Turns out I peaked in the 80s.

Yes, no surprise I suppose. I haven't really listened to any of that old stuff, using the excuse of not having a cassette deck mainly, but a guy I must have communicated with at the time has kept a pretty good vault. Actually he has tapes I no longer have and has put in the effort of restoring them and sending me MP3s. Kinda humbling that anyone would do that with such care.

Amazingly there's stuff on there that's a zillion times better than the material that made my latest vinyl reissue. So far I've listened to Duncton Wood, Eternal Champion, The Path, There & Back Again and some of Sketches. The last of those was never released and he had a hand-written copy I must've done for him. Had forgotten some of the tracks even existed.

Here's the thing: the tracks I once liked now sound dated, cheesy, weak, poorly-played, embarrassing... but some of those I thought too plain now shine. Bloody weird experience.

The quality still isn't great and there are still fluffs and corny bits leaking into the good stuff, but I am coming round to the idea of getting the source material and saving the tracks that deserve it for bandcamp. Strange to hear myself from 30 years ago, little piano pieces, sequences, ambient or weird tracks. I don't have so many ideas these days. Remember writing The Path on a piece of paper as I sat waiting  in a car park for Pat, something I rarely do cos my notation is rubbish.

So I think the festivities are done. Actually we may have to have more as our Dawn been doing them down south and expects us to do them again when she's home. I have lots of work on though, finished my first review (out of the 6 I have stacked up) and I keep wanting to go back and play with the first thing, having sorta changed my position on it since day 1 with repeated playing... darn.

Invited to a NYE party but may not go as Pat will want to stay in . Good excuse for me then.

The Dr Who Xmas special was excellent, there I've said it.

Lots of the country has snow but not us. :(

Anyway, here's to a great 2015!

PRS day

Well, I've been lucky so far but today earnings are down. Apparently I'm not alone but that's no surprise or consolation. On the plus side, the dozen tracks I submitted were finally approved, all of them, no tweaks needed. This is a pleasant surprise. I need more tracks and more variety. More talent and drive would help there.

I have some ideas for more music for over the break so will take a similar approach and do a lot. However Tim's around and there's going to be lots of chances for us to work on tracks. Today we did a little overdubbing of 'Contopus' which has a couple of very good sections. Showed that I need more acoustic instruments, should get my own violin.

Doubt I'll get much time to work on novel for a while, I have a few old releases lined up for bandcamp and it's interesting that the old stuff goes down best. I guess I should not be surprised. Mind you everyone likes JIC and I discovered a gig from 2004 at the Space Centre that I'd forgotten about. Phil is playing a lot of guitar synth and I'm not sure it sounds like 'us' but I'll listen through and rate it...

I fixed up a few of the better tracks from the early 90s. It's a free download.

https://paulnagle.bandcamp.com/album/sardines

We also put up Tales of Summers Past, I ended up trimming the tracks a little to line up the track start and ends a bit more precisely. Anal to the last. Anyway, not convinced people will listen to it enough times to get it but what the heck. :)

Mum's dog Ally finally went home. Bob the rabbit seems more chilled now he's not being started at all the time. He's been hanging around the house these last few evenings because Pat noticed he's either been scratched or maybe a cat bit him.

Still having battles with the Analog Four. Some days I think it's worth the effort, other times I feel how I could design the best 'groove box' yet myself but nobody would build it. It's just so very much less than a P3/Radias combination and, really, is the size reduction so great? It's strongest point is still being able to have 128 complete projects on board, compared to the P3's 12. Well, I spose Cirklon and Radias, and.... it goes on. I'll never have the perfect gear for gigging and I'll keep resisting the laptop route and keep struggling. Perfectus super absolutionem. Missing Phil today. Weird to think we'll never play together again. Weird to think Binar might do another gig, hope that's a good idea....

Heading north

Well, the Fixie Wixie Pixie has worked his magic, heading up tomorrow to get my stuff (and take the SH-101 for a new switch). Seems the Microwave 2 doesn't have a battery for its globals either so I'll check whether I'm simply being an idiot or there's some weirder reason it always defaults to channel 1 on power up. Confess I
had forgotten about the power off button as it's actually a stand-by I never use it. Still, if the encoders are better now that's excellent.

The encoder on my ESX-1 has gone wrong already - that's the replacement one Tony fit for me last year. Bloody things, I really don't like encoders much. Used to but too many issues with them.
I'm also a bit disappointed the Perfourmer mk2 has a failing power supply after only 2 years.

Micron should be fine for a while now, new encoder and sounds like almost all the switches replaced. Not quite the bargain it was but what the hell.

Was stoned yesterday (waiting for new Volca, still not arrived) and therefore agreed to do another Binar gig. Hope I don't regret it as sometimes it's best to leave them wanting more. We did some great stuff but is there any more in the tank? I wonder if the gig I saw recently made me think we should show them it's possible to play really live? I've asked myself a few questions today but have precious few answers. Still, the man can play like a god so what the hell!

So anyway I thought I'd work out the sequence for 'The Haunted Doobie'. Took me a few goes actually, especially as I'd remembered it in the wrong key. It's hard to get very close to the sound (and immediacy) on the Analog Four and once again I'm wondering if I'll spend years on this thing only to ditch it in frustration. I may just have grown too close to Colin's sequencers and Korg's drum machines to ever be satisfied with anything else. If the new electribes impress me, perhaps I'll jump ship one more time. I can't honestly see Elektron listening to the ideas I've sent for improving the speed for live performance. Colin will though.

I released another JIC archive the other day. Will let those rest for a while. Contemplated getting some of my older stuff out but whenever I listen to it I don't think it's up to scratch. Could be that my best recent release (And Darkness Falls) would have been a good one to bow out with. More and more I want to make stuff that's wonky and imperfect.

Visited by a genius and the master of the universe...

Well, if Aphex Twin's latest (pulled) interview is to be believed anyway. I try to encourage Colin to greater things not by praise but by challenges. Either way I hope for a new development phase soon to get a few things tidied up and generally improved.

An excellent curry, went to see a gig on the Saturday, enjoyable but more a DJ set than a fully live thing, which is increasingly the case I suppose. People don't even set their own patches any more and flounder when the computer doesn't do it how they planned. Jeez I'm an old moaner, but only privately. Well, if a blog counts as private (I think this one does).

