Song Q&A

What’s the song about?

Instrumental. The overall feeling is floaty, beautiful, melodic.

Where did the idea come from?

The approach was to select the mood first, then find sounds that matched it — and layer them up to reinforce that feeling.

How did it come together in the studio/production?

Used a lot of loops — went through a large library finding sounds that matched a particular feeling. Then a lot of experimentation, moving things around until it sounded right. Added some acid sounds to balance out the floatiness and ground it a little. That contrast was something I was really happy with. Stinger was probably the first song I was really happy with.

On the title

Tried to find something that felt a little opposite to the sound. Came across an instrument called a stinger bass and liked how that sounded as a name.

On releasing it

Even doing it in public, I had no expectation that anyone was actually listening — which made it feel safe (and honestly, I still feel pretty safe in that regard). But it felt good, and I got some really positive feedback from people who actually know something about music. That gave me the incentive to keep going.

Favourite moment in the track

The feedback that mattered

People were surprised I could make something that sounded musical without a lot of formal music training. Honestly, I was pretty surprised myself. It took a lot of work, and there are still weaknesses in it — but even today I’m pretty happy with how it turned out.

One thing listeners might miss

Any lyrics you’re especially proud of?

N/A — instrumental.