Hostile Hostel - EP

Purpose.

I have been writing music since I can remember, but never with any formal training. In the Fall of 2018, I petitioned my university for the opportunity to pursue music production for the following Spring semester. I wanted to explore something wholly different from mechanical engineering, not to distance myself from engineering, but to augment it.

Vision.

The project was originally conceived as an 11-song concept album following a protagonist as they check themselves in to an psychiatric asylum. They soon discover that the asylum is populated not by patients, but by monsters and ghosts and ghouls. They attempt to to escape before wondering if they are not so different from the paranormal beings after all. This idea begat the project title Hostile Hostel.

The protagonist would be an allegory for myself, and the asylum for my own journey through personal health, professional adversity, and life itself. The ‘band’ would be called “Fool For The City,” derived from the Foghat song of the same name and inspired by a formative trip to Vienna, Austria.

However, I didn’t realize just how much work writing 11 songs would take.

Writing.

A typical semester has 14 weeks, and I had 11 songs lined up. My plan was to write one song a week, leaving three weeks at the end of the semester to record, mix, and master.

I soon recognized how naïve this was. Three days in to the first week, I hit a stretch of Writer’s Block. No matter how hard I concentrated, lyrics and melodies refused to reveal themselves. At the end of Week One, I had written zero songs.

So, reimagined the project as just three songs - three episodes that best encapsulated the overall story. I would begin working on one song, and when I needed a break from it, I would cycle to the next one. This way, I would ensure I was always working on something fresh.

To write songs, I would begin by outlining their structure in Microsoft Excel (see gallery below, songs in same order as album). Then, I would experiement with chord progressions until I found one that I felt fit the mood I was going for. For the lyrics, I would begin with a “braindump;” that is, for one hour I would write down whatever was on my mind. Then, I would be warmed up to focus on the intended topic. Then I had the task of fitting the lyrics and chords together in a way that made sense.

Recording.

Once a song was developed enough, I recorded demos of the songs by myself, using Garageband, in my living room. I affectionately called this “Common Universe Studios,” named after the housing development I was staying in at the time - “University Commons.” I would program most instruments using MIDI, but I would track drums and rhythm guitars myself through an audio interface. Most of the instrumental tracks recorded for the demos ended up in the final mixes. On one instance, a friend from Nebraska came to visit and I roped him in to being my studio engineer.

After the instrumental tracks were largely squared away, I rented time in professional studios to track final vocals, mix, and master.

My plan had always been to hire other artists to fill in gaps I couldn’t fill myself. The personnel for each track is listed below.

Album Art.

Just like any good album, this one needed a jaw-dropping cover.

The cover was inspired by Grant Wood’s American Gothic painting. It gives off the vibe that the viewer is not where they are supposed to be - and I wanted my album to feel similarly. The pink and green coloring the title is an homage to the Clash’s seminal album London Calling - one of my all-time favorites. Cover photography was done by Jason Feddersen and Ethan Whitecotton, and it was photoshopped together by Hayden Howe.

The Songs.

Candle

This up-tempo, rollicking opener was inspired by a piano cover of my favorite song: “Message In A Bottle” by the Police. The lyrics examine the toxicity that comes from suppressing one’s true self by equating it to a candle-fire that quickly spreads out of control, unbeknownst to anyone in the house. I feel as though I captured lightning in a bottle with this song, but it was pushed over the top by Becky Jasen’s hauntingly gorgeous refrain harmonies.

Insects

This song eluded me lyrically for sometime, even as the music fell into place easily. The lyrics explore a world in which the protagonist is alone, with only bugs to befriend. The song is a commentary on loneliness, inspired my time living in a cabin in the backwoods of Ohio. The chord progression of this song remains a favorite of mine. And that ethereal guitar solo? That was achieved by playing Ryan McMullan’s expert solo backwards.

It’s Midnight (And There Are Skeletons Everywhere)

While the other songs blended several genres together, this one is straight groove rock. Lyrically, it concerns a house party that is overrun by an army of reveler skeletons, as an allegory for escapism. There’s a lot going on in it, but while the other two songs felt very serious, this one was just a lot of fun.

Takeaways.

Reviews of Hostile Hostel have been positive. My song “Candle” played on several radio stations, including one in Norway. The album has been streamed on Spotify in countries such as Germany, Israel, and Israel - earning me almost $7 in ad revenue. On YouTube, the official Fool For The City channel has almost 10 subscribers. To some it may not seem like much, but to me it means the world.

I learned more about design engineering and project management from this venture than I did from anything that came before. Developing this album was like iterating on a design - an opportunity that is difficult to experience in the hectic atmosphere of college.

With these songs, I was able to set constraints, prototype a demo, get feedback from listeners, and revise the song as needed. In a class or internship, there is usually only enough time to develop a concept and prototype it once. These songs I was able to iterate on maybe 10 or 20 times. This takes patience, persistence, and passion for the project but it also requires an understanding of the purpose of the project.

Acknowledgements.

Firstly, I am indebted to the School of Individualized Study at RIT. They took a huge leap of faith with me so I could poiur all my energy and focus into this and not worry about anything else. They also set me up with a project advisor, Prof. Thomas Hanney, and he introduced me to Jerry Falzone and Dr. Babak Elahi, who also served as mentors. All deserve my utmost gratitude for guiding and encouraging me.

I would like to acknowledge and thank the studios where this album was recorded:

• Common Universe Studios; engineered by Jason Feddersen and myself

• Ultra Huge Studio; engineered, mixed, and mastered by Sam Gruttadauria

• BlueBrick Recording; engineered, mixed, and mastered by Jesse Sprinkle

A big thank you to Jason Feddersen, Ethan Whitecotton, Anne Elliot, and Hayden Howe for their work on the album art.

Finally, a MASSIVE thank you to my parents for supporting me as I took a semester to really do something crazy and to all my friends for telling me they like it!