11/08/2010
11/16/2009
12/21/2008
6/3/2007
10/15/2006
7/27/2006
3/22/2006
I have finally finished a new recording, of "Glorification of the Chosen One." I am not going to say "I'm back" because I have no idea when I may pick up and finally finish "End of Time," let alone work on anything new. It's just good to finally get something done. Anyways, it's there on the Music page. Let me know what you think of it.
11/16/2009
I'm announcing that I'm officially back in the music business (hobby). I recently purchased equipment, including a new sound card, studio monitors, and a guitar. Everything is working like it should. I've started doing some test recordings of "End Of Time," the once-tried-but-never-completed song. I'm going to test a few different versions of it to see what works, so I don't run into the same problem as before where everything came out sounding like mush. Once I get that done, I expect that I'll be better at understanding the tonal limitations that I should be working within. That will then give me the tools to rework "Beauty In Dying," another of those never-released-because-it-sounded-like-butt songs.
Other than that, I recently had an interesting idea for a new piece. At this point I think it will be a string quartet but that may change as the writing progresses. We'll see.
Other than that, I recently had an interesting idea for a new piece. At this point I think it will be a string quartet but that may change as the writing progresses. We'll see.
12/21/2008
I want to write a few words today mainly so nobody thinks I'm dead. You don't need to tell me it's been a long time. I swore that I wouldn't do any more work on music until I finished my degree. I'm now 3 classes away so it shouldn't be more than a few months until I'm back. But some really good news is that I moved into a new place and I once again have something like a music studio where I can do my work. I got the bass, amp, and keyboard all set up. I gotta buy a new sound card (the old one died) and some monitors. I will also need a guitar setup (a 7-string with amp and/or direct box) or I need a good guitarist that I can work with (easy-going, very skilled, can play to a metronome, open-minded, has some ambition but not in it for chicks or fame). I plan on redoing versions of "End Of Time" and maybe "Beauty in Dying" (this time in a decent key, so you can hear what's going on). After that, who knows. There's a million things I could do. I guess it's good that I still hear weird rhythms and melodies in my head. That means I think I can still write like I used to.
It's been a while. I've been working on school and getting married and stuff. Also, my sound card crashed when I moved in December so I haven't been able to record at all and writing has been slower. I never got to finish the recording of "Mercy Street" karaoke; the singing came out great but the sound card died before I could lay down the music. Nothing has been finished in the last few months. I've only recently started playing again but only a little here and there.
I've been working with Juice on some vocals for a song that was called "What I Say" but we changed it to "Pours From Mouth." That one was pretty spontaneous so it was cool. I also had him record a short 50 second riff I've had laying around forever. I just wanted to see if it would work, and it did so I'm happy. That one I ended up titling "Funk With Gunk." I don't know if it'll ever be released but there it is. And Juice and the other VIII Fraud guitarist Mark have been talking about helping me re-record the Ninth Level song, "Beauty In Dying." They helped record it the first time as a demo but it came out really rough and didn't get released really. This time we want to see how much better we can make it sound now that both Mark and Juice have real recording equipment in their houses.
So the news that brings me back here today is my new page on this site, titled "Band Names." I'm always saying, "New band name!" whenever I hear a word or phrase in conversation that sounds cool. I always thought I should write them down. Then I thought, "Wouldn't it be cool if someone actually used some of these band names." So I decided to post them online and see if anyone wanted any. If you like any, go ahead and use them. I'd love to get something for your use of it, but it's not necessary. Even if you aren't looking for a new band name, they're pretty funny to browse through. I'll be adding more names as I come across them. Hope you like some of them.
I've been working with Juice on some vocals for a song that was called "What I Say" but we changed it to "Pours From Mouth." That one was pretty spontaneous so it was cool. I also had him record a short 50 second riff I've had laying around forever. I just wanted to see if it would work, and it did so I'm happy. That one I ended up titling "Funk With Gunk." I don't know if it'll ever be released but there it is. And Juice and the other VIII Fraud guitarist Mark have been talking about helping me re-record the Ninth Level song, "Beauty In Dying." They helped record it the first time as a demo but it came out really rough and didn't get released really. This time we want to see how much better we can make it sound now that both Mark and Juice have real recording equipment in their houses.
