Archive for February, 2016
Grant
February 10, 2016
Day 168: Weds 10 Feb 2016
Follow Me Not – A Bass & Beat ‘Scape In Three Parts:
Intro 0.00-2.42 Body 2.42-8.10 Reprise 8.10-10.42
It’s a Bass ‘Scape! Four layers of bass plus a beat.
This is only my second attempt to incorporate Michelle (my favourite bass who has just returned to my life after an eighteen month absence) into my iPad music making. She is loving it! It is so good to get reaquainted.
I started by loading up Bias Amp and trying out some bass amp models until I found one I liked, then I put that into Bias FX where it slotted straight into a guitar FX chain that was open there, I loved the combination so kept it, just adjusting a few parameters.
Next I opened Auria, put Patterning on one track and Bias FX on another and jammed away.
I recorded several jams, all flowing from each other, and chose 4 for this track; the intro was recorded without the drums and has a free flowing style, while the other three fit together as they are variations of one idea. Still, not all bits worked as a whole so I spent some time arranging.
I also redesigned the drumbeat and recorded it on two tracks with different sounds and slight variations, but ended up keeping the original beat as well because it still fitted and provided some subtle variation.
So this is three tracks of drums and four tracks of bass. A real throwback to my early days 🙂
Grant
February 9, 2016
Day 167: Tuesday 9 Feb 2016
The Education Of Michael ReCycle:
Yesterday’s track was an assemblage based on pieces from one of my ‘scrap’ folders, a group of places where I keep interesting bits that I might use one day.
Today began with another of those pieces.
This time a jam from DM1; to which I added some iMaschine 2 hits, and a fragment from a GrainScience jam.
Once I had arranged these to my satisfaction in Auria, I added some bass using Bias Amp and Bias FX.
Grant
February 8, 2016
Day 166: Monday 8 Feb 2016
Sunday Slowly Sinking Again:
A Beatscape. One of those where I try to blend elements regardless of beats-per-minute etc, but where I approach the elements as a collage.
I have several folders in AudioShare where I get bits and pieces, various elements that I have used or may use. Today I raided my ‘Beats’ folder, taking several elements that I thought would work together and put them into Auria for arrangement.
The elements came from ElasticDrums, DM1, Figure, FLUX:FX, and PhaseRings. There may be some effects apps used, I’m no longer sure.
Stay tuned for some more developments 🙂
Grant
February 7, 2016
Day 165: Sunday 7 Feb 2016
Sooner Or Later (Pessimism Edit):
An Ambient Beatscape with Spoken Word.
This began with Arpeggist and Addictive Synth. Once I had something I liked, I loaded Addictive into Auria along with Poseidon and TF7, designed matching sounds in each synth, and recorded them all playing the slow sparse arpeggio. I also copied two of the synths to new tracks. applied some distortion with Muckraker, and panned them.
The beat is from Patterning, I knew I wanted something simple with only a few variations.
Next I loaded up MitoSynth for the ghostly slow lead sound (I don’t often use presets, preferring to make my own, but this suited the track so well).
I pasted the lyrics to iSpeech TTS, slowed them in Twistedwave and added some AltiSpace in AudioShare; but when I added them to the track I was unhappy with them so they got relegated to backing vocals.
The final touch was me reading the lyrics straight into Auria with reverb and delay from the inbuilt effects.
Grant
February 6, 2016
Day 164: Saturday 6 Feb 2016
Sometimes Softly:
A Soundscape utilising a field recording.
Sometimes it’s difficult, sometimes it’s not, sometimes it’s hard, sometimes it’s soft. Sometimes it takes many apps, sometimes only a few, or even just one.
I am having a crisis of confidence and a loss of faith. I no longer feel my measly efforts are worthwhile. I don’t know what to do next. I am paralysed by doubt.
This is not an unusual place for me to be, I recognise these surroundings, I know them well.
Keep moving, that’s the key.
What makes music, what makes a track, what makes a song?
The recording was made with Røde Rec on my iPhone; footsteps in snow, cars driving by, an engine running, a dog barking, wind. And something else; I don’t know what. Collaged in Auria.
Grant
February 6, 2016
Day 163: Friday 5 Feb 2016
When One Door…:
Is it a Beatscape? A Soundscape? Ambient? Or something else? You tell me (probably fictional) listeners 🙂
Auria, Patterning, AudioShare, TwistedWave, BeatMaker 2, Dedalus, AUFX:Dub, Emo Chorus, Altispace, Sector, Korg Module…four bottles of stout and a homemade pizza.
Grant
February 4, 2016
Day 162: Thursday 4 Feb 2016
The Abyss Talks Back:
An Ambient Beatscape.
I began today by making a beat in ElasticDrums which I recorded into Auria. Then I loaded up Patterning and made a matching but slightly different beat which I recorded into several tracks using different drum kits. An arpeggio from Poseidon provided the occasional bass, and the ambience is from Ondes and Addictive Synth played together from Ondes and slowed by TwistedWave, and an Absynth jam that I imported from my MacBook and treated with Dedalus and AUFX:Space before time stretching it in Auria.
Grant
February 3, 2016
Day 161: Weds 3 Feb 2016
Encryption/Decryption:
A Beatscape, sparse and slow. Just like I like them.
I loaded three tracks into Auria; two midi tracks for Poseidon and Addictive Synth, and one audio track for my MicroBrute. I played both apps from the Poseidon keyboard while I played the abstract sounds from the MicroBrute. The midi was then copied to another track and given an acoustic piano sound.
Next I bounced the Poseidon and Addictive Synth tracks to audio and loaded another midi track for each. I chose new sounds for them and jammed them in.
Arrangement ensued.
Grant
February 2, 2016
Day 160: Tuesday 2 Feb 2016
My Dreams Have Been Dark Of Late:
A Beatscape.
Today’s drums began in iMPC Pro, were slowed and lowered in TwistedWave, effected with Dedalus and AUFX:Space, and then slowed again.
The background was made in Grain Science using a recording of my voice made with the AudioShare and AltiSpace combination.
They were collaged in Auria with two old recordings made with my iPhone years ago: one of my office chair creaking, and one of my fretless Fender Jazz.
Grant
February 1, 2016
Day 159: Monday 1 Feb 2016
Ruefully:
A disturbed ambient piece.
I did a jam last week using my Axiom Pro keyboard to play Korg’s Module app with an Electric Piano sound. I ran that through Sector, trimmed out a promising piece, looped it, and then slowed it. All using TwistedWave and AudioShare.
Today I took that into Auria and timestretched it limps and stumbles along, almost languidly. Then I added two Addictive Synth tracks; just jamming along after I add chosen some sounds from my own collection.
Listening to it now, it reminds me of seaweed near the shore, being pushed and pulled by the waves.