In the early days of this year(2023), I started working on new music. I had to get used to the new set-up, digital recorder and stuff, dust off the guitars and even the ER-1 that still worked, and get familiar with stuff again. Inspiration was probably the will it ever be released Songs of a Lost World. That Cure tour sure had a big impact emotionally , perhaps a touch too much at some point. Anyway, here’s a starting point. I actually have a version with some rhythms on it, but not quite happy with it, and a little mix-up means I have to find a way to cut it as I forgot to stop the recording so it’s just a lot of silence at the end. There’s guitar bits too, but nothing listenable yet.
I must admit I haven’t worked on it recently, as I am currently not enough on top of things to multitask/multiproject and somehow, while it’s a bit of a procrastinating cop-out, I wanted to first finish writing all the basic material for this website, so that I did all I meant to do here, before it becomes more occasional blog posts/updates on concerts or music.
Anyway, I’m waffling on, but here’s the only real new music so far that I’ve been working on.
(It doesn’t even have a working title yet)
Finally an update on the 15th of November 2025.
Yes I have been slacking, on and off, bought a lot of instruments. There is more info on the ‘Writing…music’ blog page (which really should be titled ‘Making’ music as I am not doing much writing, and I have given up on the time-consuming and probably vain idea of transposing this onto staff this time). So there’s a level of improvisation. Anyway, having accumulated instruments, played them not long and thought ‘this sounds great’ but not done much about it, having done or not done many other things, in 2025 I decided to make a little more effort. In stages, it was very much stop/start, each new instrument (so the Bass VI in 2024, but this year two guitars, a synth and a bass), bringing new short-lived motivation. The Telecaster made me decide to focus a little more in August (as well as holidays and no football and lots of people away), September was too busy being back at work, October saw an early flurry, and then getting the Bass (it makes a whole lot of difference to make the overall sound more ‘whole’, I wish I’d got one twenty years ago) added more motivation and so in November I am once more trying to make an effort, even realising it is nowhere near enough, I still can’t play in time, my technique is really really crap, etc. But also, last long weekend, I finally studied the manual for my digital recorder (Zoom R8) a little more. I’ve only had it nearly three years, eh. And I realised I’d been fucking up a lot and should have optimised in view of freeing tracks etc. Anyway, that’s more part of the ‘making music’ blog page, but bottom line is there is a lot of work to do if I want anything to sound decent. But for now, here are three songs, two of them not really new.
Also, for now, the mixes are not very final, and maybe at least one or two parts should be re-recorded (plus I can’t do the bass right, the sound isn’t clean, parasite notes abound), and obviously no lyrics or singing yet, if there ever is. Those songs don’t even have a working title really (apart from New1/NewOld blahblah), so probably should still be filed under ‘demos’ not ‘songs’.
First up, the same song as above, but it has evolved (though I have in fact re-integrated some rhythm bits already recorded all that time ago but not published above). And when I say ‘evolved’, it’s not been a long process, it’s just ‘I added to it eventually’. I think there may be a lot of needless bits in there, I tried to cram in too many instruments (also probably too many high frequencies in the mix). And the added drum patterns (well, manual on the pads, unlike the main one using the ER-1) when it comes in at 2′ is too low in the mix, but I was limited by the volume on the raw material recorded over two years ago – and lost, volatile memory in these keyboards, see – so would need to lower all of the rest.
31 December 2025 update: Yesterday, after mixing/remastering the two newer tracks, I figured I should try to see if I could do better with these which I had kind of rushed to publish when I did, having set myself the target. As you will see below, my recording way evolved, and also I felt better and with more time. Anyway, I have had a small go, I’m not entirely satisfied with all, but I think some of these are improvement. Now I did already at the time a second master of this song (in November, and can’t remember if I had put it here…idiot), and I still think it may be the better version, though I think the one guitar is too high in the mix. I think it is above, so here’s a new one, that is in fact using the same Mastering Effect (7 in my machine), does not have that one as much to the front, though there’s a couple of ‘mixing’ errors, so a better version would be a cross between the two, which I still need to do. I include another Mastering (2), that sounds a little different, not entirely sure which I prefer. Actually the above has too much saturation and on saving I see…nope it was the old one, definitely a bad take.
So here’s the mix from 16/11 (because I think it may currently still be the best, definitely better than the one I rush-posted), then the new one I mentioned above, and then one with the Mastering 2.
So, maybe still do to : one like the first, with that guitar lower (but that’s also the same as saying the second with more drums, possibly a touch more bass, and mixing the small bit of acoustic guitar a bit better when it starts), maybe when/if I record vocals….(but maybe Mastering 2 sounds better as often, I am totally undecided…)
Then something completely new (might need drums higher in the mix), lots of entwined Bass VI (unfortunately Squier, not Fender, but, true story, I didn’t like the colour schemes for the Fender, so went for the cheaper, but in this case ‘better’ looking – if it weren’t a Bass VI fine, but this has to have dark colours – Squier) lines essentially.
