So, my final song was inspired by the film “Scarface” there was a scene when the main character Tony Montana travels to Bolivia one of the poorest countries on the planet. There was a song playing in the background as the camera focused on the mountain terrain that left a real impression on me. The song consisted heavily of panpipes and I really wanted to write a composition which incorporated that fascinating sound.
I also thought the title suited the narrative “Ain’t No Angels in Paradise” the illegal drug trafficking of the Cocaine business and the devastating affect it has had on all of society. Although in the poorest countries of South America it’s one of the only sources of income for so many people. Admittedly the messages within my songs have been based around provocative subjects but I have always pride myself on my social consciousness. Also, with this project and have previously mentioned that the songs structures are heavily influenced by movie music. Even though they are instrumentals you can still be aware of how the music relates to the theme and title. Is this not the true essence of Hip Hop the provocative messages with film score style sampling?
The track starts with some tropical sound design made of a combination of jungle Foley recordings including, jungle background noise, tribal gathering and tribal drums. There is also that familiar sound of the South American panpipes combined with a crash cymbal and a stab to add some energy. I also used a striking flute and a shaker which I used to create an illusion of flying insects to add some extra tropical ambience it helped change the dynamics throughout the arrangement. I used a wonderful vintage piano to build not only the momentum for the drops, but it also resonated the overall South American ambiance.
Again, I used a crash and kick drum to create that impact in the drop that is slowly becoming a sonic signature of mine. The main sixteen- bar verse melodics is made up of various panpipes combined with a slight pitched down tempo double bass and a Spanish guitar and a flute which helped to create a smoky and interestingly indigenous ambiance. The drums were once again a combination of programmed beats layered with chopped breaks. Inspired by another idol of mine Hip Hop legendary producer DJ Premier.
Again, a four-bar pattern some kick note length and offbeat variations plus a surprising snare note length change on second lot of the four-bar pattern. Some of the kicks have a variation in velocity so acting like ghost notes to help create an interesting smoky groove. Combined acoustic closed hi hat eight bar pattern to create a shuffle. The eight- bar chorus was made up with some jungle style percussion some soft tribal drum pattern combined with a one shot flute. I then layered that with a ‘Travis Parker’ style crash cymbal then added that wonderful vintage piano again for the momentum. Which I also used for the outro combined with my signature dramatic crash cymbal ending.
Bibliography and Discography
[Online]Available at:[youtube.com/watch?v=1gLe9TK4CFs(opens in a new tab)][Accessed 29th April 2020]
[Online] Available at:[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YuCXYeKFtgI] [Accessed 29th April 2020]
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