Dan Cody Interview
Q: Can you talk about your history as an artist?
A: I've been writing and playing music since not long before when I first heard the Beatles, the Byrds and Tom Petty, while growing up with older siblings in a music loving family. In high school I started my first band. This quickly evolved into time well spent playing in regional bands, (most notably creating two albums and touring with the country rock combo Highway Ghosts) playing covers and originals inspired by their classic, roots and country rock heroes. I also formed a side project band called "The Leeds Society" which was a three-piece band that wrote and played originals more in the territory of rock and alternative music. For years I wrote songs that didn't really fit the format of the bands I was in at the time. Now, writing and creating my own music with the help of producer, collaborator and friend Joe Clapp at Ultrasound Productions, I'm really exploring a lot of different songs and ideas I have. I'm ready to explore and see it as a great opportunity to finally get to my true musical roots.
Q: What is your recording process like?
A: My recording process is pretty spontaneous meaning I tend to record quickly and love the idea that your initial gut instinct is sometimes the best and what ends up on my final version. I’ll give you an example. Like many others I’ll lay down a scratch vocal or guide vocal when recording a basic track and then you eventually go back and record the real final vocal. I find that if I have lyrics already written I’ll sing that scratch vocal like it’s the final take because the first time I sing a lyric in the studio , it’s my very first time and to me a true gut feeling and expression of how it should sound. After that I feel you lose the spontaneity because you keep doing takes of the vocals over and over and I tend not to vary the vocal too much. To me it loses some of that first exciting idea of how to express my lyrics. So, often I find that i may use a some of the original performances as part of my final recording.
Q: What is your creative process like?
A: There’s a few different ways I approach the creative process. I either sit down with an acoustic guitar or at a piano and just start playing and see what happens. Sometimes I’ll hit upon a series of chords that sound good to me and I’ll keep playing those over and over to see if any other ideas come to mind for another section such as a bridge that will fit good with what I have. I’ll then leave that piece of music as is. I used to record home demos but don’t really do that anymore. If I can remember what I played the previous day or a few days ago then it’s sticking with me and I know I have something that I really like. I’ll just keep developing the idea and humming along to see if any words come to mind and start writing down those ideas. On other days I may use my list of song titles and pick one to see if I can come up with music that fits that title. I also have some unfinished songs or ideas that have been with me for a long time and I’ll occasionally go to those and dust them off to see if I can either finish them or improve on them. I don’t go by any particular schedule or block of time but almost daily or at least every other day I’ll keep playing with songs to see how they develop.
Q: Can you talk about your history as an artist?
A: I've been writing and playing music since not long before when I first heard the Beatles, the Byrds and Tom Petty, while growing up with older siblings in a music loving family. In high school I started my first band. This quickly evolved into time well spent playing in regional bands, (most notably creating two albums and touring with the country rock combo Highway Ghosts) playing covers and originals inspired by their classic, roots and country rock heroes. I also formed a side project band called "The Leeds Society" which was a three-piece band that wrote and played originals more in the territory of rock and alternative music. For years I wrote songs that didn't really fit the format of the bands I was in at the time. Now, writing and creating my own music with the help of producer, collaborator and friend Joe Clapp at Ultrasound Productions, I'm really exploring a lot of different songs and ideas I have. I'm ready to explore and see it as a great opportunity to finally get to my true musical roots.
Q: What is your recording process like?
A: My recording process is pretty spontaneous meaning I tend to record quickly and love the idea that your initial gut instinct is sometimes the best and what ends up on my final version. I’ll give you an example. Like many others I’ll lay down a scratch vocal or guide vocal when recording a basic track and then you eventually go back and record the real final vocal. I find that if I have lyrics already written I’ll sing that scratch vocal like it’s the final take because the first time I sing a lyric in the studio , it’s my very first time and to me a true gut feeling and expression of how it should sound. After that I feel you lose the spontaneity because you keep doing takes of the vocals over and over and I tend not to vary the vocal too much. To me it loses some of that first exciting idea of how to express my lyrics. So, often I find that i may use a some of the original performances as part of my final recording.
