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August 30, 2010 - Week 10
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"Put On A Smile"
Overview
Lyrics
Overview
Engineering
Week 10, the big double digits! "Put On A Smile" is a song about the drudgery of stardom. We all strive for fame, but if we actually achieved stardom....would we like it? We had a particularly luxurious past weekend. Not only did we see the fantastically hilarious Scott Pilgrim vs. The World at our ultra-high-tech AMC theater (Pay to see this movie on the big screen!), but we also enjoyed a delicious meal at Benihana. Good movies and good food are the perfect ingredients to fuel our songwriting for the upcoming week.By SeanThe lyrics for "Put on a Smile" were inspired by a concept I developed after hearing an initial mix of the song. The tempo and swing of the song made me think of a self-loathing, self-destructive rockstar. I elaborated on that idea by having the lyrics be from that fictional character's perspective, lamenting the glamorous lifestyle that our culture idolizes. I wanted him to be an aged, veteren rockstar, battle-scarred, and disenfranchised. And rather than put up a false, fake front of self-confidence and cool, I wanted his words (the lyrics) to show the cracks in his armor, and put the spotlight on his ego. I'm not famous, but I can imagine that being a celebrity can be just as taxing (if not more) as any other fast-paced, performance-intensive lifestyle."Put On A Smile" by The Theory of Funkativity Verse: Do you have the things that I Asked for What I need to play The encore No, I won't back up No, I won't calm down What do I pay you for? Showbiz, it seems, was so much Easier before Gimme the microphone I'll give them a show I'll put on a smile So no one will know Gimme the microphone And no one will know Showbiz was so much Easier before Chorus: Put me on center stage Put me on another plane Put me on magazines Put me on tv screens Look at my perfect teeth My expensive things All your wildest dreams Mean shit to me Verse: Love song or two and I'd Have 'em on the floor Just have to wink an eye and They'd be begging for more I was a wanted man With the best of bands Heard those clapping hands Night after night always playing The same damn chords Gimme the microphone I'll give them a show I'll put on a smile So no one will know Gimme the microphone And no one will know Showbiz was so much Easier before Chorus: Put me on center stage Put me on another plane Put me on magazines Put me on tv screens Look at my perfect teeth My expensive things All your wildest dreams Mean shit to me Put me on center stage Put me on another plane Put me on magazines Put me on tv screens Look at my perfect teeth My expensive things All your wildest dreams Mean shit to me Bridge: Gimme the microphone Gimme the microphone And no one will know And no one will know Gimme the microphone I'll give them a show I'll give them a show I'll give them a show Gimme the microphone Gimme the microphone And no one will know And no one will know Gimme the microphone I'll give them a show I'll give them a show I'll give them a show Chorus: Put me on center stage Put me on another plane Put me on magazines Put me on tv screens Look at my perfect teeth My expensive things All your wildest dreams Mean shit to me Put me on center stage Put me on another plane Put me on magazines Put me on tv screens Look at my perfect teeth My expensive things All your wildest dreams Mean shit to meBy MichaelThe bass dictates the mood and pace of "Put On A Smile." The bass line is the epitome of restlessness. It's an improvised part that refuses to settle on one single technical style, but as the song develops that inconsistency becomes a style of its own. The bass alternates between slides and staccato notes, small steps and leaps between strings, stationary plucking and wild motion. It evokes the song's lyrical theme of a tired, washed-up musician who can only find a shred of satisfaction by restlessly toying with his part. In the chorus, the guitar slides up to a series of open, ringing chords voiced high on the neck. The bass stays on the move, working its way from high to low. Although song widens into a richer texture, the chorus is hardly cathartic, which ties back into the theme of restlessness. "Put On A Smile" offers no relief. The outro is a bittersweet resignation to this fact.By MichaelI find that the snare drum is one of the more enjoyable instruments to mix. It's much harder to ruin the tone of a snare than it is most other instruments. The final track always ends up sounding fatter and more exciting than the raw tone, which makes the mixing process that much more satisfying. We tune the snare on the low side to get a deep, rock-friendly snare sound. I stick one 57 on top pointing at the center of the head, and another 57 on bottom in the same position mirrored vertically. I like a good amount of snare bottom in the mix. While the top mic picks up the dry ring of the snare, the bottom mic picks up more of the actual snares and this gives it some crack. Step 1: invert the phase of the bottom mic. This is important. Because the mics are pointing towards the snare from different sides, the phase of the bottom mic will be inverted and must be flipped back to prevent the signals from canceling each other out (phasing). Next, each mic gets individually EQ'd courtesy of the Sonnox Oxford EQ. I strip all of the booming lows and notch out any excessive ringing. After that I use a gate to filter out the bleed from the other drums, because these poor unsuspecting tracks are about to get compressed hard. The two mic signals are finally united and passed through the PSP VintageWarmer2 which makes the snare fatter and slightly distorted. Next comes the Waves CLA-76 compressor which levels the signal to make the snare more even and shapes the attack to achieve the right amount of punch. Without the gate that I mentioned earlier, the bleed from the other drums would now be roughly as loud as the snare itself. No good. Lastly, I use the CSR Plate to add a hint of reverb to smooth out the decay.
