The Desired Effect

Tension & Tacos

Tuesday 20th December - Las Vegas, Nevada

A fortnight on the project soon passed and Christmas was just around the corner. Life had been nonstop for Poppy. She spent most of her time at the studio, grafting away, if she wasn't there she was hanging out with the guys or exploring the new city, too busy to worry about Christmas. She had regular FaceTime catch ups with Jaz, which punctuated her weeks. The pace of the project had decreased significantly despite getting off to a good start. Things were getting quite tense now the deadline for Christmas break was looming. Poppy always found it easy to see the big picture and never let things weigh her down too much. Brandon on the other hand was a massive stress ball.

Brandon was seemingly absorbing stress from those around him, he was becoming increasingly worried and only worked harder and harder. He was feeling the pressure and was becoming significantly sharper, and the others were starting to pick up on this. He would have a coffee in his hand constantly and he would insist on redoing things until they were perfect. On this occasion it was only him, Poppy and Jordan in the studio, working on getting the drum beat just right for what would likely be his first single.

"I don't think we're going to hit the deadline" Brandon sighed, slipping down in his chair, running a hand down his tired face.
"Don't panic Brandon, there's still time" Poppy offered, turning her chair to face him. Jordan was in the live room, practicing his beat a few more times.
"Not enough time!" He snarled, causing Poppy to worry, she knew he was feeling the pressure now, this wasn't the Brandon she had come to know. She knew he had a good heart, he wasn't himself when he was stressed and anxious.
"Worst case scenario, we have to do a couple of night sessions?" Poppy shrugged, not understanding Brandon's perfectionist mentality. Brandon didn't respond, he just sulked, staring intently through the window that looked into the live room.
"We'll have these drums nailed in the next hour, let's just see where we are at tomorrow lunch time. I'm happy to work overnight for the rest of the week if you need me" she added, spinning back to face the desk.
"Let's just keep going" Brandon insisted, eyes still fixed on Jordan through the glass.

Wednesday 21st December - Las Vegas, Nevada

24 hours had passed. The team had made progress but not enough to satisfy Brandon. He needed a single ready at least to be sent to the label before they break for Christmas. He was very tense and all of his attention was on getting the tracks sorted, Jake and Poppy even had to remind him to eat his lunch. They knew they were going to have to step up and do some overnight sessions, they were just waiting for Brandon to make the announcement. 

A little after 2pm he finally took the plunge. Everyone was starting to feel the pressure, eyes grey and lifeless.
"Guys, I hate to say this but there's no alternative" Brandon began, pacing the studio floor, hands on hips, "we're gonna have to do a few overnights for the next few nights. We need a single ready at the very least to please the label" he cracked his knuckles as he spoke, "I mean Poppy and I will be the only ones needed each night but you will be needed for bits but you lot won't need to be in all night. We'll sleep in the office" Brandon's attention drifted from the whole group to just Poppy seeing as she was the one that needed this information. "We'll do the usual 10am through to 6pm with everyone, then we'll have a couple hours break before we go from 8pm to midnight ish, if that's ok with you?" Brandon queried, realizing he hadn't discussed details with Poppy at all. She nodded enthusiastically, not wanting to disappoint the boss. Everyone nodded and they continued to plod on with the work.

There was a strange air about the studio after Brandon's announcement, it was icy and quiet. No one wanted to step on anyone's toes, particularly not Brandon's seeing as he was the boss. Everyone quietly got on with their jobs, the boys played their instruments with intent, focused faces with brows furrowed and tight lips. Poppy orchestrating it all from behind the mixing desk, with the occasional prompt from Brandon. 6 o'clock soon came around and Brandon piped up.
"Well, thanks for today guys. I think we just need to mix it tonight, we'll update you tomorrow" he announced, fiddling nervously with his notepad.
"You sure man, we can stay for a bit if you need?" Chris suggested with a kind smile.
"Nah, we'll be fine, thanks fella" Brandon insisted placing a grateful hand on his shoulder. "You lot just get off and rest up for tomorrow'"
"Ok, but make sure you two get some rest too" Jake added as Brandon rallied them out of the studio. Poppy waved and smiled as the boys bid her farewell in unison. She was shortly reunited by Brandon.
"Let's take a couple of hours break," he sighed, leaning against the door frame, facing Poppy with a reluctant face, his eyes tinged with tiredness. "I'll drive you to yours so you can pick up anything you need then we can go to mine, pick up some food and come back?" He suggested but he knew Poppy would oblige.
"Sure!" Poppy nodded before saving the work and enthusiastically jumping up to follow Brandon out of the studio. She silently wandered behind him, watching as he confidently locked the place up and headed out to his truck, tossing the keys effortlessly between his nimble hands.