Again, I had done a new Mastering/Mix that was better the next day, and I see I hadn’t got around to putting it here. But on relisten, again too much saturation but this time I think one of the December version sounds better (Effect….2, decidedly, I made two takes, think this one is better, also tried 5, not as good).
I think I’m fairly happy with that one. I mean I could have made it longer perhaps, but that’s fine. It’s probably if I write lyrics/try to sing that I will find it too short.
And finally, I decided to give the ‘New Song 10’ from the ‘lost demos’ page a new life, figuring I could re-record the first bit, and loop it a second time rather than re-record linearly to add the guitar bits, though it evolved into a different beast in the second part compared to that demo. Lots could be improved there (was too forceful on the keyboard at the start, especially as I’d initially recorded a different version with the PSS-790 before deciding that the old Roland would be better). The synth bits are an idea I like and wanted but while I got the rough sound and generic feel right, it needs to be redone/re-recorded. I also think the bass should be higher than in the current mix.
At this stage, I could still work on these three and improve, but I think that will be for later if ever. I have a couple of rough ideas/sketches that I like and this time with the guitar/bass as starting point rather than the old keyboards as for all the above, so would quite like to try and work on these. On top of maybe one or two of the old demos I might want to give a new lease of life too.
31 December 2025 update: another remaster that I think is overall better. I tried 2, but thought 18 was better, did two takes. Very perfectible mix though, I forgot a bout a little trick I had to use to bridge a gap, so yeah I will have to work on that, but also I need to re-record the synth as it is difficult to get the sound I want though I’m close, but it is very perfectible. But again, that’s some tasks to keep for when I possibly sing on it, it can wait.
Now for the real new 31 December 2025 stuff: I did put those couple ideas into work and finalised them. A bit during spare weekend, but mostly in the last ten days while on holidays. Didn’t take that long or enough effort, but yeah, I certainly had more time, so improved etc. I used the benefits of digital a bit more, by recording several tracks and ‘bouncing’ them to make just one. It doesn’t always works well, but it allows to record more instruments despite having ‘only’ 8 tracks, it allows to record just little ‘fixes’ (though a pain to mix), or record chorus and verses separately before merging, which, for someone like me who cannot play guitar, and is generally not relaxed or confident to record an acceptable single-take end-to-end part, is very helpful. Sure, alternatively, I could work a little harder on my skills, etc…anyway. Here they are. I did even more mastering variations or adding/removing instruments, some of the stuff is undecided, but somehow I think I’m happier with these two, be it because I didn’t start rigidly by recording a structure on a shitty keyboard in a rhythm I couldn’t keep.
First up, this one, does not really have any title (provisionally SFK, yeah, I might go with that, but lyrics have not been written.
At the start, I had just this basic guitar bit, and somehow added a rougher-sounding bass, not sure why or how, guess I just got the Jazz Bass and wanted to experiment a bit, but that gave me the sound. But then by the time I really started recording it with structure, I had bought the Jaguar, so decided to record the main guitar bits on that. Of course I never recorded settings or initial effects I used, but in the end, sometimes practicing with the Fender Mustang tool, I had some sounds I liked that were close to what I had in mind, I did the same with the Zoom multieffect, and I started to do something new-ish (I had already on some of the songs above, but starting from scratch really), that is modify some of the settings or add this and that effect, to get near enough to what I wanted.
In the structure, this one was thought as a loop initially. In fact, briefly, I also like the idea as having that as just an intro to another song/the album, just the guitar and bass, instrumental and very short. But then it built up and I was happy with it. Ideally it would be recorded as a loop, at least the first part, that is, adding an instrument after another, live (something I remember seeing a musician opening for Sigur Ros doing in concert), and in fact, if you listen to everything before the chorus, it is practically what happened, though no loop was recorded: one guitar, then another, a third, the bass, and then drums. But actually, the chorus is OK.
For this one, I have two different Mastering Effects that I liked, 2, as ever, and 19. On first listen with one set of headphones, I thought that really for this one 2 was better. But on re-listening with a different (theoretically better) set, I really don’t know anymore, so it might all depend on your listening equipment too, and I’ll put both versions here. Did the re’drumming’ yesterday, just one take as the initial version I did half-arsed so did some experiment that weren’t OK. Of course, one of the issues is I’m still not super-structured, so there are variations that possibly shouldn’t be there.
Either way, I think I’m fairly happy with this one, I think it sounds good, and if it were perfectly recorded/engineered, I think I could listen to it if it were someone else’s work. I mean it doesn’t make me cringe, and I think, and that’s a good criterion, despite the improvable bits.
