October 30, 2018
Hello Peeps,
If there are any peeps out there 😉
It often feels like I’m alone yelling into the abyss but I guess yelling into the abyss is useful for it’s catharsis if nothing else. Perhaps I should change the name of this Blog to ‘Yelling Into The Abyss’.
Anyway, Hello again. It’s been a while I know. It’s not that I haven’t been working, in fact the last few months have been very productive and I have a number of projects on the go; it’s just that I’ve been unsure of the future or direction of this blog or the place it might have in my process.
Today I decided to start posting again and see if or how it develops.
So, here is todays piece. Yesterday and last night was the first snow of the season and this feels like my homage to the beginning of winter.
May 13, 2017
This is an older track; made last year and never posted, for some reason I decided it wasn’t good enough but listening to it now I really like it. There are lots of tracks still sitting around; some unfinished, some not very good, some good but for one reason or another passed over and awaiting their time in the sun.
As it’s title suggests I have posted this to mark my 500th post on Soundcloud.
Who would’ve thought 2 years ago that I could be so prolific? Certainly not me.
It was the discovery of the iPad as a musical tool which sparked off this unexpected plethora of creativity and for that I am very grateful. It’s not that I have ever stopped wanting to be creative, that has been a constant desire all my life, but for some reason the iPhone and iPad was the platform that I needed to overcome my personal demons and to unleash those silent parts of myself that were consigned to dark, dusty and hidden corners.
The other essential ingredient of course was meeting my wonderful wife Lene without whose encouragement and support I could never have beaten back my demons long enough to make anything. The demons still come knocking from time to time of course but she is still there to help me, as I hope I am there to help her.
I am not sure when I will post here again.
It is time for me to revaluate my musical options and explore the different avenues open before me. There is still much to do but I now feel that I will be better served pursuing those avenues without the pressure to produce finished products on a regular basis. It’s just a slight adjustment of perspective I suppose.
Anyway thanks for watching and listening and reading and following my journey so far. This is not the end but merely a hiatus after which I hope to return stronger than ever.
Peace out Tracklings 🙂
February 9, 2017
I’m struggling with this. Number two is another spoken word set this time in an ambient soundscape which I hope suits it.
Words are difficult to get as usual and I want to experiment with more song type forms and with using guitar but I keep coming across barriers, sometimes technical and sometimes of my own making.
Oh well it feels like a learning experience so lets soldier on. I have two or three fragments building so hopefully I’ll have more soon.
August 27, 2016
It’s been fun folks, a great experience to learn more about music and more about myself. A huge shout out to those of you who have followed this journey, your support and interest has meant a lot to me. A special thank you to my lovely wife Lene without whose love and support nothing would be possible.
Something a little different for you on this last day. Something that I think is a little bit special…it’s a video, it’s an ambient piece, it’s a spoken word, it’s a field recording.
Ladies and Gentlemen I give you…
Larvik:
Peace and joy to you all Tracklings.
August 26, 2016
Under A Stone:
Only one more post and my Year Of Posting will be complete.
Today I have a Soundscape for you. Chaotic rhythms, voices, and eventually an ambient scene chase each other across the landscape in a six part tango.
iDensity is the star here, I loaded my own files into all six streams but I used an existing preset from Red Sky Lullaby which I adjusted as needed. The whole thing was jammed three times into AudioShare; this is the third jam (it got more and more defined as I went).
Tracks like this illustrate the need to work regularly and often as it takes advantage of multple tracks from multiple days over months. At least two of the files have already been used in previous tracks but I have no issue with introducing the same sounds etc to new contexts. Helper apps today include: iMPC Pro, ApeFilter, Dedalus, ApeDelay, Auria, Xynthesizr, TwistedWave, AUFX:Dub, AUFX:Space, Patterning, and FLUX:FX.
August 22, 2016
A Delicate Irritation:
Gadget can be used not only for beat driven EDM stuff but for just about anything that you can imagine. Here I am imagining a delicate melancholy; peaceful but with a darkness, if not looming, at least on the horizon. Perhaps a flower with just the first hint of decay.
Gadget fed into Dedalus, then into TwistedWave, then into Auria for mixing.
August 19, 2016
Afloat On A Lullaby:
My music often tends to the dark side but sometimes a little lightness breaks through.
The flute is from Mitosynth and I ran it through Dedalus. That’s it.
Dream on Tracklings.
August 9, 2016
Wandering:
I do love an Abstract Soundscape. An immersive journey through (and with) sound.
iDensity was the only app used today. I highly recommend it for this sort of music.
August 7, 2016
Made To Measure:
An Ambient piece today.
I started with the bassline that I made with iFretless Bass recorded into Auria, then I added the electric piano using Module which I recorded as both audio and midi, then I gave the midi to a glockenspiel (using Auria’s inbuilt sampler) and two different sounds from Addictive Synth. Finally I added a drum hit from my ‘beat snippets’ folder in AudioShare where I collect bits for just such an occasion.
August 5, 2016
Lost:
A playlist for you today, a mini album, an EP. Four tracks that take you on a journey, or rather lose you on one.
The apps used: Moodscaper, Gadget, AudioShare, Dedalus, ApeFilter, FLUX:FX.
I hope you enjoy the experience. Rock on Tracklings.