I'm aware that I've written about Album Openers before but this time, I'll be looking at what mistakes to avoid when arranging your tracklist as well as reminding you of examples where an album has picked a spot on opening tune.
Once again, this is a work of opinion and there may be exceptions to the rules that I've forgotten about but if that turns out to be the case, feel free to educate me in the comment section or via Twitter.
DO make sure it reflects the rest of the album
Even if the band have released one or two singles from the album before it drops, the album opener will be the first thing fans listen to when they eventually purchase the record. Whilst lead singles are designed to get people interested in the album so they want to buy it, the album opener is only truly enjoyed after the sale is complete. If your album opener is weaker than the rest of the album (or is a shining diamond in a 40 minute slog of shite), you're already setting listeners up for a bad experience.
The same can be said if your album opener stands apart from the rest of the songs. Got an album full of Riff Based Hard Rock? Open on a "Highway Star" or "Rock Brigade" type number, something catchy with plenty of awesome guitar. Got an album that's meant to represent a return to your older work after a dodgy previous album? Open on a song that showcases hallmarks of your classic sound, "The Threat Is Real" or "The Getaway" being great examples. It sets the expectation for the listener and if they like what they hear, it'll make them more excited to listen to the rest of the album.
DO try to save your title track/lead single for later
Sometimes, these tracks make great album openers. "Help!" immediately springs to mind but that's an example of an album opener that follows the other Dos on this list. However, for the most part, title tracks/lead singles are better saved for later on. See, most albums have two or three main beats. Album opener, title track & lead single. These are your three most important songs and since your average album has about 8-12 songs, you want to space those out appropriately.
Combining two leaves a lot of filler tracks which can cause problems for mediocre bands so the safest option is to leave them until later, although more talented bands that are sitting on a goldmine of quality material can get away with this. For example, Metallica could get away with "Enter Sandman" due to it representing their slightly more commercial sound in The Black Album, not to mention the fact that when all's said and done, it's a pretty sweet track.
DO pick a brilliant song
This should go without saying but I know there are some musicians or casual readers who'll assume an artist will think "Well every song on the album is brilliant, otherwise why would I release it?" and use that as an excuse to pick any song to open the album. Trust me, if a band comes out with that, they're full of shit. Producers might try that one on but there's nothing wrong with having favourites in your own collection, or at least thinking "Yep, that song is not as good as that one". The album opener shouldn't just be any old song that sounds OK, it needs to be a highlight. However, it's important not to confuse what I'm saying here with the next paragraph...
DON'T pick the best song
Rookie mistake, this. For the same reason that you should avoid opening an album with your title track, opening the album on your greatest song sets the rest of the album up for disappointment as you'll never be able to reach that peak again. Granted that opinion is subjective and one fan's "best song ever" is another's "shitty sellout track" but there are some albums where you can tell the producer has singled out the strongest song to open a relatively dull or unimpressive album. On an unrelated note, here are some random albums!
Bark At The Moon - Ozzy Osbourne.
Redeemer Of Souls - Judas Priest.
Wasting Light - Foo Fighters.
Hidden City - The Cult.
The Ritual - Testament.
DON'T start with conversation/an outtake
Yes, I know I claimed "Kielbasa" - Tenacious D is a great album opener and yes, that starts with pointless conversation. However, I did claim that the rest of the song makes up for the weak intro and if it just started with the main melody, it'd be so much better. There are other album openers that contain a false start or a few seconds of pointless feedback/warming up, wasting time before the song starts, and those always hinder the listening experience. Sometimes album openers are a short tune that plays before the TRUE album opener ("The Hellion" before "Electric Eye", for example) and those are fine, provided they either don't go on too long or aren't too short to deserve their own track.
DON'T feel the need to show off right away
This is similar to an earlier point but applies more to individual band members. If the guitarist wants to push themselves and create a solo that will inspire young musicians for decades to come, they don't need to pack it into the first song if it doesn't fit. Start with a solo that's appropriate and write a song with an opulent three minute guitar odyssey for the second half of the album if that's what you want; just don't assume that if you have a point to prove as a new musician that it needs to be made in the first four minutes of the album.
I'm aware I still have a post to make up for and I am currently writing one that I'll publish when it's ready. For now, it's just one post for this week. Hope you enjoyed it!
No comments:
Post a Comment