The Roland Playlist

Ten songs I've written; the best of a mixed bag!

A little while ago, I shared a round-up of ten songs I consider perfect. Now for a trickier act: choosing ten tracks of my own to spotlight. Bear in mind…these aren’t perfect!

Since starting to make music in 2017, I estimate that I’ve written in the neighborhood of 250 songs and instrumentals. Most of them suck. The list of pieces I dub the best — the ones I can slot alongside amazing music made by my peers — is a tad slim. When I give samples of my discography a re-listen, I rarely feel compelled to say “yeah, that’s mine!”

In assembling this Substack mixtape, there were a few rejects. Why? I’d listen to a song with strong writing and ideas, but the producer in me dropped the ball with a crappy transition or muddy mix. As a result, most of these were finished in more recent times. These ten, in my opinion, are good songs on most fronts.

Here you go!

1. Vacating Alien

A friend of mine, also a guitarist, kept bugging me about my lack of playing with a pick. Since I started my music-making journey on the bass (not usually a pick instrument), fingers are my default on the six-string. To silence him, I wrote the opening riff of “Vacating Alien” right after picking up my seldom-used plectrum. As for the rest of the song: I like the lyrics, the singing is passable, the outro with the heavy drums is cool…it’s just a good, straightforward rocker! I later made an edit/remix, with more nuanced production (“Vacating Alien v2.0”), but nothing beats an original.

2. The Canine Beyond

Losing a childhood pet hurts, no matter how you cut it. Riley, our beloved Cockalier, got put down just as I arrived at college to start my senior year. Ugh. Caring for her in the last several weeks spelled out the end, and, when I hugged her before going to the airport, I had an unshakable feeling that that was the curtain call. In the wake of her death, I felt she needed a dirge, a musical tribute.

Randy McStine plays on here. He’s a talented solo artist and touring guitarist for both Steven Wilson and Wilson’s band, Porcupine Tree. After meeting him at the Three of a Perfect Pair music camp, we stayed in touch, and I asked if he could provide some minimal guitar; you hear his playing fade out and reverse. “The Canine Beyond” has to be the most heavenly, atmospheric piece I’ve produced.

3. The Arranger

I don’t know, maybe this is the closest I’ve come to writing a theme song? I believe the lyrics are my best ever. “How much of your life can you arrange, and how much is subject to change?” could be tombstone material for me, if I don’t go the cremation route. “The Arranger” flowed right out of me, which tends to be the case with a lot of my “best” music. I’m a big believer in not letting your passion projects sit for too long. Flashes of lightning ought to illuminate the fire! The instrumentation is hard-hitting, especially at first, and the song’s second half features a bass solo.

Yeah, you read that right. The bass here comes courtesy of Pete Griffin, who’s a touring member of virtual metalheads Dethklok and a Frank Zappa scholar. He sent me a couple of leads, one more Cliff Burton, and one (at my direction) a bit more slap-sounding. The end result fades in and out around my “singing.” I guess that sums up the song: swerving savagery.

4. Kopfkino

Also in the running for “themiest” song I’ve ever written. This track owes its existence to a photoshoot I did in 2023. My friend, Alex, coordinated and named our escapade “Kopfkino,” which is German, for…er…“cinema of the mind,” if my memory isn’t acting up. The song references Alex’s highbrow vision, in the title and the lyrics. I had so much fun working with him, but that afternoon deserves a post of its own. In the meantime, take a listen! I think the piano, and “sheer noise” that envelops the track at the end, came out cool.

5. Discowreckage

If you define “song” as “a piece of music containing sung lyrics,” then this is the longest one I’ve ever made. Believe it or not, inspiration smacked me so violently that “Discowreckage” materialized in a single day. What the piece may have in an imperfection or two, it makes up for with (hopefully evident) passion.

Over fifteen minutes, the suite incorporates an appreciation for latter-day Daft Punk and No-Man, as well as ambient music. Watch out for some orchestral breathing room, and funky guitar with the top four strings tuned to EGBE. The final moments feature a trick I’ve since over-used, an echo with the fade time whacked up to maximum. (My nickname for such sound design: “perseverating.”) Rest assured, everything else I’ve chosen is not long enough to warrant an entire side of a vinyl record.

6. Lovely Spectre

When you’re pissed off, art flows out. I remember making “Lovely Spectre” one night, fueled by something of a mini-tirade. Unrequited love, folks, perfect songwriting juice! If you listen to the lyrics, I’m sure you’ll be able to tell where my heart was moping. Depeche Mode vibes, from beginning to end. “Lovely Spectre” marks an instance where I believe my “non-singer” abilities elevate the finished product.

7. Minutes Become Ours

Deserves a spot on this list for the name alone. My wordplay can spark eye-rolling, mostly from my sister, but I remain smug about that title. Anyways, “Minutes Become Ours” features sampled sand running through an hourglass, plus some nifty piano arpeggiation.

8. Roses On the Grave

Written around the same time as “Vacating Alien” and, like that one, a cool little rocker. Fast finger-picked guitar, melodramatic lyrics, nice build-up. I actually performed “Roses” live once, with two other guys. Didn’t go well, since we never rehearsed the song as a unit. Just enjoy the original version, and be glad that none of the audience (to my knowledge) recorded our “jam.” More of a past-sell-by-date margarine, that was.

9. Homirage

A good ambassador for “less is more,” not to mention my unconventional naming practices. I think “Teardrop” by Massive Attack had a lot to do with the creation of this one. Only two lines of lyrics. That little harmonic riff which opens up the song had been in my head for ages, waiting to get used. The title is a portmanteau of “homage” and “mirage,” if you’re wondering. Guitar and bass here are light on the notes, heavy on the lifting. See if you can follow the weird organ/synth stuff happening in the middle.

10. Roland Operating System

My semi-singing has questionable merit, so I thought I’d put another instrumental on the list to finish things up. After reading about Brian Eno’s work with Microsoft, I decided to pen a hypothetical computer boot-up chime. If you only listen to one track here, choose “Roland Operating System” — the runtime clocks in at a breezy 0:07.