New Media or Something

I think that's what it's called, and it's been vibing me out.

Last week, we sold some mp3s for the first time, ever. It is my belief that we broke even on Adelaide a couple of months ago, without ever having sold mp3s, which is pretty cool (having a decent free studio helps keep the overhead low, for sure). Selling mp3s feels like getting something for nothing in this case. It doesn't quite feel like an honest way to make money to me, yet.

Some dude contacted us about releasing masters for the Rock Band® video game. This is certainly an interesting idea--I've wanted to break into soundtracks for video games since Trent Reznor did the Quake soundtrack. Rock Band® isn't quite what I had in mind, though. Apparently, he's soliciting lots of Denver bands. Dude offered up a classic quote: "Anybody feel like busting out the vox on BLC’s “Stealth”?" Seriously? Not me.

The Beatles Rock Band release, which seems to be coinciding with the re-release of re-mastered albums has me sickened. If I hear "Come Together" one more time in a commercial, I might lose my mind. It's in at least four commercials that I've heard on the radio and TV recently (including, of all things, one that I heard on La Tricolor). I'm curious who makes the royalties on that stuff. BTW--the re-mastered tracks really do sound a lot more clear--you can hear mistakes plain as day.

YouTube has been vibing out the whole band for months because we're not proud of some of the stuff that winds up there. The sound quality sucks, the picture quality sucks, and often there are embarassing moments captured. I found a couple of videos from our July 17th show at The Meadowlark. I'm always concerned about those "no PA support" shows, but this one wasn't as bad as I thought it was. The violin is a little screechy, but everything else seems relatively balanced, as much as one can tell from YouTube live videos. The poster's commentary is hilarious:

Terrific Denver band, never mind not being able to see anything in the video...listen to the music...



Can't see a thing, but still worth listening to...

Ahh...The Mighty Gig Bag

Another list. This is what I've been carrying with me to shows since the last pairing down of equipment (it's about to get paired down, again):

• 1 blue ballpoint pen (for signing the contract at the show, even though I like that done way in advance)
• 1 fine point Sharpie®
• 1 King Size Sharpie®
• 1 digital multi-meter
• black cloth hookup wire
• white cloth hookup wire
• 1 cheap 40-watt soldering iron (bought at Kmart years ago for $2; still my favorite)
  
• rosin-core solder
• .047mfd capacitor
• 2 aligator clips
• nut & lock washer for volume/tone knobs
• extra 9-volt batteries
• slip-loint pliers (large)
• needle-nosed pliers (large)
• Korg CA-30 chromatic tuner
• 3 screwdrivers with interchangeable magnetic bits
• philips screwdriver
• dial caliper
• 2 15-amp fuses
• VELCRO® cable ties
• 3 JJ Electronic ECC83 S vacuum tubes
• 3 6 1/4-amp fuses
• 1 long-shank, needle-nosed pliers
• 1 .050-3/16" hex wrench set
• 1 can DeoxIT® GOLD
• 4 Nite Ize L.E.D. DropLit™ jobbies
• 1 jeweler's screwdriver with interchangeable bits
• 1 Shure Beta 52A microphone
• 1 Tech 21 Sansamp Bass Driver DI
• 1 MXR M-80 bass d.i.+
• 1 1/4" to 1/4" cable coupler (gold-plated?!?)
• 1 big leather guitar strap
• 1 Boss TU-2 tuner
• 1 10' x 1/4" instrument cable (straight plugs)
• 1 18 1/2' x 1/4" instrument cable (straight plugs)
• 1 18 1/2' x 1/4" instrument cable (90°/straight plugs)
• 1 25' x 1/4" instrument cable (90°/straight plugs)
• 1 set D'Addario EXL160 (used, cleaned)
• 2 2' x 1/4" instrument cable (straight plugs)
• 2 6" x 1/4" instrument cable (90° plugs)
• 1 1' x 1/4" instrument cable (90° plugs)

"The Night Before", Again.

We couldn't seem to get it in the right key. After a quick listen, we were golden. Since the show at the Denver Art Museum is a theme deal, we're breaking out a lot of slow ones that we don't play often (we haven't played "The Night Before" since February 29, 2008). I remember hearing BLC do it before I was in the band, and thought that they did a good version of the song. I think Mr. Hazlewood would be pleased with the BLC version. The video version is pretty funny:



Deep cuts is part of our theme.

I Lied.

We actually recorded eight songs last Tuesday. I thought that it was seven, but, as a bass player, I rarely have to count past six, and usually four. So, I can't count to eight--oh well.

I got the rough mix today and it's lacking in several areas (when listened to on my bass-infested computer and car--on the 1970s Sansui, I can EQ the badness away). I have to keep in mind that these are mere demos and far from perfect:

• The songwriting and arrangements really work, though. We did a good job with Ross' songs. I'm so proud of us.
  
• If we can tighten up the bass track's low end and carefully tweak the midrange, we'll be set. I think that if I did a DI track and we used an in-phase room mic for the bass a way off, it'll fix my floppiness, which is the worst part of all of this (still not playing like I need to for a three piece, perhaps). Maybe some crap was done to the bass track unbeknownst to me--Greg did it right with a DI and a room mic on the 8x10" moderately loud with a touch of limiting on the DI (the UA 1176 plug in rocks). Maybe I just need to record with a different setup entirely.
  
• The drums weren't terrible, but again, the low end is really loose. There's virtually no crispness on the cymbals. I'd like to hear more of that. I want the snare to crack a little more, too. The percussion just ain't quite as tight-sounding as I'd like.
  
• The guitar actually sounds much better than I thought it would after listening to the playback. It could use a little bit more presence, but basically, it's cool.
• The vocals actually are great, and that's what I think that the magical one was shooting for. Sometimes, they sit in a weird place, but I think that's because it has a really smiley EQ curve (no mids) on everything else. There's a couple of places that ADT would be cool, or RDT as the case may be.
  

I'm trying to not let this bum me out at all. This isn't for real, after all. This is just for (fuckin') Ronny to figure out if the arrangements will work. I think that we've made impressive progress in two months. Mostly, it's production problems that have shown up, which is the whole point of pre-production, I think. Some of the improvisation is brilliant, though. I love it when things happen.

The new and improved 'Army of Stars' is really the best I've heard since Last Man on the Moon. Somehow, we managed a rock 'n' roll fine, which I didn't think that I had in me.

This new one is great, with a little bass-cut, man.

