Today a new album of library tracks is released on lovely indie library label Thermal Music.
I have a track on it called Suez Rift
New track on new library album
New library album out on Clearwave/BMG
New Bria single
Darling Buds remix
A while ago I did a remix for the Darling Buds..absolutely one of my favourite bands as a teen.
It’s finally out on their Bandcamp page
Out now
The antidote
You’re told to record things well: right mics, right positions, great pre amps… get everything in time and in tune. Fix your mistakes.
Two fingers to that
Now that’s perfection.
Knowing Me
Mixed and mastered the One Cure For Man contribution to the Robot Needs Home album of Abba covers
It’s track 2
We Are All Dogs on Chains (for a bit)
Strange times…and I must be bored if I’m resorting to regular blogging again!
My day job’s on lock down, and being asthmatic it might be a while before I’m back in the physical realm.
As the whole of the self employed creative world struggle to plan how to earn their living, I assume OBS are seeing record downloads, and I’m one of their new users. Finally set myself up to try some live streaming for some student virtual lectures over the next few weeks. Yes, I am now that idiot living in the corner of a screen. Thanks to Mark Towers for helping me set it up.
This enforced down time will hit us all in so many ways. Financially tough, but a lack of contact with your loved ones is already strange.
If there is a plus, it’s the potential headspace to work on/finish some projects. I’m writing / tweaking some new units for RSL Awards : a level 3 vocational qualification. It’s about to be the marking period for external units for them, too…although that work may completely dry up this year for obvious reasons.
I’ve got a handful of albums on the go to shop to various libraries. These range from shiny beds and reveals to some really dark piano and beats stuff….aiming for 5 albums this year but thats wildly optimistic!
I’ve just had three songs signed to a library on a new imprint…..sort of ‘Killing Eve’ type soundtrack stuff: I love the Unloved albums, so it was nice to win the pitch.
I wrote a couple of tracks for my friend John’s library over the weekend…. I find it so much easier writing for other people rather than my own projects! Just got to finish the mixes.
I’ve got a stack of albums pretty much ready for my own library , so that’s sort of ticking along….planning an album a month for the next 12 – 18 months, then I’ll see where I am with it.
Anyway….new music from Morrissey was out on Friday in the form of ‘I Am Not A Dog On A Chain’ , his 4th album with Joe Chiccarelli on production duties. I dread to think what it’d be like without him producing…..he highlights how vital a good producer is: he’s single handedly halted the decline of Moz (creatively that is, not politically obviously) by essentially breaking all of Moz’s sonic rules…it’s got loads of synths for one. The songs, like the last 15 years, are patchy, but the production is ace: muscular and , well, very mad in places.
‘Darling, I Hug a Pillow’ is brill with some lovely deadpan words: ‘Loving you is a trauma no-one else should face , or sit still for’ : highlights are few and far between though with some proper clunky lyrics and awkward melodies. Overall though, like the last 3 albums, some genuinely great stuff marred (!) by some crap songs and a lack of self editing skills.
Baxter Dury’s album was also out on the same day. Very much a one and a bit trick pony, the last single ‘I’m Not Your Dog’ is perfect: sexy, seedy, simple and very French
Stay safe, all x
Positive Negatives
Life can be hard.
Had some family illness, family deaths, things breaking down and a host of other things that make some days really hard.
One thing I learned a few years ago is to try to turn the downs into ups. If those around you are negative, put your energy into doing positive things: Write some music, work on something that will make someone around you happy, do something that moves you, even snail pace, towards a goal. These pay dividends : the hard bits are the initial effort to start to do something when you feel like you’ve been hit…and the time it takes…..you plant seeds that sometimes take years to bear fruit. Some may never result in anything, but isn’t it better you try rather than focus on pointless negatives?
Don’t be a dick.
Here’s a super sad song..nice to have a cry every now and again
And here’s a super happy (well, sleazy happy) one…single of the year so far
2019 In Review
When I started this blog, I posted pretty regularly …was a working concern. Now, it’s a post a year! Not through want of trying..just no time..or rather, am prioritising other things. Blogging used to be much more of a thing…it’s just a bit of a memory book now.
News this year? 2nd year into running Music at Confetti , 2nd Industry Week with a third already shaping up to be great in March 2020. A definite highlight for me.
Met Jools Holland as part of the 25th anniversary in November at work
Went to the Great Escape in Brighton for work back in May….Bristol, Tileyard in London and Norwich too over the year.
We did a single with Gareth Jones on production for a Confetti artist (Bria) in our new SSL studio. Definite highlight for me as was working at Splendour festival with a bunch of students.
Finished and passed my Masters earlier this month…got a distinction! All that time I now have is being devoted to a few albums I have on the go designed for media use. Pretty much my sole out-of-the-day-job hours focus for the next year or two.
Still doing some moderation and marking for RSL Awards…seasonal, but I still learn lots from seeing how schools and colleges deliver and assess music and music tech subjects.
I reached the 25th release on my music for media imprint : a super slow start to the year due to the Masters eating all my time, but a few releases in quick succession at the end meant I finished strong! I have 2020’s releases planned with a few more ideas to nail.
Mixing and mastering was pretty thrifty this year in terms of other people’s projects, but busy on my own material. I did do some mix work on a track that was played on Everest for the highest DJ set world record a few months back called ‘Count The Stars’ by Genix and the always awesome Hannah Brine though, so if you’re gonna mix something, it may as well be something that helps break a world record 😉
Should I do a ‘favourite plug ins’ type bit? Go on then…
In terms of new ones, I bought all 12 of the Arturia plug ins: as with most plug ins sets, I don’t use them all, but the Neve Pre Amp emulation is brilliant
: I love it. The Memory Man emulation is also great.
The compressors are fine… but I find myself going back to the WAVES ones for the 1176 clone. The DBX 160 Clone is good though.
Favourite plug in of the year is the Abbey Road Plates reverb..really great. Speaking of WAVES, I still mix into the SSL bus compressor
and use H Delay, the L2 and the CLA Compressors on most mixes. We’re all really spoilt for choice aren’t we?
I still use the Soundtoys suite on most things… especially the Decapacitator, Primal Tap, Echo Boy and Radiator, but all of them are pretty ace.
Albums of the year for me…..yes questionable politics aside, Morrissey’s covers album didn’t disappoint. In fine voice.
Matt Maltese’s album is brilliant….last year’s debut was ace..and this new one (‘Krystal’) is self produced, more lo-fi but goes straight for the heart via the funny bones
Marika Hackman’s 2019 effort was also on repeat for me this year….
I’m a massive Lilac Time and Stephen Duffy fan, so was a treat to get 2 new albums this year…well one reissue and one new one. Both brill.
Other good albums I can remember….Nick Cave (not as good as the reviews say, but still great), Elbow, Cate Le Bon, Hot Chip, William Doyle…..
Loads of other music stuck in my ears this year….I’ve done a playlist a month for the last 5 years if you fancy listening in…..
Podcasts! Mostly the same as last years…RHLSTP and Adam Buxton are always my top 2…….new ones I love include Tape Notes and Broken Record.
Happy New Year everyone: let’s hope the new decade is full of positive things.
Keep going, be nice to people, do good work and look after your loved ones.
