Stupid Names

I just can't decide which name is more stupid: King Korg or Sub/Slim/Little Phatty. Now there's a genuine competition, will we see a Roland You-Want-A-303-Well-Tough-Titty or a Yamaha Welost-R-Way?

Went to a funeral today. Even though we paid for it I can't say I had a great time. Didn't get a great deal of work done, a few lines written or tweaked but nothing substantial. I now have a whole series of "verifies" to do to make sure what I've said so far is true, or at least that I agree with it still. Want to get Tony to bring my old MS20 round so I can definitely try Hz/Volt. Have done everything else, not to destruction but enough to know it works as expected. Am forming conclusions and I hope they're rounded. More OS updates on the way and good ones I think, hope they'll materialise in time. Which reminds me, someone else to chase about OS updates.

Tony working on the SK20, has stuck some of the broken wood and discovered another breakage, a large capacitor he's had to replace. He'll continue working on it tomorrow, doing repairs plus the mod I wanted (I always want a mod, can't help myself, hooked!).

Here's Tony working hard

And here's Tim's lovely Ody

That's probably all I have to say today. Not profound in any way. 

More beer and curry

Tony and Colin's visit was very pleasant and on a purely mercenary level I now have a fixed delay, have played the SK20 (sounds great, Tony took it away for proper fix and examination), will take Prodigy for transformer replacement when I go up next and the Synthi refused to crackle so didn't replace its knob.

Colin did a few nice things such as de-tripletise the prepeat with three previous notes so they line up to common timing. Changed some pattern edit save/esc buttons for speed and gave ability to insert newly saved scene after current scene rather than end of scene list. We ate lots of curry and drank lots of beer. This evening I must work, have done some work on review gear anyway. We all agreed the JX3P is much underrated.

Pushed into it...

Seems that April's gig will be a Headshock gig, I don't think I'd entirely persuaded Tim but the poster got advertised and he's going along with it, bless. It'll be good for us though, see if the amazing run we've been having in the studio is transportable to a gig environment. Which gear will we take? His new Odyssey I hope. Looks gorgeous and I'm trying not to be insanely jealous and so far succeeding. I remember when I had loads of cash for new  toys though. :)

Still, speaking of which, two new toys are coming today for review. One of them I'm especially interested in, both are analogue and four voices and potentially quite cool. Makes me think that if anyone makes a VA now it'll need to concentrate on the stuff RA can't cheaply accomplish, which is polyphony, effects, filter choices, complex modulation. It'll also need fab performance/UI or be in a small convenient rack. Also, shitty, steppy controls and resonance that's a grafted-on sine wave just won't cut it any more.

Must make a more vigorous start on the two bits of gear I already have, one had long-time but OS update means it should be reviewed now. Shame there's still that stupid design flaw, will see if I can coax a fix and stall for a bit more time simultaneously.

Wonders never cease

Well, that's a first, 9 tracks submitted all rated as good. No changes asked for, I'm gobsmacked. Either they're in a rush for them or, heck I dunno, going easier on me. Only slight issue is they want translations of the african singing and I don't see that anywhere. Not sure the sample library will have it either but I can ask, assuming I remember where each one came from, which could be hard!

Anyway, mastering and sending off 9 tracks including non-vocal versions should keep me occupied today! Will put off tidying place for visitors until later...

The Eternity Program

It's the title of the second novel in the Bogus Focus series. I have an album of music inspired by it, even though I haven't written very much of it down yet. Saw on the news there are new Dark Matter theories being announced soon based on the mass of the Higgs. I really hope not as Dark Energy is very much the driving force behind EP.

What else? Did another cool new track, Octatrack and Cirklon doing good shit together. Made CD of EP to listen to and maybe send to Andy so he can tell me which tracks are shit. I never know. Also may have agreed to a Binar gig in Oct although needn't be Binar, said I'd be happy to be backing for him playing solo, no worries there. If Binar it means I have to do more work and there's Ideation same day. Still, whatever.

Working on review, not as much as I'd planned though. Made shortbread.

Typical!

So last night I was planning to polish the african/burmese tracks but with it being Pat's night off (due to horse competition stuff), I didn't. Tony came round and we gawped at the moon, jupiter and other jobbies. Telescope calibrated OK when I picked two specific stars so that's how I'll do it from now on.

Ironically today was chased for the tracks, first time I've been chased for owt. Quickly mixed what I had, sent off. Maybe that's the best approach, time will tell. This evening I worked on a review - beta OS of a hard/soft thing that's improved, thank goodness. At least I'll have something to say, will try to get as much done in the week as I can, before the guys arrive Friday.