----------------
Now playing: Ross Etherton and the Chariots of Judah - Goodnight Everybody (5:01)

Más Música.

I'm finally getting back in the swing with two bands. BLC is digging through all of our old recordings, so that we can finally bury all those unfinished ones. It's interesting to hear scraps of songs that already got used in some way. Some of the material is really quite metallic, which is okay, because those Master of Puppets-esque lines are a lot of fun to play (certainly, we thrash much slower, but I get lots more time to play fills, if I choose to, so it's cool). I still love that record.



I'm really digging the 4x10" since I switched out the Chinese drivers. It's a lot more aggressive and doesn't have the muffled tone so much anymore. It still doesn't exactly do that crappy compressed 4x10" sound (probably since Greg modified it into a ported cab). I've been obsessing about some folded horn designs that I found recently found on the internets, though. I don't know wtf is up with doppler distortion in drivers, but I'm reading a lengthy article about it. I might just have to build one once I get through with my other projects. That shouldn't take too long, really, if I just do it. I have a great start and I've learned some tricks at this point that will speed up the process of redoing the four cabinets.

I saw Bad Weather California Friday night, and they were bad ass. I don't know who the dude playing drums is, but he kicked some ass. The whole band was on. They've done some work at the Bluebird since I was there last, and I like the darker walls (the lighting isn't so freak-me-out in the crowd).

I went to the American Relay show last night, and they were great. 3Kings seems to have fortified the PA, maybe. I never pay attention unless I'm in the crowd. The real treat for me was Adam Lee and the Dead Horse Sound Company. They're doing a honky tonk-esque deal. I would've preferred a whole band, but the duo pulled it off. Add a string bass, and they would've been fucking amazing.

Tomorrow night, I'm going to make it to the Bill Callahan show. That guy's music mostly blows my mind. Last time he came through, I had some other obligation or illness.

Thor Harris is one of my favorite drummers. Seriously. I love that tiny rock-stick...most vile tones from that longhorn, though.

The Private Club of the Satan's Helpers debut show is on Friday. It's practically a secret show, which is how I'd like it to go off. I'm actually quite nervous (as one should be for a debut). We'll get through it, but I'm doing my O'Dea visualizations (which are hard to do since I know nothing about the venue). I've been pimping the band around town to people who will talk to me. At least one dude seemed excited about the new project. I'm excited to play in a trio because I actually get to play and filling in the gaps is great fun.

July and August are going to be off the hook busy for me. BLC has another two-month break coming up (that was the big news today). We're going to use it to write/record some shit. We're going to wind up with a full-length release if we're not careful.

Presidential? (show recap, equipment woes, etc.)

I don't see the resemblance, and it's sort of troubling me. I should've had more than one beer, then I wouldn't even care this morning.It was good to finally meet Katherine--having a face to put with a name is pretty wild. She's been really great to us, and I hope that the benefit was successful.

Our set was alright--we ended on a strong note, anyway. People love Girls of St. Maggie's Parish, and it's always cool to get a reaction from the first two notes. We had one near fail on the newest one. I hate that crap--you play beautifully during rehearsal, and just about eat shit on a stage. Oh well...we'll just have to work on that one some more.

The new speakers are a lot brighter than the blown Chinese set. It sounds really great soloed, but with the rest of the band, I miss the dull tone. I ran the gain up a little high, but I need to pull some of the highs out. Now that the 4x10" is mine, I need to figure it out. I'd like to do it up with Duratex, along with the electric grandparents. Once I get that project completed, I've been really interested in some DIY cabinet designs that are out on the Talkbass:



A 1x12" might be really cool. I've been looking at lots of smaller alternatives--I'm so tired of hauling big cabs around town. I'll be needing serious amps for later this summer, though, so I can't get rid of the big guns (both Josh and Greg are looking for extension cabinets). For bar shows, though, a little (light) cab that handles 200 watts is what I'm after, assuming that I'll get some PA support. I totally need to get one of them Radial boxes--I'm starting to prefer DI to FOH (gasp).

Y Mucho Más Para El Cinco De Mayo

I've volunteered to play bass for a quick recording project. Should be pretty painless, but could turn into something very interesting. It's not really too unusual, but sort of 'folkie' (I'll get my ass chewed for saying that), but in a sort of John Fahey sort of way. The songs are translations of Chinese death poetry, and actually really cool. I'm excited. Tonight, I'm practicing this new music.

This really gets me off:

EEK!!

Man...this is horrifying:



I've been watching some Hammond videos since I have to do it on Friday. I can't remember if Greg's has waterfall keys or not. I might not be able to do the glissando that I want to do (maybe I'll just eat some Popeye's first). It'll be an easy part, but hopefully add to the track. I hate the idea of burying my (actually decent for once) bass part that I did on the chorus, but I think that between the two of us, it'll be tasteful.

Greg's is an M-100 or M-102. Spinets got the nod for some classic tunes, which is awesome since BLC has two of 'em. I don't miss fold-back. His definitely has a wicked reverb tank.

This is an M-102. This article got me thinking about the song, again (wow):



This is an M-100, and it sounds totally majestic to me still after all these years. Not my favorite song, though.

Mine is a "rare" M. They only made a few of 'em in 1947 or 1948. It has waterfall keys. What it really needs is a new amp with a line out (has a hinkey field-coil speaker setup) and percussion, like an M-3. Booker T was the coolest M-3 user (check out those Marshalls, though):

Recession Rock, Part II

Thank you to The Norse Audio God for being a third set of ears, and Greg for putting up with my crummy playing.

Tonight, I did my parts. The setup was easy: The Electric Grandmother on a Gamma, with an MK-219 about 10' off the front, and the Beta 52A up close on the center of the cone. The JDI fed some 'mystery' preamp as well as Mesa Número Dos. I tracked in the control room, which is much more comfortable (even with the dog watching). I used The Orange One, although The Green One was at the ready just in case the Fender let me down. Twelve tracks of bass in a single night ain't too shabby, and it sounds nice.

I think that I did some pretty subtle expressive things with timbre and note duration that really fixed a lot of the slop in my parts--we certainly haven't beat these songs into the ground yet, so there was some learning. I'm glad that I've learned to tighten up a part or loosen it as appropriate. I did some intentional re-writes, so it's a little more interesting, but, as usual, I pulled an O'Dea, and didn't play the same part twice and instead did some improvisation in a couple of sections. I'm pleased with my bits.