So Tony took away the Micron with its flakey power supply and failing switches and he took away the Microwave with its dead battery and almost-dead encoders. All deals I hadn't planned on costing me anything but synths I intend to keep. Surprisingly the Perfourmer 2 failed to power up on Saturday night after we returned from the gig. Hope it's just some stoner, rookie mistake but we couldn't immediately suss on Sunday morning. He took Tim's ailing CR8000 too and we discussed my Minimoog's mod wheel. Tony going to consider the best solution for that as at the moment I do most of my modulation over the first few mm, which is mad.

The new leads work great with the Dark Energy, proper TRS to 3.5mm connections, the DE going through the A4 input to make it almost integral. Thinking a sampling Volca might be perfect through the other for my smallest-scaled setup yet. The DE is a great addition to the A4 universe, partly due to the interface, partly due to the rip-roaring sound.

Now back to work. Well, after hearing the new Pink Floyd album which I'm liking a lot more than I expected so far in spite of the kazoo. If it's mostly outtakes, these outtakes are better than most current bands' highest quality.

I think we're all agreed that the Streichfett is great value for money but its phaser is horrible and the lack of top end a shame. It layers beautifully with the Micron though.

Prime numbers, noodles and easy vs hard

So I spent a couple of days making this weird looping string quartet thing on the Analog Four. By weird coincidence I'm talking with someone about doing some other looping material and I was wondering whether doing it in hardware might be good.

The Analog Four is a fine thing but it's still slow to use and at the moment subject to those random level fluctuations that I suspect is a bug in the voice-sharing there since day 1. Annoyingly I had a situation where I could turn on two tracks and cause a dramatic change in another but instead of saving the kit and sending in the pattern to be looked at, I kept tinkering until the issue became less obvious.

I can see myself working with this for a few years then dumping it in frustration. I'm just used to working faster. As an exercise, I replicated the prime number loop thing with Cirklon and the Korg Radias. It took me about 10 mins, and that includes the Radias patch programming too. Of course with Cirklon I can do a lot more but so far have just added random gate masking. Will add random note transposition too if I feel it necessary but as I now have the two looping, it's mayhem!

The numbers I chose were 47, 53, 59 and 61 as they're the longest primes I can put into a single A4 pattern. Cirklon isn't quite so restricted.

I got a new rack laptop stand) allowing me to stack the A4 above the Blofeld. Room for the Dark Energy which I'm gonna drive from the CV/Gate once Tony makes me some nice leads. Had a lot of fun with the ESX-1 the other day, the new electribes are gonna need to be very impressive to make me turn away from that.

I really do prefer an easy and fast user interface. I may have complaints about Cirklon but it's still light years better than any Elektron sequencer. Darn.

Aphex Twin waxing lyrical about Cirklon recently. Colin's head will be expanding. :) People occasionally ask me if I feel my contribution is not recognised enough. All I ever reply is: enough?

Right, should do some work. Heh been saying that all week. Colin/Tony coming so need to tidy up at least.

Back to work..

After several days of sheer Headshock indulgence. It's possible we recorded too much - my fault for a change, perhaps guided by the ghost of Phil. Simply: I wanted to hear the most recent gear recorded as I've hardly recorded the Minimoog much yet, let alone the Juno, the Streichfett.

Interestingly, the Juno6 has proved the most interesting addition, who'd have thought? Just that and a Kaoss Pad3 and I can pretty much play all day. Groovy! The Streichfett is good too - there's that lack of top end shine and occasional clipping but as a quick 'go to' instrument it fits our philosophy perfectly. I'm gradually tweaking all the pads in the Micron, some drastically, others just so I have somewhere to start. Will take a while but eventually it'll be full of things I need.

We got four recording sessions, two of approximately an hour, the other two of 10 and 20 mins respectively IIRC. Some seemed very good to me but we'll need to check out the kindness of repeated listens. Some parts could have been developed more at the time but hey.

Today, back to work...

Streichfett & Micron arrived

So the last few days stuff arrived and I started pottering. I also sent off a review this morning so I can chill for a day or so, which is handy as Tim is down for a few days. New Headshock material imminent! Been looking forward to recording with some of the new stuff and also getting Tim's mixer situation better.

Streichfett is brilliant. If I were reviewing it, which sadly I'm not, I'd probably offer the thought that it seems a bit lacklustre at the top end and also the clipping that occurs with certain phaser settings. I've reported this though so chances are Stefan will sort it out. Will send him a sysex dump soon but as I added the CCs to Cirklon, I can reliably say what values cause the slight distortion.

Anyway, I really like the idea and the execution. Each part can be addressed on its own MIDI channel but I'm not too bothered about that, I'm just into playing it. Had I my way I'd have had the ensemble as a variable depth like the Godwin but it's on/off. The animate function adds LFO motion to the voice transitions, which is sorta nice. Some of the vocal swooshes are good too, especially with the ensemble switched to chorus. The clavi is also very close to the samples I sent, possibly still that lack of top end shine but it's gonna be fine for live etc.

I have that and the Micron going through the Repeater as I'd run out of mixer channels. I may look at putting the Waldorf into the Micron's inputs and counting them as a composite instrument. I doubt I'll edit it extensively but will start with a few patches and spend time getting them as base patches for quicker tweaking later. Unlikely I'll ever use the rhythmic stuff or the multis.

The Micron was well-packed but does have a couple of issues. The power input is flaky and it reboots if you disturb the cable while it's on. The transpose up key is intermittent. Guy didn't mention these but maybe I'm just fussy. I hate to sell anything that isn't 100% but spose that's not a universal attitude. No manual either so I'm reading and reminding myself. Enjoying the freerun envelopes again, one of the cooler features. Installed the latest OS, again why don't people do this? God I'm such an old woman!

This blogging thing is quite theraputic. Just like a diary I'd throw into a drawer.

Sent in a dozen space drones. Got new thing for review, should be quickie and it's one of those things so close to being brilliant it's driving me mad. OK, madder.

Another night of poor sleep last night. Pat has passed on her insomnia to me, bless her.

So I weakened and bought a few things...

It started innocently enough with a new 10u rack. I was thinking I could take out the 7u one with Cirklon/P2K/MW2/VF-1 in it. Seeming like I probably will keep Cirklon in one place so the 7u giggable rack could have a few different things in it, such as P3/Radias/Freebass/rx1202. As always the Radias is a pain but gonna look into the possibility of doing flat cables, power supply is the worst there but Tony will help.

