A while ago, my friend Jan from Germany collaborated with me on a scratch track, offering his amazing guitar skills. The mp3 I loaded to this blog was only a shortened version of his recording, so I posted the full-length one in its place today. I am reposting the track here so it gets a little bit of time at the top of the list as well. Enjoy!
Showing posts with label Scratch Recording. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Scratch Recording. Show all posts
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
International Collaboration
Jan Fisher, a distant relative and one of the most faithful Redline Project blog readers, recently asked me to send him the audio files to a scratch recording. Living in Germany, Jan is an accomplished guitarist and recordist, and I have been eager to hear the results of his musical input.
His guitar textures and lines are nothing short of brilliant. What I heard in my head as a major progression (I, IV, I, IV for all you theory geeks), he interpreted as a solid minor chord (vi). I am invigorated by this choice as it brought a new darkness and mystique to the original sound. Jan layered guitar lines and built the texture slowly from a distant hum to an energetic burn. Nice, nice, nice!
In short, I am thrilled to share a wavelength and I hope this is the first of many trans-Atlantic collaborations with this fine musician. This is an invitation to any and all readers: I am thrilled to paint the canvas with anyone who wants to give it a swing. Contact me if you want to get something going.
His guitar textures and lines are nothing short of brilliant. What I heard in my head as a major progression (I, IV, I, IV for all you theory geeks), he interpreted as a solid minor chord (vi). I am invigorated by this choice as it brought a new darkness and mystique to the original sound. Jan layered guitar lines and built the texture slowly from a distant hum to an energetic burn. Nice, nice, nice!
In short, I am thrilled to share a wavelength and I hope this is the first of many trans-Atlantic collaborations with this fine musician. This is an invitation to any and all readers: I am thrilled to paint the canvas with anyone who wants to give it a swing. Contact me if you want to get something going.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Circling Back
In many ways, tonight's work on the Redline Project launches a new phase of the process. Instead of working on new musical ideas, I reopened one of the first songs I wrote for the album and got busy analyzing the delightful and wretched elements of its scratch recording.
There were many tracks, especially those performed in MIDI, that are keepable with a bit of tweaking. It is encouraging not to have to scrap everything in the initial recording, which in turn gives me great hope about the editing of other works in progress.
This success holds hands with discouragement though; this song alone could soak up two solid weeks worth of recording and editing time, and those hours will be difficult to find. I am certain this album will be produced and released by the deadline, but on nights like this I wonder how it is all going to come together.
There were many tracks, especially those performed in MIDI, that are keepable with a bit of tweaking. It is encouraging not to have to scrap everything in the initial recording, which in turn gives me great hope about the editing of other works in progress.
This success holds hands with discouragement though; this song alone could soak up two solid weeks worth of recording and editing time, and those hours will be difficult to find. I am certain this album will be produced and released by the deadline, but on nights like this I wonder how it is all going to come together.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Not Going to Believe This
Tuesday night is scheduled for open shop at Communicycle, the bicycle co-op I helped to establish. We have been meeting with the youth for some basketball while the Communicycle volunteers scramble to get the shop back in order after a recent robbery. Ian, one of the program's leaders, has been striking up conversations in past weeks with Edgar, a middle school student who among other hobbies is training as a boxer.
Ian has a deep love for music, and he was thrilled to discover that Edgar and a few of his buddies have a talent with rapping. The group approached me tonight at Ian's urging, looking for some original beats to which they could find a flow.
A quick (and perhaps stunning) admission: I have always loved the sound of rap, though I know nothing about it whatsoever. But hey... the Redline Project is composed almost exclusively of project tasks that are completely outside of my knowledge base; who am I to turn down a unique opportunity to collaborate with Edgar, Ian, and others from the Chamblee area?
So here it is, in all its glory, with all its faults. my first loop ever intended to be used in rap music. Does it make anyone besides me want to dance?
Ian has a deep love for music, and he was thrilled to discover that Edgar and a few of his buddies have a talent with rapping. The group approached me tonight at Ian's urging, looking for some original beats to which they could find a flow.
A quick (and perhaps stunning) admission: I have always loved the sound of rap, though I know nothing about it whatsoever. But hey... the Redline Project is composed almost exclusively of project tasks that are completely outside of my knowledge base; who am I to turn down a unique opportunity to collaborate with Edgar, Ian, and others from the Chamblee area?
So here it is, in all its glory, with all its faults. my first loop ever intended to be used in rap music. Does it make anyone besides me want to dance?
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Recording the Rain
Precipitation meandered through metro Atlanta today as it should this time of year. The atmosphere was mostly a haze of clouds and mist punctuated by brief, dramatic startles of cracking thunder and the incessant pounding of voluminous rain. For a handful of magnificent minutes, spiders of lightning fragmented the sky into sharp shards as plinks of hail nipped away at shingles and shutters.
Sprawled on the carpet with mostly shut eyelids, the sounds of the storm whispered calmness to my inmost parts. The symphony of the moment was nothing shy of perfection; how thrilled I was to have the ability to capture the audio and remember the event.
I strung a cable from my mixer to a condenser microphone pressed against the open windowsill, clicked a few buttons in Logic, and let the tape roll.
The storm track carpets some sparse synth music in the scratch recording below. The looped music is on the ambient side, perhaps even a touch dental. If you listen carefully, you may be able to pick out the high-pitched taps of hail at certain points.
Sprawled on the carpet with mostly shut eyelids, the sounds of the storm whispered calmness to my inmost parts. The symphony of the moment was nothing shy of perfection; how thrilled I was to have the ability to capture the audio and remember the event.
I strung a cable from my mixer to a condenser microphone pressed against the open windowsill, clicked a few buttons in Logic, and let the tape roll.
The storm track carpets some sparse synth music in the scratch recording below. The looped music is on the ambient side, perhaps even a touch dental. If you listen carefully, you may be able to pick out the high-pitched taps of hail at certain points.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Silver Bullet
I will skip the story of how our neighborhood postal worker did not bother to ring my bell yesterday. I won't mention that I was home the entire time. I'll leave out the details about having to wait nearly an hour at our dysfunctional post office just to pick up the package he should have handed to me in all of five seconds. Instead of telling the world what a zoo this government institution is and what a strong resemblance its excuses for employees have to molasses, I will take the high road and bite my tongue.
The diamond in all this rough is more of a silver bullet. I am pleased to announce that as of four o'clock this afternoon, the Celemony Melodyne Editor software has dug its digital footprint into my iMac's hard disk. A longer review is in order and will be posted soon. At a glance, Melodyne is a powerful, intuitive engine that transforms impotent, scrawny vocals into solid sound perched squarely on tonal centers. Unlike other plug-ins like Autotune, Melodyne maintains a much more natural sound. I have the giggles over this.
In the quick scratch recording below, you will here two instances of the same recording. There are no effects applied other than the Melodyne Editor, and it is only utilized in the second half. The latter portion was adjusted in a matter of minutes with a handful of mouse clicks.
I spent most of the evening tweaking a melody for the actual Redline Project recording, and for once I actually like how my (altered) voice sounds. Though I am tempted to post that song here, it is going to stay in the vault until the final project is released.
The diamond in all this rough is more of a silver bullet. I am pleased to announce that as of four o'clock this afternoon, the Celemony Melodyne Editor software has dug its digital footprint into my iMac's hard disk. A longer review is in order and will be posted soon. At a glance, Melodyne is a powerful, intuitive engine that transforms impotent, scrawny vocals into solid sound perched squarely on tonal centers. Unlike other plug-ins like Autotune, Melodyne maintains a much more natural sound. I have the giggles over this.
In the quick scratch recording below, you will here two instances of the same recording. There are no effects applied other than the Melodyne Editor, and it is only utilized in the second half. The latter portion was adjusted in a matter of minutes with a handful of mouse clicks.
I spent most of the evening tweaking a melody for the actual Redline Project recording, and for once I actually like how my (altered) voice sounds. Though I am tempted to post that song here, it is going to stay in the vault until the final project is released.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Molton Blobs of Glorious Bliss
No later than 48 hours after discovering the Logic's supposedly blessed Pitch Correction plug-in, I had to acknowledge a dissatisfaction with its shortcomings. Another 24 past before I tripped over another fine discovery, this time on YouTube.
Like a sip of merlot after a month of grape juice, Celemony's Melodyne plug-in is a dynamic analog workstation that makes patty-cake out of even the most daunting of vocal editing tasks. How do I know? They offer a free test drive of the product, available for download from their website.
Though users of this demo are unable to save their edits, it allows a taste of all functions, including the amazing pitch shifter. This technology analyzes any inputted track, slices it up, and places a visual representation of the audio onto a piano-based grid. The resulting red and yellow daubs of sound, nicknamed 'blobs' by Celemony, may be individually slid onto the right pitch, or any other pitch for that matter, yielding on-key audio with virtually unprocessed sound.
So the company claims anyway; I had to see the magic for myself. I loaded the 75 megabytes onto my hard drive and popped in the chorus from a recent recording - one that I know has blatant pitch issues. About thirty mouse clicks later, my jaw hit the desk. There were vocals coming through the headphones that sounded a lot like my voice, only each note it sang was strong and perfectly perched on the notes of the song's key. Marvelous.
The demo of Melodyne presents a strong case for its hefty purchase price of $299. I wish today's test run would save so the readers of this blog could experience the miracle of Melodyne for themselves. For now, you can either take my word for it, or you can visit YouTube and type in Melodyne for a sample.
I only spent $80 for a used copy of Logic Express (yes, it is original software with serial numbers and install discs), so nearly $300 for a vocal editor workstation sends a few shivers down my cheap spine. As meaningful lyrics begin to emerge from the thin end of my pencil, I shudder increasingly at the thought of ravaging these songs with the destructive weapon of my sad little voice. A big purchase like Melodyne sure is tempting; I will have to think it over.
What you will hear below developed out of my excitement over the Melodyne plug-in, though it is completely raw, unedited vocals, as I am sure will be obvious as you listen through. The music is a simple, catchy groove and an extensive amount of nonsense vocalizing. The scratch recording also shows my first attempt at laying down any sort of live percussion: a Remo version of a djembe drum makes a cameo on this frigid February evening.
Like a sip of merlot after a month of grape juice, Celemony's Melodyne plug-in is a dynamic analog workstation that makes patty-cake out of even the most daunting of vocal editing tasks. How do I know? They offer a free test drive of the product, available for download from their website.
Though users of this demo are unable to save their edits, it allows a taste of all functions, including the amazing pitch shifter. This technology analyzes any inputted track, slices it up, and places a visual representation of the audio onto a piano-based grid. The resulting red and yellow daubs of sound, nicknamed 'blobs' by Celemony, may be individually slid onto the right pitch, or any other pitch for that matter, yielding on-key audio with virtually unprocessed sound.
So the company claims anyway; I had to see the magic for myself. I loaded the 75 megabytes onto my hard drive and popped in the chorus from a recent recording - one that I know has blatant pitch issues. About thirty mouse clicks later, my jaw hit the desk. There were vocals coming through the headphones that sounded a lot like my voice, only each note it sang was strong and perfectly perched on the notes of the song's key. Marvelous.
The demo of Melodyne presents a strong case for its hefty purchase price of $299. I wish today's test run would save so the readers of this blog could experience the miracle of Melodyne for themselves. For now, you can either take my word for it, or you can visit YouTube and type in Melodyne for a sample.
I only spent $80 for a used copy of Logic Express (yes, it is original software with serial numbers and install discs), so nearly $300 for a vocal editor workstation sends a few shivers down my cheap spine. As meaningful lyrics begin to emerge from the thin end of my pencil, I shudder increasingly at the thought of ravaging these songs with the destructive weapon of my sad little voice. A big purchase like Melodyne sure is tempting; I will have to think it over.
What you will hear below developed out of my excitement over the Melodyne plug-in, though it is completely raw, unedited vocals, as I am sure will be obvious as you listen through. The music is a simple, catchy groove and an extensive amount of nonsense vocalizing. The scratch recording also shows my first attempt at laying down any sort of live percussion: a Remo version of a djembe drum makes a cameo on this frigid February evening.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Sweetie Pie Day
I am not big on most holidays. My wife generally is, but neither one of us are pinned under the commercial spell of Valentine's Day. We skip the gifts/flowers/chocolates ordeal and instead opt to spend the day together doing something fun and maybe out of the ordinary.
Today we toured the Cyclorama, one of the world's largest paintings that depicts the events of the Civil War's Atlanta Campaign. A painting in the round that has the same square yardage as a football field, this piece took nine artists two years to produce. Its weight is around 10,000 pounds with a circumference of 358 feet.
This is all irrelevant to the point of this blog, except that this epic work dwarfs my tiny recording project and therefore gives me much hope. Surely if this group of ambitious creatives could render a milestone such as this cycloramic painting, so can I accomplish the goals of the Redline Project.
That's all for now. The Day of the Sweetie Pie is not yet over, and solo creative project blogs are not the most conducive to romance. So off I go.
I leave you with a minute's worth of groove I threw together yesterday. I intend it to become the foundation for some lyrics I wrote yesterday as well. Wishing everyone the warmest of sentiments on your candy message hearts.
Today we toured the Cyclorama, one of the world's largest paintings that depicts the events of the Civil War's Atlanta Campaign. A painting in the round that has the same square yardage as a football field, this piece took nine artists two years to produce. Its weight is around 10,000 pounds with a circumference of 358 feet.
This is all irrelevant to the point of this blog, except that this epic work dwarfs my tiny recording project and therefore gives me much hope. Surely if this group of ambitious creatives could render a milestone such as this cycloramic painting, so can I accomplish the goals of the Redline Project.
That's all for now. The Day of the Sweetie Pie is not yet over, and solo creative project blogs are not the most conducive to romance. So off I go.
I leave you with a minute's worth of groove I threw together yesterday. I intend it to become the foundation for some lyrics I wrote yesterday as well. Wishing everyone the warmest of sentiments on your candy message hearts.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Pitch Correction
A second post is in order, however brief, to illustrate today's real post below about the pitch correction feature.
What you will hear in the scratch recording below is a 45 minute pass at the concept, recorded in a noisy room on a handheld microphone without any pop filter. Remember, scratch recordings are not meant to be anything professional. This one is particularly rough, but it illustrates the power of Logic's features.
The particularly keen will notice that this recording appears in the right column list as 'Redline 015,' with 'Redline 013' immediately preceding it. That is because 'Redline_014' is a song in progress that may just make it onto the final project. It's under tight wraps, of course.
Everything you will hear by clicking below is my voice plus pitch correction with a touch of reverb. That's it.
What you will hear in the scratch recording below is a 45 minute pass at the concept, recorded in a noisy room on a handheld microphone without any pop filter. Remember, scratch recordings are not meant to be anything professional. This one is particularly rough, but it illustrates the power of Logic's features.
The particularly keen will notice that this recording appears in the right column list as 'Redline 015,' with 'Redline 013' immediately preceding it. That is because 'Redline_014' is a song in progress that may just make it onto the final project. It's under tight wraps, of course.
Everything you will hear by clicking below is my voice plus pitch correction with a touch of reverb. That's it.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Royal Flush
Here's a quick post to accompany an equally brief audio experiment. A further exploration in the concept of found sound, today's scratch recording features a variety of morning tones not commonly associated with music.
The recording commences with a brief sustained tone for each sample, and then the madness ensues.
In addition to digging further into the found sound concept, the recording available below represents my first sampling effort in Logic Express.
The basic plot of sampling:
1) Collect a variety of sound samples. In this case, all samples are new recordings, but sampling can utilize pre-recorded material as well.
2) Assign the samples to keys on a midi instrument. I routed these eight sound bytes to eight notes on my M-Audio Keyrig 49.