Some of the sounds so far are amazing, especially the envelope on the kick drum--it's beautiful, in a Body Lovers sort of way (that's the Beta 52, again--a great microphone, really--there's a really subtle hall effect from the room on the low frequencies which is nice in the overheads). The four overheads sound great, and really pulled off some wicked stereo effects without automation. Some of the lyrics are disturbing enough to distract me from playing, but I got through it.

Pretty much, the record will sound something like this (Joe Osborn's playing just plain rules. Not quite, but y'all get the idea (it ain't sunshine pop, but rather sunshine pop-influenced--I love that stuff).

BTW...those headphones are totally awesome. I need to get a pair of those. This got too epic, and I require sleep.

Recession Rock.

I was listening to the playback today while eating mustard potato salad with Andrew, and we decided that this is a really morose record that we're building. Today, we made big progress--next, guitars and vocals and done. It's a damn good thing that we played those shows last week, because everything is completely fresh in our minds. The studio is behaving itself for the time being, but something bad will surely happen at some point.

Sweet Sounds.

With assistance from the Norse Audio God, we started doing up the microphones last night. The drum kit sounds awesome--almost like an old jazz kit, but with some great definition from the close mics. Most of the sound is coming from the room mics, though--and careful measurements mean no phasey stuff. Greg sez that he has a hard time recording bass, but I brainstormed a bunch of ideas for him. We might wind up reamping, but I'm confident that we can coax something out of my rig that'll work.

I really ought to get a smaller cabinet like a 1x10" or something because even a 4x10" is overkill--I don't like the fatigue from headphones and the bass cab. The Norse Audio God turned me onto some cool headphones that he uses for location work that don't fire the sound directly down the ear canal--I need to look into those and picking up a nice DI box.

Into The Briney Deep.

Tonight, we begin tracking at Briney Deep mk. III (or is it up to V?). I'm stoked to be involved from the beginning, while important decisions are made. I'm glad that the voiceover work has enough of a break for us to do this. I've heard some of the SS stuff that's coming out of the room in an expidited manner, and it's the best stuff I've heard from Uncle Chuck.

Last night, I made it down to the Moonspeed show, and I'm glad that I did. It was completely worth the $4. When I saw 'em at the hi-dive, it was too small of a room for them. In a bigger venue, it's a lot less jarring. The sound at the Bluebird usually leaves a lot to be desired, but I really like a lot of the textures that they're building. It seemed to be midrange-infested from where I was standing. Do they even turn on the subs there? One thing that I want to hear from the Moonspeed is quiet, though. I know that the band can literally go to 11, but that has a lot less impact when it's all 8-11. They did it on their closing number (dropped down to maybe a 2 or 3 and crescendo), so I know that they can (and I almost shit my pants). It could've been bad sound engineering or my crummy hearing....I don't know.

I'm really looking forward to their record, which Jeff says should be done by the summer.

How Good It Was...Black Hoes

I thought that was the lyric for a long time. When I admitted that, we all had a good laugh.

I'm relegated to the black hoe for the time being, while I await parts. It worked all right at practice, and we even got some Walk Among Us-esque sounds at one point on 'Blood Trail' (specifically, the 4-bar bit before the chorus on 'Vampira').



Greg's "new" Gibson sounds amazing, and never feeds back (zero resonance on that design, which totally lends itself to amplification). He had some tuning issues, but I think that I need to set intonation, too--it's been a couple of years since I actually used this bass for a band situation, and with the Colorado, instruments require seasonal adjustment.

I decided that I really don't like the mid-range contour on the Quarter-pounder. It's just not as great as a Whopper. Lots of bass and sparkly highs doesn't really suit the #2 Booger well. I'll be happy to get a flatter-sounding pickup back in my life. I found a response graph that was way impressive last week when I ordered parts, and now I can't find it (bummer). The new setup should be as flat as flat can be, which is especially cool considering that the Booger amps are all about sucked-out mids. The tone is described as 'raw' as well as 'woody', so I figure that I can't really go wrong. It's probably the most expensive precision bass pickup out there, but I found a hell of a deal--if it sucks, I can certainly sell it. I need to figure out WTF is up with cloth-covered wire, because I've always done PVC (in the Stratocaster and the black hoe). It actually sounds a lot easier (and no burning plastic). I can't remember how the grounding plate works, so I'll have to research that, or crack open the black hoe (which, as it turns out, is totally a 1962 re-issue...I shouldn't have messed it up with the new pickup and bridge...oh well...).

I really wanted to try out one of these, though. Curtis Novak is in Wimberly, TX, where my Nitwit is from, which is almost worth the extra effort for a fully custom pickup. If the new one works, great, if not, I'll totally be on the phone with Wimberly.

The only thing that I'm conflicted about is fucking with my setup the week before recording. I know that some people take great pleasure in such things, but I like tried and true, even though the bass will get buried amongst the vocals, I'm certain, and totally okay with (I give the best tone that I have, and if it gets drowned to serve the song/record, oh well). There's a backup plan just in case I forgot how to solder or something.

For those who care...the new pickup is all hand-wound (scattered, but not custom), and the resulting bass will be hand-wired. Do I get a gold star? That crap is all about the marketing, really...all that I care about how the rig sounds. I'm tryin' what other players recommend at this point.

Mighty.

Usually I really try to post my music stuff somewhere else. This evening is an exception, though. Tonight, Bad Luck City reinforced that we could mix it up as well as learn. We're working up songs for the record before we have to go into the studio. Only one of 'em is totally done. We play differently since the scoring incident. We got a good review here, though.

Kelly totally threw down with a violin march (or it became a march) that was fuckin' great. I was stoked that we re-worked one that wasn't that exciting live the two times that we've done it. The new version is going to be much better, even if we have to do up a keyboard part.

Actually, that's the real reason that this is a public deal. BLC is looking for a Rhodes piano or a vibraphone, preferably cheap. I think that a Rhodes will serve us best. Now that we have a two Hammonds; something percussive is required. Sure, the Kurzweil can do all of these sounds with ease, but it just seems cheesy to have a synth on our stage.

Certainly, we're going to require a bigger rehearsal space if we add more instruments.

There's A Record Coming Out

Apparently, it's finished. I haven't yet heard it. I trust K completely, though--he wouldn't release crap. Shit...my last record had obvious bass fuck-ups, and I allowed it to be pressed. I played fairly well on this one, though.

