Category: Original Music

My own personal creations.

Categories
Original Music Parenting

Soundscape 1

My son asked me to help him record a song that he’s been working on. I’ve put it up here for you to listen to.

The song launches instantly into a dynamic and rhythmic first movement, with an up-beat tempo and airy feel. The listener is then startled when the music suddenly ceases, and is replaced by a very short, but very profound, acappella passage.

The artist can then briefly be heard adjusting his position in the studio. The second movement comes in at about 34 seconds, and it is an altogether much darker affair. It is a veritable assault on the ears, and contrasts superbly with the poppiness of the first movement. The lyrics here are much more sinister, chilling in what they don’t say, almost as much as what they do.

The artist is clearly exhausted, and spends the subsequent 40 seconds regaining his composure, while remarking on the quality of the coffee.

The third movement begins at exactly 1:29, and indicates the artist retreating into his shell, musing on his purpose and offering deep philosophical questions to the listener. It is by far the longest movement of the piece, and it tapers off gradually, in anticipation of the superb fourth, penultimate, movement.

The fourth movement, at about 2:25, is unlike anything that this reviewer has ever heard before in his life. Consisting of just the same note played three times, each time quieter than the last, it symbolises mankind’s lack of faith in his own judgement, gradually becoming less and less confident of his decisions as time goes by. Remarkable.

More studio noise, and then the final movement at 2:58. This movement is presented in a minor key, I think. By now, the artist’s exuberance has caused the guitar to go completely out of tune. Which says it all.

If I had to use one word to describe this piece? Majestimospheric.

(mp3 no longer online – email me if you are interested)

Categories
Music Original Music

Everyone’s Got Piles

More than seven months ago, I claimed to be feeling the distant aroma of inspiration. Well, what happened? I uploaded one song, then wrote a couple of others for another project, and then somehow found myself in a five-month slump. A number of factors have been responsible: the desire to live in a clean, tidy, well-maintained house; lots going on at work, leaving me ‘xhausted at the end of the day; spending time with the fambly.

But then I started to fear for my creativity, which is blatantly atrophying, so on one Sunday morning a month ago, I pushed myself to record this song that I’d been developing over the previous couple of weeks. I came to the realisation that all this sitting around in front of a computer is going to catch up with me soon, and if I don’t start taking better care of myself, I’m going to hit 30 and have the body of a 40 year old. The only option that I can see is to find time in my schedule for regular exercise, but as I am no longer a person with ample spare time, that will mean sacrifices elsewhere.

Anyway, enough mithering, here’s the song, and I think that it’s a cracker. It features an extra uber mega special guest on piano and backing vocals, Nathan, who was absolutely honoured to work on this prestigious project, I’m sure. He added his contribution yesterday afternoon, and we can finally consider the song to be finished.

Listen at last.fm

Categories
Music Original Music

Man

I’ve been feeling the distant aroma of inspiration for the first time in years.

This is a song that has been brewing over the last few evenings, and once Bernard was bathed, and Karen’s mug of camomile tea on her bedstand ((incidentally, dear, we’re out of camomile tea. I’ve left the box out on the side)), I hermitted my way into my new Man Cave and surrounded myself with a warm blanket of leads and plectra.

The quality of the end product betrays how little I’ve been practising lately. This one comes from the only-one-shot-allowed school of vocals, and it wouldn’t have been so bad if it weren’t for a particularly windy ‘P’ that ruins everything. Mea cauliflower.

I call it “Man”, due to a little line that crept into my ear and demanded inclusion. I think the thought process that caused this was White Russian => Big Lebowski => line in question.

Uhm, what else? I think that’s about enough. Listen to it now.

(mp3 no longer online – email me if you are interested)

Categories
Music Original Music

He, Too, Devours Particles

I’ve thrown together another little song for you to download and listen to.

Please note that this is not my usual singing voice. I’m not even sure what my usual singing voice **is** anymore.

Listen at last.fm

Categories
Music Original Music

A little ditty

I’m trying something a little different here. The song is called “Sliding Gracefully Into Partially Frozen Malaise” and can be listened to at last.fm.

Categories
Music Original Music

Woodshedding

You may have noticed a phenomenal number of Shiny Tight Stuff songs slipping into my audioscrobbler playlist lately. This is because we have our next recording session coming up soon, and this time I am determined to do it right.

As our sessions have become more and more spread out, I have spent less time playing the bass. Until the session is a week away, I will generally forget to play, and so by the time we get round to the actual session, my hands are weak, relatively unco-ordinated, and my endurance is severely wanting.

This time, I’m making at least an hour available every evening for playing through the songs that we are in the process of recording or re-recording. This way, when it comes to the session, I hope to be tight and able to play through the songs without my hands getting tired. I’ve noticed a marked improvement in the quality of my bass playing over the course of the last few days – it’s much more relaxed, more groovy, there’s definite potential for it to slip really smoothly amongst the other instruments and provide a foundation that I can be proud of.

Karen, in the meantime, is neglected.

*Originally posted here*

Categories
Music Original Music

Media Ogre

I mentioned this song last week. Though previously described as “quite good”, I have revised my opinion of it to somewhere between “adequate” and “mediocre”, hence the name for the song.

(mp3 no longer online – email me if you are interested)

It is a kind of admission of defeat. For many years I’ve dreamt of record contracts, world tours and half hour music shows on the BBC that are startlingly uncompulsive viewing.

But now I realise that my chance has passed. If something was going to happen, it would be happening by now. In 19 days it will have been one year since the last gig my band played in. Though there is talk of getting together to record a few songs (yes, you will hear them here first) in the near future, it’s plain that none of us have the ambition, commitment, or brass bollocks to give up everything and pursue this dream. Which is a slight shame, because it would have been a nice way to spend my time, in front of an adoring audience instead of a computer. Still, you can’t change the way that you are.

Usual disclaimer applies. You know, the one about being out of practise at… everything. Please redistribute, but don’t rip it off and get to number one with it, or I will have to sue you.