Josiah's songs & writing

[Josiah Tobin]

Just wrote and recorded this one tonight, felt it's one of my best songs and thought I should share it. It's called Rodent Wings.

Watch/listen here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5VluvO9KRI

EDIT: Also just put up this take of another fairly new one (just recorded it now but it was written before Rodent Wings), called Sap:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EPweJZ8MiE0

Thanks for listening if you have, I appreciate any comments.

~Josiah

[Riley]

I only listened to the " Rodent Wings " song, and good show. The lyrics are interesting and for the most part, rhymes ( for some reason it drives me mad on some songs when it doesn't ryhme  ). I enjoyed it, but I don't personally like the grungy-esque type of music ( grunge, I think it's called). And thats how you sing like, not really criticism, just my personal preference. Keep up the good work.

Post Script: Nice guitar. 

[Josiah Tobin]

Hmm, interesting, never been told I have a grunge sort of voice. I haven't listened to much grunge so I can't really say myself, hehe. Thank you for the comments, though-- glad you enjoyed it for the most part!

~Josiah

[Lady Serpent]

"Rodent wings":

The music is quick-paced; it goes well with the up-and-down

'Find my way home' seems to drag into a not-as-pleasant note, when compared to the rest of the lyrics.  'Persevere' suffers from the same odd note.  But, that 'Should  dissapear' seems to go on a good note; mabye it's just the happenstance way it's sung.

The slowdown is nice.. the lyrics are gorgeous.  The stronger sound of the lyrics after it is great, also.  ....So much meaning.. I really don't know what to say to it all but it really does hit me hard.  Each time I listen to it and hear the lyrics it all just makes things a little more real..


Your voice is so strikingly different when you're singing as compared to when you're talking.  (And the growling, too; it's all so varied and it's hard to believe it all comes from the same set of ratty vocal chords.)

-----------


"Sap":  Starts off on a sad note.  Sounds like it could go either way; reminiscent or tragic.  (Or a bit of both, really).

It's wonderfully different in style from 'Rodent Wings'; you have creativity in the way you compose your lines.  It's certainly not just a 'cut-and-paste' format that you use; you have a lot of variety in all of your songs that really stands out.

Again.. the whole thing just makes me want to run over and embrace you.  The lyrics again are so touching..

"I can't describe it" is wonderfully sung.  The "Overloaded, flatlined I felt so alive" seems to run together a bit, but I can't say that's a terrible thing.  It just takes a few listens to realise exactly what's being said.  Some of the guitar work is so delecate..

When you say 'I like the way I misinterpreted the signs', it seems to be less annunciated than some of the other words, and is a bit harder to realise what you're saying.  I first heard it as 'I like the way I miss her terribly, (etc).'  To my ear, it sounds like 'mis-interpreted' should be said fairly 'quickly' for the last three syllables, instead of having 'mis-in-ter-pre-ted' which drags 'terpreded' out a bit more as it is in the song itself, but that may just be a personal style preference.  The first way seems to fit with the other 'stanza ends' better, if you know what I mean.  It seems to match some of the other lines you've sung.


It's really fantastic.. I'm trying to offer things that might be helpful.  One thing with this one is that it's really a smooth, acoustic piece, so it struck me that it ended quite quickly after 'This place is mythical to me now'.  If I were to offer what I think would work, it would be to have the 'To black and white' finish exactly like it does, with the fantastic guitar notes that seem 'higher' and more pure than they have in the rest of the song exactly the way they are.  (If I knew proper musical terminology I'd certainly use it, but unfortunately I can only explain how things sound and feel).    Then, instead of saying 'this place is mythical to me now' right away and ending the song, it sounds like it would be a beautiful space to put in a bit of an acoustic bit for a while, which would both extend the song, and also set up the listener for the calming down of the song, where at the end you could finish with 'this place is mythical to me now' in the quiet voice you do it in, and it would close it off nicely.  It just seems slightly more 'abrupt' in it's ending than it otherwise could, and with the acoustically beautiful few notes that end off 'black and white', it perfectly sets the listener up to be wanting to hear more of those sounds.  (Perhaps a similar acoustic bit to the one that starts at 41 seconds, but ultimately you know much more about them than I do, so I'm sure you'd know what would sound good.