3) Play just as you would any keyboard instrument like a midi piano or drum set.
So simple, yet so brilliant. Logic Express, you continue to astound me with your seemingly endless capabilities.
Without further preface, I am serving up an aural slice of my latrine and kitchen: a shaver, a nose-hair trimmer, a faucet, a toaster timer and bell, and yes, the porcelain throne all resonate in symphony for your listening pleasure.
I trust that you will find the result fascinating and perhaps a touch grotesque. Bon Appetit!
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Grounded
The past couple of days have given me a sense of growing hope that the Redline Project is starting to find a coherent direction for its recorded product. I am a person who emotes deeply and wrestles regularly with life's answerless questions, often to no avail. It is fitting that the music on the final recording will reflect these personality facets, and I am excited that they are starting to reveal themselves even in these early scratch recordings.
The feedback I have received regarding 'Slips Away' and 'Sing Silently' has been overwhelmingly positive. If you did take the time to write, please accept my sincere thanks. This project, music listeners, is for you. The final recording must speak to its audience, or it will cease to have one.
As encouraging as the past week's worth of songwriting, recording, and blogging all have been, I must confess that it all has me feeling a little heavy, and I am imagining that my readers are feeling the same. So permit me today to lighten it up a bit with a quick anecdote from the trenches of Studio Redline and a scratch recording of some electronica experimentation.
Early last month, I waxed melancholic about the endless frustrations of online message boards. Though the loathing generally continues, I am pleased to inform that I found an actual solution to one of the persisting problems plaguing my recording setup.
Here's how it all went down:
Each time I plug up my acoustic-electric Guild F4-CE or the Guild Starfire electric guitar on loan from a friend, I experience a horrid melange of buzzes, pops, static, and clown nose honks. After delving through stacks of digital drivel, I happen on a post with an intriguing do-it-yourself fix. The poster's idea smacked of the home repairs I have accomplished with duct tape in one hand and a caulk gun in the other. Perfect; worth a shot.
Simply strip a bit of plastic off the top and bottom of a long wire. Wrap one end around the exposed metal where the guitar cord meets the mixer and run the other down to the chassis of the computer. Buzzing problem solved.
Initially false. The cacophony continues. But I make an important observation: when I unwind the wire from the base of my desktop tower, the buzzing disappears. Why? Because I am touching the exposed copper threads. Apparently I am a grounded individual.
Fingers on wire equals no crazy hum or nightmare buzz. But I need both hands to play either guitar. I twirl my scraggly soul patch as I ponder my options.
Eureka! One simple maneuver later, I am adding acoustic and electric guitar tracks to the evening's musical experiment. Thank you, random message board poster. You have made my night.
So as you listen to today's scratch recording, you can thank my left gluteal muscle for the noise-free guitar lines. Yes, that's correct: I stuck that wire right down my pants and sat on it.
Mission accomplished.
The feedback I have received regarding 'Slips Away' and 'Sing Silently' has been overwhelmingly positive. If you did take the time to write, please accept my sincere thanks. This project, music listeners, is for you. The final recording must speak to its audience, or it will cease to have one.
As encouraging as the past week's worth of songwriting, recording, and blogging all have been, I must confess that it all has me feeling a little heavy, and I am imagining that my readers are feeling the same. So permit me today to lighten it up a bit with a quick anecdote from the trenches of Studio Redline and a scratch recording of some electronica experimentation.
Early last month, I waxed melancholic about the endless frustrations of online message boards. Though the loathing generally continues, I am pleased to inform that I found an actual solution to one of the persisting problems plaguing my recording setup.
Here's how it all went down:
Each time I plug up my acoustic-electric Guild F4-CE or the Guild Starfire electric guitar on loan from a friend, I experience a horrid melange of buzzes, pops, static, and clown nose honks. After delving through stacks of digital drivel, I happen on a post with an intriguing do-it-yourself fix. The poster's idea smacked of the home repairs I have accomplished with duct tape in one hand and a caulk gun in the other. Perfect; worth a shot.
Simply strip a bit of plastic off the top and bottom of a long wire. Wrap one end around the exposed metal where the guitar cord meets the mixer and run the other down to the chassis of the computer. Buzzing problem solved.
Initially false. The cacophony continues. But I make an important observation: when I unwind the wire from the base of my desktop tower, the buzzing disappears. Why? Because I am touching the exposed copper threads. Apparently I am a grounded individual.
Fingers on wire equals no crazy hum or nightmare buzz. But I need both hands to play either guitar. I twirl my scraggly soul patch as I ponder my options.
Eureka! One simple maneuver later, I am adding acoustic and electric guitar tracks to the evening's musical experiment. Thank you, random message board poster. You have made my night.
So as you listen to today's scratch recording, you can thank my left gluteal muscle for the noise-free guitar lines. Yes, that's correct: I stuck that wire right down my pants and sat on it.
Mission accomplished.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
The Shadows in the Room
It was one of those moments when something came together so strong, so powerful, so unexpected. I was thrown off balance.
Late last night I was attempting to add a second vocal track to a scratch recording of a song I jotted while up in the mountains this past weekend. If you read yesterday's post, and I encourage you to do so, you know that the lyrics I pieced together find their genesis in a harsh story that is all too true.
