FAWM: "Smile and Slander"

Smile and Slander

1 week ago by @jamesstaubes

Smile and Slander

jamesstaubes

00:00

Liner Notes

I let this one take over my day. Started a new song, found a drum set I liked, made a beat immediately and went with it. Picked up the Tele and the verse chords came right out. Thought I might be writing another "Cars" type song. Then the 4-5-1-6 progression came out for the chorus and I said okay, I won't fight it. Love how it turned out.

I also wanted to keep it "Beatles" and under 3 minutes.

Lyrically I got the first two lines and rolled with it. Had a few folks in mind when I wrote it.

The mix got away from me and I couldn't figure out how to get it tight. So this is what I got for now. What do you think? #pop #rock #guitar #poprock #indiepop #powerpop #vocals

Lyrics

Intro

Sammy’s no good at politics Sammy’s not good the opposite

Verse 1

You wouldn’t know what to say That would stop me from laughter You’ve got a new face today It seems you haven’t mastered

You have a weird sense of pride It doesn’t feel that solid I’ll use my stereo eyes Make sure my I’s are dotted

Chorus

You don’t know when you leave the room We smile and we slander You’re so stoned when you make a move We step like a dancer You don’t know when you leave the room We smile and we slander

Verse 2

You’ve got yourself all to blame You treat us with such contempt I think it is a real shame You traded goodwill for torment

Another heart bites the dust You gave your soul for the money So in the corner I’ll hush And I will leave here lucky

Comments

@fb2studios 1d

This is really well done. Catchy with a cool. Hook. The lyrics work really well against the background

@jamesstaubes 1d

Thank you!

@mctown 3d

Enjoyed it. Like the Beatles a lot.... DG

@sailingmagpie 1w

There's definitely an underlying 70s power pop vibe which I'm totally onboard for! I love that little counterpoint synth on the righthand side and that chorus is great. Cool track!

@deleted 1w

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@jacobeverettwallace 1w

I love a song with a good prologue, sets up the rest of the song beautifully. "I’ll use my stereo eyes"-- caught me immediately, great line! That chorus is so smooth and singable. I'm listening on new AirPods and the mix sounds nice to me! I think it's hard to balance crunchy guitars with bright synths but they feel complimentary. Nice work!

@davidtaro 1w

Mix sounds in a pretty good place to me. The bass line, in particular, sounds great - really punchy and tight. The chorus is a proper ear worm, I was happily singing along by the second time round. Also, small thing, but I really like that you resist the temptation to resolve the chorus by singing ‘you’ and hitting the 1 chord. I’d probably have done that through laziness, but it’s so much classier to leave it hanging slightly. Great tune, day well spent I’d say!

@jamesstaubes 1w

David Taro comments are the best! Thanks!

Now that I've listened to it a bunch I think what I don't like is how squashed it is. I'm using Izotope on the mix bus and it seems to really sqaush the mix. But I haven't figured how to get my mixes loud enough without it.

The chorus came to me like that. It's 14 bars when it would usually be 8 or 16. I knew it was different and that's why I liked it.