Fantastic all around.  Seriously, you're very talented and I believe you'll go far with it.

Let me know of course when this one comes out.

*Hugs warmly*


-Sephren

[Josiah Tobin]

Wow, thanks for the big thought-out post, it's great that you take the time to critique things like this.

Before I respond to any of it, though, I'm really glad the songs resonated so strongly with you (unless it was somehow negative, of course).  I'm really, really glad you connected with them-- it's one of the best feelings in music when someone tells you that they found a song of yours touching. (You obviously know what they're about and aren't just a random person, but still)

Anyhow, those lines in Rodent Wings are probably just slightly off in the live take-- I actually hadn't noticed, you have good ears. You're right, it's the same note over the same few chords for both the "find my way home" and "should disappear" so that's probably all it is. Most likely will be fixed in the studio version, which I may be doing tomorrow anyway

The stronger sound of the lyrics after it is great, also.  ....So much meaning.. I really don't know what to say to it all but it really does hit me hard.  Each time I listen to it and hear the lyrics it all just makes things a little more real..

Ahh, I certainly hope you don't mean it hit you in a bad way...

It's funny, watching these videos now I think my voice has gotten a lot stronger over the past couple of weeks. Seems like I'm able to sing them more powerfully now (playing them at the open mic probably helped that), they almost sound kind of sterile in the videos to me. I did record them almost immediately after I wrote them though so I probably just have them memorized now and can concentrate on the performance more.

Your voice is so strikingly different when you're singing as compared to when you're talking.  (And the growling, too; it's all so varied and it's hard to believe it all comes from the same set of ratty vocal chords.)

Hehe, yeah this past year especially I've been developing the tone of my singing voice a lot, I've got a few different sounds I can use... You're right, my talking voice is quite different. I imagine if I sung everything instead of talking I could probably get rid of this pesky stutter. the scream/growl generally only comes up when I have to record some on a heavy song though, and then I'll usually find a way to do it differently live. It sounds cool and it's painless in small amounts, but too much of it does damage my range quite a bit, unfortunately. Still working on a way of doing it 100% harmlessly. Thanks, though; ever since I first started singing I wanted to be as versatile as I could so I'm happy to hear I'm getting there.

[Sap] It's wonderfully different in style from 'Rodent Wings'; you have creativity in the way you compose your lines.  It's certainly not just a 'cut-and-paste' format that you use; you have a lot of variety in all of your songs that really stands out.

Again.. the whole thing just makes me want to run over and embrace you.  The lyrics again are so touching..

Awwr, thank you so much... *hugs*

The "Overloaded, flatlined I felt so alive" seems to run together a bit, but I can't say that's a terrible thing.  It just takes a few listens to realise exactly what's being said

Yeah, I do run out of breath a bit on that one, consistently-- something I'm working on, though I do kind of like the way it makes the "so" sound at the end of it.

About enunciation, I just kind of go with whatever feels most comfortable to sing-- spreading "misinterpreted" out like that just sort of felt the most natural and so I guess it sort of sounded best to me because of it. I'm actually finding it tricky to pronounce it otherwise now I'm so used to it

Actually, someone mentioned the end of Sap sounding unexpected/unfinished before, when I played it at the open mic for the first time-- you're right, and I do play it a little differently now, there's a bit of acoustic playing after the last line and it slows down a bit there. I might switch it up and put the last line at the end of that instead though.

*Hugs back and nuzzles* Thank you so much for the fantastic reply...

~Josiah

[Lady Serpent]

Thank you so much for the fantastic reply...