Midnight. Singing a harmony line into the mic, I forget where I am and lose myself in the truth behind the song. Glass shatters, screams, violence. The bandit snatches more from a little girl than a few valued possessions; he grabs her slumber, nabs her sense of peace and security. Through eyes that refuse to blink, she gapes at the shards on the floor, sharp fragments of life that was whole just moments ago. In time, the gripping panic will fade, leaving in its wake a dull nag that will not allow much needed sleep to come for months and months. Fear remains.
As I open my mouth to sing, I sense the shadows in my basement moving around me, whispering the evils of the world in silent groans. I tremble. A lone tear departs the corner of my eye, encouraging a flood of others to drip to the floor. I am sobbing, weeping. And the recording is lost.
Or is it? You decide.
What you will hear below is a solid distance from perfect, but it captures the essence of the song's purpose. I hope it will remind you that even in life's most fragile moments, we can find a shred of courage as we sing 'la la la' to the shadows in the room.
My friends Ruthie and Ian work with 30 kids in an adjacent community. They keep a blog telling marvelous stories of justice and mercy. If you like what you are reading here, you will enjoy visiting Refugee Arts.
Late last night I was attempting to add a second vocal track to a scratch recording of a song I jotted while up in the mountains this past weekend. If you read yesterday's post, and I encourage you to do so, you know that the lyrics I pieced together find their genesis in a harsh story that is all too true.
Midnight. Singing a harmony line into the mic, I forget where I am and lose myself in the truth behind the song. Glass shatters, screams, violence. The bandit snatches more from a little girl than a few valued possessions; he grabs her slumber, nabs her sense of peace and security. Through eyes that refuse to blink, she gapes at the shards on the floor, sharp fragments of life that was whole just moments ago. In time, the gripping panic will fade, leaving in its wake a dull nag that will not allow much needed sleep to come for months and months. Fear remains.
As I open my mouth to sing, I sense the shadows in my basement moving around me, whispering the evils of the world in silent groans. I tremble. A lone tear departs the corner of my eye, encouraging a flood of others to drip to the floor. I am sobbing, weeping. And the recording is lost.
Or is it? You decide.
What you will hear below is a solid distance from perfect, but it captures the essence of the song's purpose. I hope it will remind you that even in life's most fragile moments, we can find a shred of courage as we sing 'la la la' to the shadows in the room.
My friends Ruthie and Ian work with 30 kids in an adjacent community. They keep a blog telling marvelous stories of justice and mercy. If you like what you are reading here, you will enjoy visiting Refugee Arts.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Ring Ring Ring
Life is structured to take us away from anything important. Work shifts us from our families, scheduled obligations keep us from hiking trail, and our handheld devices beep and squeak until we are up to our ears in voicemails.
What began as song lyrics a few hours ago mostly ended up in the digital recycle bin. The sole salvage: a two-line bridge. Hopefully you will find it as catchy and addictive as I do.
The music posted below is as much a public service announcement as it is a scratch recording.
When your thumbs are purple from your Blackberry and you have killed more than a few minutes checking the latest twitches (or whatever they are callled), take a moment to reflect on the good food you ate for supper, the blankets that will help you forget the January chills as you sleep tonight, and the rest that will be yours when you wake tomorrow. Even when life is not so good, it is so good.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
From Out of Somewhere
To say that something came out of nowhere is an existential impossibility. I do not make any claims to be a philosopher, but I am certain that all things germinate from other things. Tree to seed to sapling, water to cloud to rain, human giving birth to human. That's the way it goes.
Consider the sobering words from the book of Ecclesiastes (1:9)
What has been will be again,
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun.
If you have been following along, you are aware that songwriting daunts me. As I sat down yesterday evening for another wrestling match with the empty page, I remembered a conversation with an old friend and fine musician, Jake Armerding.
He composed a brilliant song titled Color You In that uses the names of various crayon shades to paint a picture (as it were) portraying a young, vibrant love. It is one of those tracks that makes you mash the repeat button twice so you can listen carefully 31 times. Right around repeat number 24 I knew I had Jake pegged. I could rattle off the entire story of a delicious youthful romance set in the backdrops of quaint New England townships.
No more than a week later, I inquired about the deeper meanings behind the song, to verify that my interpretation was on the money. "What did you mean by the words of this song?" I took the nonchalant angle. He thought about it, "I just wanted to do something with the colors... that's what I came up with."
Like a once-inflated piece of grape Bazooka, all the meaning I superimposed onto the track splattered to the floor with an alomst-audible 'pop.'
So there the truth was. His idea did come from somewhere, but a much simpler 'somewhere' than I had imagined.
I contemplated this as the cursor dared me yet again to type. So I thumbed my nose at the blinking demon, conjured up a relatively simple concept, and got to work. (I think I deserve some bonus points too for squeezing the word 'redline' into a verse.) Enjoy this first official attempt at lyric writing and the scratch recording that follows.
If you want to check out Jake Armerding's music, follow this link:
www.jakearmerding.com
Can you figure out the idea behind my first song? (Don't overthink it.)
________________________
SLIPS AWAY
v1
Footbridge over river
Sidewalk into square
Down to the basement diner
Thought you were waiting there
v2
Found a wallet in the back booth
With a card that held your sign
The only thing to do was chase after you
Had a time and a telephone line
v3
Red line to the garden
Green line to the shore
Blue line to the airport
Take the line to the end of the line
Chorus
Jamaica Plain is the name of the game
That you play with your fierce green open eyes
Say it’s luck of the draw that calls off the war
It slips away, it all slips away.
