Friday, June 10, 2005

Sculpted Static flashback of the day

Star Ferry, known affectionately to the band as "Star Fucker," was the first song Steven ever wrote. It had all the elements of a real song: an introduction, verse 1, verse 2, chorus, bridge with a time signature switch, instrumental break, verse 3, chorus, and an outro. Few other Sculpted Static/Tonics songs could boast that kind of completeness.

Mark added a busy, but melodic, lead guitar part. Arta played the guitar solo and flanged rhythm guitar. All of this, combined with the keyboard and a synthesized "jazz" drum part, created a dreamy musical texture different from anything they had done before. Apparently a success with the band and their listeners, "Star Ferry" was played at every Sculpted Static concert.

Steven: "When I wrote 'Star Ferry,' I had very little clue how to write a song. It just kind of happened. I didn't really think about it at all. In fact, of all the songs I ever wrote, this one probably makes the most musical sense, too. A very satisfying melody. Lyrically, a sort of an interesting take on a love song. It really went downhill from here.

"They say the music you write reflects your mental state. Maybe 'Star Ferry' was the last song I wrote before I went insane. I guess it was. I was happy at the time."

Our favorite keyboardist, of course, went on to pen depressing shit like "Hamlet" and mean-spirited jibes like "Therefore Play Music" and "Lucy Tricked Me Into Something." God knows what happened to him after the bright and sunny days of early-2001, when everything seemed possible.

No comments: