It's been another grey and wet day. Finished the new track but diverted for a couple of hours to write a quick news item for the mag. It involved me watching that scary Roland video again.

Pat working this evening so I'm gonna see if I can get another track started.

Wet Tuesday

Meeting with money man today, gonna get him to do my taxes. Then saw Les who lent me a hi-fi amp so finally I can play my LPs. That speaker working too so my soldering must be OK.

Worked a little on a track this afternoon, a mad mix of howling orientals, drum and bass and Kraftwerk. As Paul says: how can that not be used??

Best news of the day: secured MOTU for review, which means I get to really try before I buy. Got the email just as I was reading my credit card numbers to the guy at Digital Village too! Managed to halt it, all peachy and no hard feelings, especially as it wasn't in stock.

Monday and zilch

Got review off this morning. Otherwise did nothing much today except help with horse. Have decided to buy MOTU's Ethno Instrument 2 despite it using yet another fecking dongle security. Hope it'll be enough for this current project but I expect to keep haemorrhaging money.

Was Pat's herceptin day. Money man and Les tomorrow so let's hope I get some time soon to work on music.

LPs and fungus

Got a deck, decent one too although coulda probably got something OK from the bastards at Richer Sounds. Sod 'em though.

Now I discover some of my albums have little blobs of fungus. Have to fix one of the old speakers though, hopefully a simply solder job. Great listening to the old albums again though. Hope I didn't bore Tony too much with 'em last night.

Ran into Matt B, hope to hook up next week.

Got new phone, very posh touch-screen thing with camera and video camera. Accidentally dialled Pat several times while out walking, must read the manual.

Today (Saturday) I should do final review polish, solder speaker, perhaps start a track. No slacking boy!!

Friday again

Looks a better morning. Finished the brazilian one yesterday - it got more ethic at the start so not really sure what flavour it is now, the sorta indian guitar noise and those crazy mandolins... also redid the old ambient china one and simplified it. We'll see if enough.

Practically completed the Kaossilator review, it's the right length and says everything I want. A little tidying then it can go.

Today I shall take it a little easier but try to get at least one new track started.

Well well, it just goes to show you can never work folks out. Of the three tracks sent, the gamelan one was "good but not for this", the afro-celt one was spot on and the brazilian one needs more worldy stuff at the start. Weird that the afro celt one was added to make up the numbers! Had the formula explained to me - then when I think about it realised that the one track that DIDN'T conform to it was the afro-celt one as it has an intro. Also, some of the other accepted ones really don't have much world and certainly not right at the start.

Consistency would help but I think I'm getting the picture and starting to understand the mentality that goes into this process.

Long chat about scenes and workspaces with Colin. Seriously think this baby is gonna be wonderful but needs to move faster. Like me with the library music.

Finished two tracks yesterday - the "minimal techno" one, which now has japanese school kids and gamelan to add to the brazilian voices and rhythms. Does it work? Will send later and see. Also completed the catchy Brazilian beachy one I'm gonna call Sundance (for now) - better than my working title of Soapy Sophie. :)

Logic caused me some pain. Not the crash but the weirdness with the muted tracks that eventually led me down the path of working from one of the backups, which then didn't do new backups and I somehow lost over an hour's cool sequence work that isn't quite as good now I've recreated it. Did I mention how much I hate that endless "do you want to save?" question that dulls its power through repetition.

I MUST get that review into shape today.

Disappointing day yesterday as I got very little done. My precious Sunday evening lost the first 2 1/2 hours as Phil was here with his broken-down car. Somehow after that I never quite got into the review rhythm. Made small inroads on one of the tracks I'd been working on but that's all. Should take Phil's advice and get some financial advice I guess, especially when it comes to claiming back tax as this year will be a cash-light year. At least mum's back starting to improve. Noticed her face getting round with the steroids though.

Today I have Les this morning and we'll see what this afternoon.

Rainy Saturday

Didn't do a great deal yesterday. Progressed (slightly) the track that sounds a bit Sophie Ellis Bextor (did I rip the guitar riff off, dunno?) and thought how I could do the minimal techno one to be more worldy - need some Japanese female voice samples in various pitches. Didn't tackle the afto celt one but instead played with Cirklon. Managed to lose about an hour's work somehow, still can't really get started on anything with it yet. Missing my P3.

