The Girl at the End of the Road

I guess this might be interpreted as a stream-of-consciousness horror story. There's maybe three or four different autoharp tracks here, including a distorted autoharp that I really dig. And a backwards autoharp! These autoharps say "Happy Halloween!"

Anyway, here's my challenge entry for this month -- just in time! If I didn't have this artificial deadline, I almost certainly would have done some things differently. On the other hand, without the artificial deadline, I never would have finished this one at all, so there's that.

I find it really, really difficult to finish a song and move on -- it's so much easier to say, "well, but I need to tweak it some more..." So thanks to MeFiMu and flapjax for forcing me to wrap things up every now and then, and thanks to all yall for giving a listen.

Words:
You’d better take the back roads if you plan to get home again; it’s hard when it’s been raining, but it’s harder when you’ve got a friend. There’s always people searching for things that probably won’t be found -- it’s prudent to remember that there’s always something underground. Thank you, daddy, from this little girl at the end of the road.

You’ll forgive me if I don’t join in raising a glass to your health. If you plant an acorn soon, you’ll have a place to hang yourself. It won’t provide much shelter, and there is no calm before this storm, so tuck me in again -- you’ll find the peat moss keeps us safe and warm. Thank you, daddy, from this little girl at the end of the road.

This stretch of road will keep no footprints -- no secrets from the past revealed -- no tributes mark the spot where last the wretched may have wept and kneeled. The wind among the treetops is the only sound you’ll ever hear: it cannot be mistaken for a child’s whisper in your ear, crying thank you, daddy, from this little girl at the end of the road.

(Get Flash to see the track player.)
posted by Karlos the Jackal (5 comments total)

That's probably my favorite distorted-string-instrument tone ever. The thickness from the layered vocals is really great, too. And the bridge... yes, yes, yes. I really like this.
posted by uncleozzy at 5:57 AM on October 31, 2008

I was digging it, but I pushed "add to favorites" as soon as the break with the backwards-autoharp came in. I too like the distortion you used, the two voices, I like it all. Congrats again, KTJ.
posted by micayetoca at 6:58 AM on October 31, 2008

Oh man, awesome. Awesome auto harp bridge. I wouldn't mind a little more of the auto harp in there to carry the little girl to the end of the song.
posted by Corduroy at 7:39 AM on October 31, 2008

Thanks, gang!

I wanted also to mention that there's a few neat toys here: the brief intro is a thunder tube, a wind wand, and a bloogle. The percussion that starts after the first verse is a cymbal sitting on the floor hit with a stick and sent through, I think, a phaser, and then sampled and looped. The other drum is just a drum machine. Keys & bass are both the Alesis Micron.
posted by Karlos the Jackal at 12:57 AM on November 1, 2008

good. very odd though
posted by mary8nne at 6:32 AM on November 5, 2008