Caroline Jones On Why Production Elements Are Crucial To Songcraft

MULTI-INSTRUMENTALIST CAROLINE Jones—who plays everything on her records except bass and drums—recently released Bare Feet [Faction], a six-song EP that showcases her talents on acoustic and electric guitars, banjo, lap-steel, keyboards, and harmonica. She’s also a “big production” nerd, and she offers some excellent ideas for balancing multiple elements and textures without obscuring the main impact of a song.

- Michael Molenda

As you play a lot of instruments, is it a challenge casting which ones will serve a particular song?

I typically write on piano or guitar, and those instruments provide the basic harmony. Then, I start to hear the different sonic textures that can make a song greater than the sum of its parts. I also have fun figuring out the rhythmic components, because a syncopated electric guitar or synth hook adds so much to the overall production. I love how all those elements work together, but, honestly, it’s a big process of trial and error. Luckily, I have a very patient producer in Ric Wake, because we’ll often spend an entire day finding the right guitar sound or guitar part for a chorus.

So would you say that your songs are not really complete until you lock them down in the studio?