Aha!

Album: Ellipse (2009)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This multi-tonal track builds into a distorted fairground sound pops, to quote from a Billboard review, "like a haunted jack-in the box." In fact in Heap's studio there are not only the standard guitars, drum kit and piano, but also a selection of toys such as a spinning top, megaphone and, yes, a jack-in-the-box. Heap told The Daily Telegraph July 31, 2009 that her writing usually starts on the piano, but by the time she is finished barely a trace of the original instrument remains. She said: "A piano album would be too easy. I like things that tinker with my brain. I'm creating little sound worlds for songs, like doll's houses with little staircases and rooms inside. Everything kind of relates to everything else."
    Heap then explained the toys in her studio: "I'm very lazy when it comes to making the original sound. I just grab something, whether it is an old guitar or a Jack in the Box, and record it straight into the computer. Sounds pretty rubbish. Then I go in and spend hours finding nice bits of that sound, chopping it up, layering it, doing 20 tracks, and I'll make them a little smooth and play with them like Play-Doh. And by the time I've spent two days on it, you can't really tell what it is. People can only hear one per cent of all the work that's gone into it, months and months into one song, sculpting the sound."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Susanna Hoffs - "Eternal Flame"

Susanna Hoffs - "Eternal Flame"They're Playing My Song

The Prince-penned "Manic Monday" was the first song The Bangles heard coming from a car radio, but "Eternal Flame" is closest to Susanna's heart, perhaps because she sang it in "various states of undress."

Dean Pitchford

Dean PitchfordSongwriter Interviews

Dean wrote the screenplay and lyrics to all the songs in Footloose. His other hits include "Fame" and "All The Man That I Need."

Philip Cody

Philip CodySongwriter Interviews

A talented lyricist, Philip helped revive Neil Sedaka's career with the words to "Laughter In The Rain" and "Bad Blood."

Steven Tyler of Aerosmith

Steven Tyler of AerosmithSongwriter Interviews

Tyler talks about his true love: songwriting. How he identifies the beauty in a melody and turns sorrow into art.

Michael W. Smith

Michael W. SmithSongwriter Interviews

Smith breaks down some of his worship tracks as well as his mainstream hits, including "I Will Be Here For You" and "A Place In This World."

Millie Jackson

Millie JacksonSongwriter Interviews

Outrageously gifted and just plain outrageous, Millie is an R&B and Rap innovator.