Where You Belong

As previously mentioned in my news post about this song, I’ve long been aware of Little Dragon but was never close listener. My wife loves them and often plays them in the car, so I could at least sing along (with a lot of incorrect lyrics) to classics like ‘Ritual Union’. All this time, it had never occurred to me to do a reggae cover of a Little Dragon song. But their self-professed and obvious love of different music styles sort of lends itself to a reggae treatment, no?

We finally got to see Little Dragon play at House of Blues in San Diego late last year. April and Vista opened the show, who I highly recommend checking out if you haven’t yet. You can easily see why Little Dragon found kindred spirits in these guys. They create big and interesting soundscapes featuring live bass, violin, and vocals over prerecorded beats/loops. April has a powerful yet controlled voice with an impressively wide range. Her vocal talent is matched by her charm and obvious graciousness. Vista, who seems a bit more reserved, provides a solid foundation for their captivating performance.

Little Dragon soon took the stage. Their awareness of sound and visuals spoke to their maturity and professionalism as musicians and performers. It seemed like they were really having fun and enjoy each other. This is no small feat for any group of people, but especially so when you add on time together and the stresses of the road.

Hearing The Original For The First Time

They started the show with a couple of songs that I did not recognize off of their latest album, ‘Slugs of Love’. They then played a number of songs I was familiar with, some in their original form and some re-imagined. About three-quarters of the way through the show, they started a moody and powerful ballad. The two-string guitar chords, subdued beat, and soulful organ instantly grabbed my attention. It felt a lot like a gospel tune despite being so unique in tone. When it was over, I felt compelled to utter an audible, “Gadddddam!” There are very few songs, performed live or otherwise, that hit me like this. The song was, of course, the rendition of ‘Where You Belong’ that they played at Glastonbury 2022.

I love all sorts of songs, but songs with a more sad, blue, and/or minor tone have always resonated with me the most. Even more so, I love that rare type of song that can address a sad subject with an uplifting tone (or vice versa). ‘Where You Belong’ does just that, and masterfully. Yes, we can be full of grief, and maybe that’s okay. Despite the pain, perhaps things are exactly how they’re supposed to be. Yukimi’s lyrics also point to a core part of my personal sense of spirituality: we may experience time in one direction, but this is an illusion. Because of this fact, we are all, each of us, eternal.

Beginning The Cover

Soon after the show, I told my wife that I wanted to do a cover of the song. It was absolutely stuck in my head. I could hear how a reggae treatment might work as a new expression without taking away from the original. I was sort of nervous to tell her. Again, this is one of my wife’s favorite groups. Also, she feels that covers aren’t usually ‘needed’. Despite doing a lot of covers myself, I actually tend to feel the same. Whenever I attempt a cover, I am very intentional about trying to honor the original. The thought of cheapening the original or coming across as mocking it is one of my great fears as an artist. I promised myself that if the cover didn’t turn out as I imagined it, or if my wife didn’t approve, I wouldn’t release it.

Although I was aiming for a reggae sound (lovers’ rock, specifically), I wanted to keep the overall tone of the original. I started by learning Fredrik’s guitar line by watching the Glastonbury video. He plays two-note chords throughout, which provide both the melody and ‘bass’ line. Next, I used the electronic drum kit to lay down a foundational rhythm similar to Erik’s. Finally, I added in a basic skank rhythm on electric piano. On the outro, I really wanted to recreate the big, 80’s synth tone that Erik gets out of the Moog. I recorded some demo vocals, and at this point the song sounded a lot like the original.

Leaning Into Reggae

To really cross over into reggae, I needed to layer onto the rhythm section. The hi-hats and cymbals are fairly straight. But when the beat really kicks in, it’s essentially a one drop rhythm. The original song does not feature bass, but I wanted to add something lively and playful. In fact, this is the first time I’ve played bass! It was a lot of fun to figure out how to get out what I was hearing in my head. I gained even more respect for excellent bass players in the process. It’s amazing how much expression there is in playing lightly rather than how I imagined it’s supposed to be played. I think the tone I achieved could be improved, but overall I’m happy with it. It brings a more natural feel to the song, which I think was called for.

The Result

I happy to say that if you’re reading this and maybe have heard the song, it’s because my wife approved of the end result. After the last master of the song, her reaction was, “You did it!” It’s easy for me to be very self-critical about my music, but I’m quite content with this one. My greatest hope is that this cover makes you feel something, or that it helps get you through what you’re feeling. I also hope that it can bring more strictly reggae fans to listen to Little Dragon, and maybe some of their fans to reggae as well.

Acknowledgements

First off, thank you to my wife for introducing me to Little Dragon. I am blessed to have someone who is always honest with me during the creative process. As well, I end up using most if not all of her suggestions. Thank you to Little Dragon for this beautiful song and inspiration. Big thanks to Stone Lion for always providing a second set of ears and excellent advice. The bass wouldn’t have sounded half as good without his input. Finally, thanks to Ba Tik, Nathan Cowley, and Ron Lach for providing free stock footage on Pexels.com that I used in the lyric video.