I have to admit I've been doing a lot of thinking about the Pudge Song of The Month and the blog and all...
The big question being, do I want to keep on doing this? It's a lot of work. I only have a couple more songs in the tank and I'm not as excited about them as the songs I've already put out. I've gone through the "good" songs. So I should probably start writing new material. That's even more work.
and is it all worth it? Why am I doing this? Is it for fame and recognition? That certainly isn't happening. Is it strictly for me? Is this a totally self indulgent excercise? The bottom line in many ways is... am I enjoying this?
I think the answer is yes. I think... I'm going to go ahead and put out the song for this month that I have ready to go. I have a couple good ideas in my head for songs for the next couple of months. I may end up slacking more though. Not sticking to a song a month. We'll see... If I can keep it up, great. But I'm not going to beat myself up about it. If the muse strikes me and I get a creative spark I'll put out a song. If I'm super busy and don't have any inspiration or energy I won't bother.
in the meantime... today I'll be working on Dreamweaver and doing some updates.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Mixing and my ears...
Sometimes I feel like I'm getting "old" and my body is breaking down...
I know my hearing isn't as good as it used to be. I have trouble hearing when there is noise in the background. Sometimes my ears get full of wax and everything sounds muffled. I'm glad I don't have tinnitus. My ears aren't ringing all the time. But I know I don't hear as well as when I was in my teens and 20's.
So what is my point? My point is that sometimes I wonder if I should be mixing my songs? I sometimes wonder if my songs sound horribly wrong and not mixed correctly to people have have good hearing.
When I used to work at Dr. Wax one of my co-workers would often comment on the mixing of certain albums or CDs. He would crack me up by saying, "this is a cocaine mix. the person mixing it used to much coke. There's too much high end." or, "this is a marijuana mix, too much low end." What?! According to him different drugs changed how you heard things.
I don't ever remember him saying however, "this is a hard of hearing mix"!
I know my hearing isn't as good as it used to be. I have trouble hearing when there is noise in the background. Sometimes my ears get full of wax and everything sounds muffled. I'm glad I don't have tinnitus. My ears aren't ringing all the time. But I know I don't hear as well as when I was in my teens and 20's.
So what is my point? My point is that sometimes I wonder if I should be mixing my songs? I sometimes wonder if my songs sound horribly wrong and not mixed correctly to people have have good hearing.
When I used to work at Dr. Wax one of my co-workers would often comment on the mixing of certain albums or CDs. He would crack me up by saying, "this is a cocaine mix. the person mixing it used to much coke. There's too much high end." or, "this is a marijuana mix, too much low end." What?! According to him different drugs changed how you heard things.
I don't ever remember him saying however, "this is a hard of hearing mix"!
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
The sound of my voice
Do you remember the first time you ever heard a recording of your own voice? I remember it very well and thinking to myself, "is THAT what I sound like?"
I pretty much hate my voice. I wish I could be a better singer. I like singing. But I've never really liked the sound of my voice. I think I'm an OK backup singer but I was never meant to be a lead singer.
I've done about three or four different versions of this month's song over the years. Trying to get it to sound the way I wanted. At one point the beats were more "hip hop" and I really wanted to try to do a rap thing. I love rap. It was a horrible experiment. I really think I'm the worst rapper ever. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that I've never found my rapping voice. I do this thing that sort of sounds like Chuck D but lamer. It's an obvious rip off. I wish I could be like Slick Rick or MC Guru in Gang Starr and just sort of talk and sound good. But I think that's the crux of the problem. I can't just talk because I've never liked the sound of my voice.
On that note, I think the vocals I recorded for this month's song sound great! Some of the best vocals I've ever done. Perhaps it's silly to even say that because they probably last for only about 20 seconds. I only sing in the choruses. But I really like the way my voice sounds in this song. and that's odd for me.
I pretty much hate my voice. I wish I could be a better singer. I like singing. But I've never really liked the sound of my voice. I think I'm an OK backup singer but I was never meant to be a lead singer.
