The second song on the new album is “Don’t Let it End”.  This song features the oldest, at at least fifteen years, melodic idea on the album.  Matthew re-discovered this idea in an old tape that Theron had sent him years before and decided it would work nicely for the song.

Matthew wrote the lyrics for “Don’t Let it End” after a visit to Chicago, little knowing he would be moving there a year later. In fact, Navy Pier is visible from the window of his apartment. The song was originally written about aging, but has multiple meanings now.

This was the first song recorded on the album – in the summer of 2009, in Chicago overlooking Navy Pier.

Don't Let it End

Lyrics:

Once I rode the ferris wheel
Overlooking Navy Pier
Suspended over land and sea
Awaiting my decline

A voice inside me sighed
Don’t let it end

Swaying in the summer breeze
High atop the wheel
There’s a moment I feel so free
And I want to stay

And as the wheel
Took me down
A voice inside me cried
Don’t let it end

Don’t let it end

The first song on the “Chorus of Echoes” album is called “A Small Life”.  This song follows closely in the footsteps of Relic‘s “Living in the Now”, which is, in many ways, an inspiration for the new album.  The guitar follows the same style by placing the chords in the higher notes and the melody in the bass.

“A Small Life” is about the passing of a sweet Scottish Terrier named Jackie. She was the first pet for whom Matthew was responsible as an adult. He adopted her at age six, and there was always an innate sadness in her eyes.

Download the sheet music.

Lyrics:

Unhappy from the first
She missed her childhood
Old before her time

Such a scared life
Such a scarred life
Such a sad life
Such a small life
Such a scared life
Such a small life

A veil of repression
A living tomb

Obeying all the rules
Took its toll
A toll of joy

Such a scared life
Such a scarred life
Such a sad life
Such a small life
Such a scared life
Such a small life

Days of isolation
In a crowded room
Clinging to corners

Such a small life
Such a small life

Here are some select instrumentals over the years.  From oldest to newest:

• Construction of a Calendar (circa 1988) is probably the first “successful” FT guitar tune.  The song was so named because it “made your day”.  I believe it made its way on to the radio as the background music for Atlanta Brave’s baseball reports in Columbus, Georiga.
• The tune Igor (1990) was inspired from the prominent 16th-note drum pattern that the song features.  It’s a simple rockin’ metal instrumental; just guitar, bass, and drums!
• Ode to Sosaria (1991) was inspired by and pays homage to the Ultima series of computer games.  Now if that’s not nerdy, I don’t know what is.
• Mind the Dragon (1992) was created during a period of making movie soundtracks and is therefore one of many from this era.  I chose this one because it’s different, raw-sounding, and ends with thumpin’ hip hop bass.  Dragons and hip hop?  You’d have to know the original movie that was never completed to know the context.
• My only regrets about the Guitar Solo (1993) during the FT Live at the Human Experience is that it’s way too short.  At least it’s followed up by a performance of Igor.  The very fast ascending scales is a quote from Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto.
• Rhapsody Below Zero (2000) is a large-scale through-composed work for solo guitar and big complicated accompaniment.  I spent a lot of time on it!  The end of the electric guitar part was inspired by the ending of the first movement of the Saint Saens B minor violin concerto.  I wish I would have just ended it there and not recap with the acoustic part.
• I wrote and recorded Zapateado (2000) as a homage to the Spanish violinist Pablo de Sarasate, who wrote a work of the same name and same meter.  Mine’s nowhere as good, but I still like it.  The octave guitar parts are ironically inspired by Liszt.
• I can’t even remember where Journal (2005) came from, but it was recorded in one take, was accidentally a bit out of tune, with a hum in the background, but I still liked this recording, so I kept it.  Looking at the sheet music, I notice it’s dated 10/27/2002; I had no idea it was so old either.  Weird.

Here’s the guitar tab to the two tunes from “Vision, Dreams, and Nightmares”:

And here’s the music for Journal (some others too from the Relic album):

Each of the songlists below contains five tracks selected by the members of FT. These aren’t necessarily the top songs, but they are important to the band members, for one reason or another. Enjoy a sampling of some of our favorites.

Matthew’s:

These five songs are all special to me for different reasons. Light of Day was a turning point for me, lyrically. It marks the first time I attempted to write a song with no rhyme scheme. I just focused on the meter of the lyric, and I was really pleased with the results.

For Simplicity, I set out to write as few words as possible, while still addressing the theme of the song. It was a fun creative challenge, resulting in a six word verse. To me, it represents the joy of creating music.

Westward Bound is special because it reminds me of my state of mind during the pivotal summer before I traveled West to attend law school in Kansas.

As for Raven & the Dove, it’s always been one of my favorites, particularly because of Theron’s jaw droppingly good instrumentation.

And Life Lines is a notable departure for Frozen Taco – a melodious, leisurely paced tune, one of our longer songs;  it establishes and holds a subtle, languid, engaging mood. It’s unique in the FT pantheon of songs. And there you have it – my five picks.

Theron’s:

After the Visions, Dreams, and Nightmares album, I wanted to depart from the thick orchestrations and long, drawn-out style of songs.  Living in the Now, from the Relic album, was an excellent manifestation of this new form.  And here’s a little bit of trivia:  The guitar part for Living in the Now was originally used in a Hypothetical Seven movie, “The Creature of Potters Pond”.

Benediction is just one of my favorite tunes of all time.  The whole song is based on a simple chordal pattern:  minor 7th chord, up a minor 3rd to a major chord, up another minor third to a major chord, finally up a major third to a major chord – which appears in various ways all over the song.  This song also sports some of my favorite lyrics.

Calm After the Storm is my favorite classic pop-style song by Frozen Taco.  I can’t tell you how many times I rewound to listen again to this one.

I have great memories creating the tune for Achille’s Heel.  From the powerful intro to the soft Beatles-esque verse, I remember being content with the whole song.  Some extreme trivia: The middle section idea was inspired by “Rejoice greatly, o’ daughter of Zion” from Handel’s Messiah.

I’ve always loved The House of Years because of the intricacy in the music.  The song is always changing and always interesting.

Dave’s:

I fell in love with Calm After the Storm when Theron played me the bare instrumental track, before it had any vocals.  Then Matt’s lyrics and delivery sealed the deal. Just a solid song all around.  It was the high point, for me, of the FT live show years ago.  I think on the recording you can hear me over the band, crying out with delight.  Awesome.

Magnifikhan that has brought me to tears more than once.  The build to the final verse is majestic, and Matt’s lyric throughout captures something without overstating the emotion.

I wish Ingenuous Predator didn’t so exactly sum up what I lost in the falling out Matt and I had all those years ago, but it does.  That being said, I think this is the best song the duo has written, period.  It floors me every single time.

I have written and spoken often about The Voyage of Karl being the “quintessential” Frozen Taco song.  It was a complete collaboration at every step, musically and lyrically.  For me, it felt like the first time I added music to the group, and not just notes.

Grey Poupon – Sheer fucking anarchy.