A quick (and simple) MS songwriting lesson.....

by Gipperman Wed Jan 14, 2015 11:26 am

As a songwriter, I get asked all the time, "How do you write, how do you do it?" Here's a simple breakdown of an MS song session:

First and foremost, I make a nice cup of brew:-)

Depending upon what type of song I want to work on, I'll grab either and acoustic guitar (for ballads and or more poppy/radio friendly tunes or, an electric guitar (and IPad/amp model) for more heavy/rock/metal tunes.

I then try to come up with the intro riff. This is most likely one of, if not THE most important part of the song. You have to hook the listener with something that says "listen, I'm serious"! A great riff/hook is a must!

Then I work on the basic structure of the song (intro, verse, chorus, re-intro, verse, chorus, solo section, chorus, outdo, etc.....)

As I'm doing this, I'm humming different melodies to see what works and what doesn't work. Once I have a basic melody and chord structure/arrangement, I record what I have.

Then I dive right into lyrics and try to write lyrics that are fitting to the style of song. In other words, it doesn't always work to have a heavy metal tune and write lyrics about how much you love you're dog or a ballad and write about how much you want to kick someones butt:-) The lyrics should fit the music and vice verse.

Then, after having 90% of the song, I walk away and start on a new song. All of the above takes about an hour or so for me. Sometimes a little longer, sometimes a little less. If you get stuck on something, give it a break and walk away. You'll be very surprised at how your creative juices start to flow when you move on and come back to the song.

After writing 3-4 songs, I come back a day or two later and add whatever is missing and or change whatever I don't care for. Then in few hours, I have 3-4 completed songs.

I always try to stick to the 3:30 - 4:00 minute rule (for more radio friendly tunes) but I don't always apply this. If a song (Marching Into Battle for example) feels right at almost 5 minutes or more, so be it.

Another thing I always try to do is "lift" the choruses. Either with the chord structure or the melody or both. This is very important! You want the listener to actually feel the chorus lift/rise and kick in a new way. Dynamics are VERY important!! A song should have dynamics (intro kicks in, verse comes down a bit, pre-chorus starts to ramp up and chorus really kicks in and takes off, etc....). I do this also with instrumentation and production while recording. Extra guitar lines/tracks come in on the choruses to help "lift" the track. It works!

In closing, hooks (riffs, melody lines, lyrics) are very important. You want the listener to be drawn to the song in more ways than one. Also, you want to write relatable music and relatable lyrics if possible.
Don't overthink it and don't complicate it. Keep it simple and direct and the rest will fall into place.

I hope this helps all you aspiring songwriters out there:-)

Now, I'm off to write another song........

Michael

by d@v!d Wed Jan 14, 2015 12:20 pm

Interesting. Now I want to go listen to Stryper to see if I can find the pattern. Thanks for sharing! Looking forward to hearing new material.

by deathisgain Wed Jan 14, 2015 12:39 pm

Gipperman wrote:I always try to stick to the 3:30 - 4:00 minute rule (for more radio friendly tunes) but I don't always apply this. If a song (Marching Into Battle for example) feels right at almost 5 minutes or more, so be it.

Thanks fort the post. Have you ever written a really long song? Like 7 minutes or more?

by Follower of Jesus Wed Jan 14, 2015 12:40 pm

Now I realize why I love Stryper so much. As a sucker for melodic rock that has hooks, his writing style is almost perfectly aligned to what I want to hear!

by Professor_Valconian Wed Jan 14, 2015 12:59 pm

Thanks Michael! Really appreciate your taking time to share this info.

Your approach is clearly working.

Where does your inspiration come from regarding the subject of the lyrics ... not in general, but how do you decide on a specific subject matter? Do you write about things that have been rumbling around in your head for a while, or do you have to go searching from scratch for the topic of every new song?

God Bless.

by Candlemass Wed Jan 14, 2015 4:24 pm

I can't imagine the "MS approach" working for doom metal...

...save for the coffee part, that should work for any genre! cheers

by Friday13th Wed Jan 14, 2015 11:15 pm

Thanks, Michael. I'm an aspiring songwriter myself. Can't say I have a method yet, but when I write a "Stryperish" song I'll keep yours in mind! Thumbs up

I usually start with a chorus that rules and then spend 90% of my songwriting time trying to build the rest of the song around it. Verses have to be witty, but I make sure to cut tangents so it all points to the chorus. But yes...LIFT is key, though I have come to appreciate the more "understated" chorus effect. But yes, I think all rules should be bent...except for the coffee.

by xMetalMarkx Thu Jan 15, 2015 1:50 pm

Thanks for the glimpse into your process. Looking forward to hearing the Sweet/Lynch disc & new Stryper later this year.

by lhversaw Thu Jan 15, 2015 5:15 pm

Candlemass wrote:I can't imagine the "MS approach" working for doom metal...

...save for the coffee part, that should work for any genre!

I would LOVE to hear a Stryper DOOM song that would be interesting

by stepcousin Thu Jan 15, 2015 8:38 pm

Great stuff Michael, sounds like the method you use has worked just fine throughout your songwriting career.

by hellig Fri Jan 16, 2015 9:48 am

Where do the blasphemous colors and gimmickry fit in the songwriting process? Very Happy

by Blake Fri Jan 16, 2015 9:50 am

At first I thought this was about some Microsoft songwriting software then the comments gave the clue it meant Michael Sweet. I have to admit, except for the song To Hell with the Devil I never have been a huge stryper fan, but I also havent taken the time to really listen to any of the albums in depth. This has made me decide to listen to my few Stryper albums today and see if that changes things Very Happy

by Professor_Valconian Fri Jan 16, 2015 11:01 am

Obviously this is my personal bias, but check out these songs which completely RAWK!

More Than a Man - THWTD
The Rock That Makes Me Roll - Soldiers
Marching Into Battle - NMHTP
Surrender - Soldiers
The Way - THWTD

by Blake Fri Jan 16, 2015 1:16 pm

Working my way through chronologically. Currently halfway through Against the Law.

by Through The Dark Radio Mon Jan 19, 2015 10:19 am

I anxiously await a new Stryper song about Michael's love for his dog now Very Happy

by Driven Mon Jan 19, 2015 4:48 pm

I have extreme difficulty with writing a decent melody.

by jusma Wed Jan 21, 2015 5:17 am

Thank you Gipperman! That re-intro idea was interesting.

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A quick (and simple) MS songwriting lesson.....

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