Songrut Songwriting

HEARING - Sound of silence
SEEING - Sunshine on a rainy day
SMELLING - Smells like teen spirit
TOUCHING - Invisible touch
FEELING - The way you make me feel
MOVING - Let's groove tonight
etc etc (and yes there are FAR better examples than the ones I have just given but you get the idea)

By describing HOW you are connecting with the subject changes the listeners perspective. It forces a reaction from the listener.

This is plainly obvious but easy to forget. However it can force a 'state' on the listener, and as it can be a form of story telling I think it's important not to forget that like a magician, the audience will look where you tell them to, except you're using words not gestures. Great novels manipulate us into feeling certain ways and songs can do that too.

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Is your love like a field of barley or a shag behind the bike shed?

If you're feeling something 'beautiful' then have a go at writing something that is also beautiful alongside it.

When you have feelings, try and think of other things that could relate...

Hate = anvil, hammer, black, dull, rough, thick, heavy clouds etc
Love = Summers day, sun, happy children, babies smile etc
Loss = Falling leaves, distant winds, etc
Peace = calm seas, distant shores etc

...and then write those things INSTEAD, missing out any explanation entirely, and let the listener fill in the gaps - with their own visuals and emotions - give them a landscape to feel what you're saying, don't write them into a corner - and they will connect with what you're saying because they have had to join in to make the song whole - you've let them fill in the gaps

Story songs (as in songs with a name title) are usually fables/parables which of course are analogies of real life. Otherwise I'd write a song about my mums trip to the shops, where she comes back at the end...and makes a sandwich - not much to learn in that story unless you want to uncover the delights of the local precinct or the intricacies of a cheese and tomato sandwich.

Of course, the songs we write are analogous to ourselves, as we can never BE the song. We can only DESCRIBE how we feel. Lists of feelings don't often make a good song, mainly because when someone else hears the lyrics, they have lost their emotional connection to the writer in the translation. The music can help bring the meaning back to the words, as can the use of clever lyrics.

Young bands can get very excited thinking they've written a great song and be upset when no one else 'gets it'. Unfortunately, people aren't mind-readers and need quite a lot of information to know where you're coming from with your songs. If people don't connect with your songs it's YOUR FAULT, you were the one who wanted to write a song in the first place. No point sulking or calling other people stupid.

To be truthful I found it hard to pull away from 'literal' songwriting and it was awkward at first as everything I wrote felt overly descriptive when I tried this approach. Until I realized there was no such thing. It just meant I had to write less words

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