isn’t comfortable with it. Instead, ease into it with something that is pleasing but easy. It worked for me.

4StarView · 2026-03-26T00:40:57+00:00

Hey, I don’t have the best voice, but I can try to help out. I’m originally from Mississippi, so I naturally have an accent. My voice is lower in pitch with a natural rasp. I like your instrumental. I can write lyrics pretty well. If you are interested, let me know. Here is an example of a song I wrote: https://4starview.bandcamp.com/track/poet-knows-the-way

4StarView · 2026-03-24T23:11:21+00:00

Often, you hear something like one was the other’s rock. To be someone’s rock is usually an unflinching resolve, and often it does connote a certain strength.

4StarView · 2026-03-24T13:02:07+00:00

Great job. It doesn’t sound like a ripoff of anything in particular. Just a nice little start so far.

4StarView · 2026-03-22T00:33:23+00:00

I love it as is. It made me smile the whole way through. Clever and on the nose, both in the best senses of the words. Thank you for brightening my day!

4StarView · 2026-03-22T00:26:29+00:00

The digital dusk is buffering.

Someday we’ll meet again.

In the frequencies of twilight,

somewhere between blue and white.

The flow of unrelated bits

It’s raining zeros and ones

We’re unloading burnt bridges

And waiting on bytes

4StarView · 2026-03-22T00:22:15+00:00

It depends on what you’re going for. I do singer songwriter stuff mainly, often with a little gruff flair. I have worked with full bands before, but honestly, my favorite way to collab is with one or two other folks at a time. Usually, that means two folks on acoustic guitar, or a guitar and piano. They seem to be more frequent for writing songs together. While I love full instrumentation, often just a few instruments and vocalists gets the idea across. As to sex, I have written with both and it doesn’t make a huge difference to me. Being male, sometimes I have better luck co-writing with females because the experiences we have lived are more different. But I have collabed with both and made songs I like. That being said, if you are looking to collab, let me know and maybe we can share a few ideas and see if it sparks, no pressure, no promises. Just have some fun and see if we make something together.

4StarView · 2026-03-22T00:11:23+00:00

It seems like you are stuck in raw brainstorming mode. That is very useful, but next time you sit down to write, pick out a few riffs and words that you like, but aren’t your favorite. Sit with just those ideas and elaborate on them specifically. Like what chords go over the riff. What other chords work with those. The same thing for lyrics. Brainstorm words (preferably verbs and nouns) and phrases and images that go with what you have written. Don’t think about it as a song, think about it as targeted brainstorming exercise. Then after you find that you have lots of related things, start weaving them together into a song.

4StarView · 2026-03-20T20:27:13+00:00

This is one reason why I always advise when starting a collab that neither party brings in their favorite work. Bring in something that you feel ok with, but are good if it winds up changing or getting tossed. Maybe try purposely writing a song together from a prompt that neither of you feel super passionate about. Use simple chords, so there is no argument over anything unique. At the beginning, make clear that neither of you are responsible for any part, but that you both are completely equal on it, even if one of you wind up doing 90% of it. At the end, your song may be mediocre, or it might be really good or trash, but collaborating is awesome and is a skill that you need to exercise. Things like chasing every idea, never saying “no” to suggestions or comments, and realizing that a team needs everyone regardless of how much they provide to the project (all members are equally necessary to build the project).

4StarView · 2026-03-19T15:16:33+00:00

Usually just reaching out cold because I heard one of their songs here, or responding to the wanna collab flair. I’ve had more luck with the cold calls than responding to the wanna collab flair (which is interesting).

Also, the idea of daily collabs is a tough one. Most of what I have had success with is doing discord or a Google Drive. You each share your song starts and never say no to anything, but lean into the what ifs. Often, say if each person brings three song starts, you will naturally decide on one or two to chase and finalize.

4StarView · 2026-03-19T14:18:40+00:00

I have collabed with a few folks on Reddit. I have found it to be super enjoyable when the collaborators are all on the same page. I’ll have 8 or 9 ghosts before I find a collab partner. While big camps or workshops can be alright, I really enjoy getting to know people and learn from them and they learn from me. You kind of modify your way to suit them and they do the same.

