The first of 6 songs we’ve written and recorded during Coronial times is out today (Yes I’m coining the phrase. I made it up the other day over tacos). Before we get into this blog, I think it’s probably a good idea for you to treat yourselves to a listen to our new song. Please use the link below to save and like the song, but while you’re there don’t forget to follow us too <3. Also, return here after, I have more to say!
Okay well done, you’ve impressed us already! I hope at this point you’re sat reading this bobbing your head to our danciest track yet. Full disclosure, I’m listening and bobbing while writing this. So let’s continue bobbing on together.
As you can hear, ‘See You Again’ is relevant to what’s been going on during the coronial (soz) period, but I shan’t say anymore on the meaning behind the song, as Ollie is going to talk about that and the writing process in next week’s blog, so stay tuned!
One thing I do know the detail of however, is the artwork. Artwork design is a difficult decision for anyone. The possibilities are infinite when you start to brainstorm ideas and everyone has their own preferences, which makes it an even more impossible task. It’s always so obvious to do the normal band photo-shoot and to just go with something cliché. But we aren’t just aiming for the norm in The Great Leslie, for heaven’s sake it needs to be ‘great’ at the very least!
It may come as a surprise to you that all our artworks thus far are actually done in-house (my house mostly). The truth is, apart from being in this great band, I’ve also had a side hustle…well…I need to…until you guys are streaming and attending gigs enough to cover my daily survival needs of beef and tomoato pot noodles and toast. Luckily for the band, this means I can self-title myself as head of art and design. Before you think it for yourselves, I know, I know…I’m talented and use too many brackets.
Because we wrote, recorded and produced the 6 singles coming out this year at the same time, the songs are all artistically related. We essentially wanted our artworks to be a series. While I’m unable to show you the ones to come (it’s a secret until they are released), let me show you the work that goes into them.
Our concept was simple. A birds-eye view of a table filled with things that relate to the content of the new songs. Below you can see how we set up the shoot. We got a plain black table and arranged the camera directly above and center. Together the band decided which objects correctly represented each single. See You Again is all about seeing our friends after lockdown, so the items placed all reminded us of what happens when we see our friends and the fun times we have.
A few of the props included are: a calendar counting down to the day we can see our friends again according to the British government’s roadmap out of lockdown, beer mats from the local pub at our studio, a TGL face mask, beer, and smoking accessories. There’s plenty more if you look closely, along with a few questionable additions…I await the day an interviewer asks us about the unmentioned!
We lit our props with 3 lights: 2 big LED panels giving alternate lighting from each side. A cool one from one side, and warm one from the other. At the bottom we placed a blue ring light to add some interesting highlights in the shadows and the glasses. .
After we got the right shot, we started editing. For the edit we wanted them to have a vintage feel. To achieve this with a digital camera you need to do quite a bit to the images light levels. I won’t go into mass detail, as it could get a bit jargony for non-photographers. You can compare the original image with the edited image above to see the difference the editing made to the artwork.
Chromesthesia for those of you that don’t know is the ability to see music as colours. But recent scientific evidence shows that many non-synesthetes do have music-to-color associations similar to the cross-modal experiences of someone with Chromesthesia. Each of our songs have been selected a colour grade that fits with each song. Upon consultation with Ollie, he felt that See You Again was green. This is why the image has a green tint to it. The question for you all is, what colour do you see this song as? Do you agree with Ollie? I’m at a bit of a disadvantage on this one as I’m severely colourblind. For all I know, I didn’t make it green, I’ll have to leave that for you to tell me..
Don’t forget to also tell the band and me what you think of the track! We love to hear your feedback, good or bad, we just feel blessed that you have taken your time out to give our music a listen! We hope you love it and we hope to see you all again very soon.
Much love,
Ryan xxxx