music - tm

"Clean Transistor" [mp3 removed]

A sort of mechanical tabla runs through it, using FM synthesis. It needed warming up a bit, so I used an "amp modeling" software preset, which also provided the piece's title.

Revised and reposted version of a tune from a couple of weeks ago. A punchier "final" mix (to the extent anything's final). Deleted the original post and kept the same filename for the .mp3.

"I Wake Up Sampling and Holding" [mp3 removed]

The title is a bit of an electro in-joke. Was going to call this "Grid of Seagulls" but am saving that for a later song. The beats and some of the synth sounds here are made with the Reaktor Rhythmmaker sequencer, which makes a variety of digital wails and hums in real time (live synthesis as opposed to sampling--"sample and hold" is a type of waveform that comes in about halfway through, played on another synth).

"Claves of Steel" [mp3 removed]

The piano is a three note e-piano sample (heard at the very beginning) I trimmed from an LP of '70s breakbeats (thanks dave). I cut the sample up into stabs of three differing lengths and mapped each to a couple of octaves' pitch range. Then added compression and phasing and played it using MIDI to get some new tunes. Most of the notes are variations of the first few bars and unfortunately aren't as soulful as the original source (unless you like mutant 12-tone soul). The underlying beats are 4/4 techno with some FX and scratch samples. Also there are live drum hits under the original piano adding a kind of stop and start "breaks" feel to the rhythm. There's also some "house organ" in there.

"Wake Up Two" [mp3 removed]

This has some of the same elements as "I Wake Up Sampling and Holding" but I added some parts to make it more of a song and less atmospheric. Those added riffs are a bit preset-y and might change. The final mix (which also may or may not be final) was done with Reaktor's "Flatblaster" mastering tool, a setting called "gold finalizer."

"Gliese 710" [mp3 removed]

Gliese 710 is a red dwarf star headed towards Earth. In a million years it will be 1 light year away from us--four times as close as Alpha Centauri is now. "We" as in homo sapiens will be long gone, of course. The descendants of long-beaked echidnas who have replaced us as the planet's stewards will have to deal with comets being shaken out of the Oort cloud and raining down on the atmosphere.

The rhythm parts of this song are taken from the "Schmutz kit demo" by Sutekh. I took out what I didn't like and repeated parts I did. I added some arpeggioid tunes (almost like minuets) that could generously be called Goblin-esque.