7 Ways to Write BETTER Songs!

[@TheArtofGuitar]

C'mon, we need another song with the lyrics, "Don't know where I'm going, but I sure know where I've been." Just ONE more! 😝

[@foolstunes7752]

Right? Right?!

[@thomasayresol]

"I was walking down the street, not sure who I could meet, I felt something in my brain, I think I'm going insane"

[@WIMPY86]

Them voices in my head Wishin I was dead! These feels that I've been feelin is for reals! It be timin to be a rhymin! Metaphors and similes To understand What I mean You'll need a dictionary! It's self explanatory!

[@ilikeguitars3511]

Sup mike

[@tfwnoyandere]

five finger death punch moment

[@devilsslave1970]

14:22 "Im not a great songwriter, this is just stuff you inherently pick up by examining your favorite songs" THANK YOU. Imagine paying $500 for a songwriting course.

[@sendalunar2974]

It's from Tray actually.

[@MojoStrummer]

What's wrong with paying for a course if it helps you write better songs? Sometimes you might be missing something when you examine songs and it just isn't getting through to you.

[@ConstantineM]

Yeah, I respect Trey, but he don't have amazing songs at all. He knows the stuff, but I can't remember aby of his songs.

[@eliasprodger]

GLENNNNNN HOW COULD U SAY THIS!!!! MY 13 MINUTE TECH DEATH MASTERPIECE WILL REVOLUTIONIZE WHAT MUSIC IS. THE GROWLED VOCALS AND 9 MINUTE SWEEP PICKED GUITAR SOLOS NEVER GET OLD!!!!!

[@spyderyates4587]

Fucking awesome. Where can I buy it.

[@suddenswarm5944]

DON'T FORGET 300BPM PROGRAMMED DRUMS, IT'S A MUST CAUSE US GUITARISTS NEED MORE TIME TO PRACTICE KISSING THE MIRROR!

[@thejusticeization]

metal just became fucking noise with these garbabe sub genres

[@WIMPY86]

13 minutes?! That's the radio edit!

[@thomasayresol]

Another thing that helps is keeping all of your lyrics and idea notes in a folder. And never throw anything away. Don't throw out demos either. Years later you can come back and work on some of the old songs or song ideas when you are having a creative dry spell. A song idea that ran into a dead-end years ago might turn out to be a great song idea, one that you are now better prepared to finish. Over time you will build up an archive of songs and ideas. What ends up being the killer chorus in a new song could be the bridge part taken from an old song you had abandoned.

[@andyfreeze4072]

i disagree. i too have 30yrs of odd bits and pieces. it was a cathartic experience to just delete 1/2 of my archive. Why? because it sucked. It was infantile. It was boring. I dont rely on history when i write new songs. Every song has a life of its own, trying to cram an idea from 30yrs ago just isnt my thing anymore. If you cant arrange a song, non of those pieces you have sitting out the back are of any use anyway. Its just clutter that is like a prison wall of ideas.

[@psychochicken9535]

Even a bad idea, lyric, riff, whatever, that doesn't fit or make sense 30 years ago can be something that can be massaged into something new and appreciable down the line.

[@thomasayresol]

@@andyfreeze4072 You might be a bit harsh on your own archive, but if thats what works for you then by all means go for it. Some composers threw their early works on the fire, started over from scratch. Others would pull out early pieces and rework them later in life. To each songwriter their own.

[@grizzla71]

Yep. I keep all my lyric notepads of unused ideas. I go back to it regularly and cherry-pick things that can complement whatever I’m currently working on.

[@andyfreeze4072]

@@psychochicken9535 as somebody said to me, that may work for you. Me, i am always looking for fresh ideas. And i didnt say i threw everything out. There are bits that stood the test of time, but half of them were junk. its the hoarding , just in case, well its a well known symptom in psychology class, lol

[@KaldDodeGitarist]

The thing songwriters don't understand about long songs is, if the riffs are good enough to be repeated for 10 minutes, the listener could just put the song on repeat if it was 4 minutes long instead

[@zackakai5173]

Not only that, but those songs usually go somewhere are aren't actually just sitting on the one riff for ten minutes (even if they might come back to that riff later on in the piece)

[@metalinyourhead3604]

Exactly. I could listen to 2112 any day. Why? Cause it’s fun to listen to.

[@Mul3kruk]

Personally I prefer to split 10 minute songs of epicness into a "full album" of 34 grindcore/pv microsongs 😅

[@justinTime077]

I happen to love Tool’s Third Eye that’s like 15 minutes long

[@brukernavn3409]

Because those little pauses will ruin the flow, and you'll lose the groove.

[@MrMetallicFreak]

I think this video shows well what Glens message is: he wants metal to be "popular" again. Which I can't blame him for, some of the greatest music ever was written during those times (metallica, priest, maiden, so on). Personally, as a person who enjoys metal from all decades and genres, I believe the path forward lies somewhere in the middle. Technical playing and growling has its place but the classics can also be a blueprint to separate from the endless sea of modern metal. I think bands like Rivers of Nihil (Owls & Work albums specifically) can be a good telling of what I'm trying to say, and I feel like Glenn doesn't know about bands like that.

[@charizardmaster13]

He deffinetly doesnt considering the ammount of blanket statements against modern metal he puts in all his videos

[@ralphashford9022]

So I just looked Rivers of Nihil up. Their first album had 4 songs 3 minutes long, No song was beyond 5 minutes. And as I write this - listening to The Silent Life - this is the kind of song Glenn WANTS to hear from new bands. Rivers of Nihil makes his point.

[@withinthrall1445]

I mean I think that's missing the point a little. He's not talking about what bands are already out there, this is for those who are wanting to be like Rivers of Nihil. He's talking about his experience of what he receives from newer musicians. Most people copy bands like Rivers of Nihil or Vildjharta but miss the point of how they structure their songs and the actual approach. There's a reason why you go back to Rivers of Nihil and not the thousand of smaller bands that sound just like them that are trying to get popular. He's not saying there are no modern metal bands, but the people who are trying right now to make it need to get better. We can sit here and say "well this band actually does this Glenn and they're modern metal," or we can look at the bigger picture. I'm pretty sure he'd be just as critical of a judas priest rip off band if they didn't have the skills or songwriting chops.

[@juanforrester2283]

Not popular but better and less boring. Feel always trumps technique. Melody first then tone of voice,growling is fine but at least one more type of voice,and hamonise those like Carcass World ethnic rhytms have been at the core of such bands like Atheist,Pestilence,Death,Sepultura,Kreator,etc.Lots of latin grooves there just for small example.

[@thejusticeization]

@@charizardmaster13 who cares. modern metal is shit

[@GreenJeep26]

My tips: (1) Don Dokken should never be your lyrical north star (2) Never use the phrase 'wishing well' in any lyric ever (see item one above) (3) Rarely does your first set of lyrics not suck. Sure, there's that one phrase that's good but then you start building garbage around that (4) Just because you wrote a song does not mean its good (5) Listen to your 'song' like you hate it and it's that song you hear on the radio that you would turn off. Then use your producer ear to hear why. Step outside of yourself. (6) Verse > Bridge > Chorus can be both awesome and boring. Know the difference. (7) Settle down with all the song structure changes and time changes. They key to anything in life is moderation. Except coffee. Coffee by the gallon (8) You're not John Petrucci (or fill in the blank with a world class shredder) so stop trying so hard to prove your guitar chops. A good simple riff will kill every time. These shredders know that. (9) Remember that the bass, in a skilled musicians hands (ie - that 1% of bass players), is an actual instrument and can be used quite effectively when, maybe, you should give the guitar riff a rest. Years (and years) ago, myself and a partner had a small record label. We had decent distribution and put out out a couple dozen releases (no way to make a living though). We got well over a thousand demos unsolicited. Pretty much all of it was hot garbage. HOT.STINKY.GARBAGE. Of all of the unsolicited stuff, two (TWO) stood up. One we release and another had already sold quite a lot by the artists themselves so it had limited market. TWO out of well over a thousand demos. TWO. Most of the time, you're not awesome. Glenn Frey explains that Jackson Browne (yes, the old fogies) got up in the morning spending hours working on a small part of a song until it was right. Hours. Good songwriting take work like a job does.

[@thor-tas2110]

Animals from the Architects its a easy riff but amazing song.

