(And right now it’s a free download – so take it!)
The drums sound pretty simple, right? That’s because they are pretty simple. But it wasn’t easy to get there, that’s for sure.
I’ve honestly lost track of the amount of false starts we had with this song. Not because I would play the drums poorly, but because we would discover – after the fact – that the drums weren’t really working.
When we record a track we do it like this:
1) Ron sets up a click in the headphones
2) We choose the BPM (beats per minute) that we think will work
3) I record a scratch track (a track we throw away) of guitar and vocals
4) I play the drums, listening to the scratch track and the click together
The problem was – after we did the first three or four steps we’d realize that the drum rhythm was going to be weak.
The drums ALONE may have sounded awesome, but we’re not creating wet dreams for drum-geeks here. I could ‘Metallica’ or ‘Rush’ my way through these songs if I wanted – honest I could – but what would that do? Make me a fresh sound for 1987? I’m not interested. I’m trying to make great SONGS here, and I’m not interested in being a wanker. (No offence to Peart or Ulrich… I love you guys, but that’s not what I’m doing…)
Anyways, I’m getting off track.
We would lay down a drum track and listen to it. Over and over again we would think, it’s not bad, but what if we pushed the BPM up 5 points, or 10 points. Then we would record the drums again. After another listen, we would think… I don’t know… maybe if we drop the BPM down to 110, what do you think?
After we finally settled on a BPM, and recorded the drums, we worked on a bass line. Ron recorded it. It sounded good, but a couple months later – when the song was almost done - I re-recorded it and made it a little tighter. If you listen, that’s the most complex bass-line I’ve done (so far).
Also, low in the mix, in certain parts, if you listen closely, you can hear something that sounds like a tribal chant. That’s me. Singing. I recorded that complex vocal voodoo-chant nine times in a row, layering one on top of the next. Would you believe that I knocked them all out – one after another – with no fuck-ups? It’s true.
And it sounded so cool that when we mixed the song we put the chant REALLY LOUD! The next day, when we listened again with fresh ears, we thought, Man… that sucks! And we had to mix it again.
All that – plus a bunch of piano lines, hand drums (I bet you can't even hear those!), and keyboard lines, just to make that simple little song.
But wait! There’s more!
Because I didn’t talk about the vocals.
And the vocals were a bitch. The vocals are ALWAYS a bitch.
I’ll lay them down once. Then we’ll listen to them, and think, That’s frickin’ terrible! So I’ll do them again, and again, and again… until I find the right attitude behind the words.
It took months.
The first couple of attempts were brutal. The vocals sounded like I was auditioning for American Idol. Yuck! Then I did some vocals that sounded like I was scared, but that didn’t work. The ‘Vampire Slayer’ isn’t scared. He’s cool. He’s confident. He’s Christopher Lee, for crying out loud.
In the end I gave him an attitude that was one part, I don’t give a shit, and one part, That’s the way it is, Son. Deal with it. Plus I always try to make my voice sound a little scary… a little freaky. Sometimes the vocals will slide slightly out of key and we’ll both think, I like it. Sounds creepy.
The right thing to do – on occasion - is the wrong thing to do.
If you catch my drift.
Here are the lyrics:
I opened up the castle door; I went down so many stairs.
I walked along a creepy hall, which lead me deep into his lair.
The smell around me it was death; it chilled me to the bone.
And deep inside of my heart, I prayed the vampire was alone.
Lead me in to his lair.
Don’t you know who I am?
I’ve come here to spill blood tonight,
I’m a Vampire Slayer; yeah, that’s right.
But I did not get so lucky, ’cause when I saw him lying there,
Inside his coffin made of wood, and tucked so deep beneath the stairs,
Well, he was not alone; the place was thick with the undead,
But because the sun was up, I carried on, now filled with dread.
Lead me in to his lair.
Don’t you know who I am?
I’ve come here to spill blood tonight,
I’m a Vampire Slayer; yeah, that’s right.
I’ve got this––need to kill them, and it’s deep inside of me,
It’s right here.
One by one I pulled them out, away from all the other fiends.
Stake and hammer, they were in my hands, feeling nervous, feeling mean.
I punched the stake into their hearts, and each one of them screamed,
Until there was only one of them left, Nostferatu, he haunts my dreams.
Lead me in to his lair.
Don’t you know who I am?
I’ve come here to spill blood tonight,
I’m a Vampire Slayer; yeah, that’s right.
I’ve got this––need to kill them, and it’s deep inside of me,
It’s right here.
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