Listening to some Headshock now - a quick mix I did of the pre and post xmas stuff. It needs work, especially the pre, but there's some amazing bits in there. Speaking of Headshock, heard a very old version of Explorers of the Dreamworld last night. It's really different to what we released, lots of tracks we later scrapped but which I think have some merit. Even the excessive use of samples didn't grate although I spose repeated listens would. May see if we can give it away as an incentive to get folks to buy the final version.

Duncan was enthusing over the OT MIDI sequencer, made me think I should take another look. Will I ever need to do a minimal Cirklon-less gig? Maybe, so I should refresh my memory. If I can be arsed...

I like this picture of grass. I may have posted it before though.

New tune today, sticking with one song per bank and just using first part so effectively ignoring parts. Still sticking with first 4 patterns though  but there's leeway to explore afterwards and find a use for the parts, thinking that part 3 could always be a copy of the finished part 1 just in case I bugger it up, course if I remember to copy it I could just as easy remember to save it. Hey ho.

Margaret here tonight, some horse thing in the morning. Nowt on telly and we're watching Porridge the Movie, for some reason. Not drinking as I seem to have drunk a litre of fizzy white shite last night while watching Social Network (good).

Friday Nordles

OK, I admit it I did no real work today except listen through the new library stuff and see if anything annoyed me. Seemed OK but I'm getting deaf to what's good and not, more preoccupied with "what won't they like". Sigh. So instead I cleared Cirklon and started a new Octatrack project, dug out the Radias and began two new tracks. Should be able to make a whole new set in the weeks heading towards April. All good.

Went through the app review, it's done but no need to worry, will send over weekend after another read or two. Walking the line between necessary and unnecessary detail, want to go on about lots of it that I find cool but probably not needed in the grand scheme of things.

Here's one of the things I started, rough jam version of it Friday Jam

roses are red
violets are glorious
never sneak up
on oscar pistorius

I didn't write that but it's so damn perfect I wish I had.

Did more library stuff today, all starting to mush together and hard to stay into it. Was going to work on gig stuff tonight, take some time off while Pat goes to bingo. But her half-sister died. Awaiting her getting home to hear. I went and did horses so she and Dawn could go off and sort. Just ate a vindaloo from Lostock Tandoori but it's not as good as it was, I'll stick to the Radohny in future. A hell of a lot of sauce, not so much chicken.

So that was my day.

A little song

I'm gonna run for Poop
I already got my scoop
And if I try I've a rheumy eye,
A sinister grin and a stoop.

I'm gonna run for Poop
I'm told they get free soup
Even though I'm old and I won't be told
'bout the pervy lads in the troup.

I'm gonna run for Poop
I'll jump through any hoop
For an easy life, I'll trade in the wife
My accountant can find a loop.

I'm gonna run for Poop
Gonna sit on some gold and whoop
Can't make a mistake, can't ever be fake
I'm gonna be the Poop!

I know, I know.

Arse, Feck, should I run for Poop?

We got horse in our burgers and rat in our zingers, that's all I'm sayin'

Well just as I started to put feelers out about the guy sending the SK20 it arrived. I pointed out to the delivery chimp the large hole in one end and he lamely said it musta got caught or something. Alas it was not the case and the synth had obviously been dropped. Not only was the wood bashed in but it was dead too. Opened up and saw a split board right next to the main transformer. Sigh, I think I knew any transaction with this guy was jinxed. Worse, I heard his tale of woe in which his ex had killed herself last thursday...

So I guess it's good I haven't been getting real mad with him. I'd sensed some kind of issue going on and maybe this explains his vagueness. My problem is I'm still £140 down, plus the Digitech I sent him to cover costs, supposedly. I contacted UPS who are gonna come and take it away to be assessed (no idea who by!). Then they pay, supposedly, and I can get it back. I bet it'll be a pain but maybe they have so many primates wazzing boxes around they are slick at this. I am not well chuffed with the bashed wood so even if I get the full wack for it and have it repaired for around that amount, it'll still look like shit.

Hey blogs are good for moaning? No point telling anyone else so I can just write it down here. The guy flat out lied to me several times though. He only posted it on Friday and I'm not even sure he did it cos he said he was told it would be packed well. WTF? It wasn't packed brilliantly, not enough bubble wrap and too much shredded paper (useless) but I've seen worse. It was just too heavy to send in a box unless you had a real good, sturdy one. God I'm sounding like a right moany old bastard but it's pissed me off waiting for weeks only to be back at worse than square one.

Tonight I should work. Not in the mood though. Missed that RS09 too. Sigh.

Right, review to read through, another to write, should do some african music... might have a beer...