Having started spending on a small scale, I bought an Alesis Micron. Had always wanted a 3 octave keyboard that was as neat as possible and also made noises. More knobs and a USB output would've been the icing on the cake but I don't seriously see myself ever using the iPad seriously on stage. Maybe if I ever settle on a docking station but nothing really impresses me there. The Micron was the price I'd set myself to pay if one ever showed up, although it was in London so there's postage too. Hoping the main encoder ain't a dog as I recall that worrying me when I reviewed it. Still, lots of people are coping with that so I can too. Looking forward to programming some big drones, long envelope whooshes etc. plus a set of my usual sounds. After that it'll probably go the way of the Blofeld and just do the same noises most of the time. :)

To round it off I went for the Streichfett. I've almost bought one a number of times and was waiting for the SOS review just to see what it said. Got fed up of waiting, which is a pity. So many people are ahead of the mag now, it's like when the reviews do come out lots of my mates have already given me detailed reports. We should be faster!

Went to see Hawklords on Thursday night, guys were on good form. Alas I got quite drunk, went off with some folks from my home town and ended up quite ill. I really am too old for this. Wasted all day Friday feeling ill and sorry for myself. Pat gave me exactly as much sympathy as I deserve.

Still no weed. Having lots of dreams as a result.

Spent the afternoon playing in the studio, everything sounding good. Will be ready when Tim's around, hopefully soon. Lots of things I want to record with, the Mini doing its thing, the CS30, the Juno. His new mixer should have two buses so we can give him two separate stereo channels. Will remove one of the Yamaha sets as I really don't use it. Should sell that desk really, it's so big.

I now have three new A4 projects full of stuff to play. It's nice to return to them and gradually tweak and improve each one but knowing they'll be the same next time. Never really had that with the separate sequencer/hardware, mostly because I constantly overwrite all my sounds. :) I've rewritten the first 16 Radias patches about a hundred times, never actually listening to any of the others. Dopey oi!

PRS and more plodding on...

So again I was pleasantly surprised by the PRS payout and feel like I should knuckle down and do more tracks while energised. The split this time was about 50/50 between overseas (IIRC Japan, South Korea, Australia, Canada, Norway and the US) and UK TV, mostly channel 5. I'm getting a lot of play on a program about horrible neighbours and we even tried to watch some of it last night but it's way too depressing...

Anyway, this morning I began the day musically. I watched a girl bounce her boobs to Mozart's Eine Kleine Nachtmusik then I listened to goats performing the theme from Game of Thrones. Who says social media is killing culture?

I'm back from walking Jasper now, resisting the urge to check the many photos I took of autumn leaves. Cumbria had some lovely aurora last night and I'm starting to wonder if I'll ever see it myself. Will have to get off my arse and hit the M6 one night I suppose but that's a bit random.

Sent in a review yesterday, started another which is going to take some reading up but I've made a start and have some patches to develop. Alas, Mozart's 10th piano concerto has just popped up on radio 3 and it's one I'm not familiar with so I may just have to listen. I don't know many of his early symphonies either but it seems he took a while to master the form. Mind you if Beethoven had died at 35 he would have been just another promising young man. And if Schubert had lived as long as 35, what works would those extra 4 years have yielded? Deep and important questions while I drink my morning cup of tea.

The fact I'm writing a blog seems to indicate procrastination. Again. Ah well...

Time for a random picture to round off.

Recovering from birthday weekend...

Getting old... too much drink but a pleasant weekend with family. Taught squash by my sporty stepdaughter and was doing reasonably well until I got the ball stuck in the ceiling. Too wild with excitement at participating in actual sport. Had nice walks in woods with Pat, saw red squirrels, swam around quite a bit and ate good food. It's all good!

Got my last batch of tracks accepted and sent in, reviews to do for softsynth and some more iPad synths, so plenty to get on with. Good after a lull. Weather turning, think we've had the best of the year, but a fab year really, no complaints.

Someone actually finished my novel and appeared to think it an improvement on the previous one. Maybe I should push it more but want to get the third one done then release the whole thing as one, which I hope will click with people. Otherwise, wtf...

Phil would've been pleased...

My old pal Phil Smillie would have been so proud to know how well 'In Session' is being received. I'm kinda choked myself as we could have put this on bandcamp ages ago, while he was still alive. Of course you never know do you?

I have already chosen archive05, which is one I'd thought of before. A CD actually labelled 'embrace the chaos'. Will leave it a month or so before putting it up though, feel I could be releasing too much even though it's free.

I'm doing a few app reviews at the moment, a decent batch too that I'm actually enthusiastic about. One of the frustrating things about jotting down notes into a blog like this is I can rarely say anything related to the reviews and when I do it's vague and meaningless. I'm sorta proving my point here.

Anyway, I bought the USB/Lightning adapter for my iPad Air but I'd still love to find the perfect keyboard/docking station setup for all the cool synths I now have.

More lovely weather, if only it could stay for the weekend in the Lakes with Pat, Dawn & Chris. I have packed lots of beer and bought a bottle of single malt.

Small Pleasures

A lovely day, lunch with Pat then time in the studio, recorded a noodle:

https://soundcloud.com/smokyfrog/whatsgoinon

This is the first part of a sketch of a new thing. Later I recorded some Radias sequences and was delighted to be reminded the envelopes work properly. So Korg DO know how to do it. Why cock up on the Volcas, the Prophecy, the software MonoPoly? God I'm an old moaner.

Feel slightly deflated by the Scottish 'no'. Seems we're going to have to fight our own battles rather than hope someone else will cause a revolution. Ah well, money wins. Fear and insecurity are hard cash in people's minds.

To think I almost sold the Radias too. That thing is way more powerful than it looks, a mixed bag of synthesis, effects per track, oh I'm repeating myself aren't I? Had a relaxing afternoon, you'll get the mood if you listen to the track. Had been listening to Conrad Schnitzler, fab album Endtime. Kinda poignant and as important in his way as Jackson Pollock.

New/small/convenient vs 'better'

You know, much as I like the Analog Four, I'm starting to wonder if I'll spend and ultimately waste many, many hours preparing stuff on it that never gets used. (Recently I decided to avoid getting my OT back when I noticed the prospect filled me with dread.)
Already I'm hitting the limitations of A4 synthesis and effects - but more even than that, the sequencer would have driven me mad by now if I weren't populating it with patterns created in Cirklon. The very static nature of A4 patterns isn't helped much (for me) by parameter locks as the more I use them, the less easily I can interact with the pattern later. Worse, I can't change pattern length or paste data reliably during playback without getting out of sync and the only way to make patterns more interesting is to trigger events in the synth engine that add variation. Four tracks all going in the same direction and at the same speed are not the height of sequencer sophistication!