[@accuratealloys]

TLDR

[@66fitton]

Well you've been around!! lol Great tips, thanks for sharing. And pretty accurate ratio of good to bad songs lol As a sound tech for a bunch of local bars, I've done plenty of original acts. Pretty much the last thing I want to hear when I get a gig is that it's an all original act. I'd much rather do a cover band at the bar level. Ironically though, I just met a local writer who I am working with that I swear made a deal with the devil! He's writing stuff that's a pure joy to listen to! Like 15 songs in less than two years. He may have been number three out of that thousand demos you got lol. Cheers

[@be3lzebot454]

I especially liked the part about Coffee. Always let your shitty shitty shitty riff/collections rest for at least 2 months. Do you honestly still like it? You might be on to something good if you do. You're, hopefully, gonna be canning at least 90% of your tired riffs when you get older. You're gonna start liking that weird jazzy blues-stuff a lot more, because at least they often hit combinations that haven't been utterly done to death, then beaten with a noob-tuned out of shape hockey-stick for the next 20 years. It can be nice or annoying when you can hear what notes they're playing, the first time you hear it (e.g. C-D-Em-Em stuff or the usual chromatic Metallica-variant).

[@hunter00143]

WTF man but what if I like Sabbath's Wishing Well

[@claytongouin5605]

Hey Glenn, this is a bit of a long one, but for the TLDR crowd, I think this is a bigger problem: lacking a cohesive structure! I work at a University library and believe me, having writing classes, hooks, and developing and completing a cohesive idea isn't something people really learn anymore in research writing, and I think this lack of learning how to narrate ideas through writing in school also has been why so many amateur songs are just that. Amateur. People don't know the basics of developing writing, be it song writing or other forms of writing. As a guy who used to work for 'perfection' in a song, I realized I never finished writing songs. Songs would be half-finished for years. After speaking with band mates about what we find interesting in songs, I learned that you need the motif or theme, and less is more. Since I've started approaching song writing with more limitations, I've been able to write much better songs, actually finish them, and find unique ways to get my ideas across. I basically look for three parts in my song writing process: - What is the intro? - What is the verse? - What is the chorus? Once I have those elements, I have the song and can start making variations that expand the song. Then, the smaller stuff, like bridges or breakdowns come easy because they are such small parts of the song.

[@calebhohneke8482]

I just made a comment on this as well. I listen to lots of underground songs and the ones that don't "grab" tend to be the ones that lack a formula or structure all around. Lyrics for instance....Try fitting 4 completely different lyrical subjects in a song... there is no cohesion with that right? People would be like "What are these lyrics getting at?" Sounds like a "no duh" type of thing but I run into that sometimes with peoples songs. Kinda like you were saying... it almost seems like there was a lack of theme. The same goes with arrangement. The more technical things get, the more it seems like people want to stray from the path of a solid structure/formula composition wise. "I will throw in a 3 minute evolving break section here randomly....this is gonna be sick."

[@guitarsean]

Interesting observation. I tutor college music students, and so many of them struggle when writing papers. They can't turn outlines and ideas into sentences and paragraphs, literally can't put words together. Lack of being taught how to do this, living in a tweet-length attention span world, all of the above, I don't know. It seems weird to me.

[@brukernavn3409]

@Dewd McMan Or better, analyse classical music (or any music with a hint of complexity), and try to find patterns in it; and implement that for writing metal. And learn the "rules" (in order to break them).

[@brukernavn3409]

@Dewd McMan I don't doubt that. But personally, I'm more familiar with Western classical music, so that's the natural go-to for me for getting inspiration. But I do like to listen to Tuvan throat singing.

[@LuckyPkerz]

This is gold advice here, folks. Writing songs is a very delicate process, so putting unneeded pressure on yourself will for sure stall your progress. Start with a vibe, start extremely simple, like stupid simple, build the foundation first, the skeleton, and only then you can start adding extra parts and embellishments to improve the song.

[@TheAxe4Ever]

As a musician myself (okay, guitar player, not musician 😂) I absolutely love listening to the epic 10-14 minute long songs Dream Theater writes. But then when I have my friends that are not musicians and just your average music listener listen to it, I can see their eyes start to glaze over then start talking about something completely unrelated after no more than 4 minutes.

[@adrianmedeiros8431]

As much as I love Dream Theater, I'm a guitar player too. A huge chunk of Dream Theater fans are also musicians. And even then, if there was a Dream Theater concert and a Judas Priest concert on the same day, I'd go to Judas Priest, no questions asked.

[@mrbungle3310]

But we have to understand that,they dont listen music the same way,for them music listening is like eating food,for us is life...and people are the most generic they ever were in history id say,why? You needed to buy a record baxk in the day,and guess what you lost yourself in your own world witb one record and you become that,less competition,less bullshit after WW2 before streaming platforms and internet...it just used to be music for the peopel that love music,now everyone listens to music and 90% are listening just to stimulate their senses,and you MUST please those numbers if you want to get somewhere,ive heard many artits say "you cant make it,ive tried with my tech death metal band and it didnt work" obviously it wont,its shit ik...but you must adapt to whats popular today,and use your originality mixed with whats trendy

[@spacebomb9126]

Nerd

[@joriankell1983]

There is a big difference between what musicians like and what everyone else likes. There is a ton of crossover, but it's a noticeable difference

[@TheAxe4Ever]

@@spacebomb9126 Yep! Geek too!

[@MetalGuyFromCanada]

I agree with everything except your take on screaming type vocals. As you said you can distinguish between Halford, Hetfield, and Johnson, you can also DEFINITELY distinguish between Corpsegrinder, Schuldiner, and Joe from Gojira. You can still scream and be unique.

[@umrasangus]

Yeah, if you have hooks to be remembered in the first place

[@realstreetjesus1953]

@@umrasangus No. Each of the vocalists he listed has a very distinct sound that you could differentiate easily by listening to the isolated vocal track. The amount of techniques there are for growled/harsh vocals is much larger than many people give credit.

[@Zyborggian]

Its a fucking Glenn video what do you expect

[@ethanmorrow5623]

Hit the nail right on the head!

[@IY4554]

That depends, maybe not the average metal fan has a trained ear to notice this. Of course you will if you're a musician or die hard metal fan of the specific genre. I think what he meant is that in general guttural vocals and screams naturally are harder to distinguish.

[@snaguber]

Watching and boosting old Glenn videos while he is away taking care of his family :D

[@dirgmario]

As a guitar player (and now ‘almost’ professional musician), one thing that helped me to up the songwriting skills was starting to write my music on piano or acoustic guitar and not electric guitar. Not only harmony is much more accessible on piano, but you’re away from your technical comfort zone (at least in my case) so you focus more on creating a nice melody and sweet hooks instead of being a session of jerking off my own ego with the guitar. Eventually I learned to do the same on the electric guitar, but It can be a good thing to get away from the guitar when you’re in too deep into the “rockstar shredder egomaniac” mentality. When I started writing songs when I was 15, my songs were on average 6-7 minutes (97% of 15 year olds have nothing interest to say, let alone for 7 minutes, c’mon). The more I learned the more I started dropping the length to 4-5 minutes. Now I usually keep my songs between 3 and 3:40. The only long “recent” song I have is about 5 min but only because it has a lot of lyrics. So in a few words: 1. Write on Piano 2. Condense your ideas 3. Serve the song, not your ego. The music is for both you and the people, not just you. Peace, guys!

[@petepeterson5639]

I primarily write on bass (even though I'm the guitarist) because 1) I played bass first and 2) it allows me to focus on the root chord progression first. I may add minor or 7th chords once I start adding the guitar but with distortion the root is going to drive the song more than the slight inflections of the minor 3rd or the 7th.

[@MattyMorrissey]

Hey - heres one thing that my band does these days that's really working for us. Usually one of us does a rough version of the track with programmed drums. We post it on google drive, and then we'll all listen and will then each post some suggestions/additions/ edits etc over a few weeks. We then jam it out at practice and try to finalize the structure and vocal arrangements when we're all in the same room. Having different perspectives and ideas really helps with both cutting out the fluff but also trying cool new things that you wouldn't have come up with one your own. Not to say we dont disagree and sometimes argue but even when that happens it's always a better song at the end having gone through that. We're just a hobby band and I'm not trying to claim we are master song writers or anything but again the finished song is always better having gone through that process.

