And then something… not quite christmas themed stuff, but something along lines of the season… You know something not quite like what we had last week.

So, ONAKE. 8-bit piano meets a good bunch of people, armed with a bow and a violin. It’s pretty cute stuff.

That was the last update of the year. Phew. Now I shall remove my composers hat & arrangers badge, sit here for a couple of minutes in complete silence, and then ask Santa to beam me up.

Merry everymas! See you next year!

MASTER TERMANDO! It’s super-duper heavy metal mania in da house!

It’s loud, rude & crude and even it’s distortion has some distortion! (I don’t often add any additional distortion to the final product, but this time I did and it rocks!)

And yeah, it’s been put through the 90’s arcade video game blender. (1990’s that is. Not for example 1890’s, when a certain guy named H.P. was born in New England. I wonder what kind of games he used to play in his childhood? Or maybe his parents didn’t believe in toys)

Anyway, if MT would be a movie, it would be the compilation of all the punches & kicks in “Road House” (1989).

Watch the right boot!

If it ain’t broken, don’t’ fix it. Or in this case: If it works, don’t change it.

That’s what thought just now, while listening SAY SEA, the unchangeable element being the bass line. Yup, just three tones there, repeating over and over again. The extremely simple basis of the tune allowed me to use more daring chords, like E/C and F#/C. Just try ‘em and you’ll see.

Concerning the daring chords… This stand-up comedian fella said in one of his specials that he likes to write down absurd punch lines in a little piece of paper, put the scraps in a big bowl, and every now and then pick up one. He then has to make up the story (the joke) leading up to the previously written punch line.

I like the idea. In my case, the punch line would be for example, a really nasty pair of chords, which sounds really harsh when played on their own. I then have to build a framework to make those chords fit the tune. I’ve done exactly this in the past, and it worked great!

Another method I’ve succeessfully used is to produce two very different, even contradicting elements, and then try to combine them in some way. It may be tough, but the result is bound to be interesting.

Yeah… about the title of the tune… just learn finnish + add four dots and you’ll get the joke.

The “joke”.

Oh look, it’s december. You know what it means? (Two things)

That’s right. Räntä and sohjo.

Räntä is the heavy rain coming from the sky. It’s one part snow, one part water and one part screw you. It makes you soaking wet in a matter of seconds and if there’s any wind, it blinds you completely. You wearing a black overcoat? Not anymore! Bing, you’re a snowman now.

Sohjo is räntä’s evil counterpart. It forms when räntä hits the ground and joins hands with it’s brethren. Sohjo’s ultimate goal is to make you slip ‘n slide, although sometimes it settles for infiltrating your footwear, in case there’s any dry spots left. Sohjo + traffic = tons of fun for the whole family!

That’s december for you.

Also, SATUMAISTA. It tells a different tale, in E- and C-major.