It is a little awkward to hear stuff on MySpace (accidentally) for the first time. It sounds like us, though, and that's all that I think most recordings should be--an archive of a band at a time. Other people are into getting all artsy in the studio, and I can appreciate a lot of music that comes about that way. This, however, is us in late summer 2008 at the weather center. It's how it is at practice ('cept that's louder).

You can listen here. Click on that flyer for the details on the upcoming show (although the venue has changed it's name).

Rehearsal Diary (parenthesis added, and shit)

I totally should've created another blog, just for rehearsals, and music stuff, and I might still do that. What a concept! It would be me whining about playing, just like a Denber Bronco or something. I'll also have "tapes" up there. Once I have a little time, I think that I'll just do that, and keep it private. It might become a more regularly posted blog than this one, actually. I'm sure that people don't want to read about the angst of a music hobbyist (which is almost what this has become).

Anyhow, tonight I totally killed. I didn't use the charts, and only attempted to change the key (from Em to Am) on the last song (whoops). Everything sounded a lot better with only two guitars in the room. At times, the two (fuckin') Telecasters are really hard to cope with because I think that the boys damaged their hearing since I left the band, and they can't hear the treble infestation (it's funny to me how K and Suthers actually craft really nice guitar sounds even with horribly damaged ears). What's worse in my sitch is that they're both through Fender amps, in a concrete basement!!!

The New American worked on his (and Heller's, apparently) solos yesterday. He totally fucking killed, too. Frantic Neil-esque solos (actually better than that)!

Andrew always kills. He's a vampire, and that's just what he does.

I think that BLS is feeling better as the show approaches. She has to keep in mind that, although we seem like complete fuck-ups, we can indeed pull some mad shit together for an important show (lord knows we have, many times).

Like Jason said on Sunday, "Dudes, we're totally going to pull this off."

Yeah, dude, we totally are.

Maximum R&B (epic narrative of my weekend)

Since Wednesday, it's been non-stop, my droogs. I'm fucking burnt out, seriously.

Wednesday was the OC photos. I'm not so into getting photographed, but Laurie seems to be pretty cool. I think that I screwed up my neck posing.

Thursday night was Bad Luck City's big bad tour to Fort Collins, where we played with Badman (who are awesome). The 'tape' of the show sounds amazing as far as the band goes. The vocals sounded shitty, though. I had fun.

Friday was a fucking painful day at work. I'm glad that I don't do that shit every day. It was a special occasion.

Friday night was the baddest show in town: Reverend Deadeye (who's learnt hisself some tricks on the road), The Omens, Badman (killer set), and us. The Larimer Lounge has two blown monitors at the moment: stage right and the drum monitor. Uncool.

Saturday was picking up Mesa number two at the shop. Next, I killed some time with LRC (I wanted to buy her lunch but she had other plans). Then, it was off to the BLS band rehearsal. We're going to pull this shit off. Live music needs a little danger to be exciting to play (I think that Steve Harris said something like that once). I went home and got myself drunk (finally).

Sunday was agonizing over rehearsal tapes and then delivering 'em to BLS. Then I went to LRC's where French toast was waiting for me (with a couple pounds of bacon). Killer. We screwed around and went to the rock-stick-mega-haus because I needed another rack case for numero dos. We ate chinese food and watched Clue (I hadn't seen it through--just bits). I passed out and got a nice little nap before going to rehearsal again. We rocked.

I'm fucking tired.

This Is Bad Ass.

Backing Vocals?

My inital reaction was "You're kidding, right?" That is not the case, though. There's apparently a part being worked on. This could be something cool, or something really bad (LRC knows that I don't sing). Hell, maybe this is the impetus that I've needed to sing/play simultaneously--this might get the solo project going. It's another skill, and I welcome the opportunity.

It seems that the BLC is my experimental band, really. They're willing to attempt foolishness, anyway (six alcoholics are bound to come up with some hare-brained shit).

It's True.

Here.

For The Kaptain

I thought that this was good enough to re-type. I hope that the copyright gnomes don't get me.

Larry Crane: Paint by Numbers


When I was a kid my mom worked with ceramics. She had a business, out of our home, where she made incense holders, "pencil pots" and other small, hand-made items that sold pretty well in the late '60s and early '70s. We grew up in Oakland, California, where there was plenty of access to clay, glaze materials and used kilns to buy. When we moved out into the Sierra Nevada foothills in 1970 suddenly it was a lot more difficult to find supplies for making pottery. I remember dad bringing truckloads of clay up from the Bay Area to keep us stocked. But occasionally we would make trips into the local town to pick up materials. I remember being astounded at what I saw in these "Pottery Shops" - row after row of corny slip-poured white ceramic figurines and vases lined the shelves. Then there were small bottles of pre-made glazes in racks, and cheap paintbrushes to apply them with. People would buy the pre-made ceramic item, but some paint, put paint on the damn thing, and then (if they didn't own a kiln, which was likely since they're not cheap) they would return the item to the shop for firing. Having grown up playing with clay, making my own funny creatures, and watching my mom combine ash and chemicals to make unique glaze formulas, I couldn't believe that this was the same art that we knew and loved. I seemed as lame as the paint by numbers kits relatives would give you on your birthday or Christmas.

Once in the mid-'80s I went to buy a bass from a guy that had run an ad selling used gear. I showed up at his apartment to purchase the $50 Hofner copy (it sounded great too, what a deal - then someone puked on it and fell on top, busting it to bits) and he asked me if I was interested in any of the other stuff he had for sale. Before I could scramble the hell out of there he was sitting down with his trusty Ovation guitar, next to this cube thing on a short stand with a multiple switch foot pedal in front of him. As the cheesy analog drum machine plodded along he play a pleasant guitar arpeggio. After a few round the synth strings came in. I was horrified - it sounded so fake and smarmy. He told me he used it to play solo at weddings. Not at mine, I thought.

The difference in home recording from its genesis (Les Paul and his acetates in the '40s, Teac 4-tracks in the early '70s) to now ("unlimited" tracks in a laptop, digital mic and amp simulators, putch correction, outboard plug-ins, etc.) has perhaps led down a dangerous path. I was thubing through a catalog fully of audio-related gear that's now available to consumers. It struck me how much of the equipment available is similar to the " paint by numbers" stuff I saw in the pottery stores back then. How many people are in search of unique sounds? How many get unique sounds by accident? Who learns to mic a drum kit and check the phase while printing to one track? Who really hearns the architecture of their synths to fully explore them?