[@GoodVolition]

"God I wanna ffffffffuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuull tank of gas"

[@michaelolz]

My goodness. Listen to "Burn" by Deep Purple. That song contains just about every tip Glenn just gave. Nobel Prize in Metal goes to Glenn this year for this video. I'm really pleased to hear someone take a stand against the Cookie Monster vocals. Enough already!

[@killergrooves2438]

I just listened to that. If you’re looking for something new, check out Band-Maid. There’s some Deep Purple influence to them and they’re just a joy to listen to. They follow every tip Glenn laid out, too. It’s honestly some of the catchiest hard rock/prog rock/metal that I’ve heard in decades. And they’re absurdly prolific, so just let yourself fall into the rabbit hole because you won’t be sorry.

[@tfwnoyandere]

not metal

[@laminateelevi5020]

One of their less appreciated pieces but one of my favorites from them. Glad to see some recognition (Even if it has 4.7 M views... it needs more!)

[@robertvondarth1730]

I’m a classic metal vocalist And Cookie Monster vocals are so weak. Singers don’t want to put the work in to get really good anymore, it takes time and tons of practice.

[@harrybryan9633]

​@@killergrooves2438 Yep. They are something else.

[@randynuggetnubs5472]

I think it’s okay to write about your emotions. They’re more complex and fluid than simple feelings such as sad, angry, and happy. Sometimes they require musical inflection to represent how the artists feel.

[@snap-off5383]

Maybe write about your unique ones. The same aspersions cast at Country Music (dog died, wife left, love to drink, gotta work the dirt, i'm a strong tough country girl) could be put out about metal. I don't have to guess what the topic of ALL of the songs on the next Linkin Park album will be, same for Breaking Benjamin. Bands have pounded the grunge-induced cliches to putty just as bad as the hair band cliches before them. Its time for something new, not another band thinking they're the first to blend hip hop and distortion as if Fred Durst's whiny "whatcha gonna do now?" (that my ice cweam faw on the gwound gwandma?) didn't cringe-embarrass white people everywhere already. Songs don't do self esteem building for the performer they do story telling.

[@surfdigby]

Breaking The Law is the perfect example. A killer intro with an uncomplicated hooky riff, Rob's distinctive vocal timbre, a change in dynamics between verse, pre-chorus and chorus, and a simple punchy earwormy chorus.

[@snap-off5383]

This isn't just "recording nerds" stuff this is fucking METAL SCHOOL. You have 101 level courses like this, and 500+ level courses that you charge for. You really are a brilliant guy and I love your work. I have TWO bells clicked: AvE and SpecterSoundStudios. Thanks for this, it is instantly a MUST-WATCH for every metalhead who's ever thought about making music. There are so many PRO bands who should have their heads pointed toward this then smacked, and even a few legends from time to time. This episode was directly from my mouth to God's ears. High five. Oh and #*8: LEARN TO THROW SONGS AWAY. Another way to get to writing a good song is WRITE MORE. Keep the ones audiences respond to, throw the ones they don't like away, even if they're your precious pet.

[@vincentvanghool6723]

Dude, you could apply these lessons to any band in ANY genre, realistically. Really sound advice.

[@violencefight9557]

Learning to throw away your creations should be the number one rule. If it's not great, move on to the next one. You might have to throw out 10 songs before you hit that 11th good one. This basic idea is true for so many things in life.

[@snap-off5383]

@@violencefight9557 Yeah that's not my original idea, I stole that from an interview with Gene Simmons of KISS, they asked him why Kiss albums only have 8 or so songs in an age of 12 or more song albums, "do you guys not write as much as other bands?" "no, we write more, and we throw the bad songs we write away, and only release the good ones the audience likes, we don't need filler or to guess if the audience might like this song." [paraphrased] Boom. The guy was a marketer first, and a musician second.

[@violencefight9557]

@@snap-off5383 the other related advice I've heard is: you will never regret leaving a song out of your set or off an album but you can definitely regret leaving one on. If it's a great song, you still have it in the bag to use later.

[@snowberrysalad]

One thing I really dig about modern metal is that a lot of bands know when to use low screams/growls and when not too. For example with knocked loose Isaac’s lower vocals compliment Bryan’s higher screams very well!

[@lilinkbitch]

second the knocked loose

[@drakonyanazkar]

"#1: Write shorter songs" Me trying to write more Stoner Metal songs: ... "Don't cram all your ideas into it" Me with a single riff to repeat hypnotically for 10min: ...

[@PanchromaticNoise]

Stoner doom is a vibe, really. There are many fans of this genre (myself definitely included) but definitely don't quit your job if you want to make money from it. Considering that I break the first two rules religiously, I think my first approach would be to break up one long tune into three meant to be played in order or something. I know my last composition is a good candidate for that.

[@drakonyanazkar]

@@PanchromaticNoise Oh, no, I'm not dropping my job for it. Hahahaha I already work with something I love and I'll hardly starve with it. And I personally only listen to an album in order once unless it's something really special. So splitting a long song in 3 is bad imo. I actually love long songs and I don't know if you're writing Stoner or anything of the sort, but people who go for that are expecting long songs. 6min of Thrash Metal at 150bpm is hard to stand, but 13min of Stoner at 90bpm is a walk in the park. _A very slow walk in the park that drags forever, just as you want it to be_

[@ryanembree8885]

In regards to the length of songs, I would argue that if a long song is engaging, it can be better than a "radio format" style tune. As long as the longer songs still have peaks and valleys of musical exploration, it can work rather well. The song "The Poet and the Pendulum" off the Nightwish album "Dark Passion Play" is a 15 minute long epic but the way its laid out feels like songs within a song, so it keeps it from feeling stagnant/boring to listen to.

[@Pervatory]

Fkn love Poet and the Pendulum and I’m not a Nightwish fan at all. Fantastic song.

[@orlock20]

I like some songs that are long, but if it's not my taste I want that song to be as short as possible.

[@seniortacobutt]

Type o negative does this as well. Their first album is full of those

[@adrianmedeiros8431]

You can do a lot even with screaming vocals and heavier subgenres of metal Ever wonder how Amon Amarth got so big? It's because their songs are catchy. Even with "cookie monster vocals" they get a vocal melody across because the singer varies his inflection to match the guitar melody. Variation is a big part of why some songs are memorable. Even Cannibal Corpse knows when to slow down before the really intense part comes up to build it up. Just think about what I just said for a second: most modern metal songs show less restraint than FUCKING CANNIBAL CORPSE. Memorable choruses are a big thing too. Just listen to Black Metal by Venom. Who doesn't feel like screaming "LAY DOWN YOUR SOUL TO THE GODS ROCK AND ROLL!"? Or the entirety of Exodus debut album "Bonded by Blood". All of those songs are earworms. Children of Bodom, Venom, Cannibal Corpse, Exodus, Amon Amarth, Lamb of God, Municipal Waste, Hatebreed, Kreator, Destruction, Sepultura.... None of those bands come even close to clean vocals in their entire discography but they all have memorable vocal lines and lyrics that get people hyped at concerts. Think about that.

[@klaytonmayeaux8966]

You have a point here with Amon Amarth! Two big name power metal bands covered their music (Sabaton & PowerWolf) and they still sounded GREAT in that style too!

[@Tigermaster1986]

>>Ever wonder how Amon Amarth got so big? It's because their songs are catchy. Even with "cookie monster vocals" they get a vocal melody across because the singer varies his inflection to match the guitar melody. --- Very true. And also - Cookie Monster or not, Johan Hegg has the clarity of a power metal singer - you can actually hear the words he is singing.

[@adrianmedeiros8431]

@@Tigermaster1986 Another great point. I'm a musical theatre actor. Diction and clarity are more important than singing ability there. Who cares if you sing beautifully if no one understands what your saying?

[@snap-off5383]

Who?

[@juanforrester2283]

Absolutely spot on.

[@wilmuny2616]

You're absolutely correct about singers finding their own personal voice. I was 30 years old before I realized that trying to sing someone else's songs in their particular voice was just hurtful to my vocal chords. I'd literally be voiceless by the end of the night. I am a bit ashamed to say that i was watching a few minutes of the second season of American idol and the judge's critique of a performance showed me the light. Everyone does have their own unique voice and I began to use my own with much better results than the last 10+ years before and I wasn't damaging my vocal chords in the process. 🤘

[@MetalNeverDieswithMarkA]

Short and catchy songs about telling people where to go. I AM IN!!!

