I’m not going to add too much content to my own blog, since it’s being covered in detail over at Half-BIT.com, but I will take a moment just to add a brief description of what Fernando and I are working on.
It started with a tweet from @AudioPornTwitz about a Little Boots remix contest. The Earthquake stems were posted online so I DM’d Fernando to see if he was interested in having a play with them for our follow up to Separate.
Earthquake – GAP RMX by Half-BIT
I think the single most impressive thing about Twitter has been the opportunities for musical collaboration which it has brought about. This, my third significant ‘joint venture’ is with the amazing talent, Scott Lachance, aka Digitube. I really am absolutely thrilled to have an opportunity to work with such wonderful musicians and producers from all over the world.
I’ve only just begun with this and I do have a slight problem with one of the VST instruments drifting slightly out of time (around 2′10″ which I’ll fix). I’m uploading the small amount I’ve done and I guess here will be as good a place as any for Scott and I to exchange ideas as the piece develops. The upload of work in progress has become something of a tradition and people do seem to enjoy chucking in their two pennyworth as a track evolves (which I both seek out and value hugely).
This has not been mixed at all. Levels are definitely awry.
Update: 07/11/2009
FInished track. Mastered by @pure_tone
Update: 24/10/2009
Really great to speak with Scott on the telephone this evening. Felt very inspired after our call and so I did a little more work on this track. Spent quite a bit of time on the percussion and created a kinda funky guitar out of one of the stems (actually came from the drum stem, using BigSeq2 to create the groove).
I’ll have another listen tomorrow, but in truth barring level checks and EQ tweaks, I quite like the place this has got to.
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First Upload: 23/10/2009
Just playing around with some deep percussive ideas for this first upload. No arrangement and no mixing completed so far.
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Digitube Original “Organic Build 2″
Scott published his ‘let’s kick things off’ MP3 on SoundCloud and I’m uploading it here too for reference. Clearly, it’s much more than a ’starter for ten’!
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I can’t begin to tell you how excited I am to be working on another piece with Shadi! :-] I was thrilled with her selection of Forough Farrokhzad’s poetry for The Wind Will Take Us and even more delighted with her outstanding vocal performance.
This is VERY early in its development. Shadi hasn’t even heard it as I upload this, but I’ll drop her a DM on Twitter in a moment and keep my fingers crossed. Right now (as usual) there’s no thought been given to arrangement or mixing. This is simply a preview of some of the instruments and the overall theme of the track. Brain dumping indeed.
Update: [25/11/2009]
Took on board Fernando’s comments below and added a filter and sequence to the opening bass line to give it a little more groove. Responding to Doyle by lifting the vocals and EQ-ing some of the instruments to give them more room. Also glitched up the percussion track and generally remixed (levels / EQ / some compression on one of the other bass lines).
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Update: [24/11/2009]
Now mixed with vocals (thank you Shadi!!!). MP3 below is not mastered. Any feedback very gratefully received. Would love to hear from you so post a comment below. Do it!
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Update: [27/09/2009 Arrangement 1]
I’ve added drums, worked on a couple of extra layers and put together the first arrangement. It’s a preliminary mix and in terms of levels / EQ, I’m going to leave it pretty much as is until the raw vocals are back. I want to hand over to Shadi now for her input.
Shadi: Keep in mind that the mix / arrangement is still very fluid and can be amended in way you like.
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Update: [18/09/2009]
Not a huge amount been modified since Wednesday’s update and since I’ve been full of a cold, I suspect the mix might be very weird. Feels like my head is stuffed with cotton wool!
I was inclined to agree with Fernando’s comments about the piano, so for now, I’ve deleted it. Sounded a bit Happy Mondays to me and changed the feel quite a lot.
Still just a collection of ideas and with the Great North Run on Sunday, I don’t think I’ll be moving this one on much until next week now. (Sorry Shadi!)
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Update: [16/09/2009]
I’ve lifted the tempo by 6bpm to help this one groove, but it still isn’t gelling for me (yet). I’ve got confidence in the track and I’m sure it’ll pull together, but right now, it’s just not happening. Being full of a cold and having had a couple of very intense days at work, guess I can’t really expect to be in the most creative of moods. Probably best to leave it for now.
As per previous posts, should point out that this is still not an arrangement. Just some of the possible themes for the final piece. Zero attention has been given to the mix (levels or EQ).
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Update: [13/09/2009]
Uploading a couple of additional parts, though must stress that this is NOT an arrangement at all. The piano is unlikely to kick this track off (but who knows!) and some of the synth sounds still need lots of work (EQ too). What’s more, this is a VERY rough mix. Levels are all over the place. Drums are toppy (but expect to hear another drum part too, this is mainly percussion for texture). Definitely needs a lot more sub/bottom end and bigger drums. I can hear the SBB sequencer drifting slightly out of time too. Loads to fix!
The feel of the piece has changed quite a lot over the weekend. It feels much brighter and lighter now. I’m not sure that’s entirely the direction I had planned, but I do kind of like it. Let’s see where it takes me next!
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First Upload: [11/09/2009]
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I guess it was the sun, sea and sand of a beautiful Spanish island which inspired me to try and turn a fabulous IDM track from Alka into a clubby groove, but that was my intention with this treatment of “Separate”.
With that in mind, I decided to name it the Jandía Mix after the small resort at the southern tip of Fuerte Ventura, where I was staying 10 days ago when this was put together.
Update: 7th October 2009
The shrill flute towards the end of this track and its incongruity with the rest of the piece has been niggling me since August. I love what Tone had done with the mastering and apart from that, was pretty happy with the track. Last week I could take no more so I opened up Cubase and played around with some different instruments. The flute has now gone and been replaced with a filter-tweaked lead synth patch from Ohm Force’s Symptohm, run through Audio Damage BigSeq2 with a little DaTube FX. Once done, I handed it back to Tone and he’s re-mastered compressing the track slightly to highlight some of the detail.
Separate (JandÃa Mix) by kieronjames
And here’s a link to the original track by Alka on Last.fm.
Note re first three comments below:
I did have an earlier problem with the lead synth at 3:28. There was pretty heavy modulation on the original track which (to my ears at least) bent it out of tune – not on the original, but on the remix – so I sought comments from a few trusted Twitter folks. Responses from @digitaldoyle, @digitube and @UBLF are shown below.
I tried tweaking the EQ at 3:28 as suggested but was convinced that the part was still out of tune, rather than just a harmonics issue so I ran the audio file through Cubase Pitch Correct to see how far it was “drifting”. After adjusting and readjusting for about an hour, I ended up deleting that part and writing three new lead synth lines. I’ve also done more work on the arrangement and mix and as ever, I’d love your feedback.
The laptop is back from the Apple Store and the geniuses have worked their magic (by replacing the logic board). This is fantastic news! Can’t believe it’s only been a week. It feels like a lifetime since I last plugged that Steinberg USB dongle in.
To celebrate, I’ve begun work on the Music For Freedom project kicked off by @fjfonseca and PublicSpaces netlabel. You can read much more about the project on PublicSpaces’ website. I feel very proud to play a small part in the Indaba and Soundcloud music sessions. The response from musicians has been inspirational.
My starting point is to listen to the various uploads at Indaba and select one or two samples to work with. I have already uploaded some drum loops to the session and some of the vocal samples have caught my attention.
Although there are parallels between this and the Baha’i track which I did for @thomasraukamp, I’m keen for this to be much more traditional – roots in the music of the region. With that in mind, I’m downloading the Persian melodies from Fernando Fonseca and will kick things off with those.
Update: [10 September '09]
The finished piece can be heard here.
Update: [14 August '09]
Summer holidays have played havoc with progress on this track, so just a quick update to let people know that it isn’t forgotten. I’m hoping to receive vocals before too long. In the meantime, here’s the very latest mix of the instrumental.
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Update: [25 July '09]
Not too many changes since 22nd July update below. Just a little more work on the bass sequence, changed one oscillator and increased the level of the other. Also brightened up the “slams” in the backing to Verse 2 by tweaking the EQ.
Until the vocals are added, I really am going to leave this alone now.
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Update: [22 July '09]
Did a little more work on this last night. Beefed up the bass with a new sound from SubBoomBass, worked on the EQ for the celeste, string instruments and djembe (removed some lower frequencies from the latter so that it wouldn’t fight with the bass as much) and extended the middle verse by twelve bars to make room for the extra text.
Listened to this as it’s uploading and not so sure I like the second oscillator on the SubBoomBass track. I think I’ll swap this out later for a Half Sine (it’s the higher frequency patch which answers the lower frequency one).
Also, bass is fighting with other instruments rhythmically in some sections of the track – which it didn’t seem to on earlier versions. Feel as though I’m getting too close to this and my tweaks are sending it in the wrong direction.
Very excited about hearing the vocals and looking forward to being in a position to put a final mix together. Will work a little more on that bass line tonight. It’s strange because in 12 July update I really liked the bass!
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Download .WAV file [155Mb]
Update: [19 July '09]
I probably should wait until tomorrow before uploading this for two reasons:
- I’ve been mixing all day using two pairs of headphones and haven’t heard it on any speakers at all, let alone reference monitors which I don’t possess.
- I should give it twenty four hours to listen again with fresh ears having spent some time today working with the file.
Anyway, despite the fact that it will probably change again a few times before it’s mastered, I think it’s now time to hand over to Shahryar Saberfakhr for the vocals.
I’ve left spaces in the track for the three verses of The Wind Will Take Us by Forugh Farrokhzad which will be sung in Farsi by Shahryar Saberfakhr:
The Wind Will Take Us
In my small night, ah
the wind has a date with the leaves of the trees
in my small night there is agony of destruction
listen
do you hear the darkness blowing?
I look upon this bliss as a stranger
I am addicted to my despair.listen do you hear the darkness blowing?
something is passing in the night
the moon is restless and red
and over this rooftop
where crumbling is a constant fear
clouds, like a procession of mourners
seem to be waiting for the moment of rain.
a moment
and then nothing
night shudders beyond this window
and the earth winds to a halt
beyond this window
something unknown is watching you and me.O green from head to foot
place your hands like a burning memory
in my loving hands
give your lips to the caresses
of my loving lips
like the warm perception of being
the wind will take us
the wind will take us.
Forugh Farrokhzad
Translated by Ahmad Karimi Hakkak
The spots in the track I had in mind for the three verses are:
1′55″ -> 2′19″
2′44″ -> 3′08″
3′58″ -> 4′22″
I’m really not sure if these will be long enough (particularly for the second longer verse) and I don’t want to be prescriptive at all. If vocals fit elsewhere in the track (e.g. during the introduction) that’s fine too!
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Download .WAV file [150Mb]
Update: [15 July '09]
Had planned to work on this track last night – and wished I had trusted my instincts and left well alone. Given that I wasn’t feeling too inspired, I thought I’d do some “admin” on the Cubase file – organising tracks into folders, creating marker and arranger tracks and starting to consider structure and arrangement.
I had a few other questions to consider too:
- How long should the introduction be?
- Which instruments and effects would feature in the intro and final sections of the piece?
- How and where should the vocals be incorporated?
- Should I create a bridge?
The so-called “admin” (tidying rather than organising) is one part of the process which I find anything but creative, but since I wasn’t feeling too musically inspired, it seemed a good opportunity to take care of it. So an hour into moving things around, track and part labelling and considering the overall structure, I was horrified when Cubase froze.
I’ve set up the iMac to create backups every so often, but had neglected to do this with the MacBook, so all was lost. Thankfully, I had created a new file before I started, so the fact that I’d inadvertently deleted the entire third part of the riff (every instrument) during my rearrangement tasks was not as horrendous as it might otherwise have been.
Software crashes are a fact of life with digital musical creation, but that doesn’t make them any easier to bear! So I’m no further on with the arrangement and all the parts below are STILL playing in unison!
