02023-09-28 | HuHeartDrive, Music, Rain Music
Burned a CD of the album and am listening on an old and familiar system to check the relative volume of the tracks. Plus it’s a habit that is decades old. An album is done (or kinda done) when I have a CD of it. I remember listening to albums on DAT (digital audio tape), a prehistoric recording format, at home. In my car I would listen to Mini-Discs (a rather brilliant idea that was terribly executed by Sony) until we got a CD burner in my studio in the late 90’s.
The other day I thought it would be cool to have a 12×12 inch cardboard, which is the size of vinyl LPs, with the cover image on the front. On the back there would be credits and titles and a little foam button that holds a CD. Mailing this might be a pain but there should be LP mailers available that it could be shipped in.
02023-09-22 | Backstage, HuHeartDrive
Gia asked
Is there any sort of ode to petrichor on this album?
Yes. Bossa de Petricor is the title.
Mark asked
Around when will these songs be released?
I released the first one today. It’s the 6th track of the album and I think it’s a great first single. We performed this piece live last week and really enjoyed playing it. It’ll be on the setlist for a while. :-)
Songs from Rain Poems will be released over time, only on Backstage. In some cases there will be different versions available, some binaural mixes for example. I am working on a limited edition CD version but that will probably happen in the first quarter of the new year.
You can find the link to Backstage in the menu (above left) or follow this link. I added the first single dreamy afternoon (Lo Fi Flam) and FLAC and ALAC files are available for download.
02023-09-17 | HuHeartDrive, Performance, Rain Music
I have been listening to the 18 tracks I recorded for Rain Poems and love the way it sounds. Recording is done and mixing may be done as well, as I don’t hear anything that wants to be changed. Some of the tracks have been mixed a number of times while others remain an early version.
(It used to be quite the occasion to switch from recording to mixing because analog tape recorders have two separate heads for reading the tape. One is a recording/monitoring head and the other is for listening only. The listening-only head reproduces sound in a higher quality.)
We performed one of the new pieces in Seattle and in Beaver Creek this past week and it was fun to play. We may try to arrange other new pieces for the live show.
02023-09-05 | HuHeartDrive, Photos, Rain Music
I created my first binaural surround sound mix today. It took a few hours to set up and to create automation for the three objects (instruments) that I wanted to move in space. It’s a learning process I enjoyed.
02023-08-24 | HuHeartDrive, Rain Music, Recording
Fine-tuning the mixes. Listening, making notes, making small changes, listening some more. Switching between a couple of different speaker pairs and a few headphones. Oh, this is fun!
02023-07-23 | HuHeartDrive, Rain Music, Recording
I had this idea for a guitar rhythm the other night, a swinging arpeggio played with the sponge under the strings, and recorded it right away. The next morning I listened and came up with a guitar melody I liked. As I listened to the piece, I wondered where that melody came from. I played the melody with my thumb and I think playing that way made it feel more like something I might play on an electric guitar. The first guitar rhythm was played with a lot of swing so this morning I played a second line that didn’t swing at all. The combination of those two rhythms created a beautiful forward movement. But what is this, I wondered (out of habit?)… It doesn’t matter WHAT it is, I told myself. I love the feel of it, my head keeps nodding to it, and I keep playing it on repeat. What more do I want?! I am out of the streaming music game and don’t need to fit into a genre. Now less than ever. LOL. Next came some chords, plucked softly and only on the two and four, like a backbeat. Then I found a bit of rain that fit the tempo and feel… How can rain drops be so funky? LoFi Flamenco guitar? Does it fit? Yes, it does. Hm, and what will Jon do with this one???