[@misot90]

Sabaton is a really good example to the things you've pointed out Glenn. It's all about the songwriting and storytelling. Their riffs are simple compared to most modern bands, but they're really catchy, memorable and will make you very emotional. Their use of lyrical and musical themes is also great. A great example would be their new album, specifically the songs Sarajevo and Versailles.

[@honigdachs.]

The only problem with this is that they're basically doing german oktoberfest drinking music with distorted guitars.

[@darthnigus]

You should have said amon amarth 😂

[@AcidifiedMammoth]

Sabaton is incredible.

[@Rex-golf_player810]

@@honigdachs. which is fucking epic

[@honigdachs.]

@@Rex-golf_player810 It's music for semi-demented old people here in Europe.

[@andrewkelley3434]

Alice In Chains are still the best example of amazing vocal harmonies that I can think of in hard rock/metal. Whether it's Jerry and Layne or Jerry and William, just the way their music comes together, their vocal performance is a unique contribution to the song and not a paint by numbers cliche fest.

[@JBrooksNYS]

arent they all just parallel 5ths? he's just making a powerchord with the vocals.

[@6feetunderpants]

I was about to write what the other guy already said. Couldn't you come up with a better example than the band with harmonies that use exactly one (1) interval in all of their songs? 😂

[@lanceolson5988]

I stopped caring about being an amazing shred guitarist years ago and instead focused on becoming a composer and looking at the bigger picture. I'm not afraid to get weird, mix genres, and even look at something like pop music and ask what vague aspects I can incorporate into my own music to make it more appealing to a wider audience (such as the hook, of course).

[@thegodfather5842]

Most people stop caring about shreds as they grow. I still enjoy lead guitars more than rhythm guitars, both playing and listening, but now I realised that solos must be melodic and serve the songs, not the other way around.

[@FrankiorMusic]

@@thegodfather5842 exactly! "Lead Guitar" does not mean "Shred Guitar" in my perspective. Solos can sing and leads can move harmonies. And since I will probably never be as good as Jeff Loomis in combining shred with meaningful playing, I can leave that to him anyway and move on with my songwriting 🤣

[@piktormusic2538]

Lance, to add to your point, I think that a person has a better chance of being a notable and unique composer in their particular musical niche than they do of being a notable instrumentalist of the stature that some of our heroes have achieved.

[@yoiamhere4737]

The reason bands like Rush could get away with a 20 minute song is because 2112 as a song, is a completely badass prog and rock journey. And it had so many god damn dynamics to keep the listener interested!

[@dinonuggies2276]

I think long songs have to nail the atmosphere. Theres many great long "lotr" songs, its just hard to pull off

[@adrianmedeiros8431]

There's a lot to consider when writing songs like that. In order for a ten minute song to be good, it has to keep you interested in the song for ten minutes straight and that takes a lot of creativity. Also, if all of your songs are 10 minute epics, none of your 10 minute epics are special. Think of Iron Maiden's rime of the ancient mariner: none of the other songs in the album are that long, so it stands out as something special in the album.

[@suddenswarm5944]

I definitely feel that most long songs are either for the band or their fans, not the casual listener. The shorter songs, the singles etc are what draw people in to listen, especially in this age

[@suddenswarm5944]

I say this as someone who adores long songs, Iron Maiden are one of my favourite bands and they are masters of taking you on a journey

[@hermanessences]

"Fire" and "desire" is a classic cliche, indeed. Another one I hate: Opening the lyrics with "Welcome to"

[@snap-off5383]

Cooper nor Rose? The only two "welcome to"s I can think of are awesome.

[@devilsslave1970]

Also, if a line ends with 'heaven', you can bet your life the next line will end with 'hell'

[@snap-off5383]

@@devilsslave1970 or seven.

[@petepeterson5639]

@@snap-off5383 Mike Muir... Welcome to, the church of Suicidal

[@snap-off5383]

@@petepeterson5639 Never heard of it. Just "Welcome to my Nightmare" and "Welcome to the Jungle" come to mind.

[@embarklife]

i have been playing guitar for over 20 years, its the comfort zone for many of us, but most jams ive ever had repeat call backs for were because i was able to sing, or at least willing to try haha. this whole video so on point.

[@cosmicgregg]

Love it Glen, it's been my philosophy for years "if you can't say and do what you want to in 4 minutes then it's too much"

[@sqlb3rn]

I will never again write a song with time limits and other requirements. But then I write music for me and couldn't care less if anyone listens to it.

[@PanchromaticNoise]

Same here; it's just a creative hobby for me. If I do put my stuff on Bandcamp, it'll be for free or 'name your price.'

[@dexxfilm]

Same dude. I'd rather it be art than follow all of these points to a tee. I think at that point it becomes more of a product.

[@Synster73]

Haha we all know, that's not true. If I could count how many times I've heard that. 😂😂😂

[@sqlb3rn]

@@Synster73 I've written 10 completed songs in the past 2 years, my original comment still holds up.

[@seventhlevelsound]

Old Glen Yells At Cloud. Like, if you just want to listen to pop music that's fine, no one will judge you, but Metal is supposed to be about pushing boundaries, not colouring within them.

[@SpectreSoundStudios]

Exactly. Then why are so many bands not pushing any boundaries?

[@seventhlevelsound]

@@SpectreSoundStudios maybe because KZbinrs keep telling them to play it safe? :D It also might be that your audience skews younger and less experienced.

[@WIMPY86]

Great perspective. What is SMG's age demographic? Are us old timers the bulk of the audience?

[@zbox6420]

@@seventhlevelsoundwhat he’s saying in this vid is if your gonna do the cliches, do the ones that’ll make ur song bettr

[@JakeHoltMusic]

I’ve always liked the idea of using 1 riff and doing the classic “variations on a theme” to keep them interesting, pick your favourite riff you’ve written and write a song using only that riff, do some variations on it for your different sections and see what you can come up with. If you get stuck try using the same idea in different positions of the same key and only as a last resort, pick a new riff for a chorus or a bridge. It should make the song feel more coherent and connected. Or, if you’re boring and lack creativity use the Brian Eno deck of chards trick

[@calebhohneke8482]

I do this a TON. I usually jam out and come up with a chorus riff, track that, and kinda work backwards. Everything else being like a musical tributary to the sea that is the chorus. Meandering bends that take you on a trip but ultimately lead to that vast open space filled with sonic goodness. Its a great way to keep you grounded and focused 100%. It also keeps you on that A,B,C...A,B,C... formula path verses the songs that go A,B,C,D,E,F and off into the distance haha.

[@JakeHoltMusic]

@Dewd McMan the variation on a theme thing is more for writing practice to be fair but you'd be amazed at what you can come up with when doing it, some stuff you can use, other stuff not so much. It's all about honing a craft and developing your songwriting skills

[@JakeHoltMusic]

@@calebhohneke8482 it's great to get a system that works for you, I tend to start with a lyric and pound out a few ideas under it until it starts to form a solid section and then I'll have to work on whether I think it's better as a chorus or verse, whether I can come up with a narrative or it's more of a hook. Songwriting takes a lot trial and error I've found, it gets easier the more you do it but I don't think people realise how much shit they'll write before they get something worthwhile

[@logancabianca5915]

I'm recording my first song and thsts what I'm doing is I'm just changing a riff up bit by bit. It feels nice when you write something and it sounds catchy to your ear.

[@JakeHoltMusic]

@Dewd McMan wtf did I just read? Dude seriously, it's not the 90s anymore, we don't need to use "txt spk" 😂 I mean yeah you could just rip off a load of other people's music or contribute nothing of value to the art form by cultural appropriation, you could struggle to put something together through trial and error or... Just learn the absolute bare minimum of music theory to help point you in the direction of where you want to go. It's not hard, or complicated to learn a bit of theory and use it to get the sound you want.

[@mysticmagicsmurfdarklord6844]

I disagree with “write shorter songs” There’s a good market for long songs; that’s a huge thing about Prog that a lot of people enjoy A better rule is; if you’re writing long songs, make it intentional and without filler

[@JVMC_ZR1]

I honestly think that some of the greatest songs ever created are 6-10 minute songs. It's almost like a build up into a masterpiece. Nightwish, Opeth, and Metallica come to mind...