I've done about three or four different versions of this month's song over the years. Trying to get it to sound the way I wanted. At one point the beats were more "hip hop" and I really wanted to try to do a rap thing. I love rap. It was a horrible experiment. I really think I'm the worst rapper ever. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that I've never found my rapping voice. I do this thing that sort of sounds like Chuck D but lamer. It's an obvious rip off. I wish I could be like Slick Rick or MC Guru in Gang Starr and just sort of talk and sound good. But I think that's the crux of the problem. I can't just talk because I've never liked the sound of my voice.
On that note, I think the vocals I recorded for this month's song sound great! Some of the best vocals I've ever done. Perhaps it's silly to even say that because they probably last for only about 20 seconds. I only sing in the choruses. But I really like the way my voice sounds in this song. and that's odd for me.
Stuffy nose
I woke up yesterday with a terrible head cold and stuffy nose. I had wanted to re-record a few vocals tracks for the song but I knew I couldn't sing in the shape I'm in.
It got me to wondering. Does this happen to "real" rock and roll stars? Has David Bowie ever booked an expensive session, had the band all lined up, and then gotten a stuffy nose? I'm guessing it happens all the time, but it's not the sort of stuff that rock and roll legend is made of, so it's rarely mentioned.
and I listened to the vocal tracks I recorded the other day and I think they sound fine!
It got me to wondering. Does this happen to "real" rock and roll stars? Has David Bowie ever booked an expensive session, had the band all lined up, and then gotten a stuffy nose? I'm guessing it happens all the time, but it's not the sort of stuff that rock and roll legend is made of, so it's rarely mentioned.
and I listened to the vocal tracks I recorded the other day and I think they sound fine!
Friday, November 26, 2010
What genre is my new song?
I suppose it doesn't help to ask this before I've posted the song but once again this month I'm asking myself... "what genre of music does my song fit into?"
It's not rock. it's not punk. it's not "indie". it's not hip hop. is it techno?
It's not rock. it's not punk. it's not "indie". it's not hip hop. is it techno?
Sunday, November 21, 2010
The whole mixing thing
I remember years ago reading an article in Musician magazine about how Camper Van Beethoven mixed their albums. They would do a mix and then create a cassette and pop it in their boom box and listen to it. They knew that most of the people listening to their album would be listening to it that way instead of a nice fancy stereo.
So when I mix my stuff I listen to it first on headphones. Then I put it in my boom box. Then I listen to it on my nice stereo. Then I listen to it on my car stereo.
My car stereo is important to me because it's the only thing I've got that has the "boom". Sometimes I listen to stuff on it and hear things in the low end that I just don't hear on my other stuff.
I make my mix in Garageband and burn a CD, rip it to iTunes, and then transfer it to my iPod.
I decided tonight that listening to it in the car stereo was the best thing because I really wanted to make sure the bass was booming in this track.
I listened to it the first time and thought the bass was too loud. Some of the tracks sounded a little distorted also. But it sounded great! and then to my surprise one of the older versions I had recorded of the song came on next. So I listened to that as well. There were some things I forgot about. Some good stuff, and some really bad stuff.
I had been trying to decide if I should keep this song an instrumental or not. I really liked what I did in the chorus in the older version I listened to. So I decided to try to add it to the new version.
I went down to the basement and tweaked the levels a bit and added a vocal track in the chorus. It only took me about 10 minutes. I burned another CD and went out to the car to listen to it again. I thought it sounded fantastic! It was so good that I started to sing along. I thought the sound of the double vocal sounded really nice.
So I went back to the basement one more time. I added another doubled up vocal track in the chorus part and burned one more CD. I thought it sounded amazing! I think I have my track. I think it's done for the month. I'm going to listen to it a few more times over the next day or two but I really like it.
So when I mix my stuff I listen to it first on headphones. Then I put it in my boom box. Then I listen to it on my nice stereo. Then I listen to it on my car stereo.
My car stereo is important to me because it's the only thing I've got that has the "boom". Sometimes I listen to stuff on it and hear things in the low end that I just don't hear on my other stuff.
I make my mix in Garageband and burn a CD, rip it to iTunes, and then transfer it to my iPod.
I decided tonight that listening to it in the car stereo was the best thing because I really wanted to make sure the bass was booming in this track.
