Philosophical Rant 5

Is this Rant 5? Yeah, I think so. I spent the last weekend with my folks. They're so awesome. We talked heaps. Mum listened intently when I talked about my music.

I agree with Richard Kingsmill's recent commentary about 2010 being one of the best years for music in a long time. There was some bloody amazing music released this year. Sufjan Steven's twisted our brains. Arcade Fire took us back home. And Kanye West's new album wasn't just on another level, I think he went to a new fucking planet. There's a healthy levels of desperation and honesty in some of the music released this year. Great to see. Raw and real I think.

I sometimes hate how learning is part of the process to becoming good at anything. Especially when it comes to expression. My music feel's 3rd rate somehow. I'm still striving to reach that 2nd level, where most of the pro's sit (let alone top shelf where the legends sit, I don't want to go there anyway). I need to step it up a notch.

I'll make a few practical decisions here I think:
1 - I'm going to release all my music for free. Screw iTunes. I need a website or something to do it. Maybe I can do it here on the blog somehow. I'll ask for donations only. I don't ever want to become precious about my music. I just want people to listen to it (and enjoy it or otherwise).
2 - I need to try getting a pro engineer to help later mix/master etc. That'll depend on my money situation...
3 - I really need to remix/remaster The Fall and I Feel Alive to get them up to scratch. Although, I did start this whole process by buying pretty cheap equipment. Still juggling with conflicting expectations there.
4 - I think 5 tracks to make up the first EP.

Cool.

I'll finish this post with a photo of my mother and grandfather from December 1962. Dancing to Elvis.

Elvis is on. Time to dance. Things are as they should be.

Ideas for new songs (and some tips)

I've been experimenting with riffs and sounds the last few day with some success. I've come up with at least two strong ideas for songs, both originating from my electric guitar, that I've already begun composing/producing into songs. Transitioning ideas from my head, to an instrument, into a nice sounding composition is beginning to come naturally. I still feel like there's capacity in me to do it faster. I'm also finding that it feels much more natural to work on lots of tracks at the same time. If I'm not 'in the mood' to work on a particular track, I might be feeling right to work on another.

The new stuff I'm working on is a real mixed bag. The first track sounds like a 60's rock song, but then phases in and out of a more modern sound. I'm even going to try putting some weird chanting and stuff in. Like Gregorian type stuff. Just to mess with people's heads and add that element of 'epic' that I just can't avoid doing.

The other track sounds like some of NIN's gritty rock mixed with something by Muse.

I also came up with a few little riffs and that which sound cool, but not sure if they'll become songs. I can always use them as transitional effects. Or rather, content to fill the space between songs. Some really great albums use little instrumentals to break up songs and create ambiance on the album.   :)

That's all for today. Oh, and James Bernard's week 41 tutorial about mid-side processing was amazing if not a bit overwhelming! I'll tinker with the patch he posted.

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Tips for new producers:

For budding musician/producers out there trying to learn this stuff like I am, here's a list of the things I think are critical to producing your own stuff. (Keep in mind that I still consider myself to be an amateur!). I'm assuming you've already bought all the equipment you need and know what most of the knobs on a standard mixing desk do. (For more info about my equipment, see my posts from August 2010)

Ok here goes:
- High and low pass filters: Learn about these to help get rid of that 'boomy' or 'muddy' effect from your songs. Try applying a high pass filter (up to 150-300Hz) to all instruments except your bass sound and your kick drum sound. Your song should start to sound clearer.
- Think about the frequency of all your sounds and try not to put in more than 2 sounds of the same frequency in any song. Use left and right panning to separate sounds of the same frequency.
- Learn about Parallel Processing by watching James Bernard's week 37 tutorial. It's a great way to fatten up your sounds. Particularly drums I find, but I imagine it could apply to any instrument.
- If you sing (or use a singer), learn about 'comping' and do it! Make a singer sing each part 20 times over with very minor variations each time. Listen back each time a part is sung and consider what a variation could achieve.
- Learn about 8-band parallel processing and try using it as a mastering tool. I've found it to be the most important mastering technique so far. It produces amazing clarity and gives you real control on your final mix.
- Work on a few songs at the same time. i.e. you won't be in the mood to work on the same song everyday (or other day)!
- Watch tutorials until your eyes bleed. Try following a tutorial, but make your own music at the same time. Read about your software online and in magazines. Some magazines go into amazing depth about software.

Post release thoughts

Ok, so DJ Ridonkulous was an interesting experiment. It's not the core stuff I want to be doing though. Even though I might pull some more comedy out of the bag at a later stage. I posed the idea of a YouTube video to my friends who are keen help. They came up with the idea of filming it near the docklands and finding some boats to get on etc.

I've certainly learnt lots of lessons already from the DJ Ridonkulous experiment. How not to mix a song for start. I've noticed as hear it played about that it sounds different on different speakers. I'm pretty sure that is a sign of a rushed job resulting in a poor mix. But hey, lesson learned. I can do better next time.

Returning to Ergo Alt material, I've been lost for ideas on what to do next. I have a few old songs I could pull out of the bag, but they aren't inspiring me. I need to feel inspired so it makes me want to work. So I've started working through some software tutorials from a Reason magazine I found. The tutorials run through details of the Reason instruments and how to make various interesting sounds. I'm copying what they instruct, but making my own music as I go. Hopefully it will result in a riff, or a tune, or something else that inspires me to keep working.

