#3 of the 5 tracks in my “resolution” series, “Finding Faces in Clouds” was created in October 2010, and, after the entirely electronic nature of the previous track, I was determined to get a “real” guitar involved. So, I used my Linda Manzer handmade acoustic guitar (probably my most precious guitar for many reasons) for a welcome dose of “real” instrument halfway through the track.
Besides the majority of Logic Pro instruments involved, this track also marked my first foray into use of a 3rd party synthesiser: the Synplant. I loved the innovative sound manipulation that the Synplant offered (by dragging “fronds” from a central “seed” of sound to change various parameters), and created a (to me) very inspiring, drone or bagpipe-like sound that evolved slowly and organically as chords changed. The other main feature of the track is a repeating four-note piano theme which drifts in and out of the mix, and adds a certain element of madness, in a good way, I hope; like a thought that keeps coming into your head. With all of these together, and plenty of reverb and delay, I had the combination of sound textures I was looking for.
The emotional note that this track struck with me, thanks to its layers of ambience, was one of a dream-like state. I imagined lying in a field, looking up at the sky, and letting thoughts take me wherever they would (maybe interrupted by that one repeating thought that the piano represents, which keeps bringing me back to earth).
