composition

Fluvial Desert

Today is the day. I’m going to get two of these things done. I started writing about 3pm. Plenty of time. Since yesterday was done entirely in safe, warm, and cozy, Omnisphere I’m going to try some of my newer software hoping to get some of those “new sounds, new songs” moments. Hive2 from u-He was my starting point. Almost right off the bat I found the really funky chord-stab synth that opens the track, along with a great beat out of a really nice drum sequencer, XO from XLN Audio. Because I needed a “real” bass for what was … Continue reading

Existential Transcendentalism

Another track with no plan going in. After a few days of hardware production, I decided to turn to another old, comfortable, warm, fuzzy… virtual synth. Omnisphere has been a primary tool for me for years. In fact, it’s one of a very short list of “if I could only have one thing” tools in the studio. Along, with Stylus RMX for drums, it’s the first software I install after Digital Performer, my digital audio workstation (DAW). I used to think of it as a chameleon – it can be pretty much anything and covers a lot of synthesis ground … Continue reading

Blue Saffron

This track is largely a continuation of yesterday with two significant distinctions. First, I had at least some nebulous idea of where I was going and how I was going to get there. Second, where everything in Agnostic Prophet came from software, Blue Saffron comes entirely from hardware synths and drum machines. That’s getting to be a pretty blurred distinction, though. Many modern hardware synths are little more than dedicated computers that run software synths. Where you draw the line is subjective, and the online arguments about one vs the other are as predictable as they are pointless. I’ve never … Continue reading

Agnostic Prophet

To quote one of my songs from last year, “here we go again….” For the last couple of years, and this one was no exception, I tried to talk myself into starting my writing on January 31. I typically write in the evenings, normally finishing and posting my track in the early hours of the morning. 2:00 AM is routine. The problem is twofold. First, and this is just a bit of ego, people have missed a lot of my tracks because they don’t show up until the next day. While having other people listen to the music isn’t a … Continue reading

Dreams of a Distant Shore

While yesterday’s full-on song was a bit of a surprise for me, with lyrics and theme coming together rather quickly, today was closer to what I was expecting to run up against. I went into the studio around 8 or 9pm, but didn’t actually start writing anything until closer to 11. This was less about not having and idea, and more about just exploring lots of different sounds and noodling with no intent before deciding I needed to get my butt in gear and start. The trigger sound that got me going is the choir. This particular patch uses multiple … Continue reading