S+A Spectres

Mare Anguis

Note: This post was written in 2025 and backdated to appear on the day I wrote and published the track. This visit to the Mares is another drone. Once again, the Slate + Ash libraries are the stars here, and I began warming up a bit more to Spectres. It’s still my least favorite of their libraries, but as I poke more through the content, I’m finding usable things. In this case, the main drone sound and the “lead” sound that becomes prominent about halfway through are the same sound, but I used two separate instances. This allowed me to … Continue reading

Cape Disappointment

Note: This post was written in 2025 and backdated to appear on the day I wrote and published the track. Since 2020, I’ve made serious investment into sample libraries. It started mostly with orchestral libraries, then started branching into hybrid orchestra or processed orchestra – the kind of stuff you’d hear in a trailer or action film. Bombastic Hans Zimmerish sounds. Speaking bluntly, I think most of this money hasn’t been a good investment. Unfortunately, few sample companies have customer-focused licensing agreements. It’s rare to get a trial period, and similarly rare to have the ability to resell the product … Continue reading

Mare Crisium

Note: This post was written in 2025 and backdated to appear on the day I wrote and published the track. Last year (2023) I named most of my ambient pieces after lunar seas. It wasn’t really a planned thing – just an easy naming convention – and the definition of “ambient” certainly shifts across the six pieces, ranging from a melodic piano piece with electronic spices to full-on drones. I was initially hesitant to explore those spaces, but positive feedback from other Song-A-Day participants encouraged … Continue reading

The Match Went Out

Note: This post was written in 2025 and backdated to appear on the day I wrote and published the track. Grimecake got posted pretty early in the day, so I had the luxury of noodling time before any sort of panic set in. I didn’t need to worry, though, because I was still in that quirky mood and had the basic bit of this track, consisting of the electric piano ostinato and weird random notes done pretty quickly. I don’t think I ever thought that would be the main focus of the piece, but I knew I was probably heading … Continue reading

Grimecake

Note: This post was written in 2025 and backdated to appear on the day I wrote and published the track. Another day, another beat-driven electronic piece. Yesterday’s track ended up having some oddness / quirkyness that I ended up enjoying. I’m doing my best to stop writing the same old thing and stretch out a bit. Take some risks. Break some things. I don’t remember the order in which I discovered the various sounds. In all likelihood, I started with the drums. XO (by XLN Software) has quickly become my go-to tool for rhythms and loops. It has a quite … Continue reading