So the news that brings me back here today is my new page on this site, titled "Band Names." I'm always saying, "New band name!" whenever I hear a word or phrase in conversation that sounds cool. I always thought I should write them down. Then I thought, "Wouldn't it be cool if someone actually used some of these band names." So I decided to post them online and see if anyone wanted any. If you like any, go ahead and use them. I'd love to get something for your use of it, but it's not necessary. Even if you aren't looking for a new band name, they're pretty funny to browse through. I'll be adding more names as I come across them. Hope you like some of them.
10/15/2006
Lately I've been working exclusively on vocals. I just completed work on the second song with Juice, titled "No More," which is now posted on the music page. Well, he still calls it by the working title, "Juice No More" but I think "No More" sounds much better. I'm still learning the singer trade slowly but I'm getting there. This new song is much better than the last one. I also recently did my home karaoke version of Peter Gabriel's "Mercy Street" but that was a little unfortunate. I'll have to try that one again sometime soon.
I also was recently over at Juice's house helping him with writing a new song, working titled "Ants." It's really cool with some wacky chords and man is it heavy. Very Strapping Young Lad. I can't wait to get my hands on that one.
Also, I added a link to Julius's new web site, dantesjuice.com. Go there to listen to more of his works.
I also was recently over at Juice's house helping him with writing a new song, working titled "Ants." It's really cool with some wacky chords and man is it heavy. Very Strapping Young Lad. I can't wait to get my hands on that one.
Also, I added a link to Julius's new web site, dantesjuice.com. Go there to listen to more of his works.
7/27/2006
Obviously it's been a while. I haven't been doing a lot of musical work lately, but here's the latest. With "End of Time" I've hit a stumbling block. The guitar ranges are too close and they're clashing. I'm having a terrible time getting anything even remotely like tone out of them. I'm going to need to do some overdubs to make it work.
The other thing is that I've been invited to do some vocals for my friend Julius's side project. It's strictly recording for now but I'm hopeful that if I do a good job, I might be allowed to become the new front person for his main project, VIII Fraud. That would be so much fun, to be a lead singer. Anyways, I know I'm not the best vocalist out there but I'm not the worst either.
Some time ago, for shits & giggles, I downloaded some MIDI files of songs I like and recorded myself singing them, karaoke style. Sure, in my head I sound like Peter Gabriel, but I was disappointed that the recording didn't reflect that. I wasn't thrilled with the tone I got out of my voice, so I did the bad singer trick--I doubled the recording. It sounded kinda fun and I've played them for a few friends since. But thinking about being a lead singer I figured out something that would help. I should open my mouth wider and enunciate more. It gives a bigger, more expressive sound. With that in mind I decided to try re-recording one of the songs, "Broadway Melody of 1974" by Genesis, from the album, "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway." This time I performed the song with my new technique. I found it to be greatly improved over the earlier version I did. For one, I was able to get a good performance on the first take (although the second was even better). Second, I was satisfied with my tone without having to double the parts. I feel like I now know what I sing like. I'm not one who imitates others; I know my voice and how it should be used. Yeah, I'm ready to be a lead singer.
The other thing is that I've been invited to do some vocals for my friend Julius's side project. It's strictly recording for now but I'm hopeful that if I do a good job, I might be allowed to become the new front person for his main project, VIII Fraud. That would be so much fun, to be a lead singer. Anyways, I know I'm not the best vocalist out there but I'm not the worst either.