Compare this with the older, simpler (but bulkier) combination of Korg Radias synth and P3 or Cirklon. The Radias has a lot of deep synthesis, versatile filter combinations, fab effects unique per part, a built-in step sequencer and a mod sequencer...
I finally snuck it back into the studio (see below), but probably still needs adjustment and I may nick that keyboard stand Tim's using (with the rack spaces at the back). Oddly enough I think the Radias sounds as good for its analogue sounds as the A4, which is probably enough to get me thrown out of (analogue) heaven. Ah well.

NB my A4 performance configs are now arranged per track with two effects controls separate. That way I can easily see what I'm doing and I know what to do to get the pattern back to its original sound. Toggling between this performance screen and the mixer is fast and enough live tweaking given all the prepared patterns in each bank. I'm also making it so that each bank follows in key from the last so a project is a complete thing in itself.
With two knos I can turn a sequence sound into percussion, a bass into a kick, whatever. Basically this is the 'prepared spontaneity' required for all Elektron machines. Still doesn't come naturally to me but we'll see how it progresses with more time... still excited I can hold so many projects in it, not giving up yet. :)

Lastly, got some brilliant samples yesterday from the Juno6 processed by various things, usually the Oto Biscuit and Eventide Pitch Factor in unholy combination. I'm doing things with samples using the little Microsampler sequencer that I never did with the OT. A much underrated piece of gear.

Today the sun is shining again. I could be doing more money-generating work but I'm enjoying myself instead. :)

Here's a picture of my (untidy) study for no reason at all:

A4 ponderments

Still being tempted by my old OT back. When I work with the A4 and realise how much easier it is to use, I wonder if I could stand to go back to the illogical operations of the OT?

so I started a new bank, all new kits, new performance defs. Learning from past experience the banks now follow on. Their keys and kits evolve from a common origin. Performances now offering two synth transformations for each of the 4 tracks. Add two FX tweaks and performances make sense again. The way they all interacted before could be mind-blowing and counter-productive. This fast and easy -did full bank of new patterns, all generated on Cirklon or played in manually. Started the next bank too, copying some of the instruments for continuity but adding new ones.

Overdubbing stuff into A4 patterns is really useful. Combining several different patterns by sending different bits of them to a new pattern is producing some great new sequences. So a good day. The evening I plan to do a chapter or two of the main 'quest' section. Will see if I'm in the mood.

I started a painting. Not there yet but some reasonable ideas. More practice required, still treating acrylics like oil.

Old stuff dug up

Funny how, as soon as you post a link to an old album you put on bandcamp, you get a flood of requests for people who want a link to a free one. For reviews, their radio show, their pet hamster. It ain't like I ask a lot, just enough to keep bandcamp off my back. So Red Book was always a favourite of mine, even if I did have to add a second album to widen its appeal to the synth fanatics. Blue Book was knocked off in a weekend, not that that makes it bad, but still...

https://paulnagle.bandcamp.com/album/red-book

Been getting back into Cirklon having deliberately put the P3 aside. The A4 is still so bloody slow compared to Radias/P3 combi and if it weren't for this lingering desire to be able to play live sometimes, I actually think I'd have scrapped it by now. Or used it exclusively triggered by P3. Maybe that's what I want to do. Cirklon is never gonna be the slick performance sequencer I want it to be.

Work today, 7 new 'epic darkness' tracks to offer out.

The new novel 'Liminal Entity' is around the 18,000 word mark which means I have the start and end in some detail and the middle sketched out. That's the part that's a drag, but unfortunately it's dominating my thoughts and not helping me do actual work. Sigh...

A Day Out

Yes, although this week started with a Bank Holiday, I also took today out to go visit a pal, see his synths, have a good old chat. Got chance for in-depth looks at the Korg Kronos, Roland Jupiter 80 and the Little Phatty. There was a D50 there too and probably the thing I'd have been happiest playing.

Good feedback from new tracks from a man who knows this stuff. Gonna do more before submitting. I know that looks like procrastination but hey, a lot of what I do looks like that. :)

No reviews in at the moment, which is good for work time. Gonna sell a few things I'm not using, the usual purge because I'm getting too much. Was offered my OT back but resisted. Really have not missed it and the RC-505 is doing most of what the OT was doing for me and better/easier. Some of the loops I've made of Cirklon playing various PCM synths using lots of tricks (and SMF import) are really quite wonderful and I could see the OT hampering rather than helping. Would still love a 3 octave do it all synth like a knobby Blofeld or cut-down Nord Wave, if such a thing existed. But my little live rig is looking good, especially as I make more and more A4 patterns/projects.

I can't stop snapping groovy gravestones eh?
Must buy Paul's Juno 6, silly though that probably is.

Today my box set of Vaughan Williams arrived. I must admit to being disappointed by how many symphonies are polluted by the human voice whittering on about something. I blame Beethoven.
Still, some awesome stuff so far. That said, I'm listening to Big Smith Stays In Bed by Stephen Cadman, a favourite from the 80s that I still have on cassette (although managed to find a ropey MP3 someone did of it).

Simple pleasures! Oh, our thing got reviewed. I never really understand these reviews but I smiled anyway.

http://synthsequences.blogspot.ca/2014/08/aeromancy-jam-sessions-vol-2-2014.html?m=1

Finally, if you've a spare 2 hours, here's the gig from Finland. I don't think I'll bring myself to listen to it but the visuals look nice. :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtxwfL6cfyE

Novel published, one day I'll get an editor...

Actually it's not so bad, having released 'From Beer to Eternity' someone who is a proof-reader very kindly offered to proof it for free. So the current version on Amazon won't be the last. Alas, struggling to understand their update process that appears to allow me to upload edited versions and claims they are live etc. but when people order, they still get the original. Working on that.

Anyway, here's the cover, thanks to Kimmo

I've paced myself for work this week, which means the three reviews I have to do before the 18th have been pretty much complete for a while but I tweak each slightly now and then, not quite finishing them. It's an excuse to mess around really. Another.

Have been playing with Paul's Juno6, it's actually exactly what I need in a tweakable poly and a great partner for various effects. May sell some of the other unused stuff and buy one/it. Spent time doing new sequences in the Analog Four, still frustrated by its limitations of copying  patterns seamlessly during play, essential for me but woefully neglected. I really love working with the little box stand-alone in headphones, developing sequences, tweaking sounds, making variations. Now I have a finished project, it's so easy to just go through each bank, wiping all patterns, starting again from the kits there with their performances set up. Having a known starting point is great and I'm programming some cool sounds. Does make me think how brill the keyboard version would be. If they ever change the design so the keys are protected, I think I'll get one.

Finished Breaking Bad. Possibly the best TV series I've ever seen. Will stay with me for a long time as a mark of quality.

