Music, DIY, Recording, Drums, and Other

Dean Monkey and the Dropouts- sqrt remix

2011-12-07T16:18:00.000-08:00

I recorded this band called Dean Monkey and the Dropouts late in the summer. I did a space remix of one of the tracks "Blue Balls." The EP just got released, odds are, this remix will only be released on this blog thing (download link here). These folks be some freaks.

Moog and a 500 series filter

2011-11-10T15:21:00.000-08:00

As if I needed another reason to buy a 500 series lunchbox. This proves that there may indeed be a god, or at least someone listening to my inner thoughts (that isn't the CIA/FBI/TSA).

Mix Onlines take-
The Moog Page-

Robert Schumann, last.fm, and Astroglide

2011-09-22T15:39:00.000-07:00

I was just listening to a Robert Schumann joint on last.fm. Following the song, an ad (at commercial volume) came on for Astroglide. Like listening to Classical Piano Music means you need sex juices.
After all, it is just lube.

How The Major Labels Sold 'Electronica' To America- by Michaelangelo Matos

2011-09-12T15:35:00.000-07:00

This link will take you to the above mentioned article. Most of is Fat Boy Slim and the Crystal Method, but they do give a shout out to the Warp boyz. Brought to you by NPR.

3M Wollensak T-1980 Reel to Reel 1/4" T-1980 Links

2011-09-07T12:10:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine picked one of these up and is fully functional. ca. 1964-1966, new price in the 60's was $379. 2011 street value= $85. Reverse and flange tape effects and tape loops here I come.

-Wollensak Recorder History and Guide from Reel2ReelTexas-
-A project using the preamps for guitar pre
-TubularRadio's Take- good pics-
-Gearslutz Opinions on IPS, tape width, ect-

This is ridiculous

2011-08-29T16:11:00.000-07:00

"Dope" Art I have Seen- Monet Water Lilies Triptychs

2011-08-29T08:59:00.000-07:00

The Nelson-Atkins Museum in KC had a special exhibit that put together all three of Monet's Water Lilies on display. This was about 40 feet of Water Lilies! One of Triptychs is part of the permanent collection at the Nelson-Atkins. This blog post by the Art Inquirer that goes into a bit more detail. Dope Art!

A photo I took got used in a Washington Times Blog Article

2011-08-17T14:02:00.000-07:00

The pic above was cropped a little and used in this distributing Washington Times Blog on a law about little bitch pedophiles. They even used my sqrt(ur mother) name for the pic credit. I can't tell if this is a good thing, or if is is fucked up that they used my photo.

Frippertronics Links

2011-08-12T13:32:00.000-07:00

-wikipedia's take-

-Looper's Delight Take-

-ELOTTRONIX XL - Frippertronics VST Plugin-

Pizza Power Venue Live Recordings- RIP

2011-08-04T10:52:00.000-07:00

Pizza Power was a DIY venue in Lawrence KS before the law shut them down earlier this year. RIP. I recorded a handful of the shows from the tapers section (see above). They did a few video recordings and used my audio on them. A few of the tracks are below, recorded in Jan-March 2011.

Urban Mystics

Kayla Lee

Frances with Wolves

Fire in the Church Yard

Tape Saturation/Machine Plugins Freeware/Cheapware

2011-08-04T09:48:00.000-07:00

The kids theses days throw around the term "vintage" and "analog" and "lo-fi" quite a bit. These tools are helpful if you need something to sound like it was ran through a cassette deck, without actually doing it.

-FerricTDS-

-The winner of the KVR Developer Challenge 2009- by Variety of Sound

-http://varietyofsound.wordpress.com/downloads/

-KVR page- http://www.kvraudio.com/get/4218.html

-Echomania by The Interruptor-

-a tape delay with the saturation effects

-KVR link- http://www.kvraudio.com/get/745.html

-X-cita by elogoxa-

-"analog style exciter"

http://www.uv.es/~ruizcan/p_vst.htm

-TB Ferox by Toneboosters-

-(not really free, but the trial only disables parameter saving, only 25 euro for the set that includes this one)

-http://www.toneboosters.com/tb-ferox/

-CS-12 Channel Strip- by Terry West-

-a channel strip with a tape saturator

-kvr- http://www.kvraudio.com/get/4439.html

-Mono saturator-

-One knob made with sonic birth

-http://www.kvraudio.com/get/3411.html

-http://homepage.mac.com/reign_pro/page11/page11.html

I Recorded this EP- Karma Vision "Pizza Power"

2011-07-10T19:31:00.000-07:00

Karma Vision ::: Pizza Power by Whateverforever

I recorded Karma Vision's most recent EP entitled Pizza Power earlier this year and it is getting some love on the interwebs. Weed Temple, No Fear of Pop and The Pitch in KC have given it some good reviews. "So Vintage, So Hip." These boys are releasing it on cassette on their own Whatever Forever label and on CD (through Workerbee Records). They are selling it on Bandcamp here for $5 buster.

"Dope" Art I have seen- Jackson Pollock in KC and Madrid

2011-06-29T06:16:00.000-07:00

at the Nelson Atkins in KC

Brown and Silver at Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza in Madrid

Shorts from a Dude I Know

2011-06-14T09:44:00.000-07:00

And he has a kickstarter going to help fund his next full length project. He is a kick ass guy!

Poems and Soundscapes by Robert Knapp and sqrt

2011-06-09T14:13:00.000-07:00

The crazy kids that went to school for English . . . what is wrong with them? I did some odd things with poems my buddy Robert wrote and read into a microphone. The Kansas Blotter did a blog post on them. My bio quote is awesome (and I didn't pen it, cause I don't write that good). You can also download episodes 19-24 here on iTunes.

"Brian Miller is a Sound Engineer and Record Maker from the wild hills of North Carolina. He makes crazy sounds sound crazier and is more likely than not inhabited by some kind of interesting demon or space virus."

Electra Fuzz Schematics Plus Modification Ideas

2011-05-27T10:13:00.000-07:00

-A Modded Electra Version from Distorque- with a good description of the circuit changes-
-The Home-Wreckers take- it explains the octave down effect that is sometimes present
-Cook Your Own Distortion- This link is bad ass and shows some good mods to apply to distortion circuits.
-DIY Stompboxes Mods and Tricks- this is also bad ass and is good when you are beginning to brainstorm.

Piet Mondrian Nikes, Designer Fashion, and Esoteric Programing Languages

2011-05-10T08:05:00.000-07:00

So Piet Mondrian was this artist kat that was into vertical and horizontal lines with primary colors. He lived in France for a while. Dude painted shit, and some of it was most excellent. Then he died. And then non dead people went ape shit with his design ideas and incorporated those ideas into other products, like Nike Dunk SBs, a Yves Saint Laurent Summer Dress, and esoteric programing languages. Strange Fashion of the 80's? "I don't understand it" (RIP Big L). Dope Artzy Headphones? I am down with that. Non-dead "people are strange." And cause I like the photos TIME posts, here is an article from 1965, and another good one on the square from 1957.

Max Mathews RIP- Mr. Computer Music

2011-05-03T07:31:00.000-07:00

-NY Times Obituary-

-Wiki Page- it says the MAX portion of MAX/MSP is for him

-"The Digital Computer as a Musical Instrument"- an article from 1963.