[@DerelictEarth]

Even Iron Maiden have some of their best songs running long, like Alexander the Great that is almost 9 min and is an absolute masterpiece.

[@immateriumepicmetal4544]

Exactly

[@ravingpotato8339]

Huge Nightwish fan here. You are right, but Glenn's point still holds up here. Those long masterpieces aren't created by cramming multiple ideas behind one another. They are usually based on one core idea and these genius songwriters know how to develop a lot out of this one idea. You can only be entertaining for 7 min, if you know how to be entertaining for 3 min. If your first 3 min are boring by themselves, you won't make them better by adding other stuff behind them.

[@isaacmorrow7077]

True, And… Justice For All is almost 10 minutes and I love every second of it. The main focus on songwriting is coherent ideas, it doesn’t matter how long it is, it’s about the flow of ideas.

[@cheezyridr]

green grass and high tides.

[@wilwad]

Your intro rocks, all that head banging yeah

[@informed-apprentice8179]

I've started to write my long songs in parts, so that one can listen them together or separately according to taste. Point being that you wouldn't miss anything by listening just songs here and there but the theme gets build up if you digest them in order!

[@CreativeMindsAudio]

Great video Glenn! i feel like this is another necessary pinned video for newbs to your channel. 1: I usually wrote 2-4 minute songs. and a bunch under 1 minute. 2: got over riff salad phase real quick when i would get bored listening to my own songs.now i write a verse riff, a chorus riff, and a bridge/intro/outro riff. and sometimes i'll change up the verse riff for the second verse. 3: never did this because i never was talented enough to lead guitar beyond melody lines 4: GUILTY! I often write very busy drums which were like it's own instrument vs just a beat and keeping time. Writing in different genres has solved this since, but i still get stuck in it. honestly it makes me want to write metal less and do other genres that are less heavy drum focused. 5: I'm addicted to harmonies so yeah, this is necessary! especially in the chorus! at the very least have a harmony that runes with the lead line a 3rd up/down from it. 6: I had so many cliches in my lyrics, which is why I've never been happy with most of them. My newer songs? Not so much. deeper, more comments on society, and more personal emotional journeys. oh and one glenn missed, mentioning "the weight of the world on my shoulders" haha 7: I've had a few people regularly ask me when I'm releasing something on Spotify because the hook is everything (still need parts recorded)! I've always written better hooks than verses. So yeah I got some work to do. appreciate the list/rules. Good stuff here. I would love to also have a collab video with you and Trey doing how good songs make good productions. For example: talk about arrangements, tempo, and why having guitars, bass, and vocals all on top of each other in a mess of death metal doesn't make things any easier.

[@AltijdHarmen12]

Metallica is a great example of using 1/2 riffs and basing the other riffs off of those two. Two really good ideas carrying the song and the other ideas are complementary to those riffs. Same thing goes for many other popular bands

[@TheNerdyGinger]

They are also great at the other side of that 😂

[@AltijdHarmen12]

@@TheNerdyGinger I was thinking about the older albums after I wrote that, Metallica also had some cases of many riffs crammed into one song *AJFA Couch Couch* But most of the "hits" have a core idea/riff

[@samwilson2046]

@@TheNerdyGinger you can get away with it if you have a countless amount of ‘hit’ songs as well.

[@kidder83]

Slipknot treats a lot of songs that way as well, but they come up with like 8 variations. Kirk Hammett spoke once of a song on The Black Album that was only like two riffs and my nerd-ass sat here and riffed out each song in my head, I’m pretty sure it’s My Friend of Misery

[@ChrisHopkinsBass]

Other examples of this would be Jim Johnstone’s classic WWF entrance themes - generally each theme has 2 sections that loop examples being Stone Cold Steve Austin, Razor Ramon and Degeneration. Absolute bangers

[@beardlessodin945]

I frickin’ love this Fricker.

[@zackakai5173]

I wonder if metal bands stopped trying to write "metal" and started trying to just write *music* if that would improve things. Of course that assumes they can even imagine a melody or a riff that doesn't consist entirely of chuggy downpicked palm mutes on the low F string that's been downtuned by two octaves. But I think a catchy pop song with palm muted guitars would probably still yield a better metal song than trying to out-BRÜTAL Brütallishuggah.

[@adrianmedeiros8431]

You don't have to think or imagine it would. Just listen to Ghost. They prove that exact point.

[@dexxfilm]

That's what I do. I dont really write metal, I write music of all genres on guitar. I dont go for s specific style u just hear notes in my head and go from there. Leaves much more room for creativity.

[@NWTMasterWolf]

FOR ODIN'S SAKE. METAL DOESN'T CRY. Thank you Glenn.

[@irawangani1]

Greetings from Singapore. Although I am not a metal musician or producer, I have learnt a lot from your engineering and producing advice. I have recently completed an album of Music for Children, and I would like to send you a copy of the project as way of thanking you for being an inspiration for my music producing journey. Is there a PO Box that I can send to? Cheers.

[@tonycampbell4982]

I always enjoy playing with myself.

[@tjayrocket]

I have always enjoyed this channel, Glenn. But, I am more on the ‘punk rock’ side of life than metal. I believe there has always been a ‘venn diagram’ between the two - and hearing you suggest ideas and inspirations from bands like The Sex Pistols and The Ramones just reinforces - I am in the right place to make better music. Keep it up, my dude! Love and respect from Seattle!

[@0Nafod0]

🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation: 01:18 🎵 Keep songs around 4 minutes; lengthy songs lose listener interest and compete with other media. 03:56 🎸 Avoid "riff salad"; limit the number of riffs ina song to maintain cohesion and memorability. 05:46 🎸 Guitars aren't everything; prioritize song structure over excessive guitar showcase, consider dynamics. 09:15 🚫 Avoid excessive complexity; let the song breathe with varied intensity, akin to classic compositions. 11:06 🎤 Embrace singing; move beyond constant growls, explore vocal melody, harmonization, and unique voice. 12:27 📝 Ditch lyric clichés; avoid overused themes, express genuine emotions, and explore diverse lyrical content. 13:52 🎣 Prioritize hooks; create engaging passages that captivate listeners and contribute to song replay value. Made with HARPA AI

[@UndeadFleshgod]

Every time Glenn talks about 'cookie monster' vocals he seems 5-10 years in the past. Vocals are incredibly varied now, gutturals, tunnel throat, and bunch of different resonance placement for lows which sound pretty different... And they do sound different between each singer. It's not old monotone Cannibal Corpse anymore.

[@JerryLeeHowell2]

All variations on a singular theme of "Im real spooky". Needs to go.

[@orlock20]

I get his Cookie Monster issue because the Cookie Monster vocals making on the metal channels are the cliche Cookie Monster vocals.

[@marcod24]

It took me a while to figure out just how theatrical and deep his monologues are… it’s more than just a music podcast. It’s philosophy, sociology, art of motion and communication. Dude.. you deserve some kind of a reward. Oscar maybe?

[@juanforrester2283]

Also learning world ethnic music helps a great deal in concieving ideas for rhytm on drums and guitar.

[@MostlyGhostlyGamerBryan]

I absolutely love this video! I agree with your a lot of your points here with the vocals and song writing in particular my band has been working on a song for a little over 7 months now but it’s gone through a couple of renditions. 1: it was too long, 2: way too many riffs when we could simplify it, 3: we wanted to sing about something that matters going on currently. We’re just about finished tracking everything at home and we’re very proud of it

[@66fitton]

Excellent!! A great song is most often written, re-written, then re-written again once a producer gets involved. Good on you guys for being open to the whole process! Can you post a link so we can hear it? Hell, I'd even love to hear the original to see the changes that were made. My band did the same for a song off our first recordings. We shortened and simplified it, and kept it high energy as opposed to the two slow downs that were there originally. Gotta be open to change! Cheers

[@MostlyGhostlyGamerBryan]

@@66fitton thank you so much! And we haven’t put it on anything just yet just working on the last couple bumps out it’s not professional by all means but it’s the best we can do at home! The only thing that needs to be re recorded is the solo on the last part of the song, my guitarist didn’t like the sound so we’re re doing it next section. However once it does come out i will post a link!