Some time ago, for shits & giggles, I downloaded some MIDI files of songs I like and recorded myself singing them, karaoke style. Sure, in my head I sound like Peter Gabriel, but I was disappointed that the recording didn't reflect that. I wasn't thrilled with the tone I got out of my voice, so I did the bad singer trick--I doubled the recording. It sounded kinda fun and I've played them for a few friends since. But thinking about being a lead singer I figured out something that would help. I should open my mouth wider and enunciate more. It gives a bigger, more expressive sound. With that in mind I decided to try re-recording one of the songs, "Broadway Melody of 1974" by Genesis, from the album, "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway." This time I performed the song with my new technique. I found it to be greatly improved over the earlier version I did. For one, I was able to get a good performance on the first take (although the second was even better). Second, I was satisfied with my tone without having to double the parts. I feel like I now know what I sing like. I'm not one who imitates others; I know my voice and how it should be used. Yeah, I'm ready to be a lead singer.
3/22/2006
So things aren't going nearly as well as planned with "End of Time." I didn't realize just how important being well-practiced is when doubling guitars. Since both Lorenzo and Bello recorded as they were learning the parts (hey, it was digital, I could fix it later, right?) neither one stayed in time very accurately. If there was only 1 guitar per side, that wouldn't be a problem since they wouldn't be overlapping in space and I'm able to fix any major mistakes. But since there will be 2 guitars on each side, any minor playing differences, such as being slightly off with the timing, become extremely noticeable. Not so noticeable that if you heard what was recorded you'd say, "Man, they really screwed that up." No, it's just noticeable enough to make you say, "This doesn't sound very good. Something went wrong somewhere but I don't know what." So in the last 3 weeks I've been literally matching every note they recorded to a click track. I'm almost done fixing Lorenzo's guitar, then I get to start on Bello's. I think Bello's is better since it doesn't sound as messy, but maybe that only means he screwed up consistently. I'll know more by next week.
On a different topic, I thought it would be fun to respond to this question. I heard a story on the radio last week about a new documentary coming out. I think the title was "What is Music?" but maybe I'm wrong. Anyways, the point was, they put to various classical musicians the question (you guessed it), what is music? The producers were surprised to find that most musicians didn't have a clear answer, even though that's what these people did. I'm not surprised myself, but I thought it might be fun to answer the question as well. Strictly speaking, music is any group of sounds that are arranged to be pleasing to a person. What pleases one person probably won't please everyone. Also, they must be arranged, otherwise they're just ambient noise. That is no longer an art form, that's just lucky.
But more than that, let me write this. I realized that what pleases me musically is the arrangement of the sounds. I literally hear structures in music; they can be shapes, boxes, whole landscapes, often times chaotic, but they are solid objects to me. I think that says something about why I have trouble with some jazz. I hear the groove much more solidly than the soloist, unless the solo is overly dense. Just a few dancing notes over the top is like watching smoke passing over a house. The house is real to me, the smoke is transitory and insubstantial. Is it any wonder I'm a bassist? Melodies work for me, but only if they're strong and powerful. A strong melody is like a soaring mountain above a landscape. A simple song, say "Blackbird" by the Beatles, is still solid to me, but it appears smaller, like maybe furniture in an empty room. With this thought in mind, I can explain why I'm attracted to avant-garde classical, such as Schnittke and Bartok. Music like that appears to me as modern architecture. It's angular, spare, maybe even cold sometimes. But it's got an other-worldly quality that takes me to another place. It's not quite like finding myself on a spaceship; that would be more like Penderecki or Ligeti (which definitely has its place as well). No, the stuff I'm talking about is still within the realm of humans but it feels deliberately shaped. The best I can describe it is as modern art made up of lines, shapes, and colors. And no surprise, I like modern art.
I could go on for a while on this subject but I think I'll stop for now. From here on it would just be repetition anyways. So that's how I experience music. And I think if you ask any serious musician (or even fan) you'd get something similar, that music is visual or maybe even tactile. I've asked musicians before, "How do you see music?" and they respond right away with a straight face. We know what music feels like, it's just how we are.
3/1/2006On a different topic, I thought it would be fun to respond to this question. I heard a story on the radio last week about a new documentary coming out. I think the title was "What is Music?" but maybe I'm wrong. Anyways, the point was, they put to various classical musicians the question (you guessed it), what is music? The producers were surprised to find that most musicians didn't have a clear answer, even though that's what these people did. I'm not surprised myself, but I thought it might be fun to answer the question as well. Strictly speaking, music is any group of sounds that are arranged to be pleasing to a person. What pleases one person probably won't please everyone. Also, they must be arranged, otherwise they're just ambient noise. That is no longer an art form, that's just lucky.
But more than that, let me write this. I realized that what pleases me musically is the arrangement of the sounds. I literally hear structures in music; they can be shapes, boxes, whole landscapes, often times chaotic, but they are solid objects to me. I think that says something about why I have trouble with some jazz. I hear the groove much more solidly than the soloist, unless the solo is overly dense. Just a few dancing notes over the top is like watching smoke passing over a house. The house is real to me, the smoke is transitory and insubstantial. Is it any wonder I'm a bassist? Melodies work for me, but only if they're strong and powerful. A strong melody is like a soaring mountain above a landscape. A simple song, say "Blackbird" by the Beatles, is still solid to me, but it appears smaller, like maybe furniture in an empty room. With this thought in mind, I can explain why I'm attracted to avant-garde classical, such as Schnittke and Bartok. Music like that appears to me as modern architecture. It's angular, spare, maybe even cold sometimes. But it's got an other-worldly quality that takes me to another place. It's not quite like finding myself on a spaceship; that would be more like Penderecki or Ligeti (which definitely has its place as well). No, the stuff I'm talking about is still within the realm of humans but it feels deliberately shaped. The best I can describe it is as modern art made up of lines, shapes, and colors. And no surprise, I like modern art.
I could go on for a while on this subject but I think I'll stop for now. From here on it would just be repetition anyways. So that's how I experience music. And I think if you ask any serious musician (or even fan) you'd get something similar, that music is visual or maybe even tactile. I've asked musicians before, "How do you see music?" and they respond right away with a straight face. We know what music feels like, it's just how we are.
I decided to change this page from news to a blog page. The only real difference is now when something is going on but isn't news, I can still write it. I will stick exclusively with musical stuff, though.
Yesterday Bello came over to record guitars for the last Ninth Level song, "End of Time." It went pretty well. It took a little while and we had to piece together a couple of the weirder riffs but we got everything recorded and it sounds really clean. I'm happy with the tone we got out of his guitar. I don't know if I'll be able to match Lorenzo's tone to Bello's but I'll try. Today I started piecing together the guitars. I learned that making a good musical tone with doubled guitar is not easy. If they aren't played exactly identically in time, they phase and everything sounds a bit weird. So even though Lorenzo got most everything in one take, I still had to cut it up into tiny bits and try to match the exact timing of both performances. Bello's guitar I didn't even start working on that part. I only pieced together one of his 2 guitars. I'm happy with how the bridge section sounds, very beefy. I'll probably finish it up in the next day or 2.
2/18/2006Yesterday Bello came over to record guitars for the last Ninth Level song, "End of Time." It went pretty well. It took a little while and we had to piece together a couple of the weirder riffs but we got everything recorded and it sounds really clean. I'm happy with the tone we got out of his guitar. I don't know if I'll be able to match Lorenzo's tone to Bello's but I'll try. Today I started piecing together the guitars. I learned that making a good musical tone with doubled guitar is not easy. If they aren't played exactly identically in time, they phase and everything sounds a bit weird. So even though Lorenzo got most everything in one take, I still had to cut it up into tiny bits and try to match the exact timing of both performances. Bello's guitar I didn't even start working on that part. I only pieced together one of his 2 guitars. I'm happy with how the bridge section sounds, very beefy. I'll probably finish it up in the next day or 2.
I'm creating the site today. The first musical entries will be "Irrelevant" (recorded by my most recent band, Ninth Level),
as well as 2 piano pieces, "Need," and "A Prayer in a Love's Dream"
(which I merely arranged for performance by computer). See the Music
page for details and downloads.
Projects that I'm currently working on include an untitled prog metal collaboration with Adam Pfeffer (antimi.com), "End of Time" which will be the last new song I complete with my former band Ninth Level (ninthlevel.org), "Internal Deceit" which is an avant-garde piano/prog metal composition, and "Queer Street" which is an avant-garde choral piece.