I can't just blame the manufactureers, for why would a large company make a product if they didn't already see a huge markey for it? They have have sell tens of thousands of any given product to make a profit. We have more powerful tools at many musicians' disposal than anyone can even keep track of. Yet so much music falls miles short of what it could be. Stock sounds from drums loops, synths and amp simulators clutter up many CDs. "Artists" are happy to get a new piece of software of gear and just run with the patches and sounds that are right aat the surface. Even digital multitrack recording has many features that people never take advantage of. And yet everything all sounds the same.

Dont't paint by numbers. Look for ways to make sounds more interesting. Take the wrong route to get a sound. Explore accidents. Plug things into each other that shouldn't be. Learn the classic skills of real records. Treat instruments for new sounds. Read the manuals. If a song is really great it might not need all those loops and fake strings. If you're using electronic instruments throw an acoustic one in, and vice-versa. Be creative.

I just don't want to see anyone painting their ceramic lawn gnomes the same stupid colors anymore.

The Sound Diapers, Mark II

I totally drew a blank on a couple of songs--I had no idea wtf. I think that I just have too much on my mind. We did manage to make Darlin sound like a stones song, though. Thus, it's going into the set instead of another one that we were rocking a little too hard.

Lockdown.

The convention in town means that it was a bitch to get home from the weather-center after recording tonight. Cops were everywhere, and my usual route past the stadium was closed. I told them that this was bullshit, and had to go south to go north. Fuckers.

I did four songs tonight. The bass tones are pretty fuckin' great, in my opinion. They're nice, big, waves, so we'll have the maximum word-length to edit with. I think that the Booger compresses a lot when it's dimed--this must be that special "constant current whatever it's called" that kicks in at 10. The D-180s had that in the power section, too. A little low roll-off, and it'll be great, seriously.

Seriously, kids, we got the closest to my dream OC tone tonight. It's supposed to be like a thick, blurry, pulse-width modulated synth on the lows, with a little string noise, and, loud, with a slightly fizzy overdrive (not like a Sansamp, though). The mids aren't all harsh, either, which is awesome. It's a lot like that sound that I got with the Peavey before Michael Gira dissed my tone (for the record, he was of the opinion that the memorial combo was where it's at; I don't really like that sound), and I traded it to Greg/BLC.

It sounds VERY silly soloed, though. Seriously...

Recording; Rehearsal; Soundtrack

It's a very busy (and thus, boozy) time for me.

This week we finally got in deep with the recordings. The bass rig makes the building make bad sounds, so live recording isn't really an option (again). I must've been much quiter for the RC record. Actually, I know that I was--the Ampeg setup just doesn't hit that hard. So, we're multi-tracking it out. It's a little bit of a drag for me, but I'm not discouraged at all. What we've tracked so far sounds awesome. E is fucking amazing (doing up drums with only a metronome). The guitars sound great, but we ran out of time to finesse the bass into the mix (we're super-close, though). I'm really really really superexcited about making this record.

Saturday was the initial rehearsal of the Sound Diapers (the SD). Actually, it went a lot better than I had anticipated. My somewhat improvised lines worked out just fine. I need to shake my fist at MH for making that one song difficult on the rhythm section (you cunt). It'll be good, and BLS is fucking stoked.

The BLC is writing really soundtrack-y stuff. We need to get both guitarists in a room to make 'em into songs. They're at their best when they can bounce ideas off each other--I'm only somewhat good at writing changes up. Still, we're going to go test Greg's studio for some of the soundtrack stuff.

And I have two (?!!?) looming projects on the horizon to think about. Seriously, I think that two bands is about right, although I'm stoked to play four nights a week. Maybe three bands? LRC hates this shit, though, because I never see her. I can't make any decision until I'm done with this SD deal.

Not So Good With Metaphors (keyed up tonight)

Seriously, though...people make me crazy with "warm" and "muddy" when describing how something sounds. Occasionally, I catch myself using 'em, though--lately, "fizzy" has occurred a few times.

Apparently, the bass track that I cut tonight sounds "like Salisbury steak gravy." WTF?!? It's probably the most descriptive anyone's ever gotten with my tone. I dig it. Thanks, John.

Dude also said that there was a kind of Geezer Butler vibe to it, which I can totally dig. I was 14 or 15 when I shoplifted a $3 bootleg of "We Sold Our Soul For Rock 'n' Roll" the track order was wrong, and the cover was something weird, but I was hooked. When I saw him last year, I thought that he was playing a bass like my black ho, but it looks to be a fuckin' Lakland.

That stuff changed my life.









I totally need to bring "Denver Concrete Vibrator" out of the online gaming realm, and into reality. Like I have time for four bands, right?

Frustrateed, Really

The SNOCAP has some issues.

Apparently, we're selling some downloads (hilarious to me), but getting paid is another story. Apparently, they require a nine-digit routing number for the bank-account-direct-deposit jazz (at least we have a bank account, which is a great start). This is all cool, I suppose, but why is it that when I input our nine-digit routing number for the bank account, they claim that the account routing number must be nine digits?!? I'm too drunk to deal with this shit.

Additional, agonizing, help desk emails are required, I'm certain.

Priceless....

I saw this and HAD to post it. One of the funniest bass player videos, ever:

That would make a great cover for a certain band of mine. There would have to be some rearrangement for dos rock guitars, but it would be a BADASS cover and let Kelly scream. I know that Andrew and I could easily do it. D might have alternate lyrics. It would have to be much slower. I've loved the 'band of demons' bass line (chomatic death) since I was four years old.

Music Therapy

I feel much better tonight after the BLC rehearsal.

It's awesome to be able to close my eyes and get swept away. Unfortunately, this isn't a good plan with BLC--I opened my eyes only to find myself being hazed by guitarists. That gay stuff is okay; they made me smile. Dirty bass-tards, every one of 'em.

We're playing our new one, An Unclean Evening, last, because we're fuckin' geniuses at one in the morning. That means that no one will notice the slop.

The good news is that the deox-it worked on the bass! I need to tear it apart and clean the sweat out of the controls properly, though. Maybe Sunday.

This Is Going To Be Agonizing

Tonight had more boominess a la the weekend writing session. I actually turned down several notches, too. I hate that lately the orange one is sounding something like a TR808, with no changes. It's not like I didn't know that it wasn't sounding good. The strings are totally full of skin and sweat--this is indeed a case of the summertime blues, for which there ain't no cure (so I hear):



Either way, I need to change 'em out asap--BLC requires 'em to be slightly less bright than I like 'em.