[@geoffallan3804]

Long songs that worked for me: Deep Purple - Lazy (7:20), Heart - Mistral Wind (6:45), Todd Rundgren - The Ikon (30:26), Led Zep - Kashmir (8:33) and Stairway (8:01), Jon and Vangelis - Friends of Mr. Cairo (12:10), Pink Floyd - Us and Them (7:50) and High Hopes (8:33), Gowan - Criminal Mind (7:20), Don Henley - Sunset Grill (6:20), etc. Not one of those would likely sell today. Each one had strong hooks and memorable moments and a LOT of space. Each moved in clearly defined sections and kept you waiting and anticipating for the arrival or return of a section. Always learn from the past. Don't repeat it, but learn from it.

[@Pilcha.]

What about " I Wanna Be Adored" from the Stones Roses

[@vilaintrolltrollinsky8007]

Thanks you so much Glenn. You finally made the video we've been waiting for since your first contest. Glenn you Rock.

[@PoetsDownfall]

The shorter songs thing is something I've been working on over the years. Some of my favorite songs from other bands tend to be around the 9-12 minute mark, and thats definitely where I picked up the habit. But as I've progressed in song writing, I find myself writing more concise ideas that tell the same story. Usually 5 minutes or under to allow it to breathe at least a little. 😅

[@WIMPY86]

Try Muse: Absolution. That album is a great example of how much can be done in a 4 minute span. I apply that album to short and sweet recordings :)

[@suddenswarm5944]

I think that long songs are great, but need to be balanced with short songs. A lot of iron maidens catalogue is over 5 minutes, but they were established already, and they also have a lot of songs from 3-4 minutes in length. Long songs are for yourself or your fans, not the casual listener.

[@orlock20]

Ace of Spades by Motorhead is under 3 minutes and one of the more famous songs because of it.

[@brukernavn3409]

@@orlock20 Motörhead doesn't play the kind of music that suits longer runtimes.

[@jukepoksinen7460]

Excellent points all. As for the song length, I've always tried to write songs, that end a bit "too soon". This can leave the listener wanting to hear the song again, as opposed to wanting the song to end already.

[@dinonuggies2276]

Glenn seems to have the classic misunderstanding of "more popular = better"

[@immateriumepicmetal4544]

Seems true

[@washywashie]

Oh yeah, because you’re right, popularity has nothing to do with it! If a bunch of people like something it has to be bad! And if nobody likes a band they have to be good, right? Give me a break.

[@dinonuggies2276]

@@washywashie i mean, pretty much... For example creative music uses signature and tempo changes, wich tend to be very hard to "dance to". Thats why in an orchestra people are sitting down as opposed to a disco where they play generic shitty 4-on-the-floor beats all day. popular music tends to be simple and catchy, or in other words, dumb

[@corontsurara3862]

Oh man, I've reached a point where I have Glenn playing on my phone while also playing on the computer beside me. Welcome to the Glenniverse

[@whiskybravo4648]

What if you had a raging desire, that was full of fire?

[@WIMPY86]

Throw that desire In a hole! You should stop Drop And roll lol

[@slackattack]

One great thing about putting a limit on your creative process is it forces you to be more inventive. This isn't to suggest you should stifle your creativity, but rather challenge it instead. Take film makers, they have a vision and a budget, they're job is to find ways to bring that vision to life on the limits of their budget. "Necessity is the mother of invention." The same applies to musicians. To sum it up, you should challenge yourself by asking the question "how do I say a lot by saying very little?" Achieving that goal is a true mark of talent.

[@gregbester3855]

My worst is "the hands of time". NEVER use that lyric EVER.

[@adrianmedeiros8431]

It can work. Keyword here is CAN, not WILL.

[@snap-off5383]

sands?

[@GrandChampionTurdPolisher]

It's alright, because from them you recieve coconuts in which to put the lime! Hows that for an eloquent rhyme? The best sharpie marker is the silver kind to flourish and brandish and lay down some lines, it's dainty and small fits well in the fist, unlike my aubergine, that's thick as your wrists! 🍆

[@gregbester3855]

@@snap-off5383 that too. Clocks have hands. And hourglasses have sands lol.

[@3van1993]

"Break the chains and set me free" and "Spread my wings and fly away" make me cringe everytime I hear them

[@shannonfrench6893]

You are absolutely correct! I've written since I was 10 and I'm 60 so I know what the audience wants, and probably more importantly what the producer wants because the audience only hears what's produced. I've been in a big discussion about this very week about exactly what you just said. You are awesome Glenn!

[@eddydorr5120]

"Sonic Wankery"? I'm pretty sure I did sound for those guys back in the 90s. ;-)

[@minesimusic1447]

Honestly you got it spot on Glen. Thank you for your contributions to music.

[@balintszemes7108]

Glenn you are right. We need more energetic catchy songs to bang our heads to🤘 The lyrics sometimes dont even have to make sense just give the feeling of being a badass.😎 Cheers from Slovakia

[@WIMPY86]

Shit, i rhyme with the same exact words lol Or sometimes I don't rhyme the pair at all. If it works... I roll with it :)

[@BlackwoodRock]

Thanks for the mention Glenn!

[@staffanahlstedt3690]

Hi Glenn! In the beginning I heard You screaming and fucked everything and I thought "What´s this?" But I found You very entertaining and hillarius funny! I laugh a lot and You make my days worth much more. You are a very good teacher and You make a very good job too inspire other musicians too make great songs that aint copies of everything else. It is a big quest and I think You have the ability too make this happen. Thank´s for all tips for recording that have made my recording more easy and enjoyable. I am impressed by Your enthusiasm to deliver tips too all how too make a song, find good gear, that expensive is not allways the best,,and so on. Allways looking forward to see Your videos. Metalgreetings from Sweden

[@Profdesoussol]

That's on point. Remember an interview with Mustaine saying he kind of wasted so much good riffs on Killing is my business because he just put to much of them. Even great riffs will be lost in riff salad

[@GeneralMiller92FIN]

Well thats the sad part… Nowadays people are not allowed to make any other music than “songs”. I hate it when there is very nice composition and people will say ”what bs song is this?”… Then I have to say ”Well… Duh! It’s not a song even beginning with…. So yeah… Probably it is bad song!”. So I will keep doing my 20min long rock compositions because i can use so wide range of dynamics and emotions. Delivering a story and experience to listener by actual music is so much more stronger feeling than story pushed to your ear literally by lyrics that there is no space for imagination. I don’t give a f*** about TicToc listeners.

[@snap-off5383]

We'll call this the "snowflake" reaction.

[@jeffbroihier8110]

i love your attitude and delivery brother! you make constructive criticism really entertaining. and your excellent advice here applies to songwriting in all genres

[@DustDragon]

I'm not sure that it is so wrong to make long songs. Still, ones who know how to make quality short songs will have more experience and musical sense of what people could expect of a longer song, so... I guess everyone should learn first how to write and structure a 3 minutes long song before trying such a chore

[@petepeterson5639]

If you have enough ideas to keep it interesting, go for it. One of the most disappointing records I own is of a band that had great songs IF they had ended them half way through. A lot of times it was like they just played the song twice. Same music, same lyrics, same solos.

[@travisspaulding2222]

What Glenn is leaving out is the real reason most songs come in at 3 and a half minutes is because the label has to pay royalties per minute. That's the real reason singles tend to never make it to the 4 minute mark. It doesn't have anything to do with attention span. It's money. A few longer songs (most were never released as singles) that became legendary became that way because radio DJs needed a few songs on deck that are long enough to allow them to use the bathroom. Today's technology, a DJ can load their entire show ahead of time and just leave, so now there are rarely long songs played on radio.