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Update: [12 July '09]
Didn’t get very long to work on this tonight as I was unexpectedly required to drive Dad’s Taxi. Tonight’s pick up: Three rowdy teenagers (including my highly charged 13 year old daughter) from ten pin bowling in Rochdale.
Spent some time later working on a bass line with Rob Papen’s excellent “SubBoomBass” and I’m uploading a small section here, first solo, then with one of the drum kits (no percussion) and an additional synth part. After the second time through, I add one of the melody instruments, just so you can hear how it fits together.
I know I must seem to labour this point, but this isn’t an arrangement and it isn’t mixed at all. Call it a preview of some of the instruments which may (or may not) make it to the finished track.
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Update: [10 July '09]
Pleased with how this is beginning to take shape. I’ve added another synth track – the one which opens this teaser – and some other instruments playing the lead melody. At the moment, they’re all playing in unison, which won’t happen in the final mix, except perhaps at the end.
Other than a bass (SubBoomBass from Rob Papen looks to be likely VST) and a main drum kit, which I’m still unsure as to whether I’ll add, think I have all the ducks (or camels) in a row now, so it’s time to start work on the arrangement.
I’m starting to hear this build – Ravel’s “Bolero” style – to a loud and rhythmic climax.
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Update: [9 July '09]
Spent a little more time on this last night. Worked a lot on the percussion and was able to make substantial (still early days) changes to the sound by replacing the instruments used in the melody – thanks to import of a copy of the Persian midi file which Fernando emailed me.
I also dropped the tempo by around 4bpm. I want the rhythm to “groove” and with it being predominantly based around sixteenths, I think it has more chance of doing this at a slightly slower pace.
My favourite part is still the two notes played on the FXpansion Orca (“Beating” preset) with BigSeq2 plugin effects and REVerence (Cubase 5) reverb. Simple.
There’s still no arrangement or mixing here. These are just elements I’m planning to incorporate. And I’m convinced there are a couple of bum notes in that midi file at around 0′57″.
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First upload: [8 July '09]
I only spent an hour or so last night, using the traditional_melody file uploaded by Fernando and a short drum loop of my own. I’ve added a couple of notes using Orca (FXpansion) and my favourite VST from AudioDamage, BigSeq2.
I’m uploading an eight bar teaser, but this has a LONG way to go yet!
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Mentioned on Twitter yesterday that the track I’m working on had a bit of a Depeche Mode thing going on. Not really sure that’s the case anymore, but for me at least, there are elements of this which are early 1980s.
That certainly wasn’t my intention when starting this track. It took a left turn towards electro-pop somewhere around the high arpeggios and by the time I’d added the opening bass riff (which has taken over from the melody which appears much later to become the dominant theme), it was game over.
This won’t be the final arrangement (a bit of a give away in the rather abrupt ending) and I was monitoring again with earbuds last night – you know the rest.
Just to reiterate, this isn’t finished at all, but I would welcome any thoughts. It’s a collection of ideas, not a coherent piece. Some will stay. Some won’t. The sweeping synth appears too frequently for my liking. Need to delete some instances of that.
All in all, I kind of liked it. Now I’m not so sure.
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Thought I’d try my hand at a more minimal piece and created the following which I’ve called Cyrodilic Brandhi (don’t ask). It’s not really a serious attempt, so I won’t mind if you snort with derision after 16 bars, assuming you make it that far.
Not much to say about this really. I suspect I’ll ditch it but salvage on or two elements for another tune, so this is just brain dumping again really. As so often in this category, it hasn’t been mixed so not only will there be lots of EQ glitches, the levels are probably all over the place too! And the pitch bend is an assault on the ears. Apologies over. Here you go:
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This track keeps pulling me towards the conventional drum sound of the type I’ve been trying to steer clear – right down to big tom fills (just need a cowbell clunking through 1 to 4 and we’re good to go).
At this stage it’s unmixed, but the kind of kit I keep trying to avoid makes its entrance at bar seventeen.