Taking it easy cos it's Friday

Hey, I know that taking it easy looks a lot like my regular service but trust me, there are subtle differences. More beer, for a start.
No swimming today cos Pat's doing her visiting the dying thing. So I may get up to mischief in the studio, about time I did something.
Tim still no time to work on cover for 'From Beer To Eternity' so in my stoned state last night I asked one of the Finns, Kimmo, who did the fab cover for the CD I really like. Dunno how much he'll charge. I also started sketching my own version but it's too literal, just not good enough. I need someone who really knows how to do this stuff...
Of the 3 reviews I have to write, one is done, one almost done and there's one to start. Using my pacing method this work could be stretched out another week, although I should write some music using all these new samples/instruments. PRS will dry up eventually if I don't keep producing.

We're still hooked on Breaking Bad. Finished series 4 last night and, though it was late, couldn't resist doing just one ep of series 5. That really is one of the best things I've seen and I know everyone says it. I think quality counts, something I've never quite achieved with my own music and, let's face it, it's too late now. Hey ho. :)

Laptop's hard disk replaced, lost lots but they recovered the docs and pix. Will check old backups at some point to see what mail can be found but started with a clean slate. So I lost lots of addresses and useful emails. Hey ho.

More coffee, I think.

Back from Finland

OK, 9 days was a long time to be away from Pat and I think both of us are getting worse at putting up with that. Karelian Skies was a musical success, had a groovy time with some fab musicians as expected. Rather too much focus on practising for my personal tastes and consequently saw very little of the country. Still, such is life, didn't want to be the moaner so toed the line. Anyway, it turns out they have lots of trees and lakes. :)
Feeling tired but content. Now back to work. Well, tomorrow.

While there I had some time to assess both the Elektron Analog Four and Studiologic Sledge in a live environment. Here are my thoughts:

Sledge 
Pros 
Large and well-spaced knobs
The colour is fab (some will disagree)
Infinite reverb
Wavetables
FM is kinda wild
Wheels feel nice and keyboard acceptable
Three oscillators and three LFOs
Loads of patch memories
Superb octave switches
Some great Wavetables even if poorly documented. Actually make that 'not documented'.

Cons
Delay is pretty shit and glitchy
Steppy bi-polar env amount - really annoying
Sync sounds nasty
Lack of aftertouch routing
Gets louder in mono mode
Velocity routing fixed and rubbish
Arpeggiator key-synced and no latch button
Would prefer faster and more extensive modulation destination selection. Would replace 10s hold with general hold for notes and arpeggios.

Summary 
Would happily have one for its playability and versatility even if a few bits are poorly-implemented, steppy or nasty. It's controls make it and I love the colour, especially under stage lights. Have programmed some patches on it I really like and in a very short time. 

And...

Analog four needs:
Mutes per pattern with half-lit track led for tracks containing trigs
Ability to do a fix of transpose, rewriting all note data (note to self: check it can't already)
Track activity display
Don't disable the screen completely in trig mute mode, it's stupid!
Disable pattern select timeout (grrr!)
Improve live pattern copy to work in all modes seamlessly

Improve multiple trig copy
Different clock divisions per track
Naming patterns and banks (oh, please!)
Common mixer per bank rather than per kit. If enabled mixer can work at bank or project level or as now. Without this you can't safely reload kits and you have to stick to one kit per bank/song or risk total fuckups between pattern switches.
Note repeat as per Analog Rytm
Trig mute to apply either to notes, parameter locks or both, choice at bank level
Pattern resync without having to load new one then reload it

Karelian Skies

I may be offline for a while as I'm off to play in Finland (and check out the forests and lakes). No writing deadlines until middle of next month so tomorrow is about deciding what to take and packing it.

http://www.karelianskies.fi/x/183-karelian-skies

The Cosmic Smokers gig seemed a bit chaotic but apparently sounded good and certainly went down well. The guitarist was great and the 'scultpture guys brill as always. Nice to have drums too - hope to repeat the experience one day.

Interesting experience using the Analog Four. Not so immediate and fast as the P3, you have to rely on 'prepared spontaneity' (tm) and what I find is it's a much closer-in thing, more DJ than musician. Which is fine if you aren't leaping back to play keyboards and interact with people. I think Elektron stuff might be best in a small, packed tabletop world where everyone is hunched over squinting and making tiny adjustments with fingertips. Must work harder to master and also preparation is key.

Currently listening to Sibelius to get in the mood, having read up a bit on Finland. So hot it's almost impossible to work and in the evening, instead of working, we're watching Breaking Bad.

The KS-4 picked up some odd interference in the gig but is fine now I'm home again. Strange but it meant I played mostly the SH-101 and didn't do much with the looper. Will use it more in Finland as it'll be my main thing along with the A4. I should've borrowed Tim's Volca Beats as it's smaller than the ER-1 and would do the same job. Lots to do, but tomorrow, always tomorrow.

Beer now.

Underneath:

Andy Bole's guitar pedals (he's an ace looper dude)

Followed by Ade's gorgeous little sequencing rig.

Sadly we were unable to successfully sync it up to everyone else but stand-alone was probably better anyway. 

Cosmic Smokers

Well, it's the gig tomorrow but all I've really done is decide what gear I'm gonna take, which is:

Roland SH-101
Elektron Analog Four
Novation KS-4
Roland RC-505
Eventide Time Factor
Korg ER1

Think that's all I need, thought of the theremin too but with 6 of us on stage, it's all overkill.

Also had an interesting offer for next year, nothing concrete yet so won't write it down.

Review thing I was waiting for happened at last. Now I have the worry about being able to write it before Finland next week, not made any easier by the fact we're having two windows replaced when ideally I'd be working. Hey ho...

Scorchio

Yeah, almost too hot to go out or do anything much except drink beer. Finished review I was working on, a couple of short ones came in but studio is an oven so will keep until later. By the same token it's unlikely I'll do any prep for the Cosmic Smokers gig, but shouldn't need to. Taking A4/ER1 for my rhythmic bits and the looper and a keyboard, dunno which yet. Would happily stay home. :)

Beer in freezer, cooling rapidly. Listening to Mendelssohn and starting to sketch new novel in my head. Must chase Tim for cover for the one in waiting, darn but he's busy so can't really... could ask Matylda I guess.

Almost at the end of Breaking Bad season 2. Lots more to come...

Random pic (there was a cloud I liked)

World Cup, gig prep, some review work

Part of a bank in the A4 using the performance stuff I'd set up. 

https://soundcloud.com/smokyfrog/bank-3-92-a

More trees with sunset through them, awesome!