[@StuartKReilly]

This is one of the best advice videos you’ve put out man. Music in general is missing a LOT of this stuff and if everyone would follow this advice we’d probably, no, we WOULD have memorable songs again

[@ALFREDsurfer08]

I respectfully disagree with the hate on long songs. Don't get me wrong - I DO agree that it is extremely difficult to succesfully pull off a 20 minute long epic musical journey, and that a lot of people who do make this kind of music don't yet have the creativity and songwriting skills to make it interesting enough to not make you fall asleep. But telling people not to make them because hit songs are shorter and that many listeners don't have the attention span for it is only an argument if the artist is trying to break through commercially. Not all are - some genuinely just want to write and play what they like, and that should not be discouraged. Fans that DO have attention spans for long songs are usually also people who appreciate music on something deeper than a surface level, and it is perfectly legitimate to want to write music for this kind of crowd only. Wanting 3,5 minute long songs also accepts the premise that having a very short attention span is normal, which is not necessarily the case to the extent that we see today in the modern world. More and more scholars agree that ie. social media is hurting our attention spans collectively by overflowing our reward centres in the brain when we scroll through our feeds. I guess we can all agree both that this is a huge problem, and that it makes it very hard for a long song to become mainstream in any way. But changing the way you create your art to cater to a problem like this can HURT the creativity that is missing from modern metal and further exacerbate the short attention span problem by making it "the new normal". A song with a specific length also tends to give way to the the same true-and-tried musical forms and song structures, because there is only so much things you can put into 3,5 minutes without making it overly complicated and scattered. It is better to encourage people to write however long songs they want, but focus on making sure that it tells a cohesive musical story or awakens the appropriate emotions instead of just slapping in 20 different riffs because they can. Short attention spans is something that has to be fought and challenged, and not blindly accepted imo. Also, fuck you Glenn!

[@calebhohneke8482]

I think the problem is that lots of people can't write a "good" 3-4 minute song. So if you can't write a good 3-4 minute song, what happens when you extend that length out to 8 minutes +? It's usually just an added 4 to 5 minutes of not great songwriting haha. I listen to lots of prog bands that write long songs and they usually have that formula of what would be in a 3-4 min song incorporated into their longer song. That's what makes those songs memorable imo. There is still plenty of structure to them despite them being longer. Lots of people who write longer songs tend to take it as free roam to wank off and throw together whatever they come up with. For those people specifically, I encourage them to learn how to write a solid 4 minute song that's memorable and catchy and then apply those same techniques to longer songs. It will give you the ability to expand on the song while still keeping listeners engaged. At the end of the day, we should write music that hold tight to us as musicians....but if you want people to listen, telling them to get over their short attention span isn't going to do anything. They will check your stuff out, say meh, and probably not come back. This is a mindset that has always existed with music and it's not going to change unless the structure of all music was to change (That isn't going to happen). Lots of people need something to keep them engaged/feeling like they are part of the music. Always been that way.

[@suddenswarm5944]

My 2 cents is that it seems like long songs are for the artist or existing fans- not the casual listener who hasn't discovered you yet. If a band has an album thats all 6 minutes+ then first of all how can the listener listen to the whole picture without already investing somewhat, secondly 6 minutes seems to be more than can be absorbed on 1 listen, so again needs the listener to already want to listen. having a mixture is key, if every song is the same length it becomes predictable, boring etc, a record that has 6 10 minutes songs vs 12 3 minute songs are gunna be just as boring, but the short songs are more likely to be discovered and understood on first listen

[@OurgasmComrade]

3 min songs aren't indicative of a society with a faltering attention span. Some of The Beatles' most popular songs are UNDER 3 min, written decades ago before the internet and cable television. People's inborn capacity for attention and intelligence doesn't change in 50 years either, that's not how evolution works. Our short term memory has been tuned through evolution to be specifically short over hundreds and thousands of years, and that will not change anytime soon. So no, longer art doesn't mean better creativity or intelligence.

[@jasonbone5121]

Good luck, you're going to need it...

[@66fitton]

It is not better to encourage people to write songs as long as they want if the whole idea is to get people to listen to your music. Which I'm assuming is the majority of writers out there. If that's not the case and you strictly write songs for yourself to hear, then by all means, write till forever. Suggesting we collectively fight and challenge other peoples short attention spans by creating long songs is misplaced advice to me. I'm looking to enhance someone's day, not challenge them. I have no problem with epic pieces of music, but what Glenn describes here is age old. The long songs are so far outnumbered by the short format when you look at charts, that it stands as good advice for those who DO want lots of people to listen to their music to write in the most popular format. Not to worry though, there's plenty of people still writing epics! Just listen to the mix reviews lol. Cheers

[@GANTOBARN]

YO GLENNNN! While i've never been much of a metal head, your videos (especially this one) hit the nail right on the head when it comes to whats important in music itself. I've been writing songs almost as long as i've been playing (30 years). I can say from experience that its most important to run with melodies that make people's hearts dance, heads bang and to keep it simple. Write about pretty much whatever, and give it an interesting angle that paints a relatable picture in a metaphoric format that not only leaves interpretation open ended, but forces the listener to THINK. I hate that most artists lyrical content is overly obvious in an obnoxious way, that makes it stale... Staler than 5 year old bread. and way too many of them keep their focus on their personal feelings in that can be summed up in simple terms. " This is my band, and I Feel Ways About Things" While not every song that an artist writes is going to be solid gold, but you can tell when someone is trying and someone is simply wanking off.

[@terriblecertainity]

"you just don't get that destinction with screams and growls". completely disagree. GOOD screamers are unique. No one will mix up Corpsegrinder and Frank Mullen, or Phil Bozeman and Mitch Lucker. It's a matter of execution. And let's not forget how many singer back in traditional metal tried to copy Dio or Halford. The thing with lyrics feels very antiquated to me...I'd rather have a guy sing about his feelings ( cause to me, that's what art is about), rather than hearing a silly song about a myth, a poem or something else completely unpersonal. I Love old school and new school, but I think, it takes a lot more gut to sing about yourself than absout some fantasy bullshit no one could ever take serious.

[@suddenswarm5944]

definitely agree overall, only thing I have a different opinion on ii it seems like a lot of low-mid tier vocalists are often hard to distinguish unless you're familiar with their sound, more than just the first listen

[@terriblecertainity]

@@suddenswarm5944 yes, but I think, this applies to clean singers as well

[@orlock20]

I probably would. Here are the three singing styles that bug me: 1. Vocal runs in the form of riff salad. 2. Cookie Monster or other cartoonish vocals. 3. Poor dictation.

[@terriblecertainity]

I like cookie monster if it fits the song. Better than the 1000st Dio-wannabe

[@AegisForAeons]

A good idea is to use Guitar Pro 7 to tab out your riff ideas. Not only is it useful, it has an RSE sound engine that can make the instruments you use sound more realistic. It's even $70 so it's not going to break your bank when writing demos as well. I used it for the past 7 years can I couldn't be happier with my purchase. The one struggle that I've had recently is writing lyrics for my concepts. Like Glenn, I hate hearing cliche lyrics that everyone hears all the time. I'm trying to write the lyrics based on the album's concept without it sounding like it's been done a million times. Not only that but I'm REALLY trying not to add so many riffs to a song since that takes way too long to come up with more of them for one song instead of riifs/hooks for the whole album in general. Some songs I have are around 4-6 minutes long but after hearing it repeatedly for months, it really doesn't feel like it's long, which is good. Any advice anyone wants to give me with when you know that a riff you make can be "the one" for a song you're working on? How do you know when it's too much for a song? How do you come up with lyrics based off the story without it being overly cliche, in a sense? Still learning music making, even after having Guitar Pro 7 for 7 years since I had to teach myself since then cause of other people/band members I've met wanting to be a copycat of someone else. Kid you not, I had a Heavy Metal band after highschool and we had 2 awesome songs but the vocalist and bassist wanted to sound like Korn, which made me and one of the guitarist very upset. Left the band, joined other bands for the past 3 years, NOTHING came out of it. Decided to make my own band and have made several songs. It's a tough road to walk on but boy does the hard work pay off after a while :)

[@callumartax]

Totally disagree, your art is yours. If a 10+ min long song is what you organically create, then thats art. If you use Glen's rules then you've limited to your art.

[@dinonuggies2276]

BuT aLL tHe PoPuLaR 80s sOnGs wEreNt liKe tHaT

[@PanchromaticNoise]

This is true as I love my 10-15 minute riff salads but I'm positive Glenn is looking at this from a profit angle.

[@dexxfilm]

His guide is basically how to write a pop song disguised as metal. If people want to do that and be successful, then cool, good for them. My thing is, you don't have to adhere to the "popular formula". Honestly that makes people more cliche than different, which is what he is basically saying to do.

[@OGBrettHarris]

Dude, you RAAWWWK. Awesome advice and left me know I am on the right track.