I listened to it the first time and thought the bass was too loud. Some of the tracks sounded a little distorted also. But it sounded great! and then to my surprise one of the older versions I had recorded of the song came on next. So I listened to that as well. There were some things I forgot about. Some good stuff, and some really bad stuff.
I had been trying to decide if I should keep this song an instrumental or not. I really liked what I did in the chorus in the older version I listened to. So I decided to try to add it to the new version.
I went down to the basement and tweaked the levels a bit and added a vocal track in the chorus. It only took me about 10 minutes. I burned another CD and went out to the car to listen to it again. I thought it sounded fantastic! It was so good that I started to sing along. I thought the sound of the double vocal sounded really nice.
So I went back to the basement one more time. I added another doubled up vocal track in the chorus part and burned one more CD. I thought it sounded amazing! I think I have my track. I think it's done for the month. I'm going to listen to it a few more times over the next day or two but I really like it.
Sunday Funday!
In between all the daily chores and grocery shopping and dinner etc... I worked on the song today.
As far as I'm concerned it's pretty much done. I "might" re-do the vocal tracks. but I might not. they sound great right now even though I recorded them with the built in mic in my MacBook!
I have such a hard time being objective with my own songs/material. I knew that the past few months were more "difficult" material. but I've listened to this month's song probably 30 times today. and I think it's one of the best things I've ever done! really. I think it goes straight to the "Best of Ted" album. one of my fave songs of all time that I've done.
I wonder if I'll feel the same way tomorrow? I was telling Julia earlier this evening that this whole experience sometimes reminds me of that King Crimson song about Adrian Belew's wife making a sculpture.
"I'm looking at it, trying to decide if I like it. I DO!"
As far as I'm concerned it's pretty much done. I "might" re-do the vocal tracks. but I might not. they sound great right now even though I recorded them with the built in mic in my MacBook!
I have such a hard time being objective with my own songs/material. I knew that the past few months were more "difficult" material. but I've listened to this month's song probably 30 times today. and I think it's one of the best things I've ever done! really. I think it goes straight to the "Best of Ted" album. one of my fave songs of all time that I've done.
I wonder if I'll feel the same way tomorrow? I was telling Julia earlier this evening that this whole experience sometimes reminds me of that King Crimson song about Adrian Belew's wife making a sculpture.
"I'm looking at it, trying to decide if I like it. I DO!"
Friday, November 19, 2010
Samples and loops and beats, oh my!
I spent hours this morning working on the song for this month. It's taking a long time to break down all the different parts and put them all together. But it's also been a lot of fun and very interesting to me. A learning experience. I think I'm getting down the whole sampling thing.
There's one part of the song that bugs me though. The piano part just isn't syncing up just the way I want it. I'll probably go home tonight and spend hours trying to get it just right. The neat thing is that once I do get it, I can just pop it right into the spot in the song where it goes. It's almost like a jigsaw puzzle at this point. You can look at the computer screen and "see" where the pieces go.
It also hit me this morning that I've spent a LONG time working on this particular song. I've recorded at least three different versions so far. This is the forth. I've spent hours working on this version alone.
The reason I say that is because once again this song is made up of samples. So far I haven't played a real instrument on it. I'm not sure I will need to. So some people might listen to it and think it was easy to create. But there's a lot of work that went into it.
There's one part of the song that bugs me though. The piano part just isn't syncing up just the way I want it. I'll probably go home tonight and spend hours trying to get it just right. The neat thing is that once I do get it, I can just pop it right into the spot in the song where it goes. It's almost like a jigsaw puzzle at this point. You can look at the computer screen and "see" where the pieces go.
It also hit me this morning that I've spent a LONG time working on this particular song. I've recorded at least three different versions so far. This is the forth. I've spent hours working on this version alone.
The reason I say that is because once again this song is made up of samples. So far I haven't played a real instrument on it. I'm not sure I will need to. So some people might listen to it and think it was easy to create. But there's a lot of work that went into it.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Trying to keep up...
One of the things that I’ve found with this “experiment” is that it’s a LOT harder to keep the blog updated daily/weekly/whatever than do the song each month. I have no idea how people write in their blogs each and every day. Maybe you have to be a super compulsive person to do something like that. I’m just too much of a slacker at heart to keep it up.
