Meet DOMINIONATED‘s PRESS PLAY artist for August, Emma Hewson. Besides teaching and gigging for other bands, Hewson has also been creating and releasing music since moving to Toronto in 2009 from Guelph, ON. “Grab and Touch” is a work-in-progress and she offers it up ahead of completion along with a look behind her creative process:
DOMINIONATED readers are musicians and music fans, so I’m sure you’ve heard demos before, but what exactly is a demo? In general, we’re used to hearing two kinds of music: live music (which may be professional musicians or complete beginners) and polished, radio-ready recordings. So demos inhabit the in-between stage of songwriting when most of the ideas are recorded, but before the song has had its final mix and master. My single, “Grab and Touch,” is in its demo stage right now, and I’m super excited to share it with you.
A few years ago, some of my friends and I started a mini club, where we write and produce one song a month and then share it with each other in a group setting. This has been so beneficial to me, because not only has it encouraged me to write and produce more, but because you naturally end up wanting to create with and learn from the other members. So, when my friend Dave Ocean produced one of his first songs and I heard his deep, luscious voice, I knew I wanted to collaborate with him.
After agreeing, Dave sent me a few samples with a house-inspired drum and bass groove. From there, we both added on some vocals and I began producing the song and putting everything together. Now I’m starting on the mixing stage and I’m having a lot of fun learning about different mixing techniques and styles.
“Grab and Touch” is a House track, whose lyrics were inspired by the phrase ‘pain and pleasure.’ We wanted visceral lyrics that made you feel in the moment, on the dance floor, partying with your friends.
More from Emma Hewson on:
Bandcamp
Spotify
Youtube
Instagram
Twitter
Facebook
PRESS PLAY supporters on Patreon can download, save, and play “Grab and Touch (Demo)” now:
