Thankful For Tape Oxidization

Working on the new album last night, I was revelling in the way Little Rose Tattoo has turned out.  It’s been a long time in the making – I wrote the song in 2000 while apprenticing as a tattooist.  But it never felt “right” until now.  Some songs just need to mature to hit their stride, I guess.

It got me thinking of my history with songs.  In particular, the first one that I wrote.  “Unknown Desire” was a disgustingly saccharine ballad that I wrote when I was 15.  Predictably, it was about I girl that I was too shy to approach.  I don’t remember which one, there were so many back then.

Thankfully, I don’t remember the lyrics.  Unfortunately, I recorded my feeble attempt at rock stardom.  One take, me mumbling the song as I strummed away into a cassette recorder.  I gave it to a friend’s girlfriend as a birthday gift (my first groupie), and a few years later she played it back for me. 

I’m glad I wrote it – every attempt improves your craft.  And I learned from the experience (never give sexy gifts to friends’ girlfriends).

Of all the songs I’ve written, and there are hundreds, Unknown Desire is the one that I’m glad will never be heard again.  As long as that damned cassette tape has oxidized by now…

What I Did On My Summer Vacation

Yes, it’s been way too long without an update.

What’s happened since April?  Well, let’s see. 

My studio computer died a miserable death.  And since it was a Windows XP machine, when I replaced it I had to replace the interface and most of the software.  This meant that I had to learn the new workflows for Sonar X3, since I had been using Sonar Producer for years.  X3 is a fantastic piece of kit and comes with loads of extra software, so along with learning the DAW itself, I also ended up adjusting to the fancy toys that came with it.

Right before I replaced my studio PC, my wife and I decided to move.  So that took out some time.

Now for the good stuff…

During this downtime, I had a wonderful idea on how to produce my next album.  I’ve always loved Motown/Stax-Volt type music.  As a bassist, that’s how I learned my craft – learning from Duck Dunn, Bob Babbitt, etc…  So I’m going in that direction.  Not totally soul, but my current style leaning in that direction a bit more than usual.

This past weekend, I finished the drum tracks and general arrangements.  This is the biggest stumbling block for now, since the guitars and bass can be done in a couple of quick takes.  That will just leave the vocals, traditionally my biggest pain.  But they shouldn’t be too taxing this time, since these songs have been WELL rehearsed in my summer break.

Anyway, things are very exciting at the moment.  My breakfast is done, time to put on the headphones, sling the bass across my shoulder, and groove.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes!

Sorry, it's been a few months since I've been in touch.  But what a few months it has been!

First, my studio PC died suddenly.  It had lived a long and prosperous life, but I was waiting a little longer to replace it.  I waited too long...
Luckily I save my data to a second hard drive (VERY IMPORTANT TO DO!!!).  This kept my musical projects saved safely, when the primary drive died and locked away everything on it.  Unfortunately, this included my collection of music from everyone other than myself.  All my MP3s were killed!
Since I'm a paranoid geek, I planned ahead and backed up everything on another external drive.  So imagine my surprise when that drive died as well, while copying my music collection onto another computer!  It got from Abba to Prince before failing.
So lost is my discography of Rolling Stones, Roxy Music, Stereophonics, Yazoo... you get the picture. 

Luckily I still had most of them tucked away as DVDs in the basement.  For the rest, I downloaded bit-torrents.  While I usually avoid downloading torrents (i prefer to pay the artists for their work), since I had actually purchased these on DVD, i think i've covered my obligation...

At this point, I should have been ready to just replace my studio PC and get back to writing and recording, right?  Wrong.  Since my studio PC was on Windows XP (and had not been online in 6 years), I also have to replace my IO Interface and recording software (Sonar DAW). 

I checked out my options, and priced out the best products to suit my revamped, basement home studio.

Suddenly, my wife and I decided to buy a condo and move out of our rented townhouse!  Luckily, I hadn't yet bought all the new gear for my studio.  Since now I won't have a studio per se... 
The new studio setup will be a  Windows 8- based 17" laptop, a Focusrite IO Interface, and headphones.  As for software, I'll be upgrading to Sonar Platinum.  I've been a big fan of Cakewalk/ Sonar since dipping my toe into PC-based recording in 2003, with their HomeStudio line of DAWs.  Platinum will require a learning curve, as there have been 3 major releases in between my Producer 8.5 and the newest Platinum.  That'll take some time to get used to, but I'm sure it will be worthwhile - from what I've seen this upgrade should really streamline my processes.  And hopefully ease the transition from a dual-monitor PC with lovely (speaker) monitors to one laptop screen and headphones....

Stay tuned, I'm still here! 
I swear...