I’ve been working on the song for November but it’s been a lot of work. I hope I can get it done by the end of the month. It’s another sample based thing and I’ve been hard at work breaking down each part bit by bit and building it up so it’s all “in tune and in sync” as they say. I’ve “finished” this song several times in the past but I’m starting all over from scratch to try to get it done right. I have the first half of the song pretty much done but I’m working on the break right now. I have a feeling I’ll be up late some night this weekend working on it.
I’ve been working on the song for November but it’s been a lot of work. I hope I can get it done by the end of the month. It’s another sample based thing and I’ve been hard at work breaking down each part bit by bit and building it up so it’s all “in tune and in sync” as they say. I’ve “finished” this song several times in the past but I’m starting all over from scratch to try to get it done right. I have the first half of the song pretty much done but I’m working on the break right now. I have a feeling I’ll be up late some night this weekend working on it.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Last month was easy!
Last month was easy. On my iPod last year I created a playlist called “Halloween” and filled it with “scary” songs for the season. I was listening to the mix a few weeks ago when “Mental Music (Halloween Mix)” started to play. I listened to it and realized that as far as I was concerned the song was already done. It was nice! So no real work last month. It was sort of a bonus month for me.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
The Song of the month for October
Boo!
Here is the link for the October Pudge Song Of The Month.
Whatever you do, do NOT click on this link.
This month the song is evil and disturbing. You do NOT want to listen to it.
It is noisy and offensive and super long. Over 17 minutes of aural torture and pain!
It is called Mental Music (Halloween Mix).
It is based on the radio shows that Jamie Hodge used to do in the middle of the night at WHPK back in the early 90’s. We would “mix” together two (or three) completely different records and add samples to it all. Sort of early mash-ups but more noise based. This song is a pretty good
re-creation of what you would have heard if you had tuned your radio to 88.5 FM in the wee hours of the morning on the south side of Chicago.
http://www.pudgenoise.com/october.html
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Ten posts for the price of one
I've found that keeping up with the blog is just as hard as doing the songs each month. It’s hard to force myself to sit down and write a little something each day. Especially when I haven’t been doing that
much with the music stuff because I've been so busy otherwise. But over the past few weeks I wish I had put up a few more entries. At night when I go to sleep I think of what I should have written that day. So I’m going to try to write down a bunch of thoughts I’ve had over the past few weeks and try to put them in some sort of order…
--------------------------------------------------------------
Crap, I really need to deal with my guitar situation. My beautiful black Fender Strat is all messed up right now. The pickups are loose and need to be screwed in correctly and I think the wiring is messed up. It makes an evil hum every time I plug it in. I really need to take it into the guitar repair place but I don’t have the money. My other problem, and this is lame, is that I can’t find my distortion effect peddle. I NEED distortion when I play. But the darn thing is somewhere in our messy basement and I can’t find it. I’ve spent a long time trying to find it but it seems to be lost. Once again I don’t have the money to just go out and buy a new one. I really want to work on the song for September but I want to record a bunch of guitar tracks.
---------------------------------------------------------------
So I’ve been thinking about the song I’m planning on working on for September. Now I’m wondering if I should use guitar lines at all? I’ve been listening a lot to the Congotronics stuff and loving it. I’m 99% sure that I have an African thumb piano as one of the sounds built into Garageband. Maybe I could try to do a Congrotronics type of thing instead of a guitar based thing?
--------------------------------------------------------------
I checked out Garageband and it’s even better than I thought! Yes, there is a thumb piano built in. It’s called the African Marimba. While checking it out I thought I would play with the various amp settings. It was pretty easy to add distortion and viola. Congrotronics! Right away I seemed to be getting that distinctive
sound. Very cool… now I just have to find the time to sit down and try to do some recordings.
----------------------------------------------------------
My work schedule has been crazy busy but this is the first time I’ve had all month to sit down and get some recording done. I spent about three or four hours working on the track for this month. I like the sound of the distorted marimba a lot more than the guitar but recording the tracks still hasn’t been easy. I’m trying to build some really cool polyrhythmic stuff and I find myself playing on top of the same rhythms I’ve already laid down. It’s hard to get outside of the groove and make it even more funky. It’s also just hard to get down a
good track. The things I’m recording are very simple and minamilist. Sometimes I think those types of tracks are just as hard as something more “complicated”. You try playing the same four notes over and over
again in perfect rhythm for 7 minutes straight!