Someone is going to make this really difficult, and I'm not going to name names. I almost wish that it was to be a piecemeal, soulless deal so that I didn't have to deal with "my guitar doesn't sound like I have several thousand dollars in pedals."

It's irritating at the moment, and I'm just venting. I think that I'll get a musicman pickup installed...hell, I'll just get a musicman so I get that awesomer modern sound. I suppose that I can turn down more so that there's nothing to whine about--that's a better solution. This isn't a bass-heavy band anyway. If I'm inaudible, I don't even care.

Feel The Groove...(infested)

Indeed, this wrist pain is keeping me awake. I'm contemplating bass lines on the new OC song. What I have is passable, but straight eighth notes are so damn uninspiring. I have a new rhythm for the bridge, if it feels right with the band. I hate changing my parts because I feel like E will think that I'm being flaky (I'm afraid of her, still). Usually, it's an evolution of what I've been feeling (the groove) and not articulating [too analytical (or too white) regarding these things].

Recording....

(bad writting to follow)

Indeed, the OC began some pre-production demos this evening. Feeling out the room and the rig is WTF is going on. We're doing this all live, mind you; with five tracks of room mics. With the OC's practice rig, it actually sounds really decent--it sounds like the Starburst Factory (which is dialed in at this point--I think that The Weather Station is a better name) and a little bit better. That 2x18" is the best gear investment that I've ever made.

Sans vocals make it very hard to play the songs, though, and some confusion occurs. If we could somehow rig up headphone monitors for a "scratch vocal," I'd be funkin' stokeed.

The electric grandmother and the orange one sound much better on "tape" than I think they do live--there's a nice sheen that the microphones pick up. My ears are probably shot. As much as I'd like to modify the electronics in that bass, I think that it's really doing well totally stock. It's been sounding nice lately, and I think that putting a bigger pickup and huge pots and maybe a varitone would be a bad plan. Tonight's big secret was no EQ, which I only noticed after the fact. The passive rotary EQ (it's like an old Showman or Alembic preamp, really--triple ought yields silencio) on the Mesa is best left alone, and the graphic just adds noise. On the Ampeg rig, I'm actually into the graphic EQ (and subtle rock-guy active rotary settings, to do up a good BLC sound) As is, is best, it seems.

The overdriven bass parts sound (huge and awesome) like I'm overpowering the drums (all of us using overdrives and fuzzes and whatnot doesn't help), but I only heard the playback from the adjacent room. We could run a sub-mix out of the drums to bring 'em up to fucking deafening for the jackhammering the wall of sound parts.

I'm eager to hear the "studio magic" versions of the songs we did tonight after some mixing. You can't beat the sound of a band playing together, really. It'll be good.

The ladies down that way were really nice to me. The pedal steel sounds like a sitar effect on this one.
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Now playing: Waylon Jennings - Louisiana Women

Man, This Is Great

I thought that I was done for the evening, but here goes....Say what you will about Kenny Rogers, my friends, but this track (right click Save Link As...) has a weird rhythm section. That's some quite strange drumming to me. Hell, the drumming is cool, but the bass player must be very high.

It's something like reggae (another beat that I don't get, or can't really play). I've been trying to play some interesting parts that are where the horn section should go, but I don't know if it's that obvious. Maybe I require a Maestro Brassmaster (like I need más pedals)?

The newest OC songs have been pushing me creatively more than the old ones. With Erin, my goal is something catchy while maintaining the groove (FEEL THE GROOVE). Andrew is always unpredictable, so I never know WTF he's going to come up with, but playing against him is completely natural to me now.

I'm very lucky because both of my drummers are fucking amazing and I can inter-play as I desire. They keep me sounding like I know what I'm doing.

Shit, I 'member this one (below) from the eclectic South Texas radio station (which I had the shortwave rigged to receive). It's better in stereo. I should've rigged up a pirate station instead of BBSing--that would've been way cooler.
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Now playing: When in Rome - The Promise

Sweet, Dude (Insert Lazerwolf Tie Dye Here)

Tonight, I got to try out my (old) new toy on a couple of numbers. I've been hesitant to change anything with rumored shows rolling along, but after listening to the recording from last week and seeing the video again, I decided that I'm really playing too hard a lot of the time.

The EH linear booster totally makes the electrik grandmother roar with way less effort, and doesn't rob too much low end. The gained out "hurting the preamp" sounds were pretty awesome, and it's transparent--it sounds like the amp on 11, and nothing more. Most of all, the rig is still under control, instead of getting all feedback-city (TM) on me. For the price (I think that mine was on sale for $30), it's something that no one with a tube amp should be without.

Maybe it's a little too much (sounded wicked, but sort of buried the PA) dimed, though. It seems pretty fucking loud, too. I'll have to do a little tweaking with the levels. I really want to get a decibel meter just so I have an idea about my SPL exposure.

Wheeeeeeeee--tinnitus sucks.

Guitars On Auto-Play

A hilarious discovery at practice this evening--hitting a certain note sends the big hollowbody into bizarre droning harmonic feedback. It seems like it would be a huge handicap, but K makes it work.

The dude is unbelievably tolerant of my nonsense. He rocks.

Ah...Practice

Finally...this 'new and improved' schedule is so killing me. I can't get my fix.

We started out with two newer ones (in the dark) that sounded basically amazing to me. We got another new one tonight, and played with the 'heaven' transportive lighting scheme. I totally have damaged too many neurons to remember WTF K was talking about with the invisible burst strobes.

With my current drying-out period (another time), I've decided to work on some lighting stuff and fixing some hinkey instruments.

Instructables has a bunch of cool stuff as far as lighting.

Sort of looks like tubes:



Bad ass; requires fog machine and computer:



Easy to build; I think that I have the required parts here. Delicate to set up, though...unless I build a little jig of some sort:



This is a very lava-like effect, but requires a laser that burns a lighter. I'm not so keen on the dangers of laser radiation:



The video looks good, but I'm not convinced that it sould be used live:



I think that I'm going to focus on making those halogens audio-sensitive with a relay for the time being. That'll be huge, and won't require more switching nonsense on E's part, or S's part.

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Now playing: Prince - Little Red Corvette

I Need My Own Show, or Not

I'd need a 'do-rag.

Lots of playing this last week--Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday practices; a show on Friday.