Have enough ideas for Cosmic Smokers gig, also enough for Finland given I'll have the looper too. Job sorted, must get some money ordered and find out some stuff. 

Hoping Germany win the world cup!

Sunny Beery Afternoon

Yes, the sun came out. Who knew? So I did some work, wrote down some ideas for the review I'm doing. Realised some of my old stuff isn't so bad. Will re-release 'Everybody Needs Their Monsters' assuming I can get the CD to work or find the source. A lot time so extracting from CD probably best bet. Fingers crossed.

Also gonna put out 'Seekers Of Oblivion'. I sent it to that Spanish Label who didn't even reply. I have hardly heard it but now I do, it's way better than And Darkness Falls, and I like that still. It's a Synthi album but performed then arranged Synthi.

Hey ho, family do last night. Pat dyed her hair pink, I dyed my beard blue.

So here I sit with beer. Curry later with Carl, all is good. Earlier, it seemed I had some wisdom to impart but, alas, it has departed. Heading out for some sunshine now.

A lull

A dull lull at that.
I am as up to date with stuff as I can be. This is a rare thing and I'm momentarily at a loss. I should write some music but instead I might continue to dig into the Analog Four, programming more patches, start a new project. I filled my first and out of the 8 banks, 6 have something promising in them. I'm also compiling a 'tips and frustrations' document that I'll use to hold my working knowledge of the thing and how it might be slicker.
Expecting some new review kit but no sign yet but no worries, have read the manual and should know a fair bit about it already as it's similar to something else. :)

Pat made jostaberry jam from our own bushes - and it's awesome! The bushes obviously needed to mature. Either that or this year's lack of caterpillars helped more than we realised.

A random pic from a recent walk to Badger's Wood, just so all the text doesn't look too naff. If I were a perfectionist, I'd have cropped the bottom ever so slightly.

Should work on getting novel out but depending on Tim for cover. Should prepare for Finland but it sounds like they fancy practising all week, in which case there's no point. I voiced my concerns (again) but think NR was wise after all, he suspected it'd be another 'blokes in a room' sesh. Actually, should prepare for Cosmic Smokers gig but still in two minds whether to take P3 or A4. If P3 I can wing it on the night. A4 not quite so immediate but perhaps I should use that to make me concentrate more on it. Decisions, decisions.

Headshock CD sold into profit, phew! Seems to be getting some word of mouth, now to find more folks to review it. :)

I suppose I could open some beer now.

Stressful grey limbo day

Got ourselves worked up about a lump on Pat's back and the day dragged until the x-ray results came back. Had to push it through, practically demanded to see the doc and finally all was well. Past history made us jumpy but yet another example of us counting our blessings. Getting soft in my old age. Couldn't write a word but did get some great answers back on a review I can probably finish in the next session, once I confirm the answers and try a few suggestions. Drank beer in the evening that I'd been saving for weekend. Felt justified.

Watched some mindless footie while making patches and sequences. This is me doing it in my Angry Bird pants:

Tomorrow I go see Tony and get my Minimoog, Poly800 and Radias back. So that's cool. Have considered selling the Radias, might regret it though. It's still a fab thing, that and a P3 a perfect pair, even better-sounding than the KS. The A4 has the analogue lushness but the Radias has multiple synthesis technologies...

Will take Tim's Vermona drum machine to be fixed and also his alphajuno programmer.

Sun, Synths, small amount of work

Yes, another glorious day. Programmed some new sounds and patterns on the A4, really starting to appreciate the fact that I can have so much stored and ready to go in there. Working to make some meaningful performances for each kit, doing variation kits with a few subtly different kits to apply to the same patterns - thinking that a command to instantly assign kits to multiple patterns would be quite nice. Also still think the pattern copy process needs to be slicked up, it's just too long-winded given you must switch to the right pattern swap mode before doing it every time. Kills the spontaneity. Made a couple of Moog Modular type patches, the envelopes are pretty good but I'm not 100% there. Close enough for now though.

Also forced myself to work on review, cracked on with one I've held off for a while. Could do more but the sun is so lovely and I'm re-reading David Gemmell's Troy series, starting to think that might even be his best. Such a loss, had hoped he'd be writing new stuff for years to come.

Someone sent me recordings of stuff I did at UK Eletronica 1984. Sounds like I played everything with extra sugar in those days, really quite cringeworthy.

Hot but productive day

Studio quite muggy but spent all afternoon with A4 making patches, kits and starting to make patterns. Pretty staggered by its capacity even though I had a heart-stopping moment saving the project I was working on and it renamed it to 'new' as if it'd been wiped. No idea why it would do that but anyway, nothing seemed lost. Bloody UNDO doesn't work in external sync, jeez those guys are need a kick sometimes. I have to keep saving patterns but I guess it's a good routine to get into.

The review synth grew on me a bit. Which is a relief, I so hate it when I fail to find cool things.

Seems I'll be able to borrow a Studiologic Sledge for Finland. So basically that, the A4 and the RC-505 is more than enough for me. Might even treat myself to a Volca Beats or take the Tanzbar or ER1.

A pic or two from this morning's walk

OT out A4 in

Well, I swapped the Octatrack for an Analog Four. It'll be interesting to see if I miss it. I hung onto the Octatrack for a long time thinking I might use it live, usually for festival-type stuff where full or prepared tracks were useful. But I really don't see myself doing that any more - if I can't do my usual looping ambient noodles totally live and improvised from scratch, then I won't fancy the gig anyway. The A4 keeps the small and compact form but I may use it more. Certainly will try to sort something for Cosmic Smokers and definitely Finland with it. Much smaller than a P3/module.

Spent a short time setting up a new project in it, programming a kit to use as my starter, complete with some performance setup to work as a base. Want to program a load of my basic patches as starting points too so lots to do.

New review thing turned up today. So that's what I should really be working on this weekend.

Some more CD orders, more countries but I need to send some promo/review stuff to mags and maybe a few other places like Radio 3's Late Junction etc.

No words from Tony. Hope he's OK but won't hassle him. The Mini's ready when it's ready.

Novel went out to readers. I made some improvements to last few chapters afterwards but we'll see if I make more before updating them. Really need that cover soon...

Sunshine and Magpies

Yesterday was a great day, lovely sunshine, baby birds chirping in their nest, CDs sold and some great feedback coming in for the free download we added as thanks. More good feedback this morning and absolutely no work done. I did finish the novel, barring that complicated subroutine at the end (which I may still drop). Gonna let a few readers read it anyway, perhaps without the end bit as it could confuse...