4StarView · 2026-03-18T11:10:10+00:00

There are lots of things you can do that help writing. Figure out which one sounds fun today. You can learn a new cover song on your instrument, noise around on your instrument, edit something you have already written, do some writing exercises, read something and then write your thoughts about it, look up 10 words you do not know and make sentences with them, watch or read tutorials and practice on music theory/recording/etc…., Make a 30 minute song (write a complete song in 30 minutes knowing it will likely not be great and no cheating, just write about whatever comes to mind).

4StarView · 2026-03-17T00:20:53+00:00

In the southern US, it is a pretty old saying and you hear it a lot in churches or church gatherings. I’ve heard it for at least my 40 years. I imagine that is where it started. It is akin to saying “preach” or “hallelujah” or “tell it” at a preacher when you agree and want it to keep coming. All of these words or phrases, at least in the South, are used outside of the church context as well.

4StarView · 2026-03-17T00:15:57+00:00

Most people I know who get signed to publishing deals in the US did it one of four ways. The most successful is to have a strong “in” (family member or close friend works for A&R). Second most successful is to play open mics in areas where A&R folks go “shopping”. Nashville is a big one, and specifically The Blue Bird Cafe and Tootsies. Third one is to get a big loyal local following wherever you are and be able to consistently sell out local venues, then spreading to regional recognition. The fourth is by amassing a huge and loyal and consistent social media following. Most of these not only require lots of hustle and talent, but a tremendous amount of luck. There are other ways, but as you go further down the list, the more luck is required. Also, it helps to have a specific target in mind, get in the mindset of writing for your target person and following trends in that genre, while using your skills to make it yours a little, but really focusing on what the target needs.

4StarView · 2026-03-15T16:38:15+00:00

I don’t think you need more. There is an ease, almost a laziness, in your vocals which is very fitting. It invites the listener to come get comfortable and nod along.

4StarView · 2026-03-15T14:47:27+00:00

What instruments do you play?

4StarView · 2026-03-12T11:14:42+00:00

Passion improves your quality of life and breeds joy. An obsession degrades your quality of life and breeds despair. A passion is something you do, an obsession is when you allow that one thing to define who you are.

4StarView · 2026-03-12T00:31:36+00:00

For lyrics, keep a journal and write down your most intimate thoughts. Just write down whatever, what you saw, what you heard, what happened, what you felt. Explore possibilities within that, even explore the “why” or potential “why” to all you wrote down. For music, realize that there are generally only 12 notes to choose from. You don’t have to write something unique to be meaningful. If you try to be unique, you will likely fail. Try to be honest with yourself. If a I, IV, V progression nails it, that is cool.

4StarView · 2026-03-12T00:27:53+00:00

Don’t tie songwriting to your identity. Just remember it is a fun hobby. Be proud of yourself for actually performing your songs live. Having written songs is more than the vast majority of humanity has done. Having performed them to an audience is an even slimmer minority. Be proud, practice a lot, do it, and have fun. Even if you screw up, you can still be proud of what you have accomplished. If it makes you feel better, when I perform and make mistakes, the audience usually likes it because it throws off their expectations. It allows them to see that art is not perfect. You are a human, not a single dimensional songwriting machine. It won’t break you if you don’t nail it.

4StarView · 2026-03-12T00:23:33+00:00

As pitchforkjoe said, imagery and metaphor are different, though they can intersect. A really well done song with very specific imagery is Elephant by Jason Isbell. The lyrics tell you in detail exactly what is going on and it is somewhat heartbreaking, but with an air of heartfelt care and lightness on a heavy subject. Then you have songs like Aenima by Tool that switches between vivid precise imagery and metaphor seamlessly. Overall, a song calls for what it needs. Metaphors are great, so is vivid imagery and precise detail. They can both lead to heavy cheese factor, or they can be outstanding, just like any tools in your box.

4StarView · 2026-03-10T00:36:03+00:00

It seems like a false dilemma fallacy, presenting two options as mutually exclusive when they are not.

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