Our songwriting process takes two main forms; either Mark presents a song to the group and we all work on it OR Nick writes an arrangement and works with Josh to come up with the form and feel of the song, then Mark sings over it. We started using more of these ideas, and the contributed to some of the best songs on the EP (they’re all the best – we don’t pick favorites with our children).
In addition to the songwriting process, the recording method was something we had never done before. We tracked with our good friend Jack Dungan at his studio, which gave us flexibility to get ideas “on tape” as soon as they materialized. We were then able to move parts around, revise parts, add additional instruments or vocal layers, and most importantly get quick mixes to listen to in between sessions. This helped us to really sit with the songs and think about any more things to add or if we liked what we had recorded. Although it helped us get things right, it took much longer. It was hard to decide when the recording process was actually done and when we were ready to release what we were working on.
In the end though we felt that the seven songs we finished all flowed together well and that there was no need for additional tunes. The EP told a story, each song was very different and finished fully, and we wanted everyone to hear it! We hope everyone can find something to relate to in the lyrics and some songs that they can listen to in their car.