Practices with the OC are rehearsals for the April 11 show at this point. Nice and easy, for sure. There are a few bugs to be worked out, but everything is all good.

Saturday's BLC practice was more writing, and I think that we finally have something that we all like, and can finesse into a song.

Friday's show was alright, but not fabulous. We've played better, for sure. The crowd was into it, and that's what's really important. Using my crystal ball, I don't think that the BLC will be back to the Meadowlark (at least until they get a worthy PA). I'm not upset, really. It's a good thing that the OC didn't play that Valentine's show there.

I'm a busy guy, suddenly. I'm killing off bass strings really fast.

Funny.

Here.
Josh really isn't a jerk. I've been reduced to a tag on a blog. Oh well...at least the OC got mentioned. Point well taken, Eryc:

Mile High Makeout: Sharpening the Saw

Thu Feb 14, 2008 at 04:54:10 PM

One of the most beautiful things about the Denver music scene is the cross-pollination that occurs among bands. It seems as though every musician worth his or her salt has at least two musical projects going on at any given time. The word “incestuous” gets thrown around a lot, affectionately.

A couple of weeks ago, I was at the Skylark Lounge to catch some singer-songwriters. The Skylark recently engaged Gregory Dolan of Kissing Party to book “Underground Thursday” shows that are a little different from the psychobilly stuff usually associated with the club. It’s an exciting development, but it remains to be seen whether the historic bar’s modest sound system will be able to keep up.

On this particular night, the Skylark’s little stage featured mellifluous singer Tim Pourbaix and charmingly tortured artist Jason Cain. As I drank in Pourbaix’s impassioned performance, I looked around the room and spotted Andrew Solanyk and Eric Mocko, two of Pourbaix’s bandmates from his other project, Killfix. When Cain – whose band, Astrophagus, will be releasing a new album at the end of this month – took the stage for his Janovian set, he was joined by Born in the Flood’s Matt Fox on lap steel.

I was watching Widowers on the hi-dive’s stage a couple nights later and remembered that I’d received MySpace friend requests from frontman Mike Marchant’s solo project and from Women Gathering Gems, the experimental project of Widowers drummer Cory Brown and keyboardist Mark Shusterman. This wasn’t the strongest set I’ve seen Widowers perform, but I still marveled at the ability of its members to spread themselves so thin, yet so effectively.

A week or so later, I found myself chatting with the six members of Bad Luck City and the topic of moonlighting came up again. Bad Luck City’s drummer, Andrew Warner, also plays with Red Cloud West and Jefferson Slaveship, and probably others I don’t even know about. Jeremy Ziehe, the band’s new bassist, once played with Red Cloud and now also plays with Overcasters. The group’s fiery fiddler, Kelly O’Dea, was hard pressed to name all of the projects with which she’s involved: Strangers Die Every Day, Coyote Poets of the Universe, Tarantella, Painted Saints and Juice O’ the Barley. This reminded me of another extremely talented moonlighter, Carrie Beeder, who has played violin and cello with Bela Karoli, the Wheel, Nathan and Stephen (now Hearts of Palm) and probably a bunch more.

When I enthused aloud about the way in which creative energy gets shared, dispersed and amplified by all the collaborations in the Denver music scene, I was taken aback by Josh Perry’s response.

“It kinda pisses me off, actually,” the Bad Luck City guitarist said. When I asked him why that would be, he responded, “I just don’t see how people find time for it all, I guess.”

“Just work a few hours a week and be poor as fuck,” Warner responded matter-of-factly. “What else do you have to do with yourself?”

Of course, the situation isn’t as simple as Warner suggests. I looked across the room at guitarist Greg Kammerer, who has the responsibilities of being a husband and father. I thought about all the musicians I know around town who have families, health problems, ailing parents and a host of other difficulties that answer the drummer’s glib question definitively and harshly.

However facile and reductive Warner’s statement might have been, it also revealed such clarity of purpose and values that I could only smile admiringly. Essentially, it’s a variation on the tired “do what you love” cliché, the other half of which is, “and the money will follow.” It’s obviously bullshit, especially when you’re talking about playing music. For most musicians, a more accurate adage would be, “Do what you love and the money will disappear.” But Warner’s question was so unpremeditated and sincere that it transcended its own corniness. What else do you have to do with yourself? A hell of a lot, right? Feed your family, pay your medical bills, get your meds adjusted, take the dog to the vet, keep a roof over your head, buy diapers, fight that speeding ticket, yell at the neighbors. The list is endless.

And I think that was Warner’s point. Not that we don’t all have a lot to do, but that we have to keep an eye always on why we do those things. When we’re clear about our purpose and priorities, all those pressing matters still exhaust us with demands on our attention and time, but they aren’t quite as loathsome because we understand the big picture. Maybe that’s what keeps Denver’s talented musicians involved in so many diverse and divergent projects. The money certainly doesn’t follow, but maybe if you do what you love, the money doesn’t matter quite so much.

Maybe.

-- Eryc Eyl

Low-Fee Recording

Not in the McDonaldland sense, I'm really really into the raw recordings from Saturday's rehearsal. Sure, it sounds like WWI machine guns at times, and you can't even discern the vocals, but this is more about the experience of making music, and documenting it, rather than fiddle-dee.

Josh has pleased me, really. I'm not so keen on the idea of high-tech-pocket-four-tracking with a little BOX, but it's better than a lot of bootlegs that I rock out to regularly.

Fucking beautiful, really. I heart the BLC for embracing the technology, even if I'm a musical luddite.

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Now playing: Bad Luck City - Pig Killing Song

Weekend Of Rock, Part II

Saturday was the interview of Bad Luck City. I hope that turns out well.

We nailed our rehearsal afterwards. I really love playing stuff that's got the emotional textures down. We need to write some more up-tempo numbers maybe.

The new one (aka 'the pig killing song') is an accelerator, for sure. Playing it is quite fun for me--good to be playing my own lines, instead of improvising based on someone else's.

Andrew and I really clicked, finally. It was automatic. Getting that show off of my chest really loosened me up (I'm sure that the Guinness from the interview helped).

The field recorder at practice is something awesome (love the idea of recording practice start to finish), especially for getting a song into your head when you only have once a week. Email song transfers is great, even if the fidelity is lacking.

