I ended last week’s post with a goal—to build a riff-writing process. In that post, I said I didn’t know where to start, but I did; I just didn’t realize it.
After deciding I wanted to write a Black Sabbath-style song inspired by the production of the band’s 1970 debut album, I started listening and taking notes. First, I created a short list of what I called “Iommi-isms” (named after the band’s guitarist, Tony Iommi).
My list included: root-6 power chords, trills, the flat 5, C# tuning, and others. I then studied chord progressions and took notes: the intro and interludes use the same riff with slight variations; the verse is a 1-b3; the chorus uses a 1-b2; etc. I also noted tempos, keys, and song structures. At the time, I didn’t realize it, but I was generating a list of options, the first step in the process.
In my first writing session, I found a basic drum beat and set the tempo to 65, the tempo of the song Black Sabbath. I tried a riff consisting of a power chord, its octave, and the key’s flat 5. It sounded way too much like the song Black Sabbath. But instead of trashing the idea, I altered it by slowing the tempo and changing the note order—and it sounded better. I wrote down what I played in a notebook so I could evaluate it later.
Next, I tried another option from my list: the 1 to the flat 3, then the 1 to the flat 2, and so on. Each time, I documented the riff and tried some variations—half notes instead of quarter notes, sixteenth notes instead of eighth notes, hammer-ons, pull-offs, and slides.
After I’d documented some ideas and variations, I opened my DAW. I recorded the riffs—not in any particular order, but to capture them, knowing I could rearrange them later. That’s the beauty of a DAW; it’s like a word processor: once you get your ideas into it, you can move them around, expand on some, and remove others.
My process is slowly developing: listen, take notes, generate a list of options, test them, develop variations, then record them.
But progress is slow, and I still don’t have a strong song idea, lyrics, or a thread to tie it all together. The riff-writing is promising, but I struggled with tools. My M1 Mac mini is underpowered, and I’m still struggling to find a tool combination that keeps the computer and the writing running smoothly. My first instinct was to buy a new computer, but I’m tired of “throwing money at the problem,” and I firmly believe I can achieve what I envision with the tools I already have. The new Mac can wait.
Next week’s goal? Find a thread to tie my ideas together.