March 12 2026

The Human Behind Into The Ether: Songwriting, Creativity, and Technology

The Into The Ether project has always been about the music first, but I thought it might be time to share a little about the process, the philosophy, and who I am behind the songs.

The Person Behind the Project

I’ve always loved the anonymity of a persona in music. I prefer to make the music and stay behind the scenes. I’m reminded of a quote from Kurt Cobain in an interview where he said, “I wanted to have the adoration of John Lennon but the anonymity of Ringo Starr. I didn’t want to be a frontman. I just wanted to be back there and still be a rock and roll star at the same time.”

I like the anonymity part of that. I want the spotlight to be on my songs, while I stand behind it watching like a proud parent <3 For me, the goal has never been attention — it’s simply to create the songs I want to hear and share them. When people leave kind comments about the music, I’m incredibly grateful.

At the same time, every now and then I feel I want to share a little more about myself, the project — the process, the ideas behind the songs, and the thinking that goes into creating Into The Ether.

I will talk in this article about how I combine traditional songwriting with the use of creative music technologies. It’s important to me to share that I’m actively making every piece of music I release and not let the ‘technology’ do everything. The way the final song sounds is because of my input. It’s important for me to dispel any myths or at least share how I use them making my music by myself.

The name I go by for the music I create is iiSwanSongii. ▶ Learn more about my name

The music project itself is called Into The Ether. ▶ Learn more about project name

My vision for this has always been to create the music and share through music videos. I have always loved music and I’ve always loved video editing and making Youtube videos and this project allows me to combine both.

“Technology can assist with execution, but the creative direction always remains human.”

Where It All Started

My first attempt at songwriting happened when I was eight years old after getting my first acoustic guitar for Christmas. It was a silly little song, but it was the first time I remember even having the notion to write a song. Around that time I also started violin lessons and played in school orchestras and recitals all the way into high school.

Growing up I spent a lot of time singing and, in a hobbyist way, figuring out my vocal range. Learning I could sing harmonies by singing songs with my mother.

Later, in the early 1990s, I got my first electric guitar and started writing songs more seriously falling in love with heavier electric guitar driven music. I filled tapes and tapes with riffs and notebook after notebook of writings and ideas. Eventually I bought a 4-track recorder (Musicians Friend catalog for the win!) so I could start recording parts and experimenting with arrangements. Later on I got a 16 track digital recorder and experimented more.

Life moved forward as it does. At different times I focused on other creative interests, fortunately through the creative field I work in, which includes learning video editing. I did this (video editing and at the time making Macromedia Flash Animations) on my own I just was able to also apply this to my day job as well so had a lot of practice.

Then in February 2025, something clicked, found the niche I craved, and I started creating again in a much more focused way. Since then I’ve been making songs and sharing them on my YouTube channel.

I remember being at a family gathering, I can’t remember how the conversation started but I remember, almost declaring, that “I’m going to use technology to make music and videos and share them on my YouTube channel!” People laughed and scoffed along with myself at the time but in hindsight that may just have been me ‘manifesting’ something that was supposed to happen or something. My ‘know how’ hadn’t caught up yet to the declaration. About a week later, through almost a supernatural pull, I researched all the tools, and ‘thank God’ I chose the one I did! Then never looked back. That year really was a way to experiment, learn the tool, all while sharing what I was making on my channel. Now, I am going back and picking my best to ‘remake’ with my singers I use now into new styles in some cases which I’m very much enjoying, and setting to ‘unlisted’ anything that I’m not 100% proud of or no longer represents the current concept of ‘Into The Ether’ anymore. This is me almost making sure my catalog is curated only showing what I think are the best of my music and videos.

Going back to my song writing tapes, what’s great is that many of the ideas from those old tapes and notebooks are now just starting to become actual finished songs. Ideas written decades ago are finally finding their way into completed music.

In some ways, it feels like a lifelong creative thread finally coming together.

Why I Make Music

Making music is deeply fulfilling.

There are certain sounds and styles I’ve always loved but only heard being made occasionally. Now I’m able to create the kind of music I personally enjoy listening to the most.

Once a song is finished and I love how it sounds, the next exciting step is creating the music video. Then, once done that, sharing both the song and the visual story with others is incredibly rewarding.

What I Hope Listeners Take From the Music

It’s actually hard to define exactly what I hope people feel when they hear my song.

Music is incredibly personal for all of us.

We all listen to music differently. Something in your favorites that resonates may not to others. Maybe it’s the lyrics, or maybe they interpret the song in a completely different way. Some listen just how the music makes them feel like the mood of the song, the use of different instruments, how powerful the drums are.

Some of my favorite moments are when listeners share interpretations on lyrics I never considered. That’s part of what makes music such a personal form of expression as the maker and the listener.

Once a song exists, it belongs as much to the listener as it does to the person who wrote it.

“I like thinking of myself as simply a music maker.”

Inside the Songwriting Process

Songs usually start in one of two places.

Sometimes it begins with a guitar riff, and other times it starts with a theme or idea for the lyrics.

Once I have the theme, I decide what vocal and musical style best fits the emotional direction of the song. From there I start building the rest of the structure around it.