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Now playing: Jonathan Richman & The Modern Lovers - Roadrunner

Albini Weirdness, The Expanded Version

I've been trying to find a solution (without the 'ziehe-sitar' shit) for the tuner tone-suck problem. I've been to too many pedal and DIY sites in the last few days, and stumbled upon some real gems on the internets.

The intro on this is just plain weird:



I dig this:



Looks like maybe a Peavey bass? WTF is with them DIY straps? Anyway, this one is tough [relentless drum machine = awesome; doesn't that dude look like Jason Heller--he probably fucked your girlfriend once (or twice, or at least tried to)]:



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Now playing: big black - bad penny (live dutch fm radio 8-87)

CD Database Angst

I have been tasked with giving discs to the 1190 kids. Apparently, there was a change to one of the songs, and some upset about the way shit was showing up on computers. Obviously, the Gracenote and the freeDB entries were totally fuckeed. Now, I'm playing the waiting game after fixing that shit.

I got one rejection email from freeDB:

"Discid collision in category rock"

Huh? Apparently, it can be caused by "a bug in your CD player software," so I resubmitted Adelaide as "Rock" and "Misc." "Misc" is working a lot better (surely they didn't scan the disc and decide that it didn't rock hard enough).

Gracenote is behaving itself at the moment. I'll redo this nonsense once I get a real copy from the pressing plant.

I wanted due diligence before cutting CDRs for those media types.

The Night Before

Since we actually were like grown-ups, and secured the rights to cover this for the CD, I thought that I should at least check it out:

BLC's is a pretty awesome version.

Adelaide.

I got my very own copy of the finished cd on Saturday. The vocals are probably a little louder than I'd have mixed 'em, but they're completely intelligible. Andrew's song is omnipotent with the additional parts. The sparing backing vocals really "evil it up" appropriately. It competes with commercial discs as far as loudness goes; I wouldn't guess that it's a self-recorded deal. It sounds best on a real stereo--the hinkey computer speakers don't cut it.

Nitwit yowls along with the slide guitar on Bones.

Getting My Fix

I get terribly bummed out Tuesday through Friday because I'm having music withdrawal. With the OC on summer sabbatical, I've been despondent for too long. It's amazing that I haven't shotgunned myself in the face.

Tonight was the first time in three (!!) weeks that the OC has convened to rockpractice (tm). We actually sounded really decent (better than some bands at shows). No one had forgotten the songs. It was great to have the kaptain back up on his feet, although he looked quite wobbly at times. His voice is back and mad as hell after being all cooped up for months. I know nothing about singing, but doing so with a cramped diaphragm has to double the effort. It would be like me using a foam mute or something.

However, the drums seemed muted to me, as was K's guitar. I'm convinced that he needs more speakers for better dispersion amongst los bastardos de amplificadores. Mabe the sound is a lot better on the other side of the "stage." I think that we need to turn up the drums.

More adjustments on the menace have improved string to string balance, and I'm starting to get really comfortable with the instrument. Maybe the satin neck is easier than the black ho's gloss one? The black ho definitely has more tightness in the low end (I'll refrain from full-blown innuendo here). On the journey home I decided that I might be able to regain some of that black ass by using the elusive "bass shift" switch on the Booger.

My schedule has eased at work. Thus, I can now do twice a weeks with the OC again. Mondays are still feeling ridiculous, but Wednesday is new and improved with a second driver, even if I though it was a horrible idea. I'm fucking stoked about that. It means no more Wednesday night is "date night," though. Maybe LRC can see the OC sometime, though. I hope that she likes/understands what we're doing. This feels more like "my band" than any of my previous (or the other current) band(s). Once I'm established in the BLC (work on the 15 new songs), I'm sure that I'll feel more ownership there.

After listening to us tonight, I'm completely convinced that we need to record a 7" (at least) for release soon. I'll bet that we could get it done pro bono, or at least low fee, from our friends. If I hadn't donated the eight track to the "i have no ideas" kids, I'd totally do it, although I'd have to purchase microphones (mine have all been stolen, except for that Shure 55sw, which I'm going to fix and gift to someone soon). Even if we just did a live thing, it would be pretty fucking good. K managed to get a couple of great musicians to play with us. This band needs to get into a studio and spread our weedy vibe soon.

Lost And Found and lost again

Been a lot foggy lately, my friends. Running red lights...stopping at green ones..."losing" important documents. Essentially, I feel high, however, that is not the case. It's like someone is putting depakote in the water supply (supposed to be on 1,500 mg a day). Really miserable. I believe that this numb feeling is a stress-related deal. I've got the "I'm stressed out" rash, again (third time since I was 17). I seem to be dealing fairly well this time.

I probably require a vacation and some weed.

This weekend was restorative, though. My pets are feeling lonely, for sure, but those little assholes have been getting on my nerves. I'm feeling better about the girl after moving in for a few days. We made it out to a show (saw a lot of pals). I had "lost" my driver license. The fucking patriot act means that I can't make a deposit at the bank without one (fuckers). The state of Colorado doesn't accept my birth certificate as valid (although I was born in a U.S. military hospital in country). It's a two-day hassle to get another license. Fuckers.

Practice with BLC was instrumentalists and missing a bass player (put me on the spot without a net). I'm still feeling things out, for sure. My "menacing" tone might not work for this band. I'll try something different for the next practice. If I get the dynamics right, I think that it's doable, though. That's a reasonable goal, right? It's proving to be difficult to adjust to a much quieter band (on 2, the practice rig is far too much--The OC goes to 11). I think that they would've said something if I had been really obscene. They're used to a subliminal bass player, which isn't what I've been doing lately. Andrew did clue me into a decrescendo that I totally did wrong. Thanks, dude--I got it now. It's all going to work out with a little practice. One month until the debut of the unfuckwithable new lineup. Fingers crossed.

I found the MIA license in a truck that I drove a week ago today. Excellent.

Later, I got a bad phone call with another cancer scare. Why is it that everyone I really care about is having these fucking issues?!? Meanwhile, back in my crotch, the "lymphoma" seems to have cured itself sans medical intervention. Whoot.

I'm probably dying. Whoot.

Bass Epiphany

Not those high fiddle-dee enclosures. I have workable lines for the two "hard ones." They're not so bad. The Girls of St. Magdalene's Parish works out like a satanic Motown deal, building up to the coda section. The demon hunting one has some percussive pops (not quite on the down beat) that were totally eating me alive--so not part of my vocabulary. They're very cool, so I worked it out. It's a busy little line.

Now I only have to sweat out learning the piano for the "weird one."