This is with Mastering Effect 2.
And now with 19. I’ll let you decide…..maybe if/when I sing it will make more sense.
And the final song for now, has a title. It’s called ‘Dominoes in Heaven’. Not sure whether to have it with the ‘e’ actually. Maybe, as a purist. In fact, up until this morning, and relistening, and as there are no lyrics on either yet, I thought the previous one might be that. But this one has a more funereal feeling in the drums so maybe is more apt, although for me, it was more the idea about crystallic clear, kind of ‘angelic’ sound of the guitar, and both songs could be defended for that.
Anyway, the story is, the last time I saw my Mum conscious on her soon-to-be-death bed (we were there for the actual last breath too a few days later), as she had taken to playing dominoes but we hadn’t played that day, she said ‘next time we’ll play dominoes’. I mean, she probably said goodbye too, but for me those were the last words I heard from her. And since there has been no next time, I formed this idea at the time that the next time would be in heaven then. I was still more or less making music at the time, though this was the end of that phase, so I never actually got to write the song. Maybe about three years ago, when I tentatively restarted at last (again, I wanted to restart from 2021, but while I bought stuff I didn’t even start trying before the very last days of 2022, but I might have said that already), I put a post on ex-Twitter about it and mentioned the idea for that song and that maybe I would do it (and one person replied and said I should, thanks bathgooner). As I feel very bound by my word (some people know without me expressing it before and have tried to abuse that…), I just said maybe. But this year, with these new sounds, I thought maybe it’s the time. Of course it’s all very weird at the moment, as none of the songs have lyrics (hence my considering the previous one for that title too), but here you are.
I wasn’t sure about drums (same as the one above, for which I thought I might ask John to see what he can come up with, maybe I will do that at some point, to be discussed next time I see him…..when?), but I think the idea works, but for me the big sticking point (on top of the structure, think I could make a much longer song out of it, rather than stop it at the end of the ‘noisy’ instrumental bit) is whether to put that ‘guitar solo’ in. I think it doesn’t quite work. I’ll put the version with it below, but currently I prefer it without, because I still cannot really play a solo (though in the end I was happy with the one in The Protected Room, but that was the culmination of some work, and it felt like it fitted in the atmosphere of the song), and I’m not sure it fits in this song that I wanted to keep a little more simple, and it hides the piano bit. Which was a single improvised take, I could possibly redo, I kind of wanted to have some piano, but the way it initially came to me is forgotten, and what I did is not, I think, what I really had in mind, as I ended up doing the classic single note with echo stuff I like in many songs), but yeah I thought maybe having the piano was a ‘Mum’ touch as after all, I’d never have started playing the piano (and so, music), without my Mum, I think. Even though history suggests the ‘artistic’ side of the family came more from my Dad. But yeah, so solo or no solo, if I have a final version with it I will have to re record it anyway. But right now, I think I’m more likely to prefer adding another layer of synth/keyboard. Anyway, here are the current instrumental mixes, with or without solo. Also yeah, because I have (too much) choice of guitar, again for timeliness, I went back to the Rickenbacker for the main guitar lines.
Oh yes, and another trick I used: Very initially, and purely because it is the default on my recorder I think, the first ideas were at 90bpm. But again, because I cannot play the guitar, and certainly struggle switching chords, I figured that not only would I record the 12-string strumming separetely for verse and choruse, I would record down to 80bpm. I didn’t necessarily think I’d go back up, but on listening, yeah 80bpm sounded too slow. So I got back to 85bpm. Some stuff were recorded at 80bpm, some at 85bpm, but really it is only the strumming that was the limitation. And in the end, I figured that it was still the version stretched back to 90bpm that was better, so I’m only putting these in, even if I still have equivalent 85bpm version on the computer.
Contrary to the previous song, I thought Mastering 19 sounded better on that first set of headphones. Yet again, I am totally unsure on the other headphones, for the previous if anything maybe 19 sounded better and 2 for this one, so what do I know?
So here’s the 90bpm-no solo-mastering effect 19 version (possibly currently my favourite, though it’s a toss up between that and 2 as explained).
Like the previous song, while it’s much perfectible, I can listen to it and not be unhappy (maybe really it’s just too short). And by the way, don’t worry about my neighbours, while sure you can’t remove sound from a guitar, even an electric, I’m not making much noise as doing everything through headphones, always….
But yeah, I think I’m definitely happier with these two than the three before, whether it is due to state of mind, a different process, more focus, or something else.
With Mastering effect 2
No I won’t bother you with two version for the solo-version as it is just anecdotical for now, so just the 19. Anyway, there is strictly no difference before the last 45 seconds.
To Be Continued….