---------------------------------------------------
Arrrggg… Civilization is an evil game. I admit I have a problem. I am addicted to Civilization IV. I can spend hours staring at my little guys building their farms and cities. But it’s also such an amazing time suck. I had two days last week when I could have worked more on the song but instead I sat all day playing Civilization instead. Part of the “problem” is that I really just felt like chilling. I love making music but sometimes it feels like “work”. I really just wanted to relax and not worry about anything for a few days. So I blew off the song and played Civ instead. It was really nice to feel like I could relax and not worry about working on cover letters and sending out resumes. I really want to get a song out in September after blowing off August so I probably shouldn’t have done that. I think there’s still time.
-----------------------------------------
It just hit me that I only have two days off of work until the end of the month. So I almost have to dedicate those two days to the song if I want to get it out. I know I can do it…
---------------------------------------------------------
I just spent most of the day it seems working on the song. I started with four tracks done and ended up adding five more tracks. It was a lot of work but I also love the way it’s sounding. While I’m not 100% sure it’s as “good” a track as some of the other things I’ve released I really do enjoy it. It’s also an unusual track in that I’m using an old DragKing jam as a basis. Actually it was a DragKing reunion thing we had a few years back. So Stel is doing some noise stuff on it and LV is on drums. His friend is on congas. It’s also an “original”
composition. Not a cover or sample based thing although I do use samples in it. I think what I’ve got now is good enough. I have all day on Thursday to work on it more and update the web pages. So in other words the Pudge Song of the Month will be back!
-------------------------------------------------------------
I dig train sounds
I dig the sound of rain
I dig bird sounds
I dig the sound of thunder and lightening
------------------------------------------------------------------
One of my “problems” this month is that I’m not sure what to name my song. I have a name already for the song but it’s the internal band name for the song. I’m sure all bands go through this. You start to write a song. You don’t know how it’s going to turn out. So you name the new song something like, “The Fast Sabbath Song” or something like that. Then the song at some point becomes complete and the name you’ve been calling it for so long may or may not apply. In DragKing we would rename songs for our CDs but still refer to the original “band” names on our set lists because that what we knew them as. I think the name I’ve got for this month’s song is “ok” but maybe it could be better? Although the name also inspired me when I was
deciding what samples to use. So maybe I should just keep it? I’ve got a couple of days to decide.
much with the music stuff because I've been so busy otherwise. But over the past few weeks I wish I had put up a few more entries. At night when I go to sleep I think of what I should have written that day. So I’m going to try to write down a bunch of thoughts I’ve had over the past few weeks and try to put them in some sort of order…
--------------------------------------------------------------
Crap, I really need to deal with my guitar situation. My beautiful black Fender Strat is all messed up right now. The pickups are loose and need to be screwed in correctly and I think the wiring is messed up. It makes an evil hum every time I plug it in. I really need to take it into the guitar repair place but I don’t have the money. My other problem, and this is lame, is that I can’t find my distortion effect peddle. I NEED distortion when I play. But the darn thing is somewhere in our messy basement and I can’t find it. I’ve spent a long time trying to find it but it seems to be lost. Once again I don’t have the money to just go out and buy a new one. I really want to work on the song for September but I want to record a bunch of guitar tracks.
---------------------------------------------------------------
So I’ve been thinking about the song I’m planning on working on for September. Now I’m wondering if I should use guitar lines at all? I’ve been listening a lot to the Congotronics stuff and loving it. I’m 99% sure that I have an African thumb piano as one of the sounds built into Garageband. Maybe I could try to do a Congrotronics type of thing instead of a guitar based thing?
--------------------------------------------------------------
I checked out Garageband and it’s even better than I thought! Yes, there is a thumb piano built in. It’s called the African Marimba. While checking it out I thought I would play with the various amp settings. It was pretty easy to add distortion and viola. Congrotronics! Right away I seemed to be getting that distinctive
sound. Very cool… now I just have to find the time to sit down and try to do some recordings.