Consider the sobering words from the book of Ecclesiastes (1:9)
What has been will be again,
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun.
If you have been following along, you are aware that songwriting daunts me. As I sat down yesterday evening for another wrestling match with the empty page, I remembered a conversation with an old friend and fine musician, Jake Armerding.
He composed a brilliant song titled Color You In that uses the names of various crayon shades to paint a picture (as it were) portraying a young, vibrant love. It is one of those tracks that makes you mash the repeat button twice so you can listen carefully 31 times. Right around repeat number 24 I knew I had Jake pegged. I could rattle off the entire story of a delicious youthful romance set in the backdrops of quaint New England townships.
No more than a week later, I inquired about the deeper meanings behind the song, to verify that my interpretation was on the money. "What did you mean by the words of this song?" I took the nonchalant angle. He thought about it, "I just wanted to do something with the colors... that's what I came up with."
Like a once-inflated piece of grape Bazooka, all the meaning I superimposed onto the track splattered to the floor with an alomst-audible 'pop.'
So there the truth was. His idea did come from somewhere, but a much simpler 'somewhere' than I had imagined.
I contemplated this as the cursor dared me yet again to type. So I thumbed my nose at the blinking demon, conjured up a relatively simple concept, and got to work. (I think I deserve some bonus points too for squeezing the word 'redline' into a verse.) Enjoy this first official attempt at lyric writing and the scratch recording that follows.
If you want to check out Jake Armerding's music, follow this link:
www.jakearmerding.com
Can you figure out the idea behind my first song? (Don't overthink it.)
________________________
SLIPS AWAY
v1
Footbridge over river
Sidewalk into square
Down to the basement diner
Thought you were waiting there
v2
Found a wallet in the back booth
With a card that held your sign
The only thing to do was chase after you
Had a time and a telephone line
v3
Red line to the garden
Green line to the shore
Blue line to the airport
Take the line to the end of the line
Chorus
Jamaica Plain is the name of the game
That you play with your fierce green open eyes
Say it’s luck of the draw that calls off the war
It slips away, it all slips away.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Editing Experiment
This is the first time I have posted twice in the course of a day. I could not bear the thought of adding a scratch recording or any serious commentary to my twisted, tongue-in-cheek attempt at songwriting humor (posted below if you have the stomach for it).
When you listen to the scratch recording attached to this post, you will probably be skeptical to learn that there were six hours between the first note recorded and the final bounce. Your surprise is fitting because the audio is nothing more than a brief guitar ditty that lasts a mere 98 seconds.
The reason for my excitement is because this recording is heavily edited with tools in Logic Express that 24 hours ago I did not know existed. Specifically, this minute or so of music is chock full of cross fades, punches, and pitch adjustments.
Numerous problems remain, and the overall sound is a far cry from professional, but this track represents the slow, steady progress that is needed if the Redline Project is going to be realized in a year's time.
Without prolonging the wait, here is scratch recording number 6.
When you listen to the scratch recording attached to this post, you will probably be skeptical to learn that there were six hours between the first note recorded and the final bounce. Your surprise is fitting because the audio is nothing more than a brief guitar ditty that lasts a mere 98 seconds.
The reason for my excitement is because this recording is heavily edited with tools in Logic Express that 24 hours ago I did not know existed. Specifically, this minute or so of music is chock full of cross fades, punches, and pitch adjustments.
Numerous problems remain, and the overall sound is a far cry from professional, but this track represents the slow, steady progress that is needed if the Redline Project is going to be realized in a year's time.
Without prolonging the wait, here is scratch recording number 6.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Thumping in the Rain
Sunday afternoons offer the idyllic backdrop for snoozes, and the gray blanket of rain sputtering from Atlanta's cloudy heavens sings a lullaby. But the studio wafts the aroma of that new keyboard smell in my direction, and it is going to win the day.
What might be the perfect genre of music to compose and record on this bleak January weekend? When all I want to do is drift off to dreamland, there are no sounds I crave more than the thump and bump of a solid club track.
Not even remotely true. The quiet storm outside most likely finds me huddled under a blanket cradling a mug of green tea and spinning discs by the likes of Bill Evans, John Coltrane, Norah Jones, Amos Lee, Damien Rice... Bonus points if the tracks lull me into a light sleep.
I am an acoustic instrumentalist who has never touched a piece of digital gear. So why trance music today, or even at all? Among several other chotchkies in my closet of surprises, I am enamored by the sounds and textures of club music; so much in fact that when I made an initial move towards a musical renaissance six months ago, I bought myself two second-hand turntables, a mixer, and a pile of used vinyl. Visions of Sugar Plum Fairies clad in Dolce Gabanna moonwalked through my head as I contemplated a switcheroo from the common man to DJ Redline.
Didn't work. I was pretty terrible. The remnants of that misadventure sat in a tangle of wires on the living room floor until three days ago when a pimply high school junior handed me $210 for the lot.
There is a confession in all of this: I love dance music and I love to dance, though I know virtually nothing about either one. You are invited to have a gander at my first experiment with creating this sort of sound. This is my second scratch recording to emerge from the Logic Express engine, and I am pleased to report that the software did not stump me for hours on end as it did the first time.
Here are some specs:
Total Composing/Recording Time: 2 Hours
Software: Logic Express 8
Midi Input: M-Audio KeyRig 49
Audio Interface: Alesis MultiMix12 Firewire
Microphone: Audio Technica AT4033a
Where's Waldo?
