Tuesday 9 July 2013

So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry)



I'm really pleased with the way this one turned out. I had always liked the way this song was played live in the early 1980s, often with the short instrumental section that precedes the 2nd and 3rd verse used to open the song, sometimes even without the guitar intro we're so used to hearing. There was something edgy about the song when it was played live, I think it was probably played a touch faster than the album version and the song seems to pick up speed when the drums kick in so, although this is primarily a replica of the album version, I have taken these aspects from the live version.

This song really is all about the rhythm section, on the album there is a faint piano throughout the song and an even fainter rhythm guitar. My aim was to make the drums and bass the focus and then just have layers and layers of really quiet guitars, to build the volume through layers rather than to just turn the volume up, plus that helped me achieve that ringing sound associated with the Rickenbacker 360.

The song has been a staple of their live set throughout their whole career, although I just can't bring myself to listen to it played live since the 1990s as they play it way too slow and it loses all of its dynamic. But it's a great song and features one of Peter Buck's most well know guitar riffs and has one of the most impressive Mike Mills bass lines in the R.E.M. canon.