----------------------------------------------------------
My work schedule has been crazy busy but this is the first time I’ve had all month to sit down and get some recording done. I spent about three or four hours working on the track for this month. I like the sound of the distorted marimba a lot more than the guitar but recording the tracks still hasn’t been easy. I’m trying to build some really cool polyrhythmic stuff and I find myself playing on top of the same rhythms I’ve already laid down. It’s hard to get outside of the groove and make it even more funky. It’s also just hard to get down a
good track. The things I’m recording are very simple and minamilist. Sometimes I think those types of tracks are just as hard as something more “complicated”. You try playing the same four notes over and over
again in perfect rhythm for 7 minutes straight!
---------------------------------------------------
Arrrggg… Civilization is an evil game. I admit I have a problem. I am addicted to Civilization IV. I can spend hours staring at my little guys building their farms and cities. But it’s also such an amazing time suck. I had two days last week when I could have worked more on the song but instead I sat all day playing Civilization instead. Part of the “problem” is that I really just felt like chilling. I love making music but sometimes it feels like “work”. I really just wanted to relax and not worry about anything for a few days. So I blew off the song and played Civ instead. It was really nice to feel like I could relax and not worry about working on cover letters and sending out resumes. I really want to get a song out in September after blowing off August so I probably shouldn’t have done that. I think there’s still time.
-----------------------------------------
It just hit me that I only have two days off of work until the end of the month. So I almost have to dedicate those two days to the song if I want to get it out. I know I can do it…
---------------------------------------------------------
I just spent most of the day it seems working on the song. I started with four tracks done and ended up adding five more tracks. It was a lot of work but I also love the way it’s sounding. While I’m not 100% sure it’s as “good” a track as some of the other things I’ve released I really do enjoy it. It’s also an unusual track in that I’m using an old DragKing jam as a basis. Actually it was a DragKing reunion thing we had a few years back. So Stel is doing some noise stuff on it and LV is on drums. His friend is on congas. It’s also an “original”
composition. Not a cover or sample based thing although I do use samples in it. I think what I’ve got now is good enough. I have all day on Thursday to work on it more and update the web pages. So in other words the Pudge Song of the Month will be back!
-------------------------------------------------------------
I dig train sounds
I dig the sound of rain
I dig bird sounds
I dig the sound of thunder and lightening
------------------------------------------------------------------
One of my “problems” this month is that I’m not sure what to name my song. I have a name already for the song but it’s the internal band name for the song. I’m sure all bands go through this. You start to write a song. You don’t know how it’s going to turn out. So you name the new song something like, “The Fast Sabbath Song” or something like that. Then the song at some point becomes complete and the name you’ve been calling it for so long may or may not apply. In DragKing we would rename songs for our CDs but still refer to the original “band” names on our set lists because that what we knew them as. I think the name I’ve got for this month’s song is “ok” but maybe it could be better? Although the name also inspired me when I was
deciding what samples to use. So maybe I should just keep it? I’ve got a couple of days to decide.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Oh no, I got a job!
The best possible thing has happened in my life. I got a new job! It's still only part time but it's a better gig, more money, and more hours. I'm continuing to work in my old part time job as well so between the two of them it's almost like a full time job. I couldn't be happier!
except that I know it's going to make an impact on my little project. I'm already a month behind.
On the other hand after working so hard I'm really looking forward to some time off to work on music. I feel inspired right now to work on some stuff and I've got some great ideas for some of the songs I want to work on next.
except that I know it's going to make an impact on my little project. I'm already a month behind.
On the other hand after working so hard I'm really looking forward to some time off to work on music. I feel inspired right now to work on some stuff and I've got some great ideas for some of the songs I want to work on next.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
I Failed!
One of my 13 year old's favorite expressions is, "you failed!"
and I failed... I never got a song out for the month of August. bummer... I should have known how busy my summer would be and that I would have no time to do much for myself because the kids were out of school and I'm Mr. Mom.
I can only blame myself, and part of the problem is that I'm a good Dad. I just can't ignore the kids and go down to the basement to my little studio and record for hours while they're home. They need too much attention and I like to spend time with them doing things.
When I record I need complete concentration and time. I can't be interrupted. These things just can't happen when I hear, "Dad, I'm hungry", when I'm trying to record. It all reminds me of one of my favorite Monty Python sketches. The one where Beethoven is trying to work on his ninth symphony and keeps getting interrupted. While I certainly don't think I compare to Beethoven in any way the sentiment is the same.
and I failed... I never got a song out for the month of August. bummer... I should have known how busy my summer would be and that I would have no time to do much for myself because the kids were out of school and I'm Mr. Mom.
I can only blame myself, and part of the problem is that I'm a good Dad. I just can't ignore the kids and go down to the basement to my little studio and record for hours while they're home. They need too much attention and I like to spend time with them doing things.
When I record I need complete concentration and time. I can't be interrupted. These things just can't happen when I hear, "Dad, I'm hungry", when I'm trying to record. It all reminds me of one of my favorite Monty Python sketches. The one where Beethoven is trying to work on his ninth symphony and keeps getting interrupted. While I certainly don't think I compare to Beethoven in any way the sentiment is the same.
Monday, August 16, 2010
August delay
I haven't done anything with music this month. I've been too busy being Mr. Mom. The kids are out of school for the summer and it seems like every day is crazy. It's really hard to find the time to sit down and really concentrate on making music. They'll be back in school in September and I know I'll have more time again then but as for now...
My plan is to get at least something up this month. I don't care if it's on the 31st... as long as it's in August I'll be OK with it. Then I'll try to get the September song as quickly as I can and then get the October song out on the 1st. I already know what song I have planned for October and it's already done.
so there we go. time to try to get back to work and get a little work done.
My plan is to get at least something up this month. I don't care if it's on the 31st... as long as it's in August I'll be OK with it. Then I'll try to get the September song as quickly as I can and then get the October song out on the 1st. I already know what song I have planned for October and it's already done.
so there we go. time to try to get back to work and get a little work done.
Monday, August 2, 2010
Intersting article
http://new.uk.music.yahoo.com/blogs/behind_the_music/15279/chaplin-charity-girl-silenced/
A young girl in the UK used an 80 year old Charlie Chaplin song in a video to raise money for charity. The company that owns the copyright asked the girl to pay about $4000 in licensing fees fer permission to use the song.
This is why I can't make the music that I want legally. In the last song I posted I used samples from three different sources. It could cost me about $12000 to put out that song legally. For an artist like me who doesn't make any money from their music and is only doing it for pleasure this is crazy! How could I possibly come up with that kind of money just to record one of my songs?
A young girl in the UK used an 80 year old Charlie Chaplin song in a video to raise money for charity. The company that owns the copyright asked the girl to pay about $4000 in licensing fees fer permission to use the song.
This is why I can't make the music that I want legally. In the last song I posted I used samples from three different sources. It could cost me about $12000 to put out that song legally. For an artist like me who doesn't make any money from their music and is only doing it for pleasure this is crazy! How could I possibly come up with that kind of money just to record one of my songs?
Monday, July 12, 2010
The Pudge Song of the Month for July
This month's song has a long history. This is my third attempt at
recording it. I first recorded it about 20 years ago when I was in the
band The Noise Factory with Jamie Hodge, then while I was in DragKing we
recorded it again for our 1999 release “Indie Authenticity Crisis”.
So why did I record it again? A few months ago I was going through my old
cassettes and I found some of the mixes that Jamie and I had made from the
8 track recordings we did years ago in the Noise Factory. I listened to
the old cassette and loved it. One of my fave songs was “King Richie I”.
Then I listened to the DragKing version again. I decided that there were
things that I liked in both versions and thought it would be fun to do it
one more time since it was one of my favorite songs. So I created a
mash-up of sorts that I think combines elements of both versions. I hope
you enjoy it as much as I do.
http://www.pudgenoise.com/july.html
http://www.pudgenoise.com
Friday, July 9, 2010
Mixing and being a perfectionist
Moving along on the song. Spent some time on Wednesday re-recording the bass and guitar lines and everything sounds great right now. My "problem" is that I made a quick mix of everything and I think it sounds like crap. I've got to spend some time working on the mix now.
but... to do this I need several hours of uninterupted time to really listen to each track and get everything sounding right. I have no idea when I'll be able to get this uninterupted time however... hopefully this weekend? I'd like to get this song out.
but... to do this I need several hours of uninterupted time to really listen to each track and get everything sounding right. I have no idea when I'll be able to get this uninterupted time however... hopefully this weekend? I'd like to get this song out.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
It worked!
My samples and my beats are in sync and sound amazing!
holy shit... you have no idea what this means to me. I've been working on trying to make the samples and the beats sync in the particular song I was working on tonight for at least ten years. I first recorded this song with Jamie in the Noise Factory. Did it again in DragKing and made it more sample based but could never get the samples to "work" quite right. We released it anyway on our first album even though I was never completely happy with the way it sounded.
Tonight for the first time it sounds like I've been wanting it to sound. I'm really excited about this! I will be releasing this as my song of the month for July shortly.
and this opens up a whole new door for me... wow...
holy shit... you have no idea what this means to me. I've been working on trying to make the samples and the beats sync in the particular song I was working on tonight for at least ten years. I first recorded this song with Jamie in the Noise Factory. Did it again in DragKing and made it more sample based but could never get the samples to "work" quite right. We released it anyway on our first album even though I was never completely happy with the way it sounded.
Tonight for the first time it sounds like I've been wanting it to sound. I'm really excited about this! I will be releasing this as my song of the month for July shortly.
and this opens up a whole new door for me... wow...
Went to Garageband school
so for the past two days I've spent hours looking at videos on YouTube about how to use Garageband. Go to YouTube and type in "Garageband tutorials" or "How to use samples in Garageband" and you can find some very interesting stuff.
One of the things that cracked me up was one of the tutorials is done by a kid who seems to be about 10 years old. He was good. and I really did pick up some great tips how to do some of the stuff I've been trying to do.
My main issue/problem is getting my samples to link up with the beats. In a book I got it said that if you take your sample loop and save it in the library if you use it in a song it will automatically sync with whatever beat you lay down. It doesn't seem to work that way for me. When I lay down my beats at a certain bpm and then put down the samples in a loop they never sync up. Or at least they never sync up for the length of the song.
but several of the videos seemed to give a hint to what the secret is. I was thinking too literally in a way. When I would lay down my sample loop tracks I would put them on one track. Repeat the same thing over and over again. After awhile it would start to go just a little out of sync.
so instead of putting the looped samples on one track what you do is use two different tracks. alternate between tracks with the sample. and on each track make sure the samples are synced up with the drum track.
I'm guessing this makes no sense to 99% of the people reading this. but for me it's a massive epiphany. If this works the way I think it will work it will allow me to create the kind of music I've been wanting to make for years. but haven't had the technology to create.
It's about 10pm on July 4th. I can hear the fireworks going off all around me. I'm going to run down to the basement and fire up the studio and try this theory out. If it works I have a feeling I won't be able to sleep tonight.
One of the things that cracked me up was one of the tutorials is done by a kid who seems to be about 10 years old. He was good. and I really did pick up some great tips how to do some of the stuff I've been trying to do.
My main issue/problem is getting my samples to link up with the beats. In a book I got it said that if you take your sample loop and save it in the library if you use it in a song it will automatically sync with whatever beat you lay down. It doesn't seem to work that way for me. When I lay down my beats at a certain bpm and then put down the samples in a loop they never sync up. Or at least they never sync up for the length of the song.
but several of the videos seemed to give a hint to what the secret is. I was thinking too literally in a way. When I would lay down my sample loop tracks I would put them on one track. Repeat the same thing over and over again. After awhile it would start to go just a little out of sync.
so instead of putting the looped samples on one track what you do is use two different tracks. alternate between tracks with the sample. and on each track make sure the samples are synced up with the drum track.
I'm guessing this makes no sense to 99% of the people reading this. but for me it's a massive epiphany. If this works the way I think it will work it will allow me to create the kind of music I've been wanting to make for years. but haven't had the technology to create.
It's about 10pm on July 4th. I can hear the fireworks going off all around me. I'm going to run down to the basement and fire up the studio and try this theory out. If it works I have a feeling I won't be able to sleep tonight.
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