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Synthesizing Stories on Bad Metaphor 11

With some of my online homes I’ve been quite active and with others, not so much. One of the things that is quite enjoyable to do is record audio podcasts with my son John. We started doing the Bad Metaphor podcast (an audio podcast) a few years ago and would sporadically update it. Due to some perfectionism and procrastination the output has grown increasingly infrequent, but John always wants to create more, so we’ve started recording podcasts again in a more casual way to try and get them done and up more often.

The wonderful thing about technology is that it advances and makes things easier and cheaper all the time. So last weekend we sat down on the floor with my MacBook Pro, my Zoom H2, and John’s Nintendo DSi along with a stereo omnidirectional microphone from Giant Squid Audio Lab and we recorded a new episode of Bad Metaphor in Soundtrack Pro. The neat thing is that we were able to do some multitrack recording right to disk with the audio from each of us going to separate tracks and the music going to a stereo track. This means we can adjust the levels after the recording and also means that it is much faster to edit. It’s a setup that works and I’m really glad that we figured it out and I hope that we’ll be doing a lot more soon. So go on over and take a listen to the under 8 minute episode 11 of Bad Metaphor: Synthesizing Stories where John plays some music using his Korg DS-10 emulator.

November 21, 2009 badmetaphor, john, music, nanowrimo, podcast, synthesizer, writing

Sappyfest Year 3

I’m very glad that I have a perfect record so far with Sappyfest and the third year was the best yet for the indie music festival in Sackville, New Brunswick. This year I took fewer photos (but I have a Sappyfest 2008 set) and didn’t blog, but I was able to post short updates as things happened through my Twitter feed. Using my tweets I was able to reconstruct what I saw two weeks ago, since with a lineup of about 60 bands over three days, it’s easy to forget stuff. The rough statistics for me from Sappyfest 2008 are 27 bands, 4 readings, 3 films, and 1 dance performance.
What distinguishes Sappyfest is that it’s a more organic DIY hand-crafted festival. The performers are carefully chosen based on the Sappy Records folks (Julie Doiron, Jon Claytor, and Paul Henderson) having met and admired them. That provides a very friendly and casual atmosphere and at any time the audience is filled with people who will take the stage. The bands aren’t just there to play their songs and leave, but to see the other bands as well. The musicians wait in line like everyone else for food and beer, and there are lots of smiles and laughter all around.
Continue…

August 17, 2008 festival, music, sackville, sappyfest

CC:365

There is a lot of great Creative Commons licensed music out there, but it can be hard to find things that you like. Grant Robertson started a podcast at the beginning of this year called CC:365 where every day for a year he would post a CC-licensed song. I listened from the beginning and wrote a fan letter and then found out that Grant was moving up to Halifax, which is close to me and where I work every day. Things were rolling along quite well, but after 142 days and 143 songs (one was a preview) there was a bit of a break and Grant asked for help with the podcast and I eagerly jumped in and now there are 5 people doing it as a team that rotates the awesome power and responsibility of picking songs. I’m coming up to the end of my first round of picks and I love it. I’ve been able to convince three new people to officially release Creative Commons licensed tracks, so I feel as if I’ve really accomplished something. Now I have about a month to come up with another seven picks, so I’ve got to keep looking.
tags: cc365, music, creativecommons

July 4, 2006 cc365, creativecommons, music

Mermaid Avenue

Ain’t nobody that can sing like me
Way over yonder in the minor key

One of my favourite singer / songwriters is Billy Bragg who is not afraid to combine music and politics together. He’s able to mix the personal and the political in an entertaining way that also enables change. I’d heard a few of his recordings of some Woody Guthrie songs, but I didn’t know the story until I saw the documentary about the recording of Mermaid Avenue, Man in the Sand. The film follows Billy Bragg as he works with Woody Guthrie’s daughter Nora, who gave Bragg access to the huge library of unrecorded Guthrie songs to record some for the first time. Bragg brought the band Wilco to the project to collaborate with and the film about the project hints at some tension between them, but the music transcends that. The documentary is narrated by Nora Guthrie and she tells the story of her father as we see Bragg collaborating with the members of Wilco as well as Natalie Merchant in adding music to the lyrics that Woody wrote. It’s fascinating to watch the process and to see Bragg with Nora as they talk about the man and his music. It’s a great documentary that combines music, history and people together.
My favourite song from the project is She Came Along to Me (with the acoustic version from Live at the Barbican my preferred recording), closely followed by Birds and Ships, featuring Natalie Merchant’s vocals. Overall the recordings are solid but some of them feel a bit overproduced. I also purchased some Billy Bragg bootlegs with Guthrie songs and I prefer the live versions. Maybe the live performances fit in better with Guthrie’s lyrics or it’s just hearing a great performance live, but the different versions are fascinating (as well as Billy’s banter between the songs). With the recordings and the film, I’m realizing what a huge influence Woody Guthrie has had on folk and popular American music.

December 11, 2005 billybragg, dvd, film, mermaidavenue, music, review, woodyguthrie

Transatlanticism

This is the moment that you know
That you told her that you loved her but you don’t.

Gentle, understated and evocative are the lyrics and music of Death Cab for Cutie. I first heard Ben Gibbard’s voice and lyrics through The Postal Service and I just bought (from the iTunes Music Store) Transatlanticism by Death Cab for Cutie. At times I feel as if I’m reading the journal of a slightly-angst-ridden young man (which could have been me at one point). A beautiful mingling of sweetness and pain.
There is no shortage of angst out there, but the magic touch that Gibbard seems to bring is the way that the lyrics meet the music and how his voice shapes those words. It’s very difficult to explain in words and it’s probably the type of thing that you’ll either like or not, but it really works for me. The song Tiny Vessels is one of my instant favourites with a brutal honesty in the lyrics and a simple musical arrangement that builds to something larger and more complex. The album is filled with songs that mix pop-sensibilities with angst into songs that aren’t top 40 singles, but aren’t musically obscure.
With a new album out next month and a touring DVD out in a couple of weeks, Death Cab for Cutie will probably be mentioned here again soon…

July 12, 2005 deathcabforcutie, music, review

Get Behind Me Satan

Get Behind Me Satan The White Stripes are a simple duo that have a knack for catchy, quirky songs that I love. With a bluesy feel and a 70s rock sound I always seem to have the same reaction and the album grows on me. At first I think that it’s ok and usually have an early favourite song that is the catchy single and then I listen a bit more and the other diverse songs start to grow on me. With Get Behind Me Satan, it’s the same. The moods shift from song to song and you never know what to expect other than a lovingly-crafted collection of songs. My favourite quirky song on the album is “Little Ghost” which is the infectious and old-timey story of a man who falls in love with a ghost. Fun and sometimes I even sing along.
The other interesting thing is that it was the first album that I bought from the iTunes Music Store. It was a very simple process and I can see doing it fairly often. With this album I also got the music video for “Blue Orchid” (an energetic romp through an old house directed by Floria Sigismondi) as well as a digital booklet in PDF form. Neat.

July 5, 2005 music, review, whitestripes

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