31.08.11 - DAY 243 - OI BIT

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A free download tonight! Rounding off the month of August with a short, sharp, shock. A wee bit of punk type shenanigans for you tonight.

Hope you have all enjoyed August's collection of guitar based tunes, London collaborations and other tasty sound experiments!

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

30.08.11 - DAY 242 - Happy Birthday Byrdy

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Today's track was a wonderful collaboration with possibly the nicest chap you'll ever meet: Dominic Coyle!

D-Coy is 28 years old and likes melancholic music, swimming and speech radio.

You can hear some more music he has made with Belfast band Seven Summits (www.sevensummits.bandcamp.com) and also with Pocket Promise (www.pocketpromise.bandcamp.com)

I'd like to dedicate this song to my brother James, who turned 27 years young today! Happy Birthday bro!

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

29.08.11 - DAY 241 - Walk. Run. Wheel

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Firstly, I'd like to point out that I have borrowed the words for this piece of music from a poem in this book: http://www.amazon.com/Dissident-Voice-Poetry-Mike-Jenkins/dp/185411025X - A Dissident Voice: Poetry by Mike Jenkins (http://www.mikejenkins.net/). The poem I borrowed from is called Woman On Wheels. I've asked Mike for permission to use these words, but if he contacts me and says "NEVER!!!" then I shall have to remove this track and re-upload it without his words. I'll keep y'all posted with how that turns out.

Anyway. Right. Phew!

So for this piece I wanted to make something... oh I don't know... I guess 'abstract but composed'. In the sense that it's quite an experimental / avant garde piece, but it has a distinct structure and movements.

Today, I just couldn't get excited about making something with 'PHAT BEATS' in it. I was much more in the mood for exploring some new music territory, so I wrote down some ideas: Instruments, Field Recordings, Synth Tones, Percussion (hits and fills) and "Chimes". I wrote down a synopsis for a general arrangement of the sounds and I wrote a 'Goal' of the piece - what did I want to achieve with it?

On the other side of this page I wrote out a more detailed arrangement / overview / graphic score.

It was satisfying to create something conceptual like this. It's not often that I spew out the contents of my brain so accurately in my music, I usually only get so far before giving in. I feel the transitions work well (especially from the first movement into the more electronic 2nd movement). Part of this piece was exploring the diversity between acoustic sounds and electronic, seeing if they could mutate and morph into each other, somehow. Then of course there's also an element of improvisation in the live percussion, bass and guitar. The vocals used a visual representation of the wave forms of the bass and guitars as cues.

The field recordings were fun! I was able to get lots of great hits, cars driving by and a couple of airplanes flying over head, all within a few feet on my front door.

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

28.08.11 - DAY 240 - Flaky

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I like the term, 'flaky' in reference to people who don't weigh in, or come through on what they promised. I seem to have interacted with a few flaky people recently. So this song is about that.

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

27.08.11 - DAY 239 - Overcoming Despair

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Similarly to yesterday's track, I'm using an updated version of my Max 5 patch for generating random pitches. This time I've layered multiple recordings of the patch's output and incorporated other sounds and elements. I've also spent much longer on the arrangement in this piece. I am especially pleased with the introduction and the final sections. To me this piece references ideas about self expression, loneliness, despair and finding your way through that, to the other side where everything is going to be alright. Though to everybody else it'll probably just sound like a load of mad noises, here, wa?

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

26.08.11 - DAY 238 - Hungry Notes

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An abstract sound art / sound scape piece today.

I created a relatively simple patch in Max 5, which I fed into Ableton. The Max 5 patch controls parameters on a synth such as note selection, note frequency (how often notes are played), note duration, filter cutoff, amplitude lfo (rate which was then modulated by another lfo), amplitude envelope release. It also controls effects send levels in Ableton for two return channels with different types of reverb (which have other effects added on top). Finally, I randomised the input into the 'makenote' object (which sends the note / pitch values to the synth). All these parameters were controlled by a collection of lfos (cycle~ & phasor~ objects in Max 5) that I gave myself some control over (lfo rate and lfo type via switches). I had control over the rate of all the lfos and an on/off switch for the 'makenotes' (which allowed me to make creative decisions, like pausing note playback occasionally to let the reverb tail off, for example).

