I can work on commad. I can work when I really don’t feel like it at all. Although music is mostly about feelings, producing it is – just like any other job – mostly just grinding, getting sh… stuff done.

I get stuff done. I get it done when tired and sleepy, hungry, thirsty, back’s aching & heart is breaking. I get it done when I need to, and on given time. I get it done, got it done and I also will.

Some time ago I made music all thursday, until the only condition that prevents me from working occurred. The all-crippling thing is when I lose the ability to tell the difference between good and sh… bad.

You know, like:

Should the chord here be C-major or F#mM9? Guitar, panpipe or Terrortron2000 to join tuba in melody here? Does A-part must be followed by B-part, as usual? Is this obbligato any good? Bonzo or Chad Smith on drums? 4/4 or 2/4? Shall I go with the trust ol’ brzzz-zrz or should the sound in the last chorus be more like nrzzz-nrz-nrz?

If the answer to all of those hypothetical questions is “I don’t know”, then bugger. You need to have a break, man.

The following morning I listened, what I’ve managed to scrape together yesterday. To my amazement – I actually started laughing – the music was really good. I just was temporarily unable to tell it. I finished the tune in record time, and here it is: LAS DALLAS. It’s sort of Las Vegas entertainment beat-music with a stetson.

Ok, so this one is called JUST A LITTLE MORE and it’s fragile, quiet and pretty classical composition, mostly played by strings.

It’s working title was “Donald Sleeps”, referencing Donald Duck, not the other Donald guy… You know, the bald fella from TV, ex-president, highly associated with New York City.

But enough about Donald Pleasence. There’s a great scene in “Mickey’s Trailer”, a D1sney short from 1938, in which Don’s slumber is rudely disturbed by a violent attack by an alarm clock. That wonderful scene was my starting point for the music.

Warning: The tune features dynamics. No loudness today.

Synth-wavish music really has become a sort of comfort music for me. And I mean producing it, not so much listening… ‘cos you know, I lived through the 80’s, I’ve heard that music when it was young & fresh. No need for re-runs.

What’s the state of synth-wave these days? Is it still, probably not cool but at least reasonable ok? Or has it become embarrassingly passé? Again.

Has the nineties techno & black shades thing has it’s revival yet? The ultra-cool Matrix-thing? I just might sit that one out.

Anyway, some synth-wave, action-style: LIGHT GLIDER.

Not much to say about HOLD YOUR HORSES BARRY. It’s very straight-forward stuff all the way. It’s got a simple four chord pattern going on and… yeah. That’s about it.

About the title… I don’t know man, sometimes words just want to be connected to a piece of music.

Barry who? Well, all I can say it’s not Levinson, White or Gibb.

Hmm, now that I listened the tune first time after producing it, it really sounds like “a artisan”-type of work. Building variety from simplicity, rotating melody between instruments and so on.

Also, this was the second time I’ve successfully used the phrase “hold your horses” in a proper context!

Oh yeah, mine’s Corbin.

Ok, so… Just listen the first sound you’ll hear in AVARUUS.

Get it?

If not, also listen the first sound you’ll hear in “Echoes” by Pink Floyd.

Now you get it.

That’s the only similarity between those tunes.

I’m off to watch Floyd’s Live At Pompeii.

The following took place a few months ago:

I woke up particularly early. That happens at times. Had some coffee, read some bad news, you know the usual stuff. Then I started working on a tune, which idea & main riff came to me in a subway the day before.

First I prepared the project by creating tracks, adding instruments & plugins. Then I programmed some drums, that’d make a fine background for the next step: Finding a suitable bass sound and making a rough demo recording with it.

Playing the bass is pretty physical action. Especially if you’re playing some gritty punk rock stuff. So, after I found a lovely bass sound, I started punching the strings. The recording ended about 15 seconds later because I bursted into laughter, after accidentally noticing the time: It was 8.05 in the morning, and I was already doing the midnight punk massacre mood!

Anyway, the title PUMP ACTION refers to the process of beating the bass with a fury.

… yeah…

Two weeks ago I talked about how weird it is that we have things like licorice pipes, alcohol infused chocolate and candy guns. (See previous post)

Well, a few days ago I bought a can of beer that had a picture of a comic book character.

Iron Man? Medieval Laureline? Cousin Fethry?

Nope. Our beer salesman was none other that everybody’s favourite pirate puncher, The Phantom! (Just göögle “Mustanaamio olut” if you wanna see evidence)

Haven’t tasted it yet. Will probably be 5/5.

The Phantom carries around some automatic handguns. Therefore PISTOL PUSH.

Next week, more gun related (but completely harmless) music.

We got guitar-free guitar pop. We got folk music with noticeable absence of strumming. We got electronic no-body music without any electronic instruments.

Quite recently we added anti-shred metal music to this list. (The culinary equivalent of it would be vegan haggis)

((That stuff is delicious!))

So, I think it’s time for jazz without “real” instruments, because PICATZU is NES-jazz. (Its culinary equivalent is licorice pipe)

((That stuff is also delicious!))

As a side note, the idea of licorice pipe is pretty silly… So 1900’s!… Imagine if there was like candy shaped like gun… or chocolate that has alcohol inside it…

Oh wait…

Something we didn’t already have: Music for brass septet! (septet = a group of seven people playing music together in shared space, or on Z00m)

Historically, these kind of combos often played military music. You know, marches, fanfares & music suitable for running away really quickly. There is also a good bunch of chamber music written specifically for B7. Even Jean S. – Gene Simmons’ musically gifted older brother – wrote some.

MID WESTERN is more light-hearted than militaristic. In fact I’d call it optimistic and adventurous, and maybe slightly American-sounding.

American-sounding? What the heck is that?

I don’t know, man. It’s just the feeling.

January is snowy. February is short.

April fools no one. May is made of pollen. In June the moon beam goes through the prune. July is hot, time to slack, August gets us back on the track.

September is wet. October is wet & scary. November is wet & dark (& little scary).

December is an old man slowly inching his way to the oasis.

Yes, I skipped March, because couldn’t think of anything. C’mon March, show some personality!

Nothing to do with TENSIFY. You can’t always win. Not even every time.