Though it is not instantly obvious, I actually sing in this scratch recording. Can you pick it out the textures?
What might be the perfect genre of music to compose and record on this bleak January weekend? When all I want to do is drift off to dreamland, there are no sounds I crave more than the thump and bump of a solid club track.
Not even remotely true. The quiet storm outside most likely finds me huddled under a blanket cradling a mug of green tea and spinning discs by the likes of Bill Evans, John Coltrane, Norah Jones, Amos Lee, Damien Rice... Bonus points if the tracks lull me into a light sleep.
I am an acoustic instrumentalist who has never touched a piece of digital gear. So why trance music today, or even at all? Among several other chotchkies in my closet of surprises, I am enamored by the sounds and textures of club music; so much in fact that when I made an initial move towards a musical renaissance six months ago, I bought myself two second-hand turntables, a mixer, and a pile of used vinyl. Visions of Sugar Plum Fairies clad in Dolce Gabanna moonwalked through my head as I contemplated a switcheroo from the common man to DJ Redline.
Didn't work. I was pretty terrible. The remnants of that misadventure sat in a tangle of wires on the living room floor until three days ago when a pimply high school junior handed me $210 for the lot.
There is a confession in all of this: I love dance music and I love to dance, though I know virtually nothing about either one. You are invited to have a gander at my first experiment with creating this sort of sound. This is my second scratch recording to emerge from the Logic Express engine, and I am pleased to report that the software did not stump me for hours on end as it did the first time.
Here are some specs:
Total Composing/Recording Time: 2 Hours
Software: Logic Express 8
Midi Input: M-Audio KeyRig 49
Audio Interface: Alesis MultiMix12 Firewire
Microphone: Audio Technica AT4033a
Where's Waldo?
Though it is not instantly obvious, I actually sing in this scratch recording. Can you pick it out the textures?
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Vocabulary
With two weeks under the belt and 50 remaining to achieve the goals of the Redline Project, a brief overview of my recently expanded vocabulary is in order.
Automation:
What I thought it was:
Setting the old percolator to boil the coffee beans at 7:30 AM.
What it is:
A mixing process that remembers the sliding motion of the faders and repeats the movements on playback. (I used an automation function to make a fade-out at the end of today's scratch recording.)
Latency:
What I thought it was:
The uncanny ability my wife has to be four minutes tardy to just about anything.
What it is:
A measure of time delay experienced in a system. (Strike a note on the keyboard and you hear it a split second later than you had hoped.)
Delay:
What I thought it was:
The symptomatic phenomenon a husband experiences when his wife suffers from chronic latency
What it is:
An effect that adds measured echo to a sound or set of sounds. (A little delay went a long way to spruce up the keyboard and mouse tracks in scratch recording #1)
DAW:
What I thought it was:
An expression of frustration, nicely accompanied by the pounding of fists on a desk or other nearby solid object.
What it is:
Stands for Digital Audio Workstation. (It's a fancy name for music software.)
USB Keyboard Purchased at a Local Pawn Shop:
What I thought it was:
A piece of equipment that is identical in every way to a unit with the same model number acquired elsewhere.
What it is:
A worthless hunk of doo that causes headaches and emotional trauma and accomplishes nothing of its intended purpose. (I am grateful that this particular Pawn Mart, sleazy as it may be, agreed to accept a return within 24 hours.)
USB Keyboard Purchased at Guitar Center:
What I thought it was:
A piece of equipment that is twice as expensive as it should be that can also be acquired at a local pawn shop for a fraction of the cost.
What it is:
A piece of equipment that more or less works right out of the box.
Plug and Play
What I thought it was:
A concept describing the process of a user stringing a wire between a computer and a peripheral device and instantly having the ability to commence using said device.
What it is:
A marketing scheme that lures innocent consumers into a purchase resulting in three hours worth of reading mice type in a flimsy user manual and listening to Vivaldi's Four Seasons pipe through one's cell phone earbud as a soothing voice expresses thankfulness over and again for 'your patience as all operators are currently assisting other customers.'
There you have it: two weeks of lessons learned. Below is another scratch recording - the first result of my adventures in Logic Express. I composed and recorded the song in the course of three hours, and I have to admit I was a little impressed. But the balloon quickly popped when it took another four to figure out how to export an audio file with decent sound levels. Blast.
The significance of this recording is not found in the meaning of the words or the complexity of the music. All of its components were kept simple and lighthearted in order to focus on the true goal of this particular effort: the creation of my first recorded song structure.
And yes, much of what you hear was inputted on an M-Audio KeyRig 49 acquired at Guitar Center around 7:45 PM last night.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Knee Deep
I spent hours yesterday and today tearing through online video tutorials for Logic Express. It is not my intent to advertise products or services on this blog, but I feel compelled to send out a hearty kiss on the cheek to Lynda.com, a service that offers complete access to their extensive library of video software training for less than a dollar a day. Superb.
Even if I had acquired a midi controller keyboard by now, I would still have a few miles before I was ready to work up my first scratch recording in Logic. So to tantalize the tastebuds of the Redline Project's worldwide network of fans (all fourteen of you), here is the latest scratch recording from good-old GarageBand. Completely different from the other scratch recordings I have posted here, this track is my first solo foray into the wondrous arena of midi music.
