Setlist, 3.23.2012

Sine Studios, Philadelphia, PA - 3.23.2012

Push Me Away*
Boundary Blurring*
Summer Feels Like Forever*
To Reason Why* ->
Twelve*
Jaked*
The Thing About This*
This Old Town *
Vapors**
My Father's Watch***

*- With Dan and James on acoustic guitars, Nick on mini drum kit, and Henry on Rhodes
**- James breaks a string midway
***- With James standing on an ottoman at the intro, then holding Nick's ride cymbal for the last verse and chorus
"On So Thin A Line" Official Listening Party

On So Thin A Line: Stories and Tales from Studio and Beyond, Part 2

Continuing with our stories about the tracks on On So Thin A Line, today is all about the song "Inventing The Game".

Track 2- "Inventing The Game"


Dan: I remember us having a rough time with this song in its earlier stages. We had worked out a live-ready version back around 2010, and had played it out a couple of times and discovered something both alarming and saddening: people really didn't respond to it. Everyone in the room would be really engaged in the set, and then we would pull "Game" out and it seemed like we sucked all the energy out of the room. Taking the hint, we were ready to scrap it and move on.

He can get into this more, but Nick really saved this song. We dragged it back out in rehearsal and he completely changed the drum beat to the beat that now exists on the album, which made a huge difference instantly. Josh added what I like to call the "Joy Division bass line"; a part that was higher up than a normal bass line and had a melodic quality to it. My approach was to slide the electric guitar under the acoustic part, which is very rhythmic, and have it just be driving rather than overly melodic. And, of course, drenched in delay.

"Game" came together really well in the studio, and I don't think any of us realized what the song was actually going to sound like until it was finished. The outro guitar solo was completely conceived and executed on the spot over a couple of takes. I wanted a David Gilmour sound to the solo (not so much a Gilmour part, though), which was accomplished with a Fender Strat, a bit of delay and keeping it simple. Always keep it simple.

James: "Game" was written with a three feel, which is still how I play it at solo shows. It was built around the dramatic dynamic change, which, unfortunately, didn't make the original full-band arrangement work. Either way, it only sorta works for me until I get to lean back, open up and holler halfway through.

This song, more than probably any other, was an example of trusting my instincts as much as possible: I actually did play the changes and sing nonsense syllables into a recorder, then kept singing over and over until the words formed. Took about an hour of feeling really silly, yet each pass felt more and more like a song. Mumbles became words, words became phrases, and phrases became a song, which turned out to be dark, moody, illicit. Not bad for a spring afternoon in my sunny living room!

I turned it over and over in my head as we approached the studio; I wanted to maintain the moodiness and sordidness of the original, while still working within the more driving rhythm. The addition of Katie Barbato (formerly of The Sleepwells, now courtesy of herself) struck me: in addition to loving her writing and performances, she had done some nice duet work with Dan Collins, another great local singer-songwriter of our acquaintance. Her vocals still give me chills on this track.

Nick: Ditto on the chills. Thanks again, Katie.

The band allowed me to put on my arranging hat for this song at practice one day, and that hat was a fedora. Like Dan said, I decided that the beat should change to align with a certain part of James' rhythm guitar demo track. The song needed a little more forward movement and I thought a certain driving beat would do the trick. I was inspired by a song recorded by my friend Michael Jackson. Afterwards, Dan bought me a shirt that looks like Michael's jacket. I haven't worn that shirt yet, but I will soon. It has zipper graphics, and fake pockets and sequins.

What was I saying? Oh, right, copying beats from Thriller...

Touring Tunes

Ever want to listen along with The Way Home as they travel? Here's what we had on this trip:

30 Years of Maximum R&B- The Who

When You Come Home- Pete Donnelly

There is Nothing Left To Lose- Foo Fighters

Doolittle- The Pixies

Crack The Skye- Mastodon

Sweet Home Chicago- Graham Parker

There was a Spotify playlist Dan made, too, but I can't find its running order at the moment; I'll upload it when I can.