[@Wrrzag]

I think harsh vocalists are like guitar players: there's a lot of same sounding wankery and then there are the good, memorable ones. I mean, Corpsegrinder, Johan Hegg, Alexi, Jari Maenpaa or Dani Filth are pretty recognizable.

[@zackakai5173]

The thing I appreciate about Johan Hegg especially (and *especially* on their last 4-5 albums now) is I can actually understand the lyrics through the growling. A lot of death growly guys use the technique as a way to mask a lack of decent lyrics, whereas I always felt like it enhances Amon Amarth's music. I can't say that of 98% of death metal bands out there.

[@vdromuzaraki]

Tottaly valid point, the big problem with a lot of new bands is that the vocalist sound too generic that you just forget about the whole band in seconds after the song ends.

[@snap-off5383]

who?

[@f67739]

mitch lucker, randy blythe absolutely

[@DerelictEarth]

@@zackakai5173 this is one of the main reason I spend a lot of efforts articulating while growling. My growls are not that great, but at least you can figure out the lyrics. Hell, if you spend a lot of time to write good lyrics, what good is it if no one can understand them without reading the booklet ?

[@Erakko-]

I remember when my former band had one song where the verse went pretty much like this: "As I walk in the path full of pain and suffering in the shadows of this and that..." I didn't make this up.

[@mrToglovski56709]

I think it's a blessing that I'm not proficient enough to play lead, technical stuff on my instrument. It puts me in place not to do any guitar wankery or those sorts. But my songs probably still suck according to Glenn, though

[@visibletoallusersonyoutube5928]

Can we hear your stuff

[@paisleepunk]

in the same situation, but i guess 2 minute punk snacks are sorely missing from the mix reviews if that was the very first point of the video

[@technicolorgiallo1111]

This is my new favorite KZbin channel.

[@Bassdriver]

I think much of your video is about how to write songs that are more to your liking, not better songs in general. Don't get me wrong, there are some very good points, e.g. cut down on the riff salad and guitar wankery or stop using cringey rhymes. But long songs? There's prog rock and prog metal, lenghty compositions come with the territory. Odd time signatures and screaming vocals? Listen to some Jinjer, ffs (although I'm pretty sure you already have). They're phenomenal and Tatiana's vocals are absolutely out of this world! Lyrics about feels? Well, some people are much better at introspection than general observation, besides, I can see what's going on around so I'd rather hear about something I don't know, e.g. what's inside someone's head. Listen to some of Devin Townsend's lyrics. Or "Black" by Pearl Jam. I don't really think you'd call those lyrics bad. I think it's more how you put your thoughts into words than the subject itself. But, as I've said, you certainly have some valid points more musicians should listen to. Fuck you and cheers from Poland!

[@charizardmaster13]

Careful man your thinking logically that kind of thought process will have you killed in this comment section

[@piktormusic2538]

Glenn, I’m not a metal guy, but your points here are right on and applicable across other genres too. Good video.

[@enterchannelname1071]

I agree with most of what you said, but I think that with the whole "keep it to 4 mins" comment leads to more formulaic music. That's not to say that you can't write a great and original short song, but personally I'm the most tired of super generic verse/chorus/verse/chorus/bridge/chorus songs. I don't care if your song is 2 mins or 20, if it's good and original, I'll listen.

[@dinonuggies2276]

Yes but youre only allowed to do what every popular 80s/90s band did. They define what "good songwriting" is

[@dexxfilm]

I agree. A short song can be different and interesting but his points only lead to formulaic types of songs. A song can have catchy parts and still be 10 mins long.

[@magnusarpg]

So happy I found this channel. While I play mostly as a hobby now, it’s funny to hear about all the mistakes we made when I was playing in a serious band 30 years ago.

[@ZILtoid1991]

I want to make a song that is the complete opposite of all of these, just to piss off Glenn, then submit it to the mix reviews.

[@Peapodzilla]

Commenting to help

[@rinok9662]

I love your content and your knowledge that you have given us, but the first point you said in this video I totally disagree, that you do not have the patience to listen to a 10-minute song does not mean at all that it is bad, there are songs that you obviously don't know that they last even longer than that and are totally masterpieces worthy of recognition, absolutely every metal song doesn't need to be made to become popular as you want, and i'm not speaking for myself since it doesn't matter if i make one 14 minute song or a 4 minute song cause I'm a terrible songwriter and they'll be bad either way lol

[@ravingpotato8339]

While you are right, I think Glenn's point still holds up. You can't be intriguing for 7 min, if you aren't able to maintain tension for 3 min. And if the first 3 min are boring as hell, you can't make these 3 min better by adding another 4 minutes after that, even if they are super exciting. So the way to go, as an aspiring songwriter, is to shorten up your songs.

[@Blaze_1221]

Awww man the Super Crush 100 isn’t in the background anymore 😭🤣

[@michaelhughfox]

Glenn makes a video telling us that his preferences in music is what we should all be doing - and then tells us to be original at the same time. I happen to agree that a lot of these suggestions can make good music, but I also like a lot of things that he rails against. But taste is taste - what you like I might not, and vice-versa.

[@charizardmaster13]

This is legit a "how to sound like every band from the 80s" video. He basically doesnt seem to like anything progressive and modern sounding

[@dinonuggies2276]

This.

[@samwilson2046]

@@charizardmaster13 He’s talking about MOST modern metal bands, not all. Most modern metal bands make bland, shite songs that haven’t an ounce of creativity.

[@charizardmaster13]

@@samwilson2046 so did most metal bands from the 80s but those were the ones weve all forgotten about

[@sadistdog]

I remember in one video he was talking about doing something new and different from the “tried and tested method” then at 14:38 he says …

[@master_jon]

This is hillarious, love the delivery of your message. Btw I'm an amateur solo musician/producer writing metal, rock and other genres, and perhaps thanks to my lack of technical skill, I believe my songwriting is able to shine through. I'm glad you mentioned the lyric cliches, definitely something to keep in mind. It seems I don't have enough inspiration to write just about anything interesting, I guess my life is too boring. It'll come though. I would love to show my shit on the livestream, how do I make a submission? Last I checked there was a payment required, in which case I won't be able to make it at this time.

[@HeadacheMachine]

A non-metal singer said to me once 30 years ago: "If you think it is good but it sounds like shit, well, it IS shit. But if you think it is shit but it sounds good, then it is good". I never forget this when I write songs.

[@morbidmanmusic]

If someone thinks it sounds like shit and liked it... that is a problem. That quote is bad

[@Inhumanform]

Agree with all these except the growl/scream tip. If you can’t hear subtlety in various growls you’re making a terrible generalization, and might want to take a closer listen to more extreme sub-genres. Great video!

[@eightfootmanchild]

Learn from pop music - take your best riff, and think of that as the hook

[@dinonuggies2276]

"Learn from Pop music" is the worst advice ive ever heard

[@eightfootmanchild]

@@dinonuggies2276 So, no hooks then. That's fine. do your own thing. I hope it's fulfilling.

[@dinonuggies2276]

@@eightfootmanchild it is, its called "metal"

[@eightfootmanchild]

@@dinonuggies2276 So if it has any hooks, it's not "metal" to you. Cool. I enjoy grindcore from time to time, too.

[@dexxfilm]

@@eightfootmanchild you can have hooks and not write pop songs. Pop songs always follow a formula which is something people tend to avoid when being slightly Original.

[@M3tal_matt]

Man this trips me out so much..literally been struggling writing new songs for my band and I open youtube and BOOM....thanks Glenn 🤘🖤

[@ivsiguitarist]

My band has found a great recording formula. I mix everything into Reaper. After creating a solid demo I send all the dry Stems labeled to our studio where they quantize the tracks, re-amp if necessary and master it properly. It's much more affordable than recording and engineering and the final product is perfect to our ears.

[@thefattening1307]

GLEN!!! you said put down the bong while I was hitting my bong love you

[@BettyTheRaccoon]

There is no right or wrong in music and you have no right to use structured and sensible arguments as you have not produced any hit records. Gosh darn it Glenn give me butthurt of the week!!

[@thelilyfarrell]

f*ck yeah glenn! i agree. i made my comment on your Facebook page for this video but i figure i give you props here too. thanks man for this video! you are so right! mix reviews is still fun to watch and join in, but i totally agree sometimes it gets painful songwriting wise etc.