FAWM: "The Grand Plan"

The Grand Plan

2025 by @plushbaby

Liner Notes

I think this may have been the first song I wrote this February, or at least the chorus was. I enjoyed the melody so much that it became quite difficult to write anything else to it. If I remember rightly, I wrote the words for the verses as I was about to go to sleep or had just woken up...

This song was originally inspired by Cameron Winter’s album, Heavy Metal, and his approach to instrumentation. It morphed as it went along into something else, but the intense distorted guitar was an attempt to represent the feeling of thoughts rushing endlessly around your/my mind. thoughts huh, pah, who'd 'ave 'em!

The bridge section was initially going to be sung but I couldn’t make the words work in the time, so maybe something to go back to. Need to work out a better way of entering the song with the guitar as it sounds a bit like it smashes through a window at the moment.

I liked the idea of holding off on the snare until the end of the song, to build the tension throughout the song and only allow the release towards the end. To hopefully give it a positive lift at the end, a bit like in the video for Blur's Beetlebum where the camera lifts off into the sky while the guitar soars. Like the song spreads its wings and gets out of its own way - it figured itself all out.

Lyrics

The space between the times I love myself is getting wider The up and down, it flattens out I’m the wrong way around I used to think it was a matter of time I used to dream that it could all be mine The where, the who, the when - it would all come after

So what now? What’s the grand plan now? How have you not figured it all out? So what now? What’s your grand plan now? How have you not figured it all out?

It’s not as if the opportunity it wasn’t there for you Every privilege afforded on a silver spoon I had some fun but took it all for granted I had some fun and yes I think I enjoyed it I woke up yesterday thirty years into the future

So what now? What’s the grand plan now? How have you not figured it all out? So what now? What’s your grand plan now? How have you not figured this all out? Cos you know that you could figure it all out Why don’t you figure it all out?

find happiness in smaller things, that’s what the books advise The sun reach out to touch me through the winter gloom

So what now? What’s your grand plan now? How have you not figured it all out? How have you not figured this all out? Yeah let’s figure this all out Come on let’s figure this all out

Comments

@nancycunning 2025

Interesting, when I read the lyrics on the page, I think of this YOU as the singer singing to himself. But when I listen I feel like again the singer is telling another person You are bringing me down. The music is so upbeat, it feels like it's all going to be okay. Like the heavy feelings that come right before the sky opens up.

@tonyr 2025

Really enjoyed this. Nice work.

@davidtaro 2025

Brilliant, rather poignant opening line there. Really like the staccato rhythm you’re delivering the lines with. The big guitar does absolutely send the choruses into orbit, and the belated snare works exactly as you’ve described - it’s such a massive release when it arrives (side note: I think Beetlebum may be my favourite Blur tune). Very cool write and record!

@vomvorton 2025

Such a nice bouncy melody in the verse! Really effective how the vibe shifts into the chorus with that scratchy backing. Love the snare trick too, it does feel satisfying when it finally arrives!

@briggs 2025

I listened to this while out walking, so I couldn’t read the liner notes beforehand. I was going to relate the sound to Blur, but you’ve already referenced them in the liner notes, so it probably wouldn’t have been a surprise. I really liked this tune; it was catchy, but it had changes in texture throughout, which kept it really interesting. I particularly liked the rhythm of the lyric before the chorus, which gave the false impression of a different time signature. Great production too - thoroughly enjoyable on all levels.

@almask17 2025

Nice and catchy . A real pop gem. It will make a good radio song with a nice restrained production . Excellent work.

@thedutchwidows 2025

The acoustic guitars are so propulsive - and the lift up into the chorus is great. Those guitars definitely give the feeling of too much brain input. Holding the snare back works really well - I love those percussion details. Good energy all round. Very nice.