I typically like writing songs with a fairly traditional songwriting structures.

The lyrics usually get finalized first or early because they establish the foundation of the song.

After that there’s a lot of experimentation. I work alone, so there’s a lot of trial and error while creating and arranging the music that I have to listen with a critical ear a thousand times to make sure it’s the best I can make / mix it.

For example, I might think a cello part would work well in a section. I’ll try it and realize it’s too much, or it doesn’t support the pacing of the final chorus. So I adjust the arrangement, remove bars, or reshape sections until the flow feels right.

Eventually there comes a point where I just know the song is finished. After listening repeatedly, if nothing stands out as needing adjustment, that’s when I know it’s done.

Where Technology Meets Songwriting

I’m very open about using emerging creative tools as part of my process.

The foundation of the music as I earlier mentioned are still very traditional.

From there I use technology as a creative instrument to help me build the song and arrangement I want. It allows me to experiment with instrumentation and textures that would normally require multiple musicians as I explained in the previous question.

For example, I might add elements like:

cello
Moog synthesizer
layered harmonies
call-and-response vocal lines
overlapping vocal melodies

I especially enjoy experimenting with harmonies and layered vocals, sometimes almost like in opera where different lyrical lines weave together but still complement the melody. A counterpoint.

A good example of this kind of layering happens toward the end of “Carried by Fate” and throughout “At the Edge of the Fire“.

UPDATE: One I did recently as an almost opus LOL Is “Not The Enemy” which are two of my singers are singing different parts at the end but they go together melodically…again like an opera.

The Decisions That Are Always Mine

Even though technology helps with the production, the core decisions always come from me.

Those include:

Sometimes the initial riff or melody line
The theme of the song
The final lyrics
The arrangement
Instrument choices and additional textures
The EQ and mixing of each stem
The final mix

Technology can assist with execution, but the creative direction remains human.

Creating Hundreds of Songs…then music videos

The first year of this project was largely a learning period. I debate going back and unlisting some of the earlier songs that no longer represent the music I’m making now but I’m still deciding on that.

UPDATE: 2026-03-23 I HAVE ‘unlisted’ many of my older songs that I felt didn’t represent me and my current stage of Into The Ether. The ones I want to live ‘somewhere’ I’m going to put in my ‘Vault’ page here on my website.

I spent a lot of time understanding what the technology could do and how it could help me create the songs I was hearing in my head.

Every time I finished a song that I loved, I immediately became excited to start building the music video for it. That cycle of song → video → sharing became incredibly motivating.

Anyone will get good at ‘anything’ if they are doing it for 4 – 6 hours per day for a year

Ultimately, the reason I keep creating so much is simple.

I love doing it.

After finishing my day job, evenings and spare time are usually spent working on music. It’s something I genuinely enjoy learning and growing in.

If there is a label for myself for it, I like thinking of myself as simply a music maker.

There’s a quote I heard in Willy Wonka (the original…the best one), that I learned was originally from a poem by Arthur O’Shaughnessy, that celebrates artists as the people who imagine and create new things.

“We are the music makers, and we are the dreamers of dreams”

What Creativity Means to Me

Self Expression I think is important to a healthy psyche. On another note, I don’t believe anyone creates something completely from nothing. Inspiration can come from a combination of every song we’ve heard, every story we’ve read or movie we watched. So self expression and creativity when making something is a mashup of experience.

Each person carries millions of influences, memories, and perspectives. When someone creates music or art, they’re combining all of that into something new.

Advice for Someone Who Wants to Start Making Music

The best advice I can give is simple:

Just start. As I said earlier, everyone will get better at anything if they have the commitment to do it everyday for a year.

Today there are incredible creative tools available to everyone. Much like how high-resolution camera phones helped more people learn photography, new music tools allow more people to make music that speaks to them, for themselves.

If you’re curious about making music, explore the tools that exist today and find the ones that work best for you.

The most important thing is simply creating. In whatever artform you choose. You don’t have to show anyone. Art for art’s sake should always be part of the motivation. Do your best to have no expectations.

Looking Ahead

The next step for the project will likely happen once the Into The Ether trademark is finalized.

At that point I plan to release my After Ashes EP, that I’ve already made available as a collectable CD, on streaming platforms like Spotify to help more listeners discover my music.

UPDATE 2026-03-23: I’m still waiting on TM but I think this is giving me more time to really think about this. Do I want a gatekeeper. with the Distrokid merger happening, will the ‘deal’ not be so great or worth it for people who share their work with their platform to distribute? So in the meantime, I’ve setup my own distribution of my music through my website. This is a direct connection between my work and the people who believe in it. No middle men. So I’ve setup and will continue to add too my online stores that includes: Digital Downloads | After Ashes EP (Own it on CD) | Merch Store

There’s always some hesitation when putting your work out into the world. The more people who hear it, the more criticism you may receive. So for sure it’s a test to gaining thicker skin and I’ve had my share of naysayers and “why are you doing this?” comments along the way. 😄 Doesn’t that just fuel the fire though…or at least it does for me….my rebellious nature and all.

My hope is that over time people, in regards to using technology in music, will focus less on how the music is made and more on how the music makes them feel. A good song….IS a good song <3