So this piece is semi-improvised / semi-generative I guess: My Max 5 patch was generating notes by itself and allowed to play (with all the other parameters working without any input from me), however I did occasionally interact with the patch while I recorded this piece. Though as the piece was recorded in one take, with no processing or editing after, I believe it qualifies as an improvisation.

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

25.08.11 - DAY 237 - Swan Fake

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SWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNS!!!!

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

24.08.11 - DAY 236 - Got Joy?

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Started this one this morning, then was out for a few hours. It's got quite a mellow vibe. So some drum programming with flanger and such, nice large phase-y bass synth, tasty Rhodes riffs (oh how love the sound of the Rhodes) more Massive synth stuff, some resampling and chopping up and a tasty sample from a youtube video (the speech and saxophone).

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

23.08.11 - DAY 235 - Islop

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Some Bangin' Breakbeat Phatness for y'all tonight. Lots of use of Massive and some use of breakbeat loops, Reason and of course all stewed together in Ableton, like a disgustingly groovy electro broth.

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

22.08.11 - DAY 234 - Stop Wounding Me

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Today's track is a collaboration between myself and Steve Mc Cann. Steve plays acoustic folk music, with a similar British finger style to Bert Jansch and also 'wopped-out' prog with Hexxed. It was a surprise that somehow we ended up with this track. A pleasant surprise none the less. Steve sings and plays guitar on this track and we were both responsible for the arrangement. This piece was an attempt to take elements of pop music and subvert them.

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

21.08.11 - DAY 233 - Pakt

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Hmm, I'm actually pretty astounded at how I've been able to make this track in just over an hour. Especially given how tired I'm feeling right now. It might have a lot to do with receiving a nice pack of samples and hits donated by a Mr. Steephen Bleeakney, for which I've very grateful. Some nice lofi blips and bleeps and a tasty breakbeat towards the end.

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

20.08.11 - DAY 232 - Too Much Pleasure

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So this is a first: Starting a SADFAY song after midnight and finishing it before going to bed. Instead of starting it when I wake up in the morning. It's surprising that after 231 days of songwriting, this is the first time I've taken this approach. It doesn't break any rules, because SADFAY can be created at any point between midnight to midnight of each day. It's just I've never done this before and I'm quite pleased with the results!

So anyway... Strings! Lots of them. Arranged in some sort of pseudo-music score orchestral style. I might have to go and study some 'proper' classical music, but my fear is that those people will try to tell me what's right and wrong, to the point where a piece like this would be considered disgustingly insulting to the memory of Bach / Brahms / Mozart / etc... Yet to me, that attitude is still just plain old snobbery and I can't be arsed with that: There is relevance and good reasoning behind the 'rules of music', but as far as I'm concerned ideas are more important. Creativity is more important. I've had many people tell me their version of what constitutes a 'right' and 'wrong' decision when it comes to making music and my conclusion is that they're all talking bollocks. Regardless of what heritage or hierarchy or established school of thought you apply it too, creative freedom is the most essential ingredient for an artform to flourish. In my humble onions.

Drunken SADFAY = Marty gets RANTY!!!

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

19.08.11 - DAY 231 - Block

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Extreme creative lull today, having to push myself a lot harder than normal to get into it. Not good. Anyway, here be's some nice swells and processed beats and things.

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

18.08.11 - DAY 230 - Claim

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A FREE DOWNLOAD TONIGHT!!

One of the quickest ever SADFAYs!!! Err... Is that a good thing? Hmm...

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

17.08.11 - DAY 229 - Ex-squeeze Me?

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A free download tonight! This is what happens when I have a house to myself and I'm left free to make all the crazy noises that I could possibly want. ... I miss my old studio...

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

16.08.11 - DAY 228 - Black Umbrella

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So today the wonderful Caroline Pugh handed me some lyrics she scribbled on a couple of pieces of paper. She said that they were about Mary Poppins and then left me to make of them what I could. I decided I wanted to play some piano, so I did that. I also wanted to sing! I'm on my own in my house at the moment, so that means I can scream my head off and let it all out, so I took full advantage of that... For a little while anyway. I then added some quirky / crazy kinda beats and that's about it.

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

15.08.11 - DAY 227 - Shuckzbin

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Hitting some keys with that nice bass patch got this track flowing.

I then enjoyed layering other synths and keys on top. I kept the beat simple.

Definitely a wee hint of Plaid coming through on this one.

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

14.08.11 - DAY 226 - London Sound Walk 2

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Another walk along the Southbank with the Richard, Katie and Dan from the Accidental Theatre group. I got a few clips of various music playing around the area this time, as well as recordings of a couple of people speaking in different languages. Thanks to Katie for letting me record her speaking Italian!! So now, mad dash to get back to Gatwick airport for my flight home. I've had a great week! Want to say massive thanks to Richard and Katie for putting us up all week too.

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

13.08.11 - DAY 225 - Coffee Table of Destruction (Part 1 & Side B)

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My last night in London and a great collaboration with Ruaidhri Mannion.

Ruaidhri is an Irish composer living and working in London having recently graduated from the Royal College of Music where he studied composition with renowned British composer, Kenneth Hesketh. Ruaidhri's work is regularly played throughout the UK and he has recently been selected for the PRS New Music Incubator project with upcoming concerts in the London and Sweden. For more info visit http://mannioncomposer.com

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

12.08.11 - DAY 224 - London Sound Walk

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Decided to take some recordings as I wandered around London a bit today. I found some nice 'sound events' at the Summer of Smiles event happening on Southbank. And I got plenty of recordings of trains on the London Underground for good measure. Edited through the recordings, cutting them up and getting my favourite moments.

Here's some more details of where I travelled today: http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&tab=wl

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

11.08.11 - DAY 223 - Hug It Out Bitch

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What up homies? Mc Snarl (aka Dan Leith) has laid down some of his freestyle rap skillz, (yo!) over some hip hop flavas that you know you're gonna shake that boo-tay to. Awwww yea.

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

10.08.11 - DAY 222 - Changing Face of Cantopop

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I have just completed an immensely enjoyable collaboration with James Hollands!

James Hollands is an artist from London working in video and sound. His work has been shown in the Tate Modern, Whitechapel Gallery, Liverpool Biennial and worldwide.

http://here.chantdownbabylon.com/

This track will quite probably tear your fucking face off.

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

09.08.11 - DAY 221 - Outter Space Sasquatch

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The first night of The Writers' Room at the Camden Fringe! And I've been very lucky to rope in the formidable vocal talents of one the actors from the play, Dan Leith.

Dan laid down his parts and like a true pro and was completely un-phased by the distractions of people cooking and walking in and out on us while recording. Some technical difficulties seem to have mucked about with the recordings a little, but sadly there isn't time to fix them now. So it's a bit rough around the edges.

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

08.08.11 - DAY 220 - Riot Days

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Kicking off a week in London with a fantastic collaboration between myself and the very talented and super lovely chap, Owen Duff.

Owen Duff sings, plays piano, guitar, ukulele, cello and percussion; writes, records and produces. He released ‘A Tunnel Closing in’ in 2006, ‘The Stop-Gap E.P.’ in 2008, and didn’t release the album ‘Twenty Two Minutes, Four Weeks’ in 2009. He is currently working on a third EP for release in 2011. Hear more at www.facebook.com/owenduffmusic, http://owenduff.bandcamp.com/, andwww.owenduff.co.uk

Owen laid down several layers of voice, after I had put together the backing track of beats, atmospherics and samples. We chatted for a while about lyric ideas and eventually settled on writing about the rioting and looting currently happening in parts of London at the moment. I had a great time working with Owen and will hopefully have the chance to do it again soon!

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^

Next up... LONDON!

So I'm off to London in the early hours of the morning. I'll be spending a week working for the Accidental Theatre company, playing back my sound design and effects for The Writers' Room which will performed at the Camden Fringe Festival.

Tickets still available!

As well as this, I'm planning on collaborating with some amazing London based musicians throughout the week. I'm looking forward to a few days of pretty intense creativity! Hopefully I'll have some adventures, get to hang out with some cool people and maybe even get some documentary footage to share with you all, when I get back.

See y'all soon!

07.08.11 - DAY 219 - The Dying Sun

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The first SADFAY collaboration of August 2011! Caroline Pugh joins me on vocals, piano and co-writing duties. We went for something very NIN. A huge driving beat and heavy guitars all over the place, then Caroline laid down a few tracks of her haunting and screeching vocals with an apocalyptic drive.

This song completes a week of tracks focused on guitar and the heavier side of riffing.

Enjoy

Cheers ^_^