Monday 28 October 2013

My finest hour

If anyone asks, you can tell them I wrote it here.
"I once came across Enya, satisfying an ambition of many years."
I don't think I ever wrote a better line.
Which is possibly sad.

Somebody is buying my music online in great numbers. I can't help wondering if it's based on the playing of Twilight at the barn party. It's designed for those in a particular mood after all. :)

Made a new song with review kit tonight, excellent fun. What a life eh?

This evening I did this:
https://soundcloud.com/paulnagle/smileys120

Friday 25 October 2013

The left will argue amongst themselves

That was the gist anyway, and it's true. I guess that makes the left feminine to the big butch right who always club together for their own collective greed.

Lots of talk on fb today about Russell Brand's interview with Paxman and the article in New Statesman. Sadly, predictably, the bulk of the discussion centered on Brand himself, even by those whose point was that Brand was entirely self-serving. He'd love the irony, the mischievous imp!

Here's the article:
http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2013/10/russell-brand-on-revolution


Russell Brand walks into a bar shouting: quick, quick, there's a spaceship outside offering to take us for a once-in-a-lifetime trip across the galaxy.
The assembled elders looked up slowly from their real ale, eyes narrowing. The message sank in.
They roused themselves.
Then launched themselves - into a long and spirited argument about Brand and whether he was an appropriate person to make such an announcement. His motives were grievously doubted, his character was pored over at considerable length.
A dude pointed out that he had once met some aliens. He was pretty sure he had anyway.
Someone else chipped in on the same topic, recalling a film where a potato fondler travelled to space with peanut-eyed, grey-skinned dwarfs. Heads nodded like a landslide and several broke into song.
Who did he think he was, this bearded dandy, going way beyond his jurisdiction?
More drinks were ordered and thighs were slapped.
Brand waved but they ignored him. After a while he shrugged and left the bar and became the sole passenger on a trip to the Ring Nebula. Inevitably he began work on a script. Equally inevitably, he winked at the alien with the fewest extra heads and what he hoped were breasts.
The scene fades with Brand smiling at an imaginary camera.
Back in the bar, one of the assembled elders happens to peer through a window then upwards at the retreating lights.
"Guys...." he says.

-------------
In other news. Lots of new review stuff arrived. Had a good afternoon with one of them. Wrote to US library company. Saw Camel (brill) and going to see Michael Nyman next week. Failed to get to Hawklords or Here & Now. This weekend astronomy thing, synth thing, something else I can't remember right now. :)

Have finished jicarc04, will release soon. Very busy right now, which is good for me I think. Everything comes in waves, I've noticed, periods of almost inactivity then bursts of lots of stuff to do. I will learn to enjoy this oscillation now I've identified it. Less guilt about the quiet times. :)


Saturday 19 October 2013

Oops

So I tried the cake and - thank goodness spotted it was reasonably potent in time not to eat it all, quite. Lovely cake too, as always. The afternoon was very pleasant, did a track (needs work but sketch here)
https://soundcloud.com/smokyfrog/saturdayafternoonrainingoutsid
Then I noticed it raining, then remembered Margaret coming, wondered how, rang her. She told me she would walk from Bamber Bridge and by then it was torrential. Pissed and stoned, major guilt trip (afraid I opened some beer too, cake and track seemed to invite it). Rang Pat at work who was going to leave at 5 snuck out earlier, all my fault. Couldn't drive though, would be everything I always swear not to do.
This evening they went out so I had the rest of the cake, no beer though, watched Big Lebowski. Realised at last where I ripped off the sequencer riff from Blime-E. It's the song they sing in the middle where the dude does his routine, the condition the condition's in, that one. Ah well, so much for originality. :)

Oh, this morning I did the trees in the garden with my lovely saw. Brilliant fun, even got to talk to the nutty neighbour's wife, sweet-talked her (or tried my best). We'll see.

Tomorrow I have work to do, well the review that's almost finished to finish.

Sunday 13 October 2013

Awakenings

Well, a good gig I thought. Maybe more elements of chaos than I'd have liked but it was well-received and that's what counts. I have a sneaking suspicion I failed to connect a MIDI cable to my delay, which was one of my contributions to the chaos. They surprised us by asking for an encore, which we didn't have, so it was 100% made up on the spot! Pete held us together beautifully and when I couldn't hear my sequences I just played keyboards, which worked OK. Was very impressed by the little MS20 too and its keyboard didn't prove to be a problem, except I did have to watch my fingers rather than feel for intervals.