More CDs to send, awaiting Elektron A4, the OT went yesterday. Seems odd to lose it but after all the time expended, I doubt I'll ever truly love it. Just this swinging between love and hate with lots of periods of non-use.

No sign of the new review synth, I should probably chase it... done so, were awaiting pix but given up, it's coming tomorrow.

This morning I was awakened at 05:20 by a distressed blackbird. All her babies had been killed by magpies. So frustrating and pointless, I struggled to get back to sleep. Kept hearing her calling, poor thing.

Disappointed in Roland

So I got my answer about the RC-505 looper and it's basically 'that's how it is and we aren't going to fix it'. I honestly think that Roland's engineers work in some kind of vacuum but I think I see now why so many people have given up on them.

To briefly explain, the RC-505 has, in theory, three loop modes: Auto, Free and 'specific number of bars'. In reality it only has two, the first two. The third mode only exists on paper because when you use it, you find there's no way to record just a specific number of bars, you have to count them yourself and manually stop recording - exactly the same as 'Free' in other words. I have tried to appeal but they offer the usual lame excuses such as 'we had no other choice' and 'due to the limitation of the software development'...

If you're going to shift to entirely software/digital, at least employ some engineers who are good at it! Old Roland had such flair, such a sure feel for the right sound and function. I miss them terribly.

Hopefully house roof will be finished today and I can put my studio back as it was. Very ready. Tomorrow the Headshock album is officially launched. I think a small Roland synth is coming for review...

STOP PRESS - thanks so much to Tomas who suggested a workaround to the above RC505 issue. Will try tomorrow and report back all the details - cheers dude!! :)

Organised as ever

So the CDs arrived and look fab. I made the mistake of telling people before organising any simple way to pay, which is sorta typical innit?

Well, I'm working on reviews today. Two are almost done, well one is practically done and the other still a bit rough. I'm listening to Debussy and playing with Bob the rabbit, so a bit rough is probably how it'll stay. What I really want to do is work on the novel and sort some of the confusing threads gathered untidily around the end...

Finland trip all booked, room in Helsinki for two nights, train to Nurmes and back to Airport. Top deck too so hope to have a good view of the countryside. Gonna be skint, actually I'm practically skint now and I think Finland is an expensive place. Must have a thought what gear to take. The A4, iPad, some keyboard for it, maybe the looper... will all be my usual 'make it up' - hope that suits. Venue looks posh and serious so I think I'll need some big kick drums. :)

A day doing ordinary things

OK, I myself now question the use of 'ordinary' when it comes to breaking an asbestos garage into small chunks, bagging it and taking it to a secure disposal facility. Good manly work though, allowing me plenty of chances to kick, strike and generally batter. Managed to dispose of the entire roof, the walls are still standing, to be tackled tomorrow. Found a non-gypsy type happy to take the garage door away, although he'll have to cut it in half.

They started preparing to take the roof off the house too. I did as much protective covering in the attic as possible. Fingers crossed I'm not going to regret this!

I did no work yet today. This evening I plan to but really my head is still full of novel and the final ten or so chapters that are kinda crucial and still sketchy in places. Not that I mind sketchy sometimes for pace and distraction, but not right now when it needs to start satisfying on a deeper level. Darn but I could work on it forever.

CD to go off for reproduction just as soon as I get the invoice print from Dawn. Get a bloody printer boy!

That's a picture I took yesterday in Hurst Green. I find I rather like it, the clear water showing the rocks underneath while also reflecting the trees and sunlight. Amazing what you can do with a little phone and the right light.

Seems like the Odyssey deal is fizzling out due to some tosser winning but not wanting. So may be some time as it could require putting back into eBay.

Octatrack to go

Someone offered to swap my Octatrack for an Analog Four. Despite investing more time in the Octatrack than anything else in years, I still don't love it even though on a good day it does wondrous things. Perhaps in future I'll have another, when there's manager software to take all the drudgery out of using it. Too slow for me. A4 appeals far more at the moment, especially if I do Finland. Yeah, still waiting someone to confirm but feeling edgy. June tomorrow. 

Hope to get Mini back next week, well go get it. Roof possibly being done, have been covering up, more to do. Upheaval but worth it for peace of mind. 

They gave the wrong time for the electronic music thing so we were 2 hours early. Will try to go next month. Possible jam there on 21st. 

Up to chapter 46 in my polishing. Obviously not giving every chapter a deep shine, some parts possibly will need a third pass but readable on this one for select few. Around 80,000 words and has taken two years, shows I've been busy with other stuff. Not music though, let's get back into that when this dealt with. :)

Happy anniversary me & Pat

Yep, it's 26 years since we did it. As I tell everyone, the best £65 I ever spent. That was for the buffet put on in a pub owned by one of the black belts at our Ju-Jitsu club. Course we were together longer than that but I was in no hurry to tie the knot. A good move on my part though. :)

So I've been organising to have the roof done on the house, which is gonna leave the studio under wraps for a while. Rushing to get as much review work done or started so in theory all I have to do it work on all the texts. Everything in progress except one that bit of software that refuses to authorise. They're working on that right now...

New roof, new garage, jeez gonna be skint!

Still awaiting OT/A4 swap, can't recall what the delay is about, should probably ask.

I started a couple of pieces of music yesterday just to keep my hand in. Neither were amazing but they used a fair few of the new sounds I've been gathering in reviews and although musically dull they sounded classy. Which I suppose is what's required. No time to work much on novel, have sanitised 19 chapters so far and they're reading well, hanging together well. I know there are issues to comb through but should have the momentum to do it. It's time that's the issue. As always.

Glad I didn't get the Finland tickets yet. More are dropping out. Not actually seen one flight confirmed so far and I'd be feeling pretty nervous if I'd shelled out. Otso is probably worrying it'll all fall through, poor lad. If it does I guess I'll be going to Synth DIY after all. Should save the money but what the hell.

Arc playing Liverpool in November. Must go, should be cool.

Another thing to go to is the Electronic Music night in Preston on Friday. Have to get CDs pressed too, Tim did a brilliant cover, back and on-CD print.

a dog with the squits

I awoke to a strange melancholy, the song 'Green Green Grass of Home' playing on a loop as a dream faded. The feeling may have been related to Jasper with a dicky tummy spraying our bedroom with diarrhoea at around 03:30. As this was the second night on the run this happened, I was far from pleased, as you can imagine.

So today I'm back reviewing stuff, or will be after lunch. Did some work yesterday that I've yet to write up but it gave me the excuse to pack off to the pub the for afternoon, which was all rather nice.

