The Mood of the Track

"It's a bit of whirly and a bit melodram. The drums are... pretty simple, just kind of serving their purpose in the track," he says. "There's lots of tracks of them, but they're fairly minimal in the thing, you know what I mean? Yeah. It's just very, very pretty."

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Episode notes

In this episode, John is joined by Blur frontman Damon Albarn and producer James Ford, to talk about how they wrote, recorded and produced the album ‘The Ballad of Darren’.

With Damon’s initial demos to hand, the pair give us a guided tour of the record, right through the early versions and studio sessions, from the moments that reignited the feelings they had when writing in the 90s, to piecing together the musical jigsaw that forms the Blur sound.

Along with stories of Damon’s inspirational chickens and the dangers of making pesto while writing an album, we’re treated to an in depth production and songwriting masterclass, with details on manufacturing the sound of a room, and the importance of energy and intention behind a song.

Listen to find out what makes the first performance of something so special, why a 4-track recorder can sometimes be a great replacement pillow, and what benefits come with giving yourself distance from a record.

Tracks discussed: St. Charles Square, The Everglades (For Leonard), The Narcissist

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Listen to ‘The Ballad of Darren’ here

Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company

Intro Music - Sunshine Buddy, Laurel Collective

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TON-1501 Analog Strings Synthesizer

Powertran Transcendent 2000

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