Romeo & Juliet

I put my own music on hold for a few days to get ready for a performance last Saturday night.
My wife's choir, Exultate Chamber Singers, had their annual fundraiser.  The theme was right up my alley:  London Calling, celebrating English music.
Most of our favourite music is British, so we spent a lot of time choosing which song we would play.  Both being huge David Bowie fans, we ran through a huge chunk of his catalogue.  Nothing felt right.  What about Pulp?  We tried Common People (my preference) and Disco 2000 (Kate's preference), before deciding on Romeo & Juliet by Dire Straits.  The song had a more varied dynamic, and seemed more suitable for the intended audience.  My skills are pretty far behind Mark Knopfler's, so it took some work to get it just right.  But I think we did.
I really enjoyed Andre Heywood's version of Your Song by Elton John.  I wish I could have given it more attention, but I was busy tuning my guitar in the back room as we were following him.

Kate did a fantastic job singing such a beautiful song.  And I had an added bonus:  This was the first time that my classic 1974 Fender Telecaster Custom got stage time.  I don't know why it has always taken second place to my other instruments - it's my favourite, with lots of personality and shaping from it's previous owner touring it for over 30 years.  But it was perfect for Romeo & Juliet, nothing else would give me that pretty, twangy, airy tone...

A few audience members told me afterwards that we should start performing more as a duo.  So that might be a future project...

Here's a photo from the performance:

And just to push it, here's a YouTube link to my favourite version of the song:

Reworking

On Saturday night I was walking to see a friend play in a bar across town.
On my way, James' album LAID came on my headphones.  DAMN, I forgot how much I love this record!
As I listened, it gave me some ideas on how some of my music should be arranged.  Some of the new album is completely written and arranged, but there are a few things that don't feel complete yet.

So, today I"m down in my studio trying various things.  It's sounding more "right," and getting better by the minute!

Very happy today, the muse is visiting.

Revitalization

I just got back from New Orleans.
It was my first visit to the city, but won't be my last.  I LOVE it there!  The art, the friendliness, and the music EVERYWHERE.
I spent most of my days sitting on the Royal St sidewalk listening to incredible musicians busking.  It was incredibly inspiring.

One morning, out for a wander, I stopped to listen to a couple of street kids that were jamming on acoustic guitars.  We got talking about our tattoos, and they noticed the Bowie, Ferry, and Richards portraits inked on my forearm.  Then they offered me a guitar to bash away on.

My set included:
Romeo & Juliet by Dire Straits
Dead Flowers by The Rolling Stones
Unchained Melody by The Ritcheous Brothers
Burn, by me
This Dream, by me
I'm Alright by The Stereophonics
Heroes by David Bowie
Love Is The Drug by Roxy Music

I earned a fair bit of cash, but left it for them.  I was in town for fun, not work.  It really made me feel at home there, and I frequently saw those guys later in my visit.  I don't think they ever knew my name, and I didn't ask theirs.  They would just shout "Hey Moustache!" and wave whenever we crossed paths.


Coming back to Toronto, I was inspired to work on my own albums.  I have so many in the works...
Gravedigging For Two is written and demos recorded.
I also have another half-record written.
But I'm feeling the need to remix 2011's Love Isn't Enough collection.  I really like this batch of songs, but my home-mix isn't quite up to snuff.  And while John Jamieson and I mixed Your Heart And Mine, we noticed some consistent issues with my drum programming.  So I'll reprogram LIE's drumming before heading back to the studio.  That has also lead to redoing some overdubs...

Here's a clip from yesterday morning, where I am recording the lead guitar line from This Dream:





And for context, here's the original version:

Family Jam

Yesterday was Family Day in Ontario, so my wife and I both had the day off.
I don't know if I've mentioned it, but she's a great singer and performs in a local Choral Ensemble.

I was plucking away at a guitar, and she started singing along.  One song led to another, and we ended up having a fantastic hour-long living room performance.

It was one of the best times I've had in a while - I hope we do it again soon.

Setlist:
Wild Horses - The Rolling Stones
Upside - James
Ziggy Stardust - David Bowie
The Man Who Sold The World - David Bowie
Common People - Pulp
Rock N Roll Suicide - David Bowie
Disco 2000 - Pulp
Space Oddity - David Bowie
Of Monsters & Heroes & Men - James

Yes, my university-trained vocalist can ROCK!

Sister Morphine

Sister Morphine has been one of my favourite songs for decades.  Originally an album track from The Rolling Stones' Sticky Fingers album, it was released in 1971.
When I first heard it, I was floored.  Such brilliance, both in composition and sound!
It epitomized the acoustic guitar for me - I've always felt that it is a very raw instrument.  When I pick one up, the acoustic guitar either  becomes angry or lonely.  As such, my acoustic parts are either soft and sparse (Johnny Cash's version of Hurt is a perfect example), or furious (Pinball Wizard by The Who).  I can't bear to play "happy-clappy-singalong" songs with it (think Big Blue Sea or The Barenaked Ladies).
As I've said before, Keith Richards was THE reason I wanted to be a guitarist.  And this song, one of my favourite Stones tracks, shows the moodier, more vunerable side of the band.

The other morning, I was having breakfast when Sister Morphine appeared on my random iTunes playlist.  Love.  Inspiration.
2 hours later, I had recorded a rough cover version of the song.  I know I can't recreate the feel of the original track (linked at the bottom of this post), so I took it in a different route.  More electronic, Depeche Mode-y.  Just a little bit of guitar to really give it a punch.
Almost finished the song, it seemed to lack something.  I had put a delay effect on the snare drum, to carry through the sparse arrangement.  I decided to slow down the decay a little, to pull it out of the tempo.  Now it seems to be limping.  PERFECT.
I'm really proud of this track - I think I very quickly managed to compile my interpretation of the lyrics and give them a "swift touch."

Have a listen to this:
http://www.icompositions.com/music/song.php?sid=208439&html5=yes

And now this:

Action Pants

A new project is starting rehearsals this week!
Three friends and I are putting together a band called Action Pants.  It's a cover band, doing inappropriate versions of songs we all know.  Inappropriate because it'll be a dance/distortion/punk performance of decidedly non-aggressive songs from artists like Gowan, Chris Isaak, The Shirelles, Kylie Minogue, and Petula Clark.  Among others.
I've been in a few bands that take themselves way too seriously.  This one will be FUN.  We're determined to do a good job, and treat the songs with respect, but we're all adults with no sense of shame.  So we're going to do what we want with the stages we're allowed on.

Sorry to keep this short, I have to get down to my studio to figure out how to funk-up Wicked Game...

Watch The Blood Run

This song deals with the troubles I had as a teenager living in a small town.
With the frustration of not feeling "at home," and with no clue on how to obtain a sense of belonging, I would often cut myself.  My left arm, shoulder, and hand are covered in the scars left behind.  I started getting tattoos, and these helped to keep me from cutting as I didn't want to ruin the inked designs that took their place.  Surprising, but it worked.
Cutting was a way to release the frustration and pressure - perhaps it was the adrenaline rush that came with the pain, maybe it was self-punishment for not being able to fit into society like we're "supposed to."  Or maybe it was just the increased stimulation that was intellectually lacking in such a lonely place?  Who knows...

Almost 20 years later, I was sitting in my studio strumming the acoustic guitar part for what would become "Watch The Blood Run."  The first lyric came from nowhere:  "Every time I think of you I find myself just sitting in the dark."  That line brought back memories of a time when I was caught cutting, when my girlfriend walked in on me.  Sitting alone in my darkened bedroom, she initially thought she'd walked in on something else...  haha, nope.  I was digging a sewing needle into my arm and excavating a deep groove.  The rest of the lyrics came quickly, and I was finally able to express what was going on in my head while I cut.
The rest of the song came very quickly, surprisingly including the harmonica melody.  I think it was the first thing I wrote on that instrument, and I can still only play my own songs on it.  I've never learned to actually perform anything but this and "Your Heart And Mine" on a harmonica.

When I mixed the song, I realized the guitar-and-drum-based song needed more.  I asked John (the mixing engineer) to add some keyboards to it.  He created a fantastic, 70s-inspired organ piece.  In turn, that lead to my writing another guitar part in the 5 minutes that John laid down the keys.  Then I asked him to play the new piece on an electric piano.  The song now had a very different feel to what I had originally intended.  Now it needed a tambourine loudly bashing through the song!  Scope Creep ensued...  Finally we had finished it and listened to the mix.  It was done.  Or so we thought.  About to it save, I interrupted with "um, I might have an idea.  I'm not really liking the start.  What if we copy the heavy guitar and drums, and paste them as a 4-bar lead-in to the song?"  We tried it, copy/pasted the bass guitar as well, and ended up with the huge introduction that you now hear.  God I love the rearrangment capabilities of computer-based recording.

And that was how Watch The Blood Run came to be.  And personally it means a lot to have finally been able to express what I was dealing with so long ago.

Restart... Again

Wow, the last time I blogged was a year and a half ago!

When we last spoke, I had just recorded an 8-song album titled The Scars That I've Earned.
Right after the recording sessions, I had a cycling accident that took me out of commission for a year or so.  It was tough, all I could think about was finishing the album.
At my return I tried to mix it myself, like I did for Love Isn't Enough.  It didn't sound good enough, my mixing talents just aren't quite up to par.  So I asked John Jamieson, of Soundhouse Studio, to help.  He did, and we created a collection of songs that exceeded my highest hopes.

The Scars That I've Earned is now available on CDBABY (CD and MP3), iTunes (MP3), and directly from me at MATTSWIFTMUSIC.COM (CD and MP3)!
 

Here's the song I'm most proud of.  One of these days, I'll tell you it's story - it's a tearjerker.