JS Music – Update 15 – 007 Update

JS — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 08:12:08 +0000

007 Update

I’ve been working on expanding out 007 for quite a while, not sure where I wanted to take it. You can hear the older version for comparison when I first posted this piece.

007 – Audio

I’m very drawn to the drum work on this piece and listening to it always puts me in a hurry-up-and-stop mindset, which I absolutely love. I’ve repeated the initial bass riff over and over again which to me adds a very ‘wanting’ feeling without having to deal with much of a classic buildup that you find in a lot of electronic music.

The new bass part at the very end was added recently and is way more rhythmic than it is melodic. It’s only two notes but the scattered riff and energy drive the song forward even more.

I’m not quite sure where I want to take this song next, but I have a feeling that an all-out climactic conclusion into a memorable part is order.

16+ Years of Tab

On top of my writing duties, just today I’ve started a project that I’ve been wanting to get at for a long, long time: going through 16+ years of bass tab. Other than audio-only, this is essentially my complete written works. There is a stack of material waiting for me to tackle and I’ve already gone through a few pages of it.

I’m planning on determining what is worth keeping and what I want to toss. When I find something I want to keep, I’m going to record it and then possibly refine it and bring it into this work that I’m doing now. Everything else will be shelved for possible future projects.

My insane mission to go through every inch of my life and determine what is important and essential and what isn’t is gaining a delicious momentum and completely altering every aspect of my life.

All I can say right now, is that it’s everything I thought it would be…and more.

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On another note, Heidi and I have been receiving another stack of curious questions from people asking us about minimalism quest. In fact, I do feel like I’m on a quest for some strange treasure.

These people are fascinated, and rightly so. I’ll keep addressing my journey on this site, but to make it more organized and helpful, Heidi and I are close to deciding to start a site/blog dedicated to this enrapturing subject that we have fallen in love with.

What else can offer more enthusiasm than gaining more and more freedom back in your life?

~ JS

Public Album Update 12 – New Track – 007 – More octave effect and playing with drums

JS — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 07:21:55 +0000

Been a Little While

It can be way too easy to let a few weeks slip by in the middle of a project.

Now that I’m actually consciously aware of it, I can re-dedicate myself to this project in order to stay on track from now on. If I spend too much time away (even a few days), things start slipping away. It’s all about momentum and I’ve noticed that anymore than 2-3 days away has a large effect on my momentum for this project.

Cassette Tape Digitization Project – JS Audio History

In the meantime, I’ve recently started a very large undertaking for a very personal music-related project. I’ve got a slew of old cassette tapes with hours of music from my past bands, personal experiments, and other music related projects from my past. For years I’ve wanted to get these tapes digitized to MP3 for not only digital backup but also personal preservation. I take my musical past very seriously and even though it wasn’t always the best music I could write, I love every second of what I wrote in the past.

It’s helped to make me the musician I am today.

I’ve been using a pretty cool device that allows you to convert your old cassette tapes to MP3 files via USB. It’s easy to work with and I’m pleased so far.

I’ve tested the machine already and used it to go through each and every one of my cassettes to see what’s on them. I’m still missing a few tapes that I’m unable to find, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised to find a ton of music and audio that I didn’t even knew still existed!

This project has been very nostalgic and deeply emotional for me so far. Part of the reason I’m doing this project is to take stock of where I’ve been and make peace with the past to fully allow myself to move forward with this new music project and the rest of my music career.

Expect updates and many audio samples from this project in the coming months. It’s a large undertaking and I have no idea how it’s all going to turn out…

007

This is the last short piece I wrote a few weeks ago. This piece works again with the bass octave/distortion effect, but what I really wanted to do is experiment with some drum kit type samples. I programmed some pretty standard drum “kit” beats into this piece where I have one bass riff repeated over and over. I’m not sure how percussion/drums is going to work into my sound as I develop it, but I wanted to experiment either way.

Octave/distortion with drum kit experimentation…

……

In addition to the tape project, I’ve got a few other important and time-sensitive projects on my plate to get completed by the end of the year. But I am making writing a top priority.

More soon…