His truck had a strange scent, a mixture of coffee and cologne, it was overwhelming and slightly intoxicating. As Brandon pulled out of the parking lot, Poppy flicked through his cassettes.
"You still have cassettes!" She declared mockingly.
"Yeah?" Brandon responded, oblivious to what her point was.
"Jheeze, do you watch video tapes too?" She teased as she picked out a U2 tape. Brandon let a glimpse of a smile escape.
"No!" He sassed, squinting through the sun, watching as Poppy's face beamed with youth and humour. "I'm just an old fashioned guy?" He shrugged, his eyes returning to focus on the road ahead.
"Hmm" Poppy hummed, holding the teasing there for now. She was just relieved to see him relax slightly.

The pair did as he had proposed. He pulled up outside Poppy's apartment while she picked a backpack and filled it with her essentials for the couple of days; some spare clothes, a toothbrush, her journal and eyeliner. No more than 5 minutes later she was back in the truck and they proceeded to his place. Poppy sat in the truck while he took his turn to grab a bag of his essentials, a toothbrush and a pillow. Then, the only thing left to do was grab some dinner, tacos from the best Mexican fast food joint in Vegas, according to Brandon. They ate it back in the office at the studio so they were ready for action.

Over the fortnight of working closely together the pair had created a dynamic that was effective and somewhat comfortable for both of them. They were bonding as they called it, the silences that would occasionally occur were no longer awkward and they no longer had to second guess one another. They were comfortable in each other's presence and could relax a little, knowing the others intentions were good.
"Come on then Pops let's get this thing done!" Brandon announced, pulling Poppy up by her hand. Poppy willingly followed Brandon into the studio for the final time that day. They were on the brink of cracking it.
"It's definitely getting there!" Poppy beamed as they listened intently to the track once more before getting back to work.
"Yeah, I think the lead guitar should be panned harder" Brandon thought aloud, rubbing his hand along his jaw, as if stroking an imaginary beard.
"Hmm, let's see," Poppy hummed as she tapped about with the audio, "I also think we should bring it forward a bit" she added, concentrating fully on the screen. With a confident tap of the cursor the new slightly modified version began to blare through the speakers. Poppy closed her eyes to focus entirely on the sound. She felt Brandon's eyes burn but she ignored it and focused on what she was hearing.
"Yes!" Brandon cheered, causing Poppy to rip her eyes back open instantly out of surprise. "That's so much better!" He declared, Poppy gazed in wonder as the mans face lit up, his eyes almost sparkling with relief.
"I think then we add a little more reverb to the backing vocals and bring yours forward a little too" Poppy continued, knowing her little trick for bringing the best out of classic sounding vocals, she dragged around the audio clips before tapping the cursor once more. She stared straight through to the live room as she listened. She was startled when she felt Brandon's arms enthusiastically loop around her shoulders. Before she could pull away, he hugged her tightly against him.
"You are an actual star!" He beamed, causing Poppy to giggle nervously. She never responded well to physical touch. "You make me sound like a classic oldie!" He added as he removed himself and slumped, now satisfied, into his chair.
"Well, that's all you mister, you are a classic oldie" Poppy responded, aware of the honesty in her words, she distracted herself by saving and exporting the finished track. Brandon continued as if he hadn't heard the compliment and instead fiddled with his notepad. "You look exhausted Bran" Poppy stated, changing the topic to something more comfortable.
"I am, I'm so glad we can just kip here" he responded, rubbing a hand down his weary face.
"Yeah, why don't you hit it, I can just get this squared away by myself?" Poppy suggested, turning in the spinny chair momentarily to scan over the visibly exhausted man.
"Nah it's ok, I'll keep you company, we're a team" he chuckled, moving over to the sofa just behind Poppy.
"You know you are much sweeter than I thought you would be" Poppy admitted before finishing her task. Brandon giggled his quirky giggle, glad that Poppy wasn't facing him otherwise he thought he would have died of embarrassment.

"And you're much more competent and skilled than I thought you would be. I wish I was as smart as you at your age!" he added, his voice beginning to grow weaker with each word.