Lighter Than Air by Xanthe Call

Melody
The melody inspiration was created in the program Orca and edited to create a melody that fits with the song. The sound for the melody was created using a sample sound from TheFatRat and a Harp. The chorus then added an Arpeggiator to the melody to randomise the notes but keep the outline similar. The bridge added a Vibraphone playing arpeggios to build up to the drop for the last chorus. The last chorus combined all three melodies - the main melody, the faster-arpeggiated melody, and the harp melody to add to the layers of the last chorus to create a full sound.

Chords
The chords played through the song were created using the Plectrum Pad sound in Apple’s Logic Pro. The chords were duplicated and then panned left and right to create a wider sound.

Bass
The bass line was created using 4 instruments from Logic Pro: the Warm Synth Pad, Fretless Electric Bass, Liverpool Bass, and Subby Base. These were layered to create a fuller bass line. The song would have sounded quite empty without the many different bass sounds. Three of the bass sounds played the same notes but had two different octaves to create a unique result. One of the three was also duplicated and panned left and right to give a wider sound. The fourth bass played two notes every beat to add flavour to the bass line.

Drums
The drums start with a simple kick drum for the intro and then move to a four-beat in verse one. The kick drum returns by itself in the build-up to the chorus until the drum fill sample from the Apple Loop Library is heard during the transition. A four-beat drum loop sample is also added. This sample includes a few fills to add that extra flare to the chorus. The bridge changed the kick up a bit with a heartbeat-type rhythm to differentiate the bridge from the rest of the song. The last chorus combined all drum beats and also added an open hi-hat to create a full-sounding chorus.

Vocals
The vocals for each chorus were a sample called EDM Vocal FX Chops from Sample Focus. This was to ensure that the song followed the characteristics of the electronic pop genre. Another sample from Sample Focus called Hey Kids Vocals was placed on the beat before each chorus to add to the fun and excitement of the song. The last vocal layer was a vocal echo sample from TheFatRat. This was used to create the atmosphere of each chorus. The last chorus then combined all vocal sounds. The first vocal sound was also doubled. The vocal echo was also doubled with the duplicate being pitched up to create a harmony. This all created the full sound that is heard in the last chorus.

Sound FX
A crash and a flutter sample from TheFatRat were used to create risers to transition between each section of the song.