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| Writing Album Number 12 |
| After much preparation (vacation?), the band are back in the studio writing the next album. This time we're going to take you all the way on the inside from the earliest stages through to the final album release! |
| How Does It Work? |
| When writing a Marillion album starts, the band set up all their equipment at the Racket Club to work as a group. In the early stages, band members work separately at home, and meet up later in the week to bring their ideas together. |
| In the studio, a Mini Disc recorded is always on pause, ready to record any musical ideas and fragments that might arise. As many as 50 discs are used to capture the entire writing process. Mark and H both keep complete catalogues on their computers of every track on every disc - which is a difficult task, as none of the songs have names! |
| We've put up the track listings of some of the actual writing compilation tapes for the new album on this site, and you can have a look through them below . |
| These Mini Discs are used to refresh the band of possible ideas, and eventually the best bits are compiled. A single working disc for each song is put together, with variations on the same musical idea, and edited into a rough song format. |
| Writing Sound Clips |
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These sound clips are direct from the Anoraknophobia writing Mini Discs at the Racket Club during 2000. As a disclaimer, the sound quality and mix is not up to CD standards - these are simply recordings of the writing process (if you have any of the 'Making Of' albums, this is the stage where we get the clips for "Disc 2"). The names given are similar to catalogue entries - references that the band will remember as music or lyrical clues! Only 'Between You and Me' has been used as a final song for the album - the other 2 have been put back in the box and may be used again when writing starts for another album. |
| Where Does A Producer Come In? |
| It is at this stage that a producer often steps in to help with the writing process. Currently, fan-favourite and old friend Dave Meegan has returned to the Racket Club to work on this upcoming album. He has been at the studio for the past few weeks, suggesting different arrangements, and working with the band to join musical fragments into complete songs. |
| The band have 'glued together' 2 complete songs, and are now learning to play them as a group. Once the band have worked out the final arrangement, they will record the song onto multi-track tape (the Racket Club can record up to 32 different tracks at a time). These recordings are known as 'Backing Tracks', or more commonly 'Demos'. The drums from these recordings are the drums that appear on the album, but the majority of the other instruments are re-recorded, or 'over-dubbed' in separate sessions. |
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| Backing Track Sound Clips |
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After the writing clips are compiled into working arrangements, the band record the song as a group. These recordings are then edited together to form a rough demo of the song which the band use when replacing their original parts. The drums, however, are the same that you will eventually hear on the album. Listen to both versions of 'Between you and Me' and you can see how much changes when recording actually starts! (If you have any of the 'Making Of' albums, this is the stage where we get the full demos for "Disc 1 ") |
| The Album Begins To Take Shape |
| These are the working titles of the songs currently recorded; many of them do not have lyrics on them, and are given names usually based on the original writing ideas from 9 months ago! |
Between You and Me
Clockwork & Quartz
Springsteen
Fruit of the Wild Rose
Purple
Separate It
21st Century
Power
Did you ever Dream
Russian Ice Skater |
| Late Night And Early Mornings |
| To date, 9 backing tracks have been recorded, and Dave Meegan is working on recording over-dubs with each band member individually. The majority of the original recordings are replaced with the new material, and additional sounds and textures are added to give the songs that big "Marillion" sound. |
| Steve Rothery has finished his guitars, Mark is half-way through his keyboards, and H is spending late nights recording vocals after a long lyric-writing sabbatical in Bath! You can see how lyrics are changed even as they are recorded - we've scanned in some of h's and Dave's lyric sheets below. |
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| What's In A Name? |
| The album finally has a name (well, working title... things can always change!) and 3 songs are completely mixed: Between You and Me, 21st Century, and Fruit of the Wild Rose. In addition, Marillion played the new song Quartz (formerly Clockwork) on the recent Web Christmas Tour, and No. 1 (a song likely to be cut from the album or appear as a b-side) at the Bass Museum. |
| Work on the remaining mixes will continue through the holidays, and should be ready by February... look forward to previews of the album, as well as a possible internet single, in early 2001! |
| Songs Receive Their Proper Names |
| After mixing the album, final lyrics are in place, and songs can now be properly named! Below are the final song titles with their original working titles in brackets. The final track order will appear shortly... |
Between You and Me
Quartz (Clockwork)
Map of the World (Springsteen)
The Fruit of the Wild Rose
When I Meet God (Purple)
Separated Out (Separate It)
This is the 21st Century (21st Century)
If my Heart were a Ball it would Roll Uphill (Did you ever Dream) |
| The track 'Power' will not be included on the album; and 'Russian Ice Skater' has been re-named 'Number One', appearing on the Web Christmas 2000 CD (live) and the Special Edition Pre-Order version of the album. |
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| The track lists below are taken directly from Mark's and h's computers, and are a catalogue of the first 4 writing compilation tapes. Names are given based on a feel or style of music, perceived similarity to other artists; the band listen back to them to jump-start a day's work. |
| A bit of a 'key' is needed to decipher the Marillion shorthand and understand these lists: Q - Quite, V - Very,
m8 - Middle Eight (aka Bridge),
Gtr - Guitar,
Pno - Piano,
Jack - Mr. Mark 'Mad Jack' Kelly,
.. - continuation of the previous track,
* - means the band agree it's a good idea; the more stars it has, the more they like it! |
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| Comp 1 |
1 Mid tempo 4/4 chimy riff
2 Organ and gtr
3 Very Grand piano Jack
4 Grieves and Pain
5 More of same
6 Improved Grieves and Pain getting abit Roxy Music
7 Radioheaddy Floydy thing *
8 Gabrielly thing *
9 Sitarry Tom Petty
10 ..contd.. with good gtr sound
11 ..contd with mumbling
12 getting abit Isley Bros with manic gtr into build
13 hints at a good thing
14 !
15 rolling gtr riff Pete likes*
16 proggy version of above with bad vocal hints at a good move
17 Orchestral Stanley Kubrik romantic goodbye in the rain*
18 What?
19 ..contd
20 Power thing with Tom Robinson vocal
21 ..contd with very loud synths
22 ..getting
23 motorboat and bird noises
24 3/4 blues glam
25 ...contd
26 ...contd nice moves Rothers likes it at the end*
27 Funky taxman groove
28 ...more
29 ..more with pno
30 Thomas tank engn good chords
31 ..contd.. good here and there
32 Few words for the dead..
33 ..contd with GREAT firebell
34 firebell with chord change good suspense
35 ..with rich guitar
36 big noisy thing with muttering
37 Talking Heads groove thing *
38 Curious groove with good melody
39 Good gtr *
40 ..contd
41 ..contd
42 Arpegg thing sounds nice..*
43 Pneumatic Ram Jam with riff
44 abit Pretenders
45 abit Simple Minds
46 short piano thing
47 Bruce Hornsby Stonesy thing
48 Brief proggout * Ian liked gtr
49 Unpleasant killer bees into Willy Wonker
50 Berlin Piano symphony
51 contd
52 Lamb Lies Down out take no. 403
53 ..with stabs
54 dubby Grace Jonesy thing becoming..
55 "i really quite like this idea" with the longest gtr echo*
56 Police-y thing Q. interesting melody
57 ..contd
58 Samba-ish/Paul Simon-y.. a couple of gtr moves*
59 Quite interesting verse*
60 ..contd nice change*
61 snare rolly build*
62 good sounds..
63 experimental workshop
64 rolling ddl groove*
65 stop-frame pulse thing |
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| Comp 3 |
1 Europeans synth bubble Invisible Man
2 Same with Promises lyric
3 The strangest thing's happened
4 Sounds that can't be made*
5 Quirky Synthy Soully thing
6 Piano-y idea* Jack
7 developed with good melody*
8 more of same developments
9 3/4 development of the above "the fruit of the wild rose"
10 as 9 with moves
11 Hunky Dory-ish French*
12 Verse with Stars and Sky lyric*
13 Good sounds Good verse*
14 Interesting bass harmonic-y thing
15 Bowie Wild-wind melody thing
16 gtr theme
17 Mark thought this was interesting
18 more of same with good change
19 Mysterious Sade thing could be good verse* |
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| Comp 2 |
1 Between You and Me Furs-y thing**
2 ..same developed with various verse ideas
3 sort of ending into riffy reprise
4 more of same
5 synthy arpegg
6 shuffle idea thing
7 shuffle idea with insubstantial lyric idea..