PRS is in. Not a great one but I think I expected that as I've been taking it a bit too easy and letting reviews fill my time when I should've dusted them off quicker and got on to more work. Starting tomorrow gonna do something! Wow, what a resolution!

Great idea to get a hotel even if I drank too much and felt rough in the morning. Nice breakfast though and good trip home. No sign of whatever that loud crack was either in the car or my gear... gonna take less if I do any more. Had too much I think, especially given the very short setup time and no soundcheck. Oops, moaning again. Had good chat with Duncan and a lot of Cirklon talk. Star that he is he packed my leads for me, saving loads of time and doing a way better job than I ever have. Must try and learn how he does it!

Swapped Dark Time for Microwave 2 so will get that going later I hope. Also an app review to start. Feel a bit knackered and may be coming down with a cold, very snotty. No, I've no idea why I felt that necessary to record either but I'm typing without thinking as my pizza warms up. Pat at work, don't think she had a great night without me.


A picture of some shrooms for no very good reason.

Tuesday 8 October 2013

MS20 mini arrived

Funny isn't it, when you've been waiting for something for a long time and suddenly the wait is over? The MS20 mini arrived and, even though I saw and admired Colin's, I'm strangely underwhelmed. 
I already knew about the wobbly knobs and crappy keyboard, the naff MIDI spec and the minijack output but this one seems to have some calibration issues on top of all that. Probably fixable, could be a batch from the Vietnamese factory or wherever they tried. The main trouble is I just don't feel I need it or that it fits in anywhere. Envelopes aren't right for sequencing, keyboard not right for playing, everything so small I can barely tune VCO2 accurately... 
The Bass Station 2 impressed me so much that perhaps the gap was filled and I didn't realise. I dunno, it's probably just that I'm now skint and shouldn't have bought it. May pass it on, could return it I guess but should give it a good try first, get stoned, learn to love it. 



Tomorrow I'm horse-watching but hope to get time to sort my gig gear. Now thinking of taking the Perfourmer after all, it's what I'm used to. And the larger Behringer mixer. Do I need both sequencers? Do I need the Octatrack? If the Tanzbar shows up, I think I'll take that, just because.

 

Monday 7 October 2013

Ahem

Well, it's been a strange few days. Can't recall what my last entry was but I discovered an MS20 mini for sale on Saturday and ordered it. If Korg do ever offer me one, we'll see but I waited long enough. It should be here tomorrow.

Tim and I recorded a couple of groovy things tonight, at least I thought they were groovy. Wonder what tomorrow will bring. All sounding good.

Did no work today and I suspect that will be the case for the week. Just a hunch. Got a new power supply for the Dark Time. I am tempted to keep it for use with the MS20 but Pete wants it and I am skint, so I guess that's that. Gonna take the Spirit mixer to gig I think as I need the channels. We'll see if Tanzbar shows up in time.

I find myself enjoying this a lot, a pal of Michael Hoenig's IIRC
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HoljsO22qA


Saturday 5 October 2013

So I'm 52 years old

and still alive.

Late night last night, well half two this morning, which seems late to me. Spent the day doing not so much, pottered with some headshock material, bought an MS20 mini I saw at a decent price. I'm fed up waiting for Korg, but with yesterday's drum machine it leaves me transformed from flush to skint in two swift strokes. Will barely be able to afford that microwave 2 after all, doh! Tony to pay for the Freebass fix - great job as he replaced two knobs rather than one. Still doing sampling from Octatrack even though it's always harder work than it should be. Some days I think my life would be easier without it and I do question exactly whether it's been worth the massive investment of time it's had. Always the straightforward stuff is just as hard to do as the obscure stuff you'd rarely want to do anyway.

Lots of lovely birthday greets on fb, supposed to be going to eat somewhere tonight but Pat gone for a ride. Hey ho, sure we'll think of something to do. Hungry though...



This is a groovy effect achieved by overexposure on my phone (the "holding it to the ground then quickly drawing" effect). Well, I like it anyway. I guess you'd have to see an example of a regular shot of it. Like this:
See what I mean?

Have made some progress on Eternity Program, surpringly. I think I have a direction for it, at least for a while, certainly some ideas I want to follow to their conclusion. However inconclusive that might turn out to be. Heh. Anyway, happy birthday me. Wonder if I'll take the MS20 and Tanzbar to Awakenings gig?