Thank you to my buddy David for the temporary loan of a Korg MicroKey. All of the tones you hear on this recording are GarageBand synth sounds that I inputted manually using the Korg. Thanks also goes to David for so many reasons. He is great at lighting fires under people (not literally), and he provided some of the key motivation to getting this project started.
Even if I had acquired a midi controller keyboard by now, I would still have a few miles before I was ready to work up my first scratch recording in Logic. So to tantalize the tastebuds of the Redline Project's worldwide network of fans (all fourteen of you), here is the latest scratch recording from good-old GarageBand. Completely different from the other scratch recordings I have posted here, this track is my first solo foray into the wondrous arena of midi music.
Thank you to my buddy David for the temporary loan of a Korg MicroKey. All of the tones you hear on this recording are GarageBand synth sounds that I inputted manually using the Korg. Thanks also goes to David for so many reasons. He is great at lighting fires under people (not literally), and he provided some of the key motivation to getting this project started.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Sources of Inspiration
The Redline Project forays deeper each day into a somewhat schizophrenic existence. On the one hand, I have received great connections from friends, distant relatives, and even a few complete strangers who all seem to have a better handle on social networking than I ever will. The arsenal of gear strewn around Studio Redline is starting to resemble a hobby rig that just may be good enough to lay down a decent record. Most exciting of all, the blog is receiving about 50 hits a day, which is starting to lay a good foundation from which the goals of the Redline Project can be accomplished.
There is another hand that takes the form of a few major question marks. What is this whole thing other than a narcissistic romp in the sandbox of my imagination? Is there any point to all the writing, recording, or spending? Without music as an active presence in my life, I feel deflated and and a little lost, while the pursuit of music has me wondering if I am motivated by selfish ambition and vanity.
I do not have any answers, but I have been experiencing deep satisfaction, even a sense of joy, since these explorations commenced. Music is my native tongue, and rubbing my feet on its doormat once again reminds me that I am once again home.
After church today, a few friends went out for bahn mi (delicious Vietnamese sandwiches of roasted pork, chicken, or other meats, and a spicy array of fresh vegetables). My buddy Ian, who tutors youth living in one of the apartment complexes in our city, brought Leslie along, a spunky preteen from his neighborhood. The restaurant was mobbed and each opening of the door brought a blustery chill into the tiny space. Leslie is skin, bone, and hoodie sweatshirt, and she was clearly freezing. "I can't wait to go home and put my hands and feet into a pot of boiled water," she announced.
I already knew a few eye-opening facts about Leslie's home life, but I learned today that her family has no gas contract, and therefore has no hot water. A shower is not an option for Leslie right now, and I am concerned that enough warmth in this period of record-breaking freeze may also be unavailable to her.
Leslie, with all of the challenges she faces, has a sparkly smile and a far better attitude than most of us in the spoiled brat club. She is the inspiration for the scratch recording I have posted below. The glasses in the picture above are the only instrument you will hear, and my pale voice is the second sound source. The music starts thin and builds; if you have the time and patience, give it a listen to the end.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
First Scratch Recording
The house is frigid and there is no hot water in the boiler. Nothing is broken, but I had to flip the switches to get some semblance of quiet in the basement gone makeshift studio. I stopped by my buddy Peter's house this morning to pick up an Audio Technica AT4033a that has been sitting in his closet for a few years. Making sounds into the stealth-black diaphragm, my voice snaking through the tangle of wires into my headphones, brings an instant, gratifying sense that the Redline Project may actually find its way off of the ground someday.
Even with the boiler room shut down on this record-cold Atlanta morning, I am suddenly cognizant of a complex cacophony of creaks, shakes, and rattles that emanate from the foundation of my 1971 split-level. Excitment with a twist of determination was the cocktail of the hour, and after a morning's worth of clicking around GarageBand, I am pleased to announce that my very first scratch recording, with its many imperfections, is ready to be heard.
My purpose of producing scratch recordings is like jotting reflections of life into a journal. What you are able to hear below is in no way intended to be a part of the final product. It is what will be the first of many explorations, delving into the world of audio recording with little regard for polish or excellence. I am trying to find my voice, groping around the possibilities for anything even remotely coherent.
A blog is a voice, placed online through a series of keystrokes and mouse-clicks. I could not thing of a better way to kick off my explorations than to use only the sounds of my mouse, keyboard, and voice to build this first scratch track.
So with much humility and nervousness, I welcome you to listen to Redline 001.
Even with the boiler room shut down on this record-cold Atlanta morning, I am suddenly cognizant of a complex cacophony of creaks, shakes, and rattles that emanate from the foundation of my 1971 split-level. Excitment with a twist of determination was the cocktail of the hour, and after a morning's worth of clicking around GarageBand, I am pleased to announce that my very first scratch recording, with its many imperfections, is ready to be heard.
My purpose of producing scratch recordings is like jotting reflections of life into a journal. What you are able to hear below is in no way intended to be a part of the final product. It is what will be the first of many explorations, delving into the world of audio recording with little regard for polish or excellence. I am trying to find my voice, groping around the possibilities for anything even remotely coherent.
A blog is a voice, placed online through a series of keystrokes and mouse-clicks. I could not thing of a better way to kick off my explorations than to use only the sounds of my mouse, keyboard, and voice to build this first scratch track.
So with much humility and nervousness, I welcome you to listen to Redline 001.
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