8 same with doop doop melody
9 same with recipe for disaster idea
10 same with Steely Dan-y
11 12 -str chord progression with drums*
12 h thought of a chorus move for this
13 everybody altogether 3/4 american thing*
14 rolling 12 str version of the above*
15 ..same again
16 Neverland 5/4 **
17 ..same with riffy thing and piano bass
18 6/8 shuffly
19 synth mayhem
20 ..same with whoops Ian liked*
21 quiet to mucho proggy long build
22 tom robinsony thing*
23 22 with widdly
24 Good melody* but abit ordinary*
25 Good and less ordinary**
26 same with american singer-songwriter vibe
27 good m8 riff for 24 getting abit proggy
28 same into build and sung bass riff and random synth
29 more
30 more with
31 more with new "scared" vox
32 more with diff rhythm and insane whoops
33 Petes riff Sylvia
34 Supertramp
35 V Beatly progression with walrussy melody*
36 XTC walking verse with good gtr
37 v bluesy atmos*
38 old fleetwood maccy moment
39 quite a nice colour
40 arpegg synth like breathing underwater*
41 ..same with piano chords and melody
42 ..same for ages with piano
43 ..same for ages
44 3 dog night bass thing with "Last century for man"*
45 Samba vibe with S Afro gtr*
46 ..same
47 ..same with rhythm experiment
48 same with millennium child lyric*
49 vibe arpegg
50 Speed Metal bubble synth
51 synth exposed
52 Down to a science prefab idea**
53 ..same
54 slow version
55 Suspense Man Cub idea*
56 Gabrielly killer bees with good bass run
57 Good descending thing with ascending melody*
58 James Brown/Talking Heads*
59 ...getting ritzy&princy*
60 good organ sound Floyddy*
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62 Floyddy solo*
63 Always something there to remind me reed organ |
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| Comp 4 |
1 Hammond groove thing
2 3/4 workout
3 More of same
4 More of same
5 More of same
6 Water drippy
7 Water drippy with descent
8 More of same
9 More of same
10 Edge of darkness gtr and dark synth with submarines
11 Aztec Camera idea
12 contd.
13 contd...
14 developed Tom Pettyish ***
15 Prefabs good tune
16 Bass and drum 5/4 groove
17 7/4 vibe groove
18 synthy workout
19 bass "Mile End" v quiet
20 Holiday 99 groove Q.Nice **
21 more of same nice with piano. with lead gtr and
22 more of same
23 getting floydy
24 more of same
25 hot chocolate
26 Mayhem! White knuckle jam
27 more mayhem
28 and more mayhem
29 Holiday 99 **
30 Gone into a shuffle
31 Cure/Pulp shuffle
32 How could u know
33 Elec pno groove jam
34 Quiet voice melody
35 Clock tick and piano and interesting melody***
36 Afro Gabrielly **
37 More of same ***
38 More of same
39 Up tight disco thing
40 Grieves &Pain
41 Long way from home
42 James Brown
43 Last Christmas idea *
44 Good Prog rolling bass thing
45 More of same
46 More of same
47 More of same
48 And into 4/4 Roxy Avalon
49 Ian likes this 3/4 thing
50 more 3/4
51 How we live is not enough
52 Major Police workout
53 and with rolling bass line
54 same
55 same
56 intro thing
57 nice playout |
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Anoraknophobia began as an album in early 2000. During the recording of the album, we updated the website with each step of the recording process. This is very similar to how most albums are made at The Racket Club, so we've kept it here to get an idea of what goes on during the process of making a Marillion album.
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