Q: What is your creative process like?
A: There’s a few different ways I approach the creative process. I either sit down with an acoustic guitar or at a piano and just start playing and see what happens. Sometimes I’ll hit upon a series of chords that sound good to me and I’ll keep playing those over and over to see if any other ideas come to mind for another section such as a bridge that will fit good with what I have. I’ll then leave that piece of music as is. I used to record home demos but don’t really do that anymore. If I can remember what I played the previous day or a few days ago then it’s sticking with me and I know I have something that I really like. I’ll just keep developing the idea and humming along to see if any words come to mind and start writing down those ideas. On other days I may use my list of song titles and pick one to see if I can come up with music that fits that title. I also have some unfinished songs or ideas that have been with me for a long time and I’ll occasionally go to those and dust them off to see if I can either finish them or improve on them. I don’t go by any particular schedule or block of time but almost daily or at least every other day I’ll keep playing with songs to see how they develop.
Q: What are some of themes that are touched upon your release Long Distance Line?
A: One theme was time and beyond the physical life in the song “Long Distance Line.” I’ve always loved the concept of time and the passing of time so that song focused on that aspect of not having seen loved ones in a long time and for those who’ve passed away the idea that we will meet again someday. “All Right” is a song of hope and that no matter the situation things will be all right and work out in the end. “Out of the Blue” is a song about dreaming big and not giving up on any dreams you may have. With “Just For You” this theme was simply love, a love song and not realizing we can get so busy with day to day lives that you don’t stop and take the time to say the little things that mean a lot in life.
Q: Have you played any of the material live or perhaps virtually?
A: I have not played it live due to releasing my music during the pandemic. The virtual component is coming soon as I will be playing the songs in a stripped down format and either using Facebook live or streaming a recorded show.
Q: What else should we know about your music?
A: It’s who I am. It’s real and organic. I’m not catering to a certain style or format. I also have a great producer with my friend Joe Clapp who helps bring my songs and ideas to life as well as good friends who lend their music and vocal talents to make the music the best it can possibly be. I put a lot of work into each song and go over every detail of it to make it the absolute best it can be. I’m 51 and I’ve been doing music for a long time but I feel I’m just getting started with these new songs and a whole bunch more I’ve been working on. I love working on different types of songs, sounds and themes so you’ll get a variety of music from me as I continue to release new music. To me music is like painting as you start with a blank canvas and then you fill in all the different colors to create something and hopefully people like it. For the music I release I have to be really excited about it because I personally don’t believe in releasing music just for the sake of releasing music.
A: One theme was time and beyond the physical life in the song “Long Distance Line.” I’ve always loved the concept of time and the passing of time so that song focused on that aspect of not having seen loved ones in a long time and for those who’ve passed away the idea that we will meet again someday. “All Right” is a song of hope and that no matter the situation things will be all right and work out in the end. “Out of the Blue” is a song about dreaming big and not giving up on any dreams you may have. With “Just For You” this theme was simply love, a love song and not realizing we can get so busy with day to day lives that you don’t stop and take the time to say the little things that mean a lot in life.
Q: Have you played any of the material live or perhaps virtually?
A: I have not played it live due to releasing my music during the pandemic. The virtual component is coming soon as I will be playing the songs in a stripped down format and either using Facebook live or streaming a recorded show.
Q: What else should we know about your music?
A: It’s who I am. It’s real and organic. I’m not catering to a certain style or format. I also have a great producer with my friend Joe Clapp who helps bring my songs and ideas to life as well as good friends who lend their music and vocal talents to make the music the best it can possibly be. I put a lot of work into each song and go over every detail of it to make it the absolute best it can be. I’m 51 and I’ve been doing music for a long time but I feel I’m just getting started with these new songs and a whole bunch more I’ve been working on. I love working on different types of songs, sounds and themes so you’ll get a variety of music from me as I continue to release new music. To me music is like painting as you start with a blank canvas and then you fill in all the different colors to create something and hopefully people like it. For the music I release I have to be really excited about it because I personally don’t believe in releasing music just for the sake of releasing music.