-Create Digital Music's Article on the Electronic Baton-

"Dope" Art I have Seen- Velazquez's Las Meninas Redux and Remixed

2011-05-03T07:27:00.000-07:00

I saw the above painting at the Museu Picasso Exhibit "Forgetting Velázquez: Las Meninas" in 2008 while in Barcelona. The Museu's exhibit website has lots of the pieces posted and has a wealth of info on the exhibition. This was one of the coolest non-permanent shows I saw while in Spain. The above piece is by Cristobal Toral (to quote his bio "His favourite themes are the female nude, still-lifes and suitcases"). Here is a little press on a talk he did at Dartmouth in 2009. The entire exhibit was interpretations of Las Meninas through the centuries. I had the pleasure of seeing the original Velázquez joint in the Prado a few weeks earlier, so seeing this was great. There were plenty of other notable pieces by the great painters of history (Picasso did many replications of the piece) but Toral's piece will forever stick with me.

Computer Music Pioneers Panel Discussion from 2007

2011-04-25T10:16:00.000-07:00

Below is Copied from the You Tube page-

ix world-renowned pioneers of computer and electronic music gather at Tulane University to discuss the future of the form - both as they saw it in 1967 and as they see it today in 2007.

November 29, 2007.

Jon Appleton (panel moderator) - Ceator of the Synclavier - Dartmouth College
John Chowing - Creator of FM synthesis - Stanford University
Maureen Chowning - Soprano voice
Max Mathews - The "grandfather" of
computer music conceiving the first computer music language and the
"Radio Baton" - Stanford University
F. Richard Moore - Author of "Elements of Computer Music" and "The Science of Sound" -University of California San Diego
Julius Smith III - Pioneer in DSP applications in music and acoustics - Stanford University

Pure Data TV- by Dr. Rafael Hernandez

2011-04-21T08:09:00.000-07:00

I am posting these so I can access them with out searching youtube as I have been checking them out frequently as of yet for the SSR project.Dr. Rafael Hernandez is down right awesome. 33 Episodes after the jump.

Alvin Lucier Inspired Recurisive System Experiment- Spectral Degradation

2011-04-16T08:29:00.000-07:00

I had recorded a poem or two for a friend of mine (Robert Knapp) the other day and the conclusive best of the lot was one called "Verse Zont". It was cut up type of reading if I recall correctly. I had ran across a musical piece by Alvin Lucier from 1969 called "I am Sitting in a Room" (the original recording can be found here on ubu.com's site). I decided to take the poem and run it through a Lucier inspired recording machine. I copied the instructions for the piece below. Instead of electromagnetic tape, I used computers with 44.1k-16 bit audio with MOTU 828 mk 1 and Lexicon Lambda audio interfaces. I used a Yamaha HS-10 monitor for playback and a Rode NT1A for recording. The room chosen was my living room (see pic above). I choose 8 as the number of times at first, but I ended up doing 10 cause it was fun.

As this is is an indeterminate piece, I will note some entertaining facts about my particular session. Date was April 14 2011 around nightfall. There was a Kansas thunderstorm moving in and you can hear thunder and recursive thunder through out. My cats was also like "WTF" the entire time and there are a few cat reactions to the experiment on the recording. I varied the volume between takes. The posted version is a edited level matched version.

----Verse in Ink zontal- Recursive Attempt01 Download-----

I AM SITTING IN A ROOM (1969)
Alvin Lucier (b. 1931)

for voice and electromagnetic tape.

Necessary Equipment:
1 microphone 2 tape recorders amplifier 1 loudspeaker
Choose a room the musical qualities of which you would like to evoke.
Attach the microphone to the input of tape recorder #1.
To the output of tape recorder #2 attach the amplifier and loudspeaker.

Use the following text or any other text of any length:

"I am sitting in a room different from the one you are in now. I am recording the sound of my speaking voice and I am going to play it back into the room again and again until the resonant frequencies of the room reinforce themselves so that any sem- blance of my speech, with perhaps the exception of rhythm, is destroyed. What you will hear, then, are the natural resonant frequencies of the room articulated by speech. I regard this activity not so much as a demonstration of a physi- cal fact, but more as a way to smooth out any irregularities my speech might have."

Record your voice on tape through the microphone attached to tape re- corder #1.

Rewind the tape to its beginning, transfer it to tape recorder #2, play it back into the room through the loudspeaker and record a second genera- tion of the original recorded statement through the microphone attached to tape recorder #1.

Rewind the second generation to its beginning and splice it onto the end of the original recorded statement on tape recorder #2.

Play the second generation only back into the room through the loud speakerand record a third generation of the original recorded statement through the microphone attached to tape recorder #1.

Continue this process through many generations.

All the generations spliced together in chronological order make a composition the length of which is determined by the length of original statement and the number of generations recorded.

-The versions in which one recorded statement is recycled through many rooms.
-Make versions using one or more speakers of different languages and in different rooms.
-Make versions in which, for each generation, the microphone is moved to different parts of the -room or rooms.
-Make versions that can be performed in real time.
http://www.ubu.com/sound/lucier.html

1965 Ludwig Tenor-to-Snare Modification- with sound samples

2011-03-26T08:41:00.000-07:00

I was in a music store in Lawrence KS (Richards Music if awesome if you ever are here). I was in search of a some lugs and tension rods for another drum build I was working on and I ran across a 1965 15" drum. Ludwigs have always been my "vintage drum to drool over" for some time now. I bought it at the time for the parts and put the shell up in my attic for a while. I got around to fixing it up and figured it would make an excellent snare drum if I added some hardware and a few more things. It was a fun project and it is now complete. It is sensual and has a deep tone. This is a Barry White snare if I have ever seen one. Below is the process my redneck ass followed to complete this 1965 Ludwig Tenor-to-Snare- Mod (or butchery as the purests would say).

Original Condition

Serial Number 233295 (1965 range), No drill holes for snare hardware but did have holes for the muffle, Wood was most likely 3-ply Mahogany/poplar/ Mahogany according to this source. The drum shell was in pretty good condition. The hardware has some pitting and rust. I did get all of the 5" lugs for the drum and both rims.

Cleaning and Sparkle

If you ever need to clean drum hardware, I recommend Never-Dull. It smells horrible, but does clean the chrome well.

This drums also has what looks like pink/purple and green sparkled wrap. All the parts that were exposed had a silver sparkle to it, but when I cleaned the hardware, I saw that the sun must have faded the original. Could you imagine a whole set with that wrap?

Parts and Supplies

-Shell- $60 at Richards Music in Lawrence KS.
-Ludwig Rocker drum heads on ebay ($22)
-a Ludwig P85 throw ($24) and a Ludwig P32 Butt ($6)
-long snare string
-a 15" 10 hole snare side rim (I had one)
-Muffle-
-a snare- currently a 14" I had laying around.

Snare Strainer and Butt Install

I made some templates for the drill markers, taped them on, and drilled baby drilled. I had an extra muffle laying around and added that too (there were holes pre drilled for this, on the same segment as the Ludwig Badge. It appears that the strainer placement isn't how Ludwig did it (they off set the throw one segment from the Badge I do believe.

Snare Beds-

I had to cut snare beds into this drum cause the snares won't touch the head (see the theory why). This is the snare bed tutorial I followed. Originally I planned on a 3/16" deep and 6" wide bed. After looking and thinking, I went smaller with 1/8" deep and 3 1/2" wide. If in the future I decide to go bigger I can, but after putting the drum together, this worked well.

I bought a drum sander for my hand held drill (barrel sanding bit from Sears- Craftman Sanding Drum- 1 1/2 x 1"- 9-24931- refill sleeves- 9-24932), a hand file, and some 180 and 220 grit sandpaper and went to town. I sanded the main groove down with the drum sander and finished up taking pressure off the edge with the hand file and smooth it out with sandpaper.

How it Sounds

-----Samples in .wav-----

Phil Spector's Wall Of Sound Links

2011-03-14T14:03:00.000-07:00

-Spector's engineer was Larry Levine

-A good story about Larry Levine and Herb Albert's Process, including mic set up-

-NPR streaming audio-

-BBC's take- has lists and playback of the original wall of sound songs

-Jeffs Retro Music-

-NY Times take on the documentary-

-Spector B sides-

"Dope" Art I have Seen- at The Blue Koi in KC

2011-03-08T06:23:00.000-08:00

ambient kansas- a free EP from me, sqrt(ur mother)

2011-02-25T10:32:00.000-08:00

This is a collection of manipulated field recordings and artificially made noises that I gathered in the first three years living and traveling in Kansas, in an drum-free digital format. A physical copy of this release (with handmade CD envelopes) is available by contacting brian@brokenfadercartel.com

----Full album download (320k mp3s in zip format)----

Streaming Tracks

i. ulysses field recording of little-to-nothing (noise mix)

ii. synthetic noises inspired by the spanish influenza

iii. bach cello suite no. 3 (greensburg mix)

iv. noises inspired by dancing street buskers

v. Ron Evan's summer camp (perseid mix)

vi. cicada field recording (drone mix)

vii. train field recording (standing next to it mix)

"Dope" Art I have seen- I know this kid

2011-02-18T10:09:00.000-08:00

This piece of art is a portrait of a friend of mine and his little brother that they found in their grandparents house. It is kind of freaky and now hangs in this dude's garage. He invented this Snash Hat percussion instrument too. My friend is the older of the two.

Stereo mic'ing and 2 Track Recording links-

2011-02-18T09:57:00.000-08:00

This post has information I use and have stumbled across that deals with 2 track recordings, live recordings, and stereo mic technique. My go to choice for stereo is an ORTF set up (110 degrees, 17 cm), at least for live show captures.

Usual Suspects-
-Shure's Stereo Mics Basics- touches on all the basics, XY, MS, ORTF, NOS, ect.
-DPA article in PDF- also a good recourse and overview that is more in depth than the Shure article, touches on Blumein and Decca Tree too.
-A Printable ORTF pdf Template-
-SoS Article 1997- Part 01 and Part 02- This is a good theory based article called "Stereo Microphone Techniques Explained"
-SoS Article 2003-"a practical look at the pros and cons of coincident and spaced stereo miking techniques"
-SoS article from 1996- "First Steps In Direct-to-stereo Recording" and it mentions a cassette deck.
-Bruce Bartlett's Stereo Mic Book- You should buy this if your serious about getting the nitty gritty.

PZM- You can do some strange stuff with PZMs and some Plexiglas-
-A super scientist view on the PZM wedge-
-A cool PZM wedge tabla test-
-Some info on Mapleshade Records use of PZM-
-Tape Ops Board PZM post-
-Tapeop PZM article-
-Crown Soundgrabber II pdf-
-Crown PZM Applications pdf-

Forward thinking- Baffled, Vertical, and Dummy Heads

-Jecklin Disk-a baffled stereo pair
      -Wiki-
      - A gearslutz step by step with Pics-
    -Gearslutz- Main article-
      -Stichting Klankschap Tutorial in pdf- very detailed with good pics-

-Schneider Disk- a variation of a baffled spaced pair- with a sphere in the middle of the disc-
-Vertical Microphone Method- Make mono recordings with a stereo pair.
-Binaural head- DPA's DPA4060 and DPA4061, they say that is the jamz- and on the cheap-

Pure Data Reverb Project/ Experiment- SSR

2011-02-16T09:01:00.000-08:00

I am working on a project that will hopefully be a VST "environment" plug in when it is all said and done that will take an input, add a very peculiar reverb/room with other sound variables, in order to make your sound mimic it's existence in a specific actual or fictional audio environment (think space stations, submarines, drowning with headphones on, inside a whale with a boombox, ect). I want to be able to create custom GUI's, change numeric values of absorption coefficients at the lowest programing language possible (C, C++, or Java), but also have the majority of the "programing" done in an object oriented application. After looking into a couple of options, I think I am going to try out Pure Data for the initial prototype. It is a software made by Miller Puckette who did development for Max/MSP. These links are here to serve as a ever changing reference and brainstorming landing page for this project- code named SSR.

Intro
-Extended PD tutorial-
-Digital Artist Handbook's "Diving into PD"-
-SoS Intro to Pure Data article-

Deep Shit
-C++ Objects How To in PD- Article 01 and Article 02
-Pure Data as a VST-
-impulse response (IR) convolution PD object from william brent- convolve~
-EEtimes Article "Building Good Audio Software"-
-Pure Data Hardware- hot damn!

General Info on DIY VSTs
-Super Collider- Programing Language and Environment- an open source project
-Synth Maker and Synth Edit-
-Sound on Sound Article about DIY VST creations- a good intro article.

Reverb Tangent
-SoS article "Advanced Reverberation"-
-Jeremy Wakefield's "Thoughts on Reverb"-
-Ursa Major Hardware Reverb-
-Eventide SST-282 Space Station Plug In-

Dope Art I have seen- Paintings in my Attic

2011-02-04T14:55:00.000-08:00

These are only dope cause they are in my attic and I keep drums and broken gear up there.

A Mountain Lion "Field" Recording- Topeka Zoo

2011-01-29T09:18:00.000-08:00

-----Mountain Lion at the Topeka Zoo- Jan 2011 .wav-----

I went to the Topeka Zoo with a stereo mic on my mini-DV cam, and captured a mountain lion. He didn't roar, but he walked about 6 feet from me, and as he was walking he was breathing heavy. It sounded creepy.

NY Times says the Greatest Composer was Bach

2011-01-21T09:49:00.000-08:00

Here is the article. Given the amount of preludes and fugues I had to analyze in college, I would disagree, mostly out of hearing and looking at his works too much. I hate Bach. I wouldn't let them play it at my wedding. I won't let them play it when I am dead.

Moog TV

2011-01-14T07:14:00.000-08:00

More info from this, including a transcript can be found ---here--

The Shape Of Things That Hum- A Gear Documentary

2011-01-13T08:56:00.000-08:00

Mini-Moog

Fairlight

Roland TB-303

Roland TR-808

Vocoder

Simmons Drums

Cyril M. Harris- RIP to an Acoustical Engineer

2011-01-11T13:52:00.000-08:00

This dude was a pimp in the "I'll make your room sound better bitches" world. Most civil people refer to this as acoustics. His did the acoustics in the Kennedy Center, the Metropolitan Opera House, and fixed the Lincoln Center's New York State Theater acoustics, just to name a few (he had his acoustic hands in about 100 halls and theaters ). He died on Jan 4th 2011 at the age of 93.

-Cyril M. Harris' Wiki Page-

-His Obituary on Philly dot com-

Below is the "Shock and Vibration Handbook"

Shehnai- aka the Hindu Oboe

2011-01-11T08:14:00.000-08:00

-Shehnai Sound Samples at soundsnap.com-

-kaypacha.com's- Shehnai Description and info-

-Shehnai Wiki Page-

-Ustad Bismillah Khan's Wiki- dude is considered the master by many on the Shehnai

Dope Art I have seen- Miro- Hair Pursued by Two Planets

2010-12-24T11:52:00.000-08:00

This is at the Fundació Joan Miró in Barcelona Spain. I thought it was dope.

Sennheiser e602

2010-12-22T11:44:00.000-08:00

I got this mic cause I needed another mic to capture low end sounds (I already have an AKG D112). I did some research and figured this was the best bang for my buck (I still want about 18 421's . . . ) as I still needed (and got) a Radial ProDI Passive box (it is the hotness). I like the e602. It does the trick on kick and bass. Placement really changes the tone on this mic, but the sweet spots are pretty wide and easy to find. Below are some links-

-GearSlutz Board post with the e602 placement tests- This is the post that made me buy this mic. The samples here will show you the capabilities of German Engineering. This is a very detailed and in depth page.

-Sennheiser's Spec Sheet- cause I like frequency response graphs

Joe Meek Links

2010-12-22T06:50:00.000-08:00

Joe Meek was a wild, tragic, and interesting musical figure from the 60's. Read more on him below. I aint going to tell you shit that other people can tell you better.
-Wikipedia Link-
-The Joe Meek Society- This is a good site, with lots of info an links, and has Joe's Juke Box
-"A Life in the Death of Joe Meek" IMDb page- from 2008
-An article from recordsbymail.com- a shorten version of the wiki post- best quote- "If it sounds good, it is good." - Joe Meek
-Below video- Part 01 and Part 02- "Originally broadcast in 1991 as part of the Arena series of programs and reshown on BBC4"

Watch The Strange Story Of Joe Meek [Part 1] in Entertainment | View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com

Watch The Strange Story Of Joe Meek [Part 2] in Entertainment | View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com

Dope Art I have seen- Huevo de Colón

2010-12-20T14:25:00.000-08:00

This is the Huevo de Colón (aka Egg of Columbus) and can be found in Sevilla Spain. It was built for the 1992 Expo by Zurab Konstantinovich Tsereteli and more info can be found here. It is an oddly large sculpture way outside of the main town center, but is dope. This link will take you to a few more pictures we took while viewing this mammoth statue.

Henrietta Yurchenco- The Ethnic Music Alan Lomax

2010-12-20T13:02:00.000-08:00

This lady did some cool field recordings in various places. The recordings from the 40's in Latin America caught my interest as I am researching some native indigenous music from Central America for a music project I am working on. Her interview with Down Home Radio is a great source of information on both Latin American indigenous music as well as portable recording techniques from the 1940's. Below are some links that I found while looking into this fabulous lady a little more.

NY Times Obituary-
Wikipedia Link-
Down Home Radio Tribute to her- includes a good blog post and mp3 of the show. She co-founded this radio program.
Down Home Radio Interview on Pre-Columbian Music- Focusing on Mexico and Guatemala, this is mad dope, and is the avenue I found out about this wonderful lady. This interview included musical samples she recorded and the experiences around them. She used a Presto Model K Aluminum Disk Recorder to make her recordings in the 40's. This lady was hardcore.
Smithsonian Folkways Collection "Music of the Maya-Quiches of Guatemala"- has preview tracks and was recorded by Henrietta in 1978.

Marble Tracks- Fast Hands Solo with sqrt effects

2010-12-20T12:34:00.000-08:00

These are two effect heavy ambient mixes of relaxation marbles/balls solo I recorded in my house, performed by the renowned percussionist Fast Hands. The dirt mix is layers upon layers of effects, all effects on everything, over and over. The weedalivpmix is a live mixer mix of effects coming in at different times.

-----Marble Solo- dirt mix-----

-----Marble Solo- weedalivpmix-----

Owl People at Be Moved 12-26-10 for Final Fridays

2010-12-20T07:25:00.000-08:00

----mp3 of the live set-----

This went down at a yoga joint for Final Fridays Art Openings in Lawrence KS.

lo fi Links

2010-12-09T14:04:00.000-08:00

I have tried too much lo fi in the electronic/ambient music realm, but below are some links I found helpful for using that term in the actually played music world (aka bands?).

-Top 10 lo fi Records- don't know if I agree, but it is about.com for god's sake
-Mike Bennett Talks lo fi- its gotta video!
-Music Radar 9 Quick Tips for lo fi-
-Bruce Bartlett Article Link from EQ Mag- Pretty much the same as the embed below.

Below is from Practical Recording Techniques by By Bruce Bartlett, Jenny Bartlett

Classical Pieces I Have Seen Performed- Gabriela Lena Frank- La Llorona: Tone Poem for Viola and Orchestra

2010-11-22T08:22:00.000-08:00

I saw this piece performed by the KU Symphony as part of the semester end dance recital over the weekend. I enjoyed the piece and reminded me of some of Stravinsky's Ballet pieces. The viola soloist was KU professor Peter Chun. I haven't found any recordings online or videos of performances, but if I do I will update this post.

Brief Bio of the composer-

Description of the Work-

Left Hand Drumming Speed and Kick Exercises

2010-11-16T08:05:00.000-08:00

Left Hand/ Week Hand Speed

The Link to the above notatation-

This site has some good 8th and 16th note LR patterns that will build independence.

This is from a book called Stick Control by George Lawrence Stone. I found this too.

Kick Exercises

Buddy Rich's- http://www.tigerbill.com/drumlessons/buddyrichdrumsecrets_part1.htm

Feet Rudiments- http://www.drummerworld.com/forums/showthread.php?p=615136

Dali TV

2010-11-09T12:36:00.000-08:00

Un Chien Andalou- 1929- IMDb Link

L'Age d'Or- 1930- IMDb Link

A Field Recording of a Bell Tower in North Atlanta

2010-11-07T11:38:00.000-08:00

I used my video camera with a DI/Phantom Rig to get a small condenser mic into the input (I used an AT Pro 37). It was the only thing worth recording in about a 10 mile radius from where I was at. Long live tha suburbs. Below is a mono wav file of the above file. A nice tilted video shot as well.

----ATL Bell Tower Mono .wav file----

Friction Drum Resources

2010-10-28T08:35:00.000-07:00

Mayan Friction Drum- aka Jaguar Drum

-Mayavase's Article on the Friction Drum- the place I stumbled upon this instrument

Other Recource- Non Mayan

-puerca or marrano= columbia, murga= southern andean, cuica= Brazil, furruco- venezuela

-Lunet or Livika- New Ireland north of New Guinea- with sound sample-

-From Percussion Instrum. and their History- google book- a european take- Spain, Italy, ect.
-Buhai- Romanian Friciton Drum- from Playdrums.com- pdf file with a building tutorial, makes an ox sound.
-Cuica Brazilian Friction Drum-stick goes inside the head. Used in the following tunes-
       - Paul Simon's "Me and Julio Down By the Schoolyard"
      - Barenaked Ladies' "Enid"
      - Bob Marley's "Could You Be Loved"
-Chicken in a Cup- a kid's building project for a friction drum
-Article for Purchase on the Friction Drum - 1907- by Henry Balfour- Journal Anthropoogical Institut 37, 1907- Article Purchase Link- below is the google books embed.

Homemade Instrument Links- These dudes are some freaks

2010-10-21T14:09:00.000-07:00

-Bret Hart's Site- Specifically states he isn't the wrestler, but I don't believe it. Dude uses a rigged up banjo and states the following- "This gets played in our 'avant-Appalacian' (mutant Bluegrass) band, The Cat's Pants." Damn, the avant had gotten to the deep backwoods. Most of these are electronic in nature.

