Dorian is the last song I’m introducing from Virtual Virgins. The plan was to write about a different song from the album every month and I was determined to get through them all whether or not anyone was reading any of it. So I’m pleased to finally complete the challenge.
I partly left this song till last as it feels like it rounds things off well. It’s the last song on the album and the arrangement features a lot of synths and other atmospheric sounds, which links it to the album title. But to be honest, another reason for leaving it till now was that the intersex theme of the song feels like a more tricky one to write about. Writing lyrics sometimes comes easier than explaining them!
But the more I think about it, the less I feel the need to explain anything. Obviously, anything to do with sex and gender is a hot topic right now. I think you can get a general sense of where I stand on the politics of these things from the song. One thing I will say is that there are people who shouldn’t have to identify with binary ideas of sex. I find that this doesn’t get highlighted enough in all the heated and vitriolic debates.
This song was probably the most fun of all the songs on the album to arrange and play different parts for. As well as the aforementioned synths, the song features a whirly tube – an idea borrowed from a Split Enz track – the Choral Sea.
Something else I like about arranging song is that, by coincidence, the lead guitar part I came up with made the song sound a bit more like it was written in ‘dorian mode‘.
I don’t think it technically is in this scale, but something about the electric guitar part nudges the song towards one of the minor chords I play on the acoustic. This makes it a bit harder (for me anyway) to determine whether I’m playing in major or minor at points in the song, which fits well with the theme. Have a listen.