Ah, anytime.  I still hope to leave feedback for the two albums I havn't gone over yet, so hopefully I can do that sometime soon, despite the fact that they've been out for a long time already.  (And the fact that they sound so amazing.. I might not be able to FIND any bits to critique on.) 

Good luck with the recording.
-LS

[Josiah Tobin]

Just did a quick (and rather raw) take of a new song, tentatively called "850." Much more upbeat than my usual songs. Wrote about a week ago, for the house I live in.

Youtube link

...Oh, and it's got an outtake at the end of me missing my chair by like three feet and falling on my ass, so uh, there's that too I guess

I still hope to leave feedback for the two albums I havn't gone over yet, so hopefully I can do that sometime soon, despite the fact that they've been out for a long time already.  (And the fact that they sound so amazing.. I might not be able to FIND any bits to critique on.) 

Ahh, well don't feel obliged to critique then It's always good to hear opinions though, favorite songs and such...

~Josiah

[Lady Serpent]

Ahh.. this new one has a gorgeously upbeat, but still wonderfully 'haunting' (or 'warm, dark night on a beach staring at the waves') feel to it.  Really dig it.  This won't be on the new album, will it?

Nice job on the chair fall.  Your goat's looking pretty snazzy as well; grew a lot since we've last seen each other.

Again with this one, though, the ending is so abrupt!  It's got that lovely instrumental bit near the end, and then opens back into the main chorus, which was gorgeous, but it feels again like your voice ends on a note and a quick stop of instrumentals that leaves one feeling like the song isn't really 'done'.  I know it's still a rough take, though.  (Pretty smooth for a rough take, either way!)

*Purrs*  I really quite enjoyed this one for the sitting and listening value; if I heard it passing by I'd really notice because the instrumentals have a very strong, pleasant-to-the-ear melody to them.  (Not that I don't enjoy sitting and listening to your other songs, but this one seems to be one of the more noticeably 'catchable' ones. 

Cheers;
-Sephren

[Josiah Tobin]

Ah, thanks... Wow, warm night on a beach? I envy the beaches up there.

Nope, this one won't be on the album, I don't think... I could throw it in there in slightly more fleshed-out form but I don't know if it would fit-- the two acoustic songs on there already kind of serve as bookends, so one more may feel out of place. Perhaps if I do another acoustic EP in the future like Invisible Stray.

Regarding the goatee-- hah, I'll probably just shave once it's reached an amusing point; I just let it go for a couple weeks sometimes to see how it'd look. I generally prefer being clean shaven but I might just leave there for a week or so before I get rid of it this time, I dunno.

Really? I sort of thought the abrupt ending worked; the guitar is actually supposed to stop one or two chords earlier so I just sing the last part of the last line acapella. Thought it sort of had the feeling of stepping out of a house at 5am with the intent of going somewhere... if that makes any sense at all, which it might not. I'll look at extending it, maybe bringing back the main riff for the last part.

Hehe, yeah, I've been strongly considering doing the busking thing lately and this is definitely one of the better-suited songs for that. Some of the slower ones just wouldn't go over very well I think.

~Josiah

[Lady Serpent]

Ah, for sure..

I actually had a friend who played violin on the streets of Kelowna and Victoria, and she'd average about $40/hr during the tourist season.  So, you can certainly make a go of it if you present yourself properly. 

[Josiah Tobin]

Yeah... I think things like violins and the like would tend to have a little more draw than the old formula of "person + guitar," but that's alright. Not looking to make a living doing it or anything, it'd just be nice I think.

~Josiah

[manervic]

you have an awsome rocker face when ya sing loud ^^

[Josiah Tobin]

you have an awsome rocker face when ya sing loud ^^

Haha, thank you, good to hear

~Josiah

[blue-vulpine]

Dude, Most Excellent!! I've only really seen you twice, and both those times your guitar playing knocked me onto my ass!
Parden the language, but yeah. You rock!