Tony has given me his estimate of work on the Mini and I've told him to go ahead. As it has some mods already it'll have oscillator sync and a switch to decide whether modulation is sourced from the regular source of VCO3 or a new wide-range LFO Tony will make for me. The one installed was so naff and limited it's hard to imagine why it was added. The pitch range knob is going to be a mod amount for a hard-wired connection between VCO3 and the filter. This should just about cover all the good stuff of the Prodigy although I doubt the sound will be the same as the oscillators are quite different. Tony also pointed out that one of the three VCOs is a Studio Electronics clone. It's functionally identical but I may replace it at some point along with the wood. We'll see. Given the high price of my battered and modified Odyssey currently on eBay, people will pay silly money even for stuff that's less than perfect.

Still deliberating over the Godwin. May make more sense to get the little Waldorf box for strings as it's very portable, just in case Headshock do any gigs. OT/A4 swap awaiting the guy being ready. Not too worried either way.

Note to self: book Finland you lazy git!

Mini joys

Well it made me very happy, firstly because it arrived in a (quality) flightcase. Secondly because it was in such decent condition - only issue concerns two mods I'd failed to notice (!), one of which adds a pitch bend range, the second adds a dedicated LFO. Unfortunately whoever fitted the mods didn't get them quite right, the LFO mod totally takes VCO3 out as a possible mod source. Worse, the lowest level of mod wheel still produces a small amount of modulation. Tony is going to fix and put in a switch so the mod source can switch back to VCO3 when I want, plus add sync. Since it's been modded, adding two switches won't do it any harm and will make it a better instrument to play (although it's gorgeous already).

Hmmm last night's curry making its presence known! Good to see Tony & Colin, looks like being a scorching day, ramble, ramble. Should I buy a Godwin string synth? Hmmm have bought too much lately.
Roland no reply to my 'odd loop length fail' email, sods.

Must do some work.... however, weather: scorchio!

Waiting almost over...

Or is it? The Minimoog is supposed to be 'here' according to the tracking info - after sitting a week in France. So fingers crossed.

Colin and Tony visiting for a couple of days so anything the Mini needs can be sorted, yay. I predict lots of curry and Pat struggling to breathe, poor thing.

Finished review yesterday, really struggled to write it - not because I didn't like the toys in question but because I kept wanting to go back and play them. Giving me 4 synths is hard cos I'm forever bouncing between them. Would take several months to really do them justice.

The Roland RC-505 looper is an interesting beast. I did a mini review after half an hour which I'll post here so this blog has some potential value (yeah, right):

...has a number of things going for it including 3 hours internal memory, 5 stereo tracks, MIDI sync and independent track lengths. I've only been playing for half an hour or so but so far the sync seems to work.

30 min pros:
99 lots of 5 tracks (up to 3 hr limit)
Can do reverse on the fly
Can record independent track lengths
One-shots too
Can load wavs from USB (not tried yet)
Quite small and very easy to use
Effects handy to have, haven't explored much except to note no dotted delay times

Equally hasty cons:
timestretch is warbly horribleness (and it can't go as far as Repeater)
does not 'decay record' as far as I can tell
no way to bounce tracks
no transposition of tracks except via effects (big shame)
+ some odd behaviour recording 'quirky' numbers of bars, sometimes doesn't drop out of record after specified bars. Still pondering that one...

It's strangely limited in some ways compared to the Repeater and if the recording of different loop lengths really doesn't work then I may not keep it. Roland are an intensely frustrating company sometimes, so near and yet not only missing the mark sometimes, but often missing the entire point. Let's hope there's a solution.

So anyway, best go tidy up ready for visitors. Expect gratuitous Minimoog shots soon.

Oh, Headshock's album 'Tales of Summers Past' came back from mastering sounding superb. Did I tell you that already little blog?

It's all good

Exciting times, the CDR of Headshock's new album is on the way and it sounds fantastic, really. I am also really glad to drop a 5 min track towards the end that Tim confessed he only thought was OK and the difference between a 62 min album you mostly like and a 57 min album you're proud of all the way through is surprisingly profound. Dean kindly said the production was already good and he didn't have to do a lot - but he sure made it sound a lot better than my primitive techniques have achieved in the past.

My Minimoog is being sent tomorrow, I just wrote to beg it be packed with love - memories of that SK20 still haven't gone away. I'm sure the guy know what he's doing and I'm just fussing as usual. 

Sent in a review this morning and making progress with the others I have in hand ready for more stuff to come. I may even get some music written this week using some of the new sounds I reviewed recently - may as well!

What I'd love to do is dig into the novel since it's at that stage I like best: pretty much there apart from the smoothing. What I do is go through it a chapter at a time in order, streamlining the grammar, deleting anything that slows down the pace or gets too explainy or just is laboured or dull. At the same time I'm looking for cheap gags to throw in, vocab to improve, maybe some topping and tailing of chapters, perhaps even - gasp - descriptive passages. It's still acres of dialogue sat on a wafer-thin plot sat on top of a stupidly complex idea that can barely be seen for the fart jokes. Ah, sophistication wherefore art thou?

Today I also filled the punch-man and gave him a short lesson. I'll probably ache tomorrow being old and feeble now so I didn't overdo it.

Should I add a recent pic? I think I'll loook.....

that's Tim's BTW...

A day off, lots happened

OK, lots is pushing it. I got a review in first thing. Did the lawn and the gutters and then didn't go swimming, had a lovely lazy afternoon in the sun with Pat instead. As we were relaxing I dug into FBTE and got the chapters in the order I want, made small tweaks here and there, removed the deleted scenes (as I always do). In the end I have a novel. It still needs a read-through and fine-adjustment, still lots of plain vanilla sections, unadorned bits, general shite but it hangs together. Was 57 chapters not counting the intro, the epilogue and the 3-4 chapters still floating at the end with no actual designation.

Considering whether to let someone read it, someone sympathetic. Carl is usually good but perhaps not critical enough...

Then, as I sat and mused, got email to say our mastered album is ready to audition. Grabbed wav, converted to mp3 and uploading now to dropbox so Tim can check it in France. Meanwhile burning a CD and wondering excitedly. Looks like some tracks are LOUD.

May not have time for recording sesh tomorrow. I need to get that 3/1 review done by tuesday then I can concentrate on the 4/1 - these days of indulgence put me behind, especially with christening Sunday. Only bank holiday can save me... :)

Wotta blast!

 
Hopefully my Minimoog arrives next week. Today two more cropped up, one I'd tried to get before but bloke wouldn't let me come listen. Mine's coming from France so fingers crossed it's well packed. Sigh. Would much rather have come to agreement with guy in Scunthorpe.