I’m still enjoying the recording toys and popped this together last night.
Why record it? To try out two things: 1) drum loops & 2) midi keys. Why post it to the internet? Well, if an mp3 falls in the woods and no one is there to hear it… What’s it all about? Interstate 29 runs through Sioux Falls and takes you South. Need I say more?
As you may have noticed, Christmas came again this year. Every time jolly old St. Nick makes his rounds, I feel the urge to justify a little strummable splurge. But it’s getting harder. Not that I have any sort of exceptional collection of equipment, but I’ve got the bases covered with a stack of useful, if b-level, gear. Any more and moth and rust will corrupt it all faster than I can. So this year it came down to this little 20-dollar wonder: The Cut-Capo.
So far I’ve found it useful for two things: Opening up alternate (and somewhat simplified) fingerings to give the old folk-chord voicings a new flair. And for rolling picking patterns up-and-down the neck, which sonically nicks Mr. Drake and makes me want to grow my hair long a take a ride on the free love freeway, preferably in the UK, in an Aston Martin.
Here’s a half-written experiment of the above. It started sort of Nick Drake, took a lyrical turn south, but came back around with a little Eno-y electric. I haven’t attempted to put notes and words together for the better part of 10 years, so I consider anything at all to be a success. Just give me a chorus and a dose of the auto-tune and soon we’ll soon be making rock-and-roll history!
While finding my way back to the comforting camaraderie of the Island Of Misfit Toys, I recorded this. It’s got the kids and everything. Grandma’s gonna love it, but I’m still a few miles away from having a handle on the details of eq’ing, mixing, mastering, mic placement and the like. Still, an encouraging start none-the-less!
For a few years now I’ve been collecting wee bits of recording equipment with the hope — the dream — nay, the phantasy — that one day I’d have the time and the setup to do a little knob-twiddling in the comfort of my own home.
Between computer crashes and other dreary responsibilities the opportunity never knocked. Until now. Christmas fast approaches and Grandma wants a little something by which to remember the grandkids, such as a CD of Ben’s violin virtuosity and Mia’s creative interpretations of the Rogers & Hammerstein canon. Ah! Time to get to work!
Anyway, today for the first time the equipment functioned as it should. Thus, I offer you this one-take wonder. Next time I’ll pay attention to those typical tropes of Timing, Tempo, and Tuning, but for now I’m just having fun.