Installed Virus OS4 and Logic 9.1.1, that latter fixing my hanging note problem with compressors using sidechains.

Words fail me...

Persuaded American guy to translate ASAP into an actual calendar date. He said the deadline was March 21st. He told me this on the 18th. So that's the kind of consideration I'm gonna get in this exciting new world writing music.

Had I known on the 6th March when I got the brief, I'd have panicked but had a serious try at it. Did another track yesterday that's almost right but as there's no way I'll have 20 done (including stingers, underscores and 60" edits) by the deadline I'll ease up and enjoy today's sunshine. May even visit Tony tonight...

Mmm

Managed two tracks today, both decidedly simple and focused I hope. Knackered from screen staring though. Pat working until midnight.

Sent to Mars with fingers crossed and also the native american tommy one that I also simplified.

Dentist on the Ides of March

Phew, all OK.

Pretty much finished the Afro-Celt one. Can't get the damn tune out of my head either. Grrr. Didn't do much else except get my deadline for the Kaossilator review. Have sussed it out, not too hard.

Oh, DW finally replied (must've been my cheeky 'anniversary' email). They said they're already packed in "my genre" but have passed me onto some other library. Wasn't even the main man who wrote so so much for Paul's pulling power. I guess his idea of sticking to one theme didn't work out too well either, but at least I got a load of similar tracks out of it that I hope to find a use for. If not, well, I like 'em. Could extend into a full album darn easily if there was any point at all to bringing out an album these days.

Carless Sunday

Well, Pat's has a potentially dodgy airbag so she's using mine. Mum's back still bad so she couldn't go out far anyway, which is worrying.

Must progress Kaossilator review today - have the nice long Sunday evening to myself to work on it, Cirklon this afternoon I think. At least the Korg's easy enough to use and to write about but I'd rather be working on new tracks, now my ears have been opened. All these years of hit and miss production eh? Sigh...

Dentist tomorrow.

Nice one Mick!

Can't thank Mick enough for yesterday's studio checkout. Feel I'm hearing my mixes ten times better just for the simple lesson of mixing louder. The bits that clash and grate aren't so bad quieter of course so I never really felt them - think Mars did me a real favour.

Going through all recent Logic songs and applying lots more thought and care to them. Maybe won't make any new stuff until all those are as good as they can be. :)

Sunny Monday

And I'm in a darkened studio. At least the review went off and seemed OK to me.

Now to start on the first big library project. :)

Woo

Most excellent day. Contact of Paul's from USA has a project that seems tailor made for me. The track I started last night is sounding good and also beginning to make something of the funny sideband test one. Not sure how but it's got something I could work on.

Fab walk this morning with Jasper. So a good day. Maybe Tim's green helped it along too. Now, curry with Carl beckons.

Another Sunny Day

My blogs these days are about as interesting as Eddie Izzard's Tweets. The sun broke through the morning fog and I can see myself chilling through the afternoon although I do feel rather like making music today, time to pester Colin for an OS update which is a good excuse to switch on the hardware side of the studio.

Pat working this evening so it means I have more free time to write tonight. Can life really continue as good as it is now?

Glorious Sunshine

How on earth am I going to convince myself to ascend into darkness today when it's such a stunning day? Had intended to do the final polish of the MiniAK review and do two sub versions of African Gold for Yooka, but the sun-drenched conservatory is calling. Going up in the hills this afternoon to do some horse walking.

Simple pleasures rule. :)

OK, sub versions aren't that easy - not getting exact 30" mixes anyway. Let's hope a second or two's leeway works. On the plus side, had a second track accepted, the one Pat really liked.

Tum tee tum. Didn't do much today except agree to beta test some new hardware, upload the psy track to hopefully be used by Yooka and return that Eventide Harmonizer I've had sat around for ages.

Played the Manikin Memotron (I think that's what it's called). Three mellotrons in one room. Hey ho.

Over and out.

Sunshine!

Trying to fix laptops today. Went to carvery with Les and his father in law so the day kinda drifted away from me. Lovely sunshine and idling through the afternoon, cider, FSOL and a good book.

Later, had another tweak of psy track, now called Carmaggeddon. Reckon I need Andy M to help get it right though; good advice from Gareth.

Tiddly pom.