Keep up the great work! :3

-TJ

[Josiah Tobin]

Thanks, I appreciate it! Glad you liked my playing. ^^

~Josiah

[Josiah Tobin]

New song, Boarding Pass. Thinking a lot about going places on the ferry and this song kinda came from that.
...I managed to fit "Tsawwassen" in the lyrics.

Been working on extending my range lately and I think it's finally showing with this song... plus I can do the higher parts in other songs now, like NiN's "Right Where it Belongs" -- The higher lines were way out of my range before, but I can nail them now. Pretty happy about that.

~Josiah

[Josiah Tobin]

Kind of a new one... Wrote it back in November/early December (can't remember exactly) but didn't get around to recording it until now. The name may change if I come up with a better one, but right now "Atrophy" is the working title.

Youtube link

Sore throat... was really surprised to make it through the falsetto part at the end without cracking.

~Josiah

[Hunter]

Atrophy:
First thought...  you really should have waited to record.  The gravel hurt sympathetically.
I had one set of thoughts at first, but changed my mind after a couple times through.  Newly revised impression:

It still doesn't grab me as is, but I think it's because it's not played in the best style for the song.  The guitar and melody are each strong rhythmically, but they accent at the same time, and don't complement.  It makes it kind of grating to listen to after a bit.  The short interlude after the first chorus, harmonically and thematically, sounds out of place, like it's from another song.  The shortness of the verse immediately after is a bit problematic, as well, as it causes the chorus to come back too quickly.  So quickly that I feel like something's been cut out.

That blast of negativity doesn't mean I didn't hear stuff I liked.  I did.  It's just all under the big black cloud of 'needs some work'.  I think a style change could work well.  Maybe take the guitar to a half-time feel, and use it as an accompaniment to, rather than a punctuation of, the melody?

And now I hope Sephren comes along to give a counter to my doom-and-gloom. ^^;

[Josiah Tobin]

First thought...  you really should have waited to record.  The gravel hurt sympathetically.

*Shrugs* Oh well. I'd waited long enough since I wrote the song so I just figured I'd do it as I was practicing then anyway. Didn't hurt my throat any further, just affected the sound. I will probably re-take the song at some point, but I'll have to think about re-writing it-- I actually thought the strongest part of this song was its structure, which kind of held the slightly weaker parts together and made them work. I'm doubting it a little now (subjectivism is such a pain!), but I don't play it super often anyway so it's not that big of a deal-- might just drop it from my set.

Perhaps I'm just annoyed that all my most-liked songs are always the verse-chorus-verse-chorus ones, or my older songs where the vocal melodies just followed the chords. It's quite frustrating sometimes.

And now I hope Sephren comes along to give a counter to my doom-and-gloom. ^^;

Haha, well I'd generally hope for honesty, and if this song just doesn't cut it in comparison to my others then I would hope people wouldn't tell me otherwise-- I'd rather truth than meaningless insincere praise (and I don't think I could imagine Sephren posting insincere criticism ).

Thanks for listening.

~Josiah

EDIT: Okay, this is the second time today I've noticed 15-20 bots online viewing the same topic as I am. That's... unsettling?

[Hunter]

Bots viewing the same topic?  Every guest I see is looking at something different...  Weird.

I actually thought the strongest part of this song was its structure

That right there should be a warning sign that something isn't going right.  Structure's important, but it has almost nothing to do with the strength of a song - it simply supports it.  I say this because I don't know how you put your songs together, so it may or may not be relevant.

if this song just doesn't cut it in comparison to my others then I would hope people wouldn't tell me otherwise

It doesn't cut it in it's current form.  I think it could work rather well with a different atmosphere.  In short, by the third listen, I had a different arrangement of it playing through my head, and your recording couldn't convince me that it was the best way to play it.

Perhaps I'm just annoyed that all my most-liked songs are always the verse-chorus-verse-chorus ones

Most-liked...  is that by you, or others?

EDIT: Yeah, you're right actually, they're all looking at the same two topics, which are the only two recently posted-in threads...