I really want to do something epic. Massively epic. You know, with like with different 'movements', and crazy sounds that turns heads, and then some massive orchestral sounds thrown in. I dunno. That's me throwing ideas around.

I'm also hoping that by creating music in 2-hour blocks, following the magazine, that this will get me in a habit of creating music this way so I can keep on doing it when I have a job. Oh yeah, so I'm still looking, I applied for a few. I'm literally out of money now, living on my credit card as well as generous donations from my parents. They're so supportive. Anyone else would think I'm nuts.

That's enough for today, back to my magazine and job hunting. No photo today. Someone should invent a thought visualiser. hmmm...

DJ Ridonkulous

Another milestone today! My political satire piece came out today. Follow this link to listen: DJ Ridonkulous on Myspace. Here to buy on iTunes: DJ Ridonkulous on iTunes.

Ridonkulous, meaning deserving or inspiring ridicule to the highest degree, is the perfect artist name for this music. I already have idea for other comedy songs I want to do. 

If you're not from Australia the song might confuse you. Here a quick over-view of the genesis of the song for you: 

The vocal is Australia's current prime-minister Julia Gillard. I sampled here voice from one of her recent television appearances. At present, two prevailing issues reported by the media here (among others) are:

- Asylum seeking refugees arriving at Australia's shore by boat; and

- Gay marriage rights.

I found that, when listening to Julia, the funniest (or most ridiculous) things she said was when she was talking on these topics. So, I merged these topics and, the song kind of wrote itself in a way. The other thing I should point out is that the political party in opposition at the moment has a leader named Tony Abbott. Julia calls him Mr. Abbott. However, because of her heavy accent, it sounds like she says Mr Rabbit. 

Australia has a long history making fun of our politicians using political satire. The right to do so is legally bound here. Unfortunately, I personally think this culture is in a slow decline. Australians are becoming too politically correct and sensitive. And our media is becoming too sensationalised.  

Hopefully, Australians will find it funny and offensive enough that it will get some press. And maybe everyone here can get a bit of a laugh and lighten up a bit.

Do it for the nation!

Alternate project - another milestone

I finished putting together all the core elements of my political satire piece today. I promised a good friend I'd have a demo ready by tonight. So I have that. Yay! Another milestone. As usual, the mixing process has been long and involved. I wish I knew how the pros get their frequencies so clean and clear all the time. How do they know the exact point at which there is enough high-end treble in the mix?! They must have frequency level visualizers of some sort (or something!). I need to do more research on this.

Anyway, I've been mixing and mastering my track by listening to various tracks on the 'Ministry of Sound' compilations and trying to copy their frequencies and their 'beat pump'. It seems to have worked. I can definitely still hear a slightly superior level of clarity in their tracks though. Particularly in their sound effects which have amazing detail. But most people probably won't be able to tell the difference. 

I also still need to add sound effects to the song. Just to make the track that little bit more interesting. That can wait till next week.

Soon, I'll start talking to my friends about the video. This track is all about connecting (and getting sales hopefully) with people via the YouTubes. It's pretty funny on its own, but I think it will excel as a music video. We've got some ideas that involve dressing up as animals etc. We'll discuss them tonight perhaps.

This has been enough work by itself so I'm not sure if I'll have time to pull of an iPhone application as well. Sigh!

What a sexy rack!

Jango

I've been busy over the past week, painting the flat, looking for jobs, and jamming on the guitar with myself. Had some success with experimentation, but for the most part I just had fun. I needed that. Felt great just to experiment for the hell of it.

I recently put my music onto Jango Radio which is a website that automatically makes mixes of music you will like based on an artist of your choice. Its a great way to discover new music and I myself have been enjoying discovering some great music. There are so many amazing bands and artists out there. I have a real positive outlook for the future of the music industry. Funnily, it means that I've stopped listening to the normal radio. The internet is by far the best place to discover new music.

When listeners hear something they really really like a song or band, they can 'become fans'. A small contingent of people have already become Ergo Alt fans, and even more have indicated they just 'like' my music, which is awesome. A quick hello to those people and thanks for becoming fans!

One cool thing Jango does is tell me stuff like this. Handy for future marketing probably. If I ever get my album finished...

Philosophical Rant 4

This might sound weird, but I found a zen place in my heart for my music today. You know, I think I've been rattled by the world and various circumstances for a long time. The same circumstances that lead to me quitting my job I think. I had really lost that stability of mind that I'm normally used to. I'd normally consider myself to be a very stable person. But not of late. Not for a while. And I think I understand it all now. I think I've been doing this because I had lost hope in just about everything, except music. I've been clutching onto it like a lifeline.

But today, and I don't know why this day in particular, I suddenly have new hopes. And I suppose that has set free the musical side of me. I don't need to clutch onto it so tightly anymore. Already, this is making me think in new ways about my music. New genres. New beats. That's so weird. It's amazing how state of mind is so closely linked to music. I mean, that's not weird, but it's like the bond between them is almost like they are the same thing.

During this whole time of composing and producing music, I've never once picked up a guitar and just jammed with myself or with someone else. Isn't that strange? For 4 months I've been producing music, but not once have I just strummed a guitar for the sake of it. You know, just to reflect and enjoy the sound of the strings. Today, I'm going to do that. Just strum some random stings for the hell of it.

Ok, I'm weirding myself out now. Time to stop.