I guess it’s a part of the “heritage” that I’ll always struggle to shake off. I can’t help it, I do love a thumping drum sound.
Q: Should it stay or should it go?
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To all intents and purposes, this track is now finished. As ever, I may return to mix with fresh ears in a couple of days and once I’ve had a chance to run it through the car stereo test. So far, I’ve monitored on my god awful computer speakers, a pair of Beyerdynamic DT-100s, some Sennheisers and my UltimateEars earbuds. Seems OK(ish) on those.
It’s been quite a weird journey this one. It started out with a “lost chord” – the second prominent chord on the AtmoEPiano (Green Oak Crystal VST plugin). I was fiddling around on the piano and really liked that chord.
Started to build an ambient piece, but upping the tempo to 165bpm against the lazy lead chords caught my attention. The addition of dialogue from American Graffiti came right at the end. I’m still not sure if I like it or if the track should remain instrumental.
What do you think?
Stream Original:
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Stream Mastered by Pure_Tone:
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Download: Good Time – 320 MP3
Made quite a lot of progress on the drum n bass track I’ve been working on recently. Significant breakthrough on the bass line with the inclusion of Ohm Force Symptohm (which I bought on Friday and love!).
Still a little way from finished and certainly pre-mix but would love any feedback on how this is coming along. (I’ve been arranging this using a pair of earbuds tonight, so there’s a very good chance the levels will be all over the place. I’ll take a listen in the morning and apologise now if that’s the case!)
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I’m being harsh on myself really – I think this definitely has the potential to develop into a full track, but it seems that in trying to do so, I’m just extending the introduction (now up to around 60 bars).
I’m really enjoying developing this one though and I’m looking forward to mixing it. Apologies that the mix is all over the place at the moment. The bottom end is particularly mushy, but as I mentioned last night, I want to press on with the arrangement before worrying about that.
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Tweaked a little [01/05/2009]
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OK, the post title is overstating things a little because I still only have 48 bars. But they’re at least 48% better than the 32 bars I had 48 hours ago.
I’m sure there’s a GCSE maths question somewhere in that first paragraph.
It’s building quite nicely now. There’s still much do in terms of mixing, modulation and EQ, but I’m not going to give a moment’s thought to that until I’ve got the main part of the piece composed and recorded. Please – it’s very raw.
Oh and I managed to resurrect the lost chord – the one I stumbled upon when plinkety plonking on the the piano and couldn’t press record for fear of losing my place on the keyboard! Had to remember four notes until I could jot it down into a Cubase file and save it for later. It’s the second of the two prominent chords on the Crystal AtmoEPiano part.
As ever, any feedback would be very welcome.
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Had a little more success last night with the drum n bass track. Still only have around 40 bars (an intro of sorts), but I like some of the percussive beeps and blips on this. I’ve used a number of filters on several kits to generate these, along with Cubase 5’s REVerence reverb plugin.
What’s still not working for me – and I’m struggling to find the right sound – is the bass line. I think the drone is generally OK, but it’s the bass pattern which isn’t gelling yet.
The other BIG question: “Where does it go from here?”
There’s no doubt that I’m the passenger here. The music is driving this composition forward and though I’m uncertain as to the route it’s taking, I’m really enjoying the ride again!
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Managed a quick half hour after work on the drum part from last night. Not too much to report, but uploading it here for reference. I think this should develop into a track. I’m beginning to hear a bass line as I cycle through the drum tracks. Still not done any arrangement – it’s merely a collection of patterns just now.
If I get a little more time on this tonight, I’ll see if I can add some pads or a bass track.
Mixdown 1:
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Mixdown 2:
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Mixdown 3:
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Started working on a drum n bass track tonight. Just playing around with some beats at the moment, but fairly happy with how it’s progressing (rough around the edges and no structure yet).
Some of this might survive the next session, but some is destined to go! So far there are four kits on this track but no other instruments. I’ve used a variety of filters, phaser, flanger, reverb and delay to bring it thus far, but there’s no real mixing happened yet.
Here you go then. 60 seconds of D&B drums:
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