The First Step

Album: Rescue & Restore (2013)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This was the first song that drummer Matt Greiner put his sticks to on Rescue & Restore. He told Antiquiet: "I probably spent three days on the first ten seconds of the song. With any record I write, it's typically the case that the first song takes exponentially longer to complete than the rest of the album. That was definitely the case with this song."

    "One interesting note about the process of recording drums for this song," he added, "is the fact that I broke a stick while tracking and just kept on playing through the end. The funniest thing about it is that we actually kept the take and you can't even hear the broken stick in the mix. Strange!"
  • The drumbeat over the song's second riff was inspired by the soundtrack for Slumdog Millionaire. Greiner explained to AntiQuiet: "I was watching that movie one night and heard a beat in the background of a horrific torture scene where the bad guy is manipulating the children he's enslaved into begging for money. I loved how the drums sounded and went straight to the practice space and wrote a similar rendition of the beat I had just heard."
  • Greiner told Antiquiet that his favorite part about the song, "is the chaotic section near the beginning where the snare drum hits accent the dissonant note that JB and Brent play." The drummer added that he loves, "how the riff keeps going in the same direction and the drums compliment it in a number of different ways."
  • The drum roll at the end of the song was inspired by Greiner's ABR videographer friend, Brandon, who nagged at him for a couple of years, "about doing a repeating single stroke roll around the drum-kit."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

00s Music Quiz 1

00s Music Quiz 1Music Quiz

Do you know the girl singer on Eminem's "Stan"? If so, this quiz is for you.

Pam Tillis

Pam TillisSongwriter Interviews

The country sweetheart opines about the demands of touring and talks about writing songs with her famous father.

Yacht Rock Quiz

Yacht Rock QuizFact or Fiction

Christopher Cross with Deep Purple? Kenny Loggins in Caddyshack? A Fact or Fiction all about yacht rock and those who made it.

Donnie Iris (Ah! Leah!, The Rapper)

Donnie Iris (Ah! Leah!, The Rapper)Songwriter Interviews

Before "Rap" was a form of music, it was something guys did to pick up girls in nightclubs. Donnie talks about "The Rapper" and reveals the identity of Leah.

Greg Lake of Emerson, Lake & Palmer

Greg Lake of Emerson, Lake & PalmerSongwriter Interviews

Greg talks about writing songs of "universal truth" for King Crimson and ELP, and tells us about his most memorable stage moment (it involves fireworks).

The 10 Bands Most Like Spinal Tap

The 10 Bands Most Like Spinal TapSong Writing

Based on criteria like girlfriend tension, stage mishaps and drummer turnover, these are the 10 bands most like Spinal Tap.