About the Music - Memory is the Key

Welcome back!

As I continue to write about the music I make, I want to let you know that I'm currently in the process of recording demos for A Quieter Light to Illuminate the Dark, my second major release as The Mystery Figure. It is the first thing I will be releasing since I released PERADVENTURE last year. I don't know how long it'll take me to finish recording, as I'm taking my time with the process this time around as opposed to the first time I recorded for PERADVENTURE. If you're interested in hearing the first demo I made for A Quieter Light to Illuminate the Dark, then you should follow me on SoundCloud and YouTube.

Background

I first came up with the idea for "Memory is the Key" when I started recording music for PERADVENTURE in the summer of 2015. This was right after I had left college. At that point, I had composed "Ninety Eight", "Illusions", "A Penguin's Tale", "Happy Dreams", and "A View of the Ocean", and had just recorded "Underwater Adventures" (which was quickly uploaded to SoundCloud). Most of those compositions sounded "sad" to me, so I wanted to come up with a song that would be a lot more "happier" than the rest of those.

Composition

The first demo for "Memory is the Key" is forever lost. I don't even remember how it went. I sat down at my piano, and started playing a melody that I don't remember anymore. I didn't record myself playing it (which was a mistake), and I assumed I would remember it. Since I couldn't remember how that first melody was played, I decided to start all over with the song. I still wanted a "happy" sounding song, and I knew that this one would have to also convey nostalgia. By that point in my life, a lot had happened to me. A lot of bad, and a lot of good things, and just a lot of things had happened in my life (which were neither good nor bad, they just were). Leaving college was like the end of the first book of my life in a lifelong series that is currently developing as it happens.

The final version of the song is a simple melody that repeats over and over again, but is played in variations. And like with every song I ever make, I don't ever record with a plan in place. I simply sit down at my piano and with the computer I use to record, and I create whatever I think works best in that moment.

Recording

All of PERADVENTURE was recorded in February 2016, and I recorded them in the order that I released them (except for "Underwater Adventures", all of them were recorded in the order that they appear on the track listing of PERADVENTURE). "Memory is the Key" was recorded in one sitting, and it was (at the time of recording) one of the best things I think I ever made. As I previously mentioned, I wanted to convey nostalgia within the song; I wanted the song to be able to have the listener think back to their life and reflect on it in a positive manner. I think I did that really well with this song.

This was the first song I had recorded (besides "Underwater Adventures") where I used an electric piano as the main instrument instead of the piano. The reason why I chose an electric piano besides a piano as the main instrument is because I wanted to switch the feeling of the album. PERADVENTURE is meant to be split into two parts: a "sad" side (which are the first four tracks of the album) and a "happy" side (which are the last four tracks of the album).

"Ninety Eight", "Illusions", and "A View of the Ocean" are the "sad" tracks in the album, and "Memory is the Key" is the "happy inside of the sad" song; I thought nostalgia would be a good feeling to attempt to convey on the sad side.

"Underwater Adventures", "Happy Dreams", and "A Victory Song for the Hopeless" are the "happy" tracks in the album, and "A Penguin's Tale" is the "sad inside of the happy" song; I thought the song, which describes a recurring dream I once had, did a good job of being extremely sad in between these other happy-sounding songs.

By switching the main instrument for the happy side, I was able to identify the difference in tone between the songs. Of course, I feel as though I didn't do this really well with the second side, as I was stuck on a time limit to record.

PERADVENTURE

Within the storyline of PERADVENTURE, "Memory is the Key" is meant to take place immediately after "Illusions". The main character, who has regretted their action to run away from the person they love, starts to look back at the things that made the relationship good. They find themselves realizing the mistake they've made and start to drive back (reflected on the part of the song close to the end where things start to quiet down). As previously mentioned, the track is itself meant to convey nostalgia, which I feel it did that really well.

Artwork

Every song on PERADVENTURE has its own artwork. I did this because I love knowing what each song has for a cover. All of the images I used for each track is a picture I took on my old smartphone, an HTC One M8. They were all edited to be in black & white, but I also have a color version (which can probably be found online, whether on my Instagram or Tumblr - they also are available on my Spotify account for each track's playlist, but are currently hidden. I'll share them in the future).

Links

You can hear "Memory is the Key" on SoundCloud and YouTube. You can also download the track on Google Drive.

• SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/intrpidbhaviors/memory-is-the-key
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KsFIpENr_4
• Google Drive (.M4A): https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7mxV_2zNKDId3dKMkZ2OXF2c00/view?usp=sharing
• Google Drive (.MP3): https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7mxV_2zNKDIY2VITlByeEp3ZVk/view?usp=sharing

If any of these links are broken or not working, then please let me know. Alternatively, if you would rather rip the songs off YouTube, then you are more than welcome to do so as long as you do not share the work on your own channel, site, etc. Please do not repost or use my music without permission for your own projects, personal or otherwise. If you are sharing the music with other people, then know that it is okay to do so. Otherwise, ask if you are unsure about how to use my music.