-Aural Innovations- "The Global Source For SpaceRock Exploration"

-Hal McGee's Site- Dude has been droppin tunes since the early 80's and there are TONS of podcasts

-Homemade Music- A label/net label/consortium of homemade music

Readings about Drums- James Blades' "Percussion Instruments and their History"

2010-10-21T08:41:00.000-07:00

"Dope" Art I have seen- Martyrs of Gorkum

2010-10-20T07:52:00.000-07:00

I saw this somewhere in the Vatican. I think it was a Caravaggio piece, but I didn't write it down and I can't find out on the internetz.

Update- This is totally not a Caravaggio work (don't get too krunk in the Vatican, or God makes you forget shit) , but one of Cesare Fracassini and it is called "Martyrs of Gorkum". That link will take you to the story, but it ends in people getting hung. Shout out for Tristan for helping me figure out who did this. The googles were just making it hard for me to find.

Ad Astra Arkestra at the Studded Bird- KC 10-01-10- Full Set Video

2010-10-14T10:27:00.000-07:00

Peavey 701R Mixer

2010-10-13T13:41:00.000-07:00

This is a mixer I have had for a very long time. It was the second piece of audio gear I ever bought (I think I was about 17) and was purchased in the late 90's. It looked old then, and I found it under a stage in Tempo Music Store in Hendersonville NC. I gave $200 for it, which was not a great deal, but not horrible back then, considering when these came out in 80's and were like $800 or so. The original purpose of this was to do live multi mic recordings directly into a cassette deck so we could hear our practices. Over the years, this thing has seen much abuse. I have had other mixers come and go (some that went without my approval, RIP Soundcraft M12), and I have lent this to many people for various events, but it is still working. It isn't pristine, but it is clear and has decent body to the sound. It doesn't sound tinny and weak like these shitty little 8 channels everyone has out for under $200. It does have flavor and that flavor works well in the on location band practice space recordings I do that are approached as "lower fi" projects. I wouldn't want to cut a studio album on this, but it is totally possible to get a "Check Your Head" sounding record out of this box.

It has a monitor and effects send, 7 channels, and a lot of various outputs on the back. Each channel has an insert right after the gain knob. I am currently using it only for the gain knobs. I run a mic into the mixer, and send it right out to my 828 audio interface. I don't like EQ's and compression to tape (and I try not to use them in the mix if I don't have to), so 1 gain knob to tape is perfect for my application and how I roll. It also takes out of the mix(er) some of the circuitry that gives Peavey it's noisey reputation.

The Manual-

Wuqu' Kawoq Global Giving Day to Support Midwives in Guatemala!

2010-10-11T12:01:00.001-07:00

Wuqu' Kawoq is an NGO that provides health care in the highlands of Guatamala to Kaqchikel-speaking patients in their language. Tomorrow, we have a big campaign with Global Giving to raise money for our project with midwives. Starting at 12:01am Eastern on October 12th, Global Giving will match any donations over $10 by at least 30%.

The money will be used to expand our work in the past with midwives to more broadly address issues related to human and reproductive rights. Specifically, we will offer expanded educational offerings targeted at sexually transmitted disease, STI, contraception, and sexual rights. We will couple this to offer free of charge screenings for HIV and sexually transmitted diseases as well as access to contraceptive methods.

Here is the webpage from global giving:
http://www.globalgiving.org/projects/guatemalamidwives/http://www.globalgiving.org/projects/guatemalamidwives/

And, here is a statement from Brent Henderson, Wuqu' Kawoq Board Secretary:
http://myemail.constantcontact.com/Tuesday-is-the-Day-to-Support-Midwives-.html?soid=1102026328962&aid=aYD6hQgY0rY

Please consider making a donation. Every little bit helps!

The Beast Pageant

2010-10-07T08:35:00.000-07:00

The Beast Pageant - Trailer from Jubadaba on Vimeo.

A friend of mine that lives in Rochester NY with a bunch of Yankees is involved in this movie in production called the Beast Pageant. It is in the shooting and editing stages as of current, but they do have a trailer (above) and it is pretty fucked up looking. THE BEAST PAGEANT.

This link will take you to the kickstarter page if you would like to throw some cash at the cause.

"Dope" Art I have seen- Goya's Black Paintings

2010-10-07T08:19:00.000-07:00

-An article by by G. Fernández at theartwolf.com- This is very extenisve and even shows the original placement in his House of the Deaf Man.
-The Wikipedia Page-
-HVBK.com's page- This has great images of the paintings online
- A NY Times Article on the Black Paintings-

Note- yes that is Saturn eating a baby (his baby) in that top painting and nothing is as scary, black, or dark as two old people eating soup in the bottom picture. Most of these are in the Prado in Madrid, and if you get a chance to see them in person, it is a surreal experience.

Yamoto Live at the Replay

2010-10-06T15:57:00.000-07:00

These two guys played a show at the Replay a couple on 09-27-2010. It was fun and loud and fast and full of fury. Videos are below. Part one is some of Dan's (guitar playa) solo compositions, and the second is called Yamoto. Theses dudes freaked the fuck out on stage. The drummer by the was is the same guy who is referred to on this blog as Mr. Fast Hands. Signal flow for the recording- Rode NT1-A into my Canon Z800 camera mic input using a passive DI in reverse in the middle.

"Dope" Art I have seen- Vision of St Bernard by Alonso Cano

2010-10-04T14:09:00.000-07:00

This painting is entitled Vision of St Bernard by Alonso Cano and hangs in the Prado in Madrid. I flipped my shit when I saw this and about laughed so hard my side hurt.

Symetrix 302- Mic Pre

2010-10-04T09:46:00.000-07:00

I had purchased a Symetrix SX-202 earlier this year and I liked it (especially for the mods that can be done with it). I saw one of the Symetrix 302's come up on ebay for a decent deal so I picked one up too. If you get one of these under $100, they are worth it. Nothing Fancy, but odds are it is better than the pre's on your audio interface (or on most mixers under a $1G). This one isn't as mod-able as its 202 brother, but now I have a back up pre so I can try and mod that SX-202. I do like the Power Supply on the 302 much better.

-PDF Manual-
-PDF Data Sheet from Symetrix-
-a review from moosers- and he gave it a 9/10 rating-

Dan Perjovschi at KU's Spencer Museum of Art- All Art was Once Contemporary

2010-09-30T08:51:00.000-07:00

Dan Perjovschi is the new current artist in residance at KU and currently has an installation at the Spencer Art Musuem. It consists of black marker on white walls and takes up the whole center hall of the museum. If you need a good laugh, as well as an interesting take on world affairs, go check this out. An example of my favorite "writing on the wall" for this install- G8, G20, G-Spot. Below are some links . . .

-Artist in Residence KU page-

-Kansan.com article-

-Artist site-

-Eastside Queenie blog post-

Arkestra Show at the Jackpot

2010-09-30T07:19:00.000-07:00

The Arkestra played a fun show at the Jackpot in Lawrence KS on 9-24-10. All the bands were on point (Strong Smells and Mouthbreathers threw it down and it was the first time I saw them) and Thee Oh Sees were tight and grungy. Turnpike had their cameras up there, so hopefully I can update this post with some videos. One of the camera guys set up near my bass drum and said he got some good shots of me rocking that bitch like Dokken. I really like the poster too! I got pics below of the drunken circus that is the Arkestra. The Kansan posted this article about our stage presence.