Interesting day. Having suggested a groovy new feature to a company whose product I was reviewing, the feature (note probability) turned up today. How's that?!! I am quietly gobsmacked.

Rest of the day didn't do a lot. Pottered with Octatrack and Cirklon, trying a new process of having a single Ck song equivalent to an Octatrack project. It's not dramatically different to what I've done before but I'm experimenting. Scenes can store tempo now and that's good and if my Octatrack project has related stuff going through it, it gives me much more scope for experimental stuff than the earlier way, plus it's easier to keep them equivalent.

Will work on review tonight after more testing.

Did so, slightly different functionality than I'd envisaged but right in context. I think the review looks and reads OK but will see what tomorrow brings as I don;t actually have a deadline. Good to have it done, might polish slightly after leaving it for a while. Always good when I can do that - often see printed ones I'd like to have left a week just to prepare that final trawl. Didn/t do the app review. Ended up watching documentary about Wish You Were Here instead even though I've seen it before.

Empty Vessels

So today I waited for the SK20 again. Or, indeed, any tracking information. I wrote a helpful guide for sending gear on EM Classifieds. It went like this:

 I've sent and received a number of packages over the years. Here's six simple tips to avoid most problems:

1) If you put multiple addresses on the box, they *will* send it to the wrong place. When you write the delivery address, make it large and clear so even an idiot would realise this isn't the place to add a label.
2) Don't give couriers complex instructions. Later, when asked why they didn't comply, the response will be: huh?
3) Pack well. Assume at some point in its journey your precious box will be handled by a baboon. It will. 
4) Insure it. 
5) Obtain tracking information. When the patient addressee asks, as the weeks roll gently by: where's my package? you'll be able to give them the tracking info. Better still, give it them right away. Volunteer it. 
6) Finally, good, clear communication and comprehension is key. Don't make the patient addressee feel like they're pulling teeth to drag info such as despatch info, tracking info etc. out of you.

Stick to those and we'll all be very happy 


Font weirdness now...

Fixed?

I'm staying remarkably chilled because I think the guy might have some issues and I don't want to stress him. See how evolved I am these days? How;s this font? Oh bugger it...

So my new tracks went down well - amazing! Of course they'll probably reassess later and ask me to change everything. Next up are some pure african and pure burmese. I've started some. Still hoping one day to write music I can actually do. 

Went to see John for a brew, not long enough but good to see him anyway. Pat watched for the courier but, of course, no joy.

I know, no reason for this...

Busy

You can always tell when I'm busy - no blogs.
So I completed a couple of w/african/burmese fusion tracks and they went down well. Want more in fact with some pure african, others burmese. The latter harder as I don't have many applicable instruments or anything close to the burmese oboe (hne is it?). Have cracked on with two reviews I have in progress. There's another I haven't started as waiting for Akai and something new to say and two more on the way, both stuff I'm looking forward to and both analogue. Good times so I dunno if I'll be able to do Awakenings next month - have asked if anyone else could step in. If I do play, it'll be wild and messy.

Just had a fab curry and now settling in to some San Miguel. The album with Paul selling very well, down to his skills and pulling power but good to be part of it. Looking forward to doing the next one already, will be different as we'll nail the sequencing this time.

When Tony comes he's gonna replace my noisy env amount pot on the Synthi and take away the Roland delay.

Didn't manage to get telescope fully working but did at least get my longitude and latitude to put into the thing next clear night. It's a bit faffy and not totally sure it's right yet but we'll see. Have kept box.

Yamaha SK20 supposed to be here tomorrow. The guy is totally vague though and getting info from him like pulling teeth. It's been bloody weeks! Hope he packed it OK, with his track record it's hard to be optimistic.

Sent CD to Spain, dunno if they'll like it but will release myself if not. I know it's too weird for most folks but it no longer matters to me, I think I finally reached that pleasant stage of being happy what I do regardless. Must be art!

I'm rambling like a total git eh? A break from review writing but really I wanna work on the novel, but no time.

The cold has almost gone. Not quite though!

Here's a picture at random.

Back from Lanzarote

Brilliant holiday despite both of us coming down with colds. Paul's been busy finishing album while I'm away and, of course, he turned up magic.

http://paullawler.bandcamp.com/album/jam-sessions-vol-1

More to report later, lots to do including some Burmese and West African music (a challenge!) for Liz that I expect she will dislike but I'll try anyway. A few gigs suddenly lining up out of nowhere and also the EMS Quartet/Quintet/Sextet seems to be gathering momentum now someone with drive (Ian Boddy) has thought about it. Could be good!

Seems to be a few decent things from NAMM, hope some come my way, especially the MS20 of course as I enjoyed playing it on the above jam session and had forgotten what cool stuff it can do.