No matter what music you compose, you’ll eventually have to deal with compressors. There is just no escaping. Compressors are what you apply to make music better. That’s right. They help you make your music beyond studio quality. You’re one plug-in away from stardom!
All the glamour aside, compressors are one of the studio workhorses that are applied to achieve anything from subtle smoothing to downright squashing. It does help to know how the tools you use work though, and I’m hopefully going to provide you with just that. Let’s go from knob fiddling to consistent predictable results! Follow the link for an easy FREE introductory promotional kit (order the full 3 x video tape kit NOW and receive an instant $3.00 rebate!)
Continue reading ‘Compressors - The theory’
After a bit of thinking, I came to realize that it’s pointless to keep a blog where one expresses his own opinions, views on the world, thoughts about your friend’s nipple piercing etcetera. No one reads that. I’m not doing Internet any good by producing even more digital fodder.
Then I thought about what an average music geek would like to read. I think we would all benefit from posts with practical advice and explanations of common audio devices, plug-ins, concepts, tips on workflow, song writing, arrangements and so forth. Writing about it will hopefully explain something you didn’t understand before or introduce you to something new, and should help organize my own knowledge of the topic. Everybody wins. Onto the useful posts then!
Am I only one missing the days of synths through guitar distortion pedals, cut-up drum loops and mean basslines? Why is Dig Your Own Hole in the bargain bin, along with Music for the Jilted Generation?
It has been too long since electronic music has lost its cool and funk. Rock music coming from a sequencer is no longer something you hear a lot of. Blame bad taste, Hollywood action movies, or Crystal Method - it’s not so hot anymore.
Who cares though? I know I miss it. Which can only mean it’s time to sample some 70’s funk records, dig out that Boss DS-2 out of the closet and put the TB through it.
RISE to the anthems: Anthem 1 | Anthem 2
I’m kicking my own ass for not posting anything on here. Looks like the blog is getting notice and I decide to play dead. Well, a first post in months and it’s some boring personal news.
Couple things - I sold my Juno. I sold my CME MIDI controller. I’m selling my tape machines, most of my mics, all accessories. I’ve sold my Fender Mustang, the 50’s tube amp, and am selling the last guitar I have.
I’ve not really gone mad. I am keeping my Firebox. Two reasons. I’ve come to realize I’m a 90s sequencer-synth boy. Playing guitar is fine and I’ll likely to get one down the line, a strat perhaps. However, the true passion lies in programming drums, slicing up loops, and overdriving the chorus on that synth pad and autopanning it. All of which can be done within the new Logic 8 Pro which I have completely switched to from Cubase and haven’t looked back. It’s great.
Reason two - I’m relocating to Toronto. Bringing along all the gear is too cumbersome, and I’ll need some extra dough to survive in the Canadian NY too. Besides, while I thought parting with it will be hard, once it was gone the feel of the bill fiber that I’ve reclaimed seemed much more dear to the heart.
Oh, and reason three, which ties in with the third one - I’m doing more photography. I have been doing film and polaroid so far which is pricey in the long run, and now I would like to pick up a digital body for studio and outdoor portraiture and keep shooting film for other assignments. That’s another grand to plunk down, plus count in a decent lens.
