Fluorescent Grey - Improvised Electronic Music pt 1 & 2

[awepittance]

Fluorescent Grey - Improvised Electronic Music
RLR999

Part 1 - 18 tracks
Part 2 - 17 tracks

download zip of Part 1 & 2 (NEW WORKING LINK)

go here for more information about equipment used including pictures


Information About this Recording... During the latter part of June 2007 I decided to experiment with making electronic songs without a computer. I was always intrigued by the idea of simple improvising with an TR808, TB303, and TR909 but not so excited about the sounds they made. I had been collecting drum machines over the years but never really used them beyond recording bits into the computer and mangling the crap out of them, or triggering clips via MIDI whilst sequencing them in Cubase. Using the computer only as a recording device, I would start the recording to force myself to keep moving forward with the beat structure, layers and melody. Starting with an empty 16 step pattern, I would slowly build up a song template but never stop the clock to evaluate it. Once I had made something that I was satisfied with, I would immediately modify or progress the pattern to the next part. I would take comfort in the knowledge that it had been recorded, and this method eliminated any need to save the part on the drum machine itself. After recordings had piled up I would begin to edit them together. Typically around 30 minutes of raw improvised material would be distilled into a 5 minute song, and care was taken to preserve the natural progression of the original jam. The continuity was maintained by sequencing the parts in the same order that they had been played during the free form session. The only overdubbing or post production effects on these recordings occur when a new raw recording fades in at the end of track. Some jam sessions became three or four tracks, whereas others were narrowed down to just one.

Optional Listening Experience....This two week jam session was made entirely at the same tempo of 171 bpm, so the idea struck me to experiment with an auto mash up system to listen to the tracks. Although my scheme required the ability to play two tracks at the same time, I wanted it to be easily accomplished, not a chore that would alienate a casual audience. Most audio players only let you open up one instance of the program at a time, but luckily in Winamp I found a player that allowed for multiple instances to open and run simultaneously. Utilizing Winamps lack of a standard two second gap on shuffle mode allowed for the tracks to play in a seamless and random fashion and always remain on beat. With two Winamps running concurrently on shuffle you will hear over 12,227 mashup combinations. No matter which order they are played in, the rhythm will always be synchronized all of the songs are perfectly loops and precisely timed to progress into one another seamlessly.
(go here for instructions on how to achieve this mashup system)

[modey]

gets my approval. nice work!

[Guest Hanratty]

that's a lot of knobs. you are a lucky man.

[Guest awkward]

say what?

[encey]

I really like the idea for this release! It kind of piggybacks on the Quaristice editing-down method and the Gescom EP track randomization idea, but with a new twist.

 

My computer at work is fucked up w WinAmp so I can't listen the mashup version until I get home, but looking forward to it.

[awesomeperson]

It's a bad sign when you have to explain the concept behind the music.

[YEK]

i don't think i'll do that doubling up winamp thing. if it's good it shouldn't really need that

[awepittance]

i don't think i'll do that doubling up winamp thing. if it's good it shouldn't really need that

 

it doesn't require it, but it was an unexpected fun result from the music i made.

in other words don't judge the album based on the after the fact idea for mashup listening.

this is just one option of how to listen.

[FLA FUR BIS FLE]

nice one, robbie. grabbing

[awepittance]

It's a bad sign when you have to explain the concept behind the music.

 

i didn't realize a live/improvised album would carry over some sort of heavy concept vibe.

haha you probably would find all of my previous lps linear notes 'bad signs' they offer explanations/concepts for many of the tracks.

[YEK]

i don't think it's finished uploading cause i've tried to snag it twice but the file is corrupt

[awepittance]

i don't think it's finished uploading cause i've tried to snag it twice but the file is corrupt

 

fucking A i just heard from another person the same thing. that's so weird because a lot of others somehow got it ok not its corrupt(?)

 

ok hold off people for about 30 more minutes ill put up a new one.

[Guest vodor]

i've tried to download it several different times, and it dies at different places, so i don't think the file itself is the problem. i've gotten as little as 16 megs and as much as 130 megs.

 

i unzipped the 130 meg one and am currently listening double winamp random style. :P

[awepittance]

i've tried to download it several different times, and it dies at different places, so i don't think the file itself is the problem. i've gotten as little as 16 megs and as much as 130 megs.

 

i unzipped the 130 meg one and am currently listening double winamp random style. :P

 

hm this worries me, you think its an issue with the web server possibly?

[Guest rex sole]

I got 107mb the first time around and now I can't get more than 6mb :(

[Guest vodor]

i've tried to download it several different times, and it dies at different places, so i don't think the file itself is the problem. i've gotten as little as 16 megs and as much as 130 megs.

 

i unzipped the 130 meg one and am currently listening double winamp random style. :P

 

hm this worries me, you think its an issue with the web server possibly?

 

yeah, maybe! i thought it might've been my work connection, as it's kinda wonky and dies randomly on downloads from other sources too (although it dies differently: instead of thinking the download's finished when it isn't, it just times out), but if it's happening to other people, i guess it isn't me.

 

and actually, the same thing happened on that dubstep mix you posted awhile ago. i tried a whole bunch of times and it kept "finishing" at different sizes.

[awepittance]

I got 107mb the first time around and now I can't get more than 6mb :(

 

this is quite depressing. I haven't offered files this large off my website before and have come to realize for one reason or another it cannot handle it. Any internet geniuses or web gurus have any suggestions?

 

and actually, the same thing happened on that dubstep mix you posted awhile