So that's what was on in our tour van!

Setlist 3.20.2012

Local 269, New York, NY - 3.20.2012

Boundary Blurring
Turn Of Phrase
The Thing About This
Summer Feels Like Forever
Jaked
To Reason Why*->
Twelve
Vapors
My Father's Watch

*- TWH debut

With The Recovery Council, A Little Affair, and Depths

On So Thin A Line: Stories and Tales from Studio and Beyond, Part 1

Greetings to all friends and Way Home fans. As many of you know, we've finally released On So Thin A Line, and we're incredibly happy with it. It was nearly a year in the making and even during the early stages, we couldn't wait to share it with all of you.

We thought it would be fun (and educational) if each of us took some time to talk about the process of making these songs into the album from our own perspectives. We'll give you some of the background as to where the songs came from and what each of us considered while making the record.

Track 1- "Boundary Blurring"

Dan: This was one of the first of our songs that I set out to write a permanent guitar solo to. It came about over the course of a few weeks in rehearsal for when we were touring for The Sobriquets Are Out Of Style. I found the main idea and solidified the whole thing throughout the tour. By the time we got back from the road, the solo was locked.

I remember during the tracking of the solo section, I was so worried about making it "correct". I wanted it to be a rigid, composed part of the song. After a handful of takes that just sounded stiff and lifeless, Matt Teacher (one of the engineers) told me to just play it like I play it live, to not worry about playing it "right" but to play it so it felt right. It was great advice, and the take that ended up on the album feels a lot more vibrant than any of the other passes at it. The best thing to do sometimes when a solo doesn't seem to kick in the studio like it does live is to forget you're in the studio and play it from the gut.

James: This song was actually written early enough to have been on ...Out Of Style, but it just didn't seem to fit along with those tunes; too raucous and angsty, maybe. Paradoxically, I wrote it on a summer afternoon, sitting beside a quiet lake in Vermont while on vacation with my family, which, if I had my choice, would be where I write all of my songs. It built from the opening guitar hook, which had been knocking around my head for months, as guitar hooks tend to; I finalized the changes on that trip, and finally began to put words into the rhythms.

While I've never fully subscribed to Mike Doughty's "Pretty Word, Tasty Word" theory of songwriting, I am a firm believer that the hook will tell you how the words need to flow, what vowel sounds to build around; the trick is to find lyrics that fit those requirements but still actually mean something I can relate to emotionally. If I can't find a meaningful core in the words, then singing the song hundreds of times is almost painful, and certainly numbing. I don't want to be embarrassed by lyrics onstage or on record, or feel like I can't put my heart behind singing them. These lyrics fought me every step of the way, but eventually I found a way in...

This track has probably my best keyboard playing. Which says a lot about how poor my keyboard playing really is. Your ears will thank Henry for joining us.

From day one in the studio, Matt's statement was "That tune is your Track One, Side One." By day three, the Stockholm Syndrome had set in, and so, in fact, this tune is the Track One, Side One.

Nick: "Boundary Blurring" is a tightrope act for me.

Since it's often our opening song, the first big drum fill is important to land. I challenged myself by making it bigger and more complex than my standard fills. I often have a moment of fear right before I bring down the sticks onto the snare head. Luckily, in the studio, we are allowed multiple takes. Sometimes I would like to have a second take at a live show!

After the "Big Fill," the second tightrope act is keeping the tempo in check. I play quarter notes on an open hi-hat for all the verses, and sometimes it can be hard to keep the song moving forward. The snare and the kick have a kind of swing to them that is always a challenge. It's nice to have a well-recorded version to refer back to and say "Ah! That's what it should feel like!"

My favorite part of the song is the chorus, where I lay into the ride cymbal and sing high notes with the rest of the band. It's a great feeling when all the pieces come together and the band gels into a singular entity.

There's a pun in there somewhere about the song title, but I don't want to be fired from the band again.