Ravi Shankar TV

2010-09-23T08:59:00.000-07:00

Drum Track in a Parking Garage Recording

2010-09-20T20:53:00.000-07:00

I recorded a drum track with my Arkestra buddy Nathan a while back. Tudikas Wayne Hunnicutt (whose Mutant Boobies 12" is bomb) had this idea of recording a played back drum track in a parking garage. I recorded this drum track with the intention of doing this. Parking Garages don't have power outlets, so I broke out a shitty USB audio interface with phantom power, a large diaphragm condenser, a laptop. I then opened the doors on my car and cranked my blown out 6x9's as loud as I could. The pres on my USB interface suck and there isn't much gain and my car doesn't have much junk in the trunk, so I got shitty recording levels ( like -50 db). I limited the shit out of the live recording and rolled the high end off to get rid of the noise floor from the mic pres out (it didn't matter cause most of the sound was in the mud range). Below is a stream and a download link. It was strange music experiment, I thought I was going to have the police come up and ask me what the hell I was doing.

----Drum in a Parking Garage mp3----

Instrument Tutorials- Sitar

2010-09-20T18:00:00.000-07:00

I own this sitar above. I am a drummer and I have little skill even on guitars. Below (or after the jump) are some good intro links to the coolest instrument I own.

Buckingham Music's Sitar Tutorial- This has good tips on how to hold the instrument and is over all a good introduction. The Tuning Page is very helpful when you first crack the case open.

KKSongs Sitar Pages- This site has a great tuning page with harmonium drones of all 7 main strings and has some good technique tips.

Expert Village Youtube Channel- they have great set up of videos on the Sitar, with the video below included.

John Cage-ian Tao Te Ching Thought of the Day

2010-09-20T12:25:00.000-07:00

From Tao Te Ching- Chapter 11

    Thirty spokes join in one hub
    In its emptiness, there is the function of a vehicle
    Mix clay to create a container
    In its emptiness, there is the function of a container
    Cut open doors and windows to create a room
    In its emptiness, there is the function of a room

    Therefore, that which exists is used to create benefit
    That which is empty is used to create functionality

source www.Taoism.net and Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths in 2006

Sitar and Hand Drum Track, in 3 Flavors

2010-09-17T10:43:00.000-07:00

My buddy Anthony from the Arkestra and I got a bottle of Jameson a couple of Fridays ago, drank it way to quickly, and laid down a little sitar and hand drum mutlitrack jam. We put a large diaphragm condenser mic up and recorded a hand drum jam with him on djembe and me on frame drum. He then spent a good while getting my sitar tuned up and we laid a track down with him doing some strumming drone type sounds and me playing a skaker. We then recorder another shaker overdub while me and my wife tinkered with rainsticks and other random percussion. I then did three rough mixes in various flavors with a download and streaming link.

----Normal Mix----

----Wet Mix----

----Super Delay Mix-----

Boss DS-1 Mods

2010-09-17T09:22:00.000-07:00

Who doesn't have an extra DS-1 laying around that they don't want to get rid of, but don't like to use? Mod that bitch up, with some links to help. If I ever trust my soldering skills enough, I will post my process and results.
The Instructables Tutorial- as always, great step by step if you have the skills
Premier Guitars Take-
Erik's Corner- a couple of new takes on the SD-1 mod, with a tube screamer emulator from a good pedal builder.

Crossroads Music Festival 2010 in Kansas City

2010-09-15T12:18:00.000-07:00

The Ad Astra Arkestra played at The Brick on Saturday night for the Crossroads Music Festival, and it was completely insane and mad fun. Micheal Forrester took a bad ass photo of the band through my bass drum. He also took many great shots from the evening and this is a link to his flicker gallery for this event. The photo below was on The Pitch website (here is there write up on the event) and is of my boy Anthony beating the shit out of a woodblock. Below that is Mr. Fasthands himself Nathan. Popwreckoning.com also gave the Arkestra some love for out throwndown.

CD, DVD, and Envelope Templates

2010-09-14T22:03:00.000-07:00

I have a black and white laserjet printer, so it isn't very expensive for me to do short run printing at my house. There are tons of places online that have pdf templates for download to important into a photo editing program. These templates are helpful when you are making custom/artzy packaging, like my paint splattered CD envelopes made from sheet music above (I am working on an ambient release). Below are the ones I use, mainly so I don't have to keep googling it and remembering which ones I like.

a side note- once you have a design and save it as a pdf, make sure you don't auto rotate or shrink.

CD Label template- World Label has a 8.5x11 versions of the catty corner and down the middle CD labels. in addition to other random CD sizes.

CD Envelope- this and a gluestick and you are golden.

The Disc Wizard site is one of many different replication houses that have pdf templates of various DVD and CD packaging and is a good resource for the rest of the packaging you may need.

And per The Music Void's recommendation-

Cassette Templates- one on 8.5x11 and another showing the dimensions.

The Music Void - gudunski

Battle

2010-09-11T11:53:00.001-07:00

Snash Hat

2010-09-01T13:32:00.000-07:00

This is a snash hat. It was invented by Robert at the Vipercock Ranch. It is 13" HH with a 20" inverted Pearl Ride Cymbal under it. It is used in some of the ambient experiments that occur around these parts. A sample download and a stream are below.

-----Snash Hat Sample-----

Electric Prepared Mandolin

2010-08-25T07:54:00.000-07:00

I bought a cheap mandolin about 10 years ago for $80. Then about 5 years ago a mic stand fell on it and cracked right under the bridge (thus it wont stay in tune). I put it in a closet with intent of smashing it at a show one day. Instead of destroying it, I put a in contact mic pick up, a 1/4" jack, and "prepared it" in the John Cage piano kinda way by putting paper clicks and wood in the strings. I play above the neck and below the bridge a lot. I then run it through my pedals to create odd sounds. It sounds like the sample below, sometimes.

RATM Recording Links and Thoughts

2010-08-24T10:35:00.000-07:00

"Evil Empire" studio photo taken in Cole's Rehersal- "The pic in the cover makes the room look big" paraphrasing engineer Nick Didia

I did a recording session the other day and the band wanted to cut everything, vocals, drums, and guitars with no over dubs. I never got the vocals to sound correct, but the following links give some good info on how Evil Empire was recorded in the same manner. These links
helped me figure out how to recorded it, how to mix it, and how to do it better next time. If you got guys that are as good as RATM, then you can cut an album this way.

-Gearslutz 1 RATM Link- This focuses on the First Rage album.
-Gearslutz RATM Guitar Tone Link-
-Gears Slutz RATM Link 02- This has banter from dudes that rented Rehearsal space at Cole's.
-Tech Tips from Andy Wallace- this is the dude that mixed Evil Empire

A Non-Hipster Pedal Board Suitcase

2010-08-23T09:55:00.000-07:00

This may should be called a Redneck Pedal Board Suitcase. I took a shitty carry-on bag that was on it's last leg, cut some 2x6's down, spray painted them black, splattered green paint on them, screwed them into the suitcase, added Velcro and some pedals. I need a suitcase of aural terror. Shazzam.

