What Equipment are you using to create Public Album with?
That question is going to require a little bit of background information.
I’m going to answer it very simply for you: electric bass and a tracker.
4-String Standard Electric Bass – Nothing Fancy
I’ve been playing electric (not stand up) 4-string bass since I was about 13 or 14. This really was my first true introduction to the fun side of music. I had taken piano and took up trombone in my childhood, and while I had some fascinating experiences with each, it wasn’t until I picked up the bass that I felt I was finally give permission to create.
That’s when I truly fell in love with music.
At a very young age, I was introduced to (through my older brother) and listened to heavy metal and punk (Iron Maiden, Megadeth, Metallica, D.R.I., Voivod, Exodus, etc.)
When I picked up the bass, I still listened to a lot of that stuff but was also getting into the sound at the time (Nirvana, Primus, Tool, Nine Inch Nails, Ministry, KMFDM, etc.)
It wasn’t until the mid-90’s that I stumbled upon a band called KARP, which completely and utterly changed my life and musical tastes forever. I will definitely get into that story in a later post.
Suffice to say, when I picked up the bass, it was “heavier” music I was attracted to learning. I briefly took lessons from some music store hack, then moved onto a truly underground local music guru who gave me a deep, broad understanding of music and technique.
Since the time I picked up the bass, I started creating my own music. I was never really interested in doing covers or learning other people’s music. I jammed with anyone that was interested in playing and formed some bands in high school.
There is much more to talk about during these formative years, but for now, that explanation will suffice to describe what I mean when I say “bass”.
A Little Program Called Scream Tracker
In the mid-90s I starting getting interested in the BBS scene, which (if you are unfamiliar) is kind of like an early Internet. A single computer with a phone line could host their own networking system where others could call in and interact. These systems could also be networked to create an email system and so forth.
One of the incredible benefits of being part of these systems, were the aspects of filesharing. Having access to free programs and Shareware programs and all manner of computer goodies at the time were indispensable for those of us who loved working on our computers all day long. One of the types of files that was commonly shared at the time were sound files. There was no MP3 files at the time, but a lot of what I started running across were different files ending MOD and S3M. I kept getting frustrated that I couldn’t open these files on my system until I eventually realized they were specifically designed to run on a software program called a Tracker. Specifically, the program I found was a DOS program called Scream Tracker.
For those unfamiliar with Trackers, I will list the great definition from Wikipedia here:
“Tracker is the generic term for a class of software music sequencers which, in their purest form, allow the user to arrange sound samples stepwise on a timeline across several monophonic channels. A tracker’s interface is primarily numeric; notes are entered via the alphanumeric keys of the computer keyboard, while parameters, effects and so forth are entered in hexadecimal. A complete song consists of several small multi-channel patterns chained together via a master list.”
What’s important is not that I found Trackers, but what the Tracker could do for me as a musician. It opened up an incredibly freeing world where I could control the sounds and sequences down to the smallest, most precise detail I possibly could. This allowed me to literally create almost anything I wanted in any way I wanted without relying on expensive instruments, other musicians, etc.
I quickly fell in love with this type of creation and while simultaneously working with my various bands as a bassist and writer, I was “tracking” in my bedroom on my computer. I did this nearly every week all the way through the end of the 90s and learned so much.
As with my bass story above, I will get more into my experience with tracking as this Public Album project rolls on.
Over the years, I’ve been tracking on and off and in 2000, I started working on combining tracking with bass. I hadn’t had much success as I found it difficult to synthesize the two very different types of music and creation. I got a lot of practice on trying, however, as I worked on it nearly every day from about 2002-2004. After becoming frustrated with not going where I was hoping it would, I put everything aside when I found raw foods in 2004 and put my musical life on hold.
During the last few years there were moments in time where I would pick up either one and give it another shot, but I’d immediately become frustrated with the results and stop doing it for longer and longer periods of time. However, I knew that I would eventually come back to music in some form or fashion later.
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At this point, when I conceived of the idea for public album in 2007, I first thought of coming back to this combination.
One thing that being involved in the natural food world taught me, is to never be married to an idea. One day, you may believe something is good for you and the next find totally different information or have an experience that completely changes your mind. Because of this revelation, I’ve decided to remain completely open to discovering different ways of creating music.
But there are a few facts I can guarantee you:
1) I will be playing bass forever. It is my instrument.
2) I will start Public Album with my bass and with a brand new Tracking program that I’ve discovered, which I am extremely excited about.
In the next few posts I will get into more detail about which program that is and what my current bass setup is like.
Right now, I’m not looking forward to trying this combination out again, but I do feel like once I get in the groove of it, I will fall in love with it all over again.
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