Below are some of the links and info that I checked into before I broke out my drill.
-DIY out of a suitcase-
-Instructables version out of a briefcase-
-Another out of an old suitcase- this one looks scary

Cicada Field Recording plus a Tweaked Out Ambient Version

2010-08-22T13:08:00.000-07:00

I just moved into a new house and the evening cicada drone near my new pad is amazing. For hours each night, these bugs crescendo and decrescendo in this heat of summer in Lawrence. These bugs are looking for love, and their are lots of them doing so. It is like the booty club in college towns on a Friday after midnight. I recorded about 12 minutes of this the other evening and then did a tweaked out ambient drone mix of it. Below is playback and download links to the dry and EFXd 12 minute version, and a download link to a 1 min hi-res wav sample of the dry recording. Signal chain- NT1A->MOTU 828 ver01. Remix Signal Chain, I can't remember, but there were lots of flangers.

----A 1 minute wav file of the Cicada Crescendo----

----The 12 min mp3 of the Cicada Crescendo Original Recording----

----The 12 min mp3 of the Cicada Crescendo Tweaked Out Ambient Drone Mix----

DIY Mallets, DIY Beaters, Mallet Wrapping, and Mallet Repair

2010-08-19T15:23:00.000-07:00

-This link from Ross Mallets will take you to a pdf showing the above technique in printed form.

-This link shows a collection of homemade percussion mallets, including the super bouncy ball type ones.

-This link takes you to a Surdo Mallet- A Surdo is a Brazilian bass drum.
I have made variations on these (see pic below), and they are quick and easy and can be applied to small keyboard mallets to big gong mallets, and they don't require yarn. This is the Instructables version.

-A DIY Tamborim Beater- A Tamborim is a Brazilian Frame Drum, and these beaters look like brushes that have thicker plastic dowels instead of wire.

-I have also fixed yarn mallets with broken sticks by drilling out the broken stick and then hot gluing a dowel rod into the old sticks place.

Alan Lomax Links

2010-08-19T14:54:00.000-07:00

Alan Lomax- a guy who took mics, went around various countries, and recorded people's folk music. Below are a few links to some bio information, and a little Alan Lomax Television after the jump.
-AB Concerts with lots of links-
-A PDF Bibliography-

Below is an embedded PDF document on Lomax.

Alan Lomax: an introduction from ancienne belgique on Vimeo.

Ad Astra Arkestra- Best Experimental Band in KC 2010

2010-08-18T15:10:00.000-07:00

The Ad Astra Arkestra was voted best Experimental Band in Kansas City by the Pitch in 2010. The photo was found on a flicker page showing us collecting our award and was copyrighted, but I posted it anyway cause I was in it, but I will give props to the camera man "All rights reserved by Mr. Forester"

The upcoming Arkestra show we have-
1) Saturday, Sept 11th - Crossroads Music Fest in KC. We play at midnight at the Brick.
2) Friday, Sept 24th - Jackpot - we open for Thee Oh Sees. w/ Mouthbreathers
3) Friday, October 8 - Bottleneck in Lawrence - w/ Cowboy Indian Bear. all-ages

Owl People Ambient Show at the Replay July 29 2010

2010-08-10T12:56:00.000-07:00

We did an Owl People Ambient/Noise set at the Replay at the end of July. We were the headliners, how messed up is that? We freaked out for 40 minutes with a 5 person ensemble, the 3 usual diviants, and 2 new diviants. We had a koto (which I rigged up a contact mic pick-up for), a guitar rig, a synth rig, a percussion rig, and I had an mixing rig with sound making toys on it. I fixed up my MC-303, and used a prepared mandolin with tons of effects. A redneck John Cage would have been proud.

----or you can download the mp3 by right clicking here----

Mario Caldato Jr, i mean Mario C LINKS

2010-07-20T16:10:00.000-07:00

-Lecture with Mario C- video and transcript-

-1998 Interview with mad Beastie References-

-A pdf of a Mario C TapeOp interview in 2001

I was doing a little research on some lo-fi (see Check your head) mixing techniques, so I read some interviews and such by THE Mario C (likes to keep it clean). This is just list will probably be updated. Note, the Beastie Boys Site has tons of session notes and stories from various albums.

Ambient Show at the Replay in Lawrence KS July 10, 2010

2010-07-15T09:45:00.000-07:00

It seems the Owl People have split the ambient and rock and roll projects into two different groups. This recording was the "ambient" version (for now it is nameless) with a drummer who went ape shit on a kiddy kick drum, a conga, and the floor. It wasn't ambient by my definition, but it was weird, and that is what matters. There were 5 of us, the drummer (aka Kurt), a koto player (aka Yuri), and the usual three deviants making synth noises. It was a fun way to spend a Saturday night.

----mp3 dowload here----

We also a played a show at the Mokan Festival on July 8th that didn't get recorded. It was a quartet that was the same group as above without the drummer. Best
part was that this was a jam band festival, and we kicked the whole thing off by playing a crazy ambient set for an hour. No one was really there accept the band that played after us, the sound guys (who WTF'ed me about 7 times), a lady in a wheel chair, corn fields and trackers. O yeah, and a mad loud PA, mad loud! We all had duck kuzoos, and I had a guy tell me I could play the hell out of a duck. It was absolutely wonderful. Some pics are below that I took while we played.

Field Recording- Fireworks

2010-07-14T14:53:00.000-07:00

I was laying down some drum tracks in my living room floor and the crazy crackheads that live in my apartment started setting off fireworks (a week late). I had my mic up, so I opened a window and got a quick recording. I guess it isn't really field recording if you record in your house . . .

----Sound Sample of Legal Kansas Fireworks-----

Photoshop Tutorial Links

2010-07-13T15:06:00.000-07:00

Most of the time I screw with photoshop, I just fix photos I screwed up, cropping and contrast and such. But after looking around at some of these sites, I now have ideas for photo manipulation that I didn't even think existed.

http://photoshoptutorials.ws/ - this site has tons and tons of various tutorials, ranging from beginner to hard. This tutorial shows a cool long exposure imitation.
The Photoshop Lady- pages of random tutorials that you didn't even think of to do
psd tuts- again, pages of random tutorials that you didn't even think of to do
PSLover- I like this one cause it has category lists-
The Andy Warhol PS rip off technique- I really like this one cause Andy Warhol had Ali, we have Tyson.
This Post I did has mad links to HDR photography and how a simpleton like me can get started in it.
and per "Who is Dis, Dis is Alex's" recommendation, a lens flair tutorial and one with a video.

Amen Break TV

2010-07-13T13:43:00.001-07:00

Cassette Decks I Have and Cassette Links

2010-07-08T07:44:00.000-07:00

-Teac A-303- I bought the TEAC cause it had needle meters.
It kinda works, and looks cool and is in wood.

Pioneer CT-W430- This was a gift for helping some people out

Kenwood KX 41B- This one is in need of a repair, but has a huge volume knob.

Cassette Wisdom and Links
-Use Everclear to clean yo tape heads- tip from the Good Doctor.
-This is a great Sound on Sound Article called "Zen And The Art Of Cassette Deck Maintenance"
-Vintage Cassette dot com- a great vintage tape player archive
-TapeDeck.Org- "analog audio tape cassette nostalgia"
-Stereo 80's- BoomBoxes and Ghetto Blasters acrchive
-Audio Cassette Deck Demagnetizing & Maintenance Methodologies- Fix yo shit

Owl People Show at the Replay 06-26-2010

2010-06-29T15:00:00.000-07:00

We played a show at the replay with a band called Tommy Ferrari from Lawrence. It was a helluva good time. I am posting a couple of pics of my set up and my favorite track from the night, which we call "the reggae jam." I had a stand up drum kit and some
congas and it was fun. I even got all G'd up from the feet up for the show with my ATL fiftynine-fifty and some jeans with mad sag to make the hipster kids think about it for a hot sec.

We played a show the prior Monday at the Taproom with the flyer below. The Tommy Ferrari dudes saw it and asked us to play this show.

New sqrt(ur mother) track feat. fast hands

2010-06-29T14:48:00.000-07:00

I took a drum track from this recording session test, and made a funny little electronic music song. I added lots of effects to the drums, added some of the field recordings from the music department and various other chopped up sounds. I called it "Baby Rabbits Tripping on Morning Glory Seeds" after a handful of strange conversations this weekend.

What to do in the Club TV

2010-06-24T15:47:00.000-07:00

So I found this Brodinski "My Jerk Mix" on a tip from the Stub People and I had no idea what jerkin was, and I felt old. Now I got some new moves to pull on these hipster indie rock kids when I go and see shows. They don't dance no mo, they don't dance no mo, all they do is diss.

Update- Lil Will got me wanderin what a dougie was, so like any cracker who doesn't know what the jive is, I looked it up on Urban Dictionary.

MPC TV

2010-06-18T14:13:00.000-07:00

Someone was asking me about an MPC, how they work, and why they are cool. I showed him the following two youtube videos.

and then I am posting this cliche' DJ Shadow song that he did live. Most of the time, shit become cliche' cause it is fucking dope.

Beatbox Tutorial

2010-06-17T14:56:00.000-07:00

I got lost the other day, and I made this Music Video

2010-06-16T14:07:00.000-07:00

A map wouldn't have helped me find my way either.

Country Studio Drum Test

2010-06-08T08:46:00.000-07:00

I know this guy and he plays drums quite well.

so I had him come out to some friends of mine house that live in the country who have graciously let me set up a recording studio in the living room and dining room area. Nothing major currently, but we do have 8 tracks at one time and a decent room with
lots of music toys in it. It is way fun (and it is our practice space for Owl People too). He has a killer set too, it is keller shells that he refinished, and a 24" bassdrum. The kid hits hard too.

Below are two drum tracks we cut as a test. They are just for fun. I used four mics- an NT1A over head (6’ high), a kick (D112) and snare (57) mic, and a pro 37 6’ in front of the kit, slightly to the ride side. I used my MOTU press for the condensors, and used my SX 202 preamp for the kick and snare (and it fattened both up like the chickens that run around outside this house). The room has very little standings waves, and the tall ceilings are slanted.

----2 minute piece with lots of rim clicks (I got a plans track in process)----
----5 minute piece for re amping project to be discussed later (think parking garages)----

Update- the 2min joint got turned into this-

I Read a Book (it had lots of pictures)

2010-06-07T13:45:00.000-07:00

I went to the local public library for a used book sell and found this crazy book about homemade mountain instruments, like ham-can/cigar box mandolins, gourd banjos, and jaw harps. It is called "Musical Instruments of the Southern Appalachian Mountains" and is by John Rice Irwin. It was neat to see country bred mountain folk (my heritage, so I ain't knockin em) and how they made do with the
supplies they had to make music. Even if it is some three chord bluegrass, this book showed some very original thinking inspired by some heavily impoverished situations.

The guy who wrote it worked at the Museum Of Appalachia. in the 70's and 80's. That site has an in depth virtual exhibit of these homemade and mountain instruments.

Gourd banjo above- COPYRIGHT INFORMATION ~Image courtesy of the Museum-

Owl People Show 5-24-2010 at the Replay in Lawrence KS

2010-06-05T11:23:00.000-07:00

I played a show at the Replay in Lawrence Kansas as a member of the Owl People at the end of may. We did 3 10 min-ish "songs" and included my two cohorts playing synth, loops, and other randomness while I messed with a mixer set up and played some hand drums. It was pretty strange. Below is the full video, and links to the mp3's.

mp3s----part 01----part 02----part 03

Machine in a Void, Exhibit on WW I and the Graphic Arts- Spencer Museum

2010-05-28T12:18:00.000-07:00

The Spencer Museum at KU has a cool exhibit right now called "Machine in a Void" and features propaganda posters, media art, and sketches from during and the decade after WWI. They had some cool photos taken by soldiers on the front lines as well a Kandinsky sketch.. This link from Art Tattler a few examples of the exhibit, including the above french poster.
This link takes you to one of my favorites in the exhibit called "Grenade Thrower." It was a good way to spend a rather closed eyed Thursday evening, and very fucking creepy. The paraphrased quote from one of the comic like pieces they had on display showed a little girl helping a wounded soldier drink water, with other soldiers looking on and they say something like "wait till she gives him the water, then shoot her." Creepy.

Funk U (niversity)

2010-05-24T11:33:00.000-07:00

Bootsy Collins wants to start a funk University, and I think we should attend. P-funk was the first concert I saw.

Owl People- Ambient Show at StimPac III at the Granada

2010-05-19T15:27:00.000-07:00

The Owl People Live at StimPac- 5-15-10 from sqrt(Brian) on Vimeo.

I had done a bunch of tinkering recordings for The Owl People, and given their current ensemble state of a trio, they needed a drummer/ambient-noisy-ologist, so they asked me to join up with them. We played a local music showcase called StimPac at the Granada in Lawrence, Kansas with 12 other bands on May 15th. This was a trio, with the two dudes beside me (Mark and Brett) playing a Micron and a Casio with effects, and a kaos pad and a Casio-esc Yamaha keyboard. They ran that into a mixer of mine which had one effects loop running through some effects pedals and the moonshine fuzz and one effects loop ran into my computer for proper ambient processing. I also used my custom made drumracas with heavy effects on them, some of my field recordings, and my circuit bent Disney toy.

Loud sound systems plus ambient music means guts were rattling. I gave the sound guy one mono signal, so I had control over everything but the over all loudness. The Granada gets real deal acts and have a real deal sound system. This wasn't no 1000 watt 2 15" monitor set up, that place was packed with wattage. I would turn a knob, or put some of the exposed wires from my circuit bent toy in my mouth and I could hear and feel it. I turned the water wobble grain-ish type effect up, and that shit gargled the whole joint. I have never got to play an ambient show through such a dope or loud PA.

----download the mp3 of the Owl People show May 15th 2010 at the Granada-----

Ad Astra Arkestra Percussion Rig

2010-05-10T11:41:00.000-07:00

I am the second auxiliary percussionist with the band the Ad Astra Arkestra. I get to go off on some hand drums, a glock, and a big 24" marching bassdrum. It is fun.
Below are a few photos of the stage and this is an article hype n up the show. And this just in- an archive.org recording of the show!

Drumracas- Custom Made Drum Based Noise Maker Shakers

2010-05-10T11:26:00.000-07:00

This is a drum device I made with two kiddy toms, some bouncy balls, stray snare strands, some skrilla, and some random drum accessories. Think of it as a slightly indeterminate percussion object, in the Cage vein of not being able to control aspects of the performance. A sound sample can be found below. It is a drumraca and has the ability to create interesting layers for effects to build upon (see ambient sketch below, which will be used in a larger piece), as well as pieces written for an ensemble, and a cocktail drum set (in process . . . ).

-----Origianal Drumracas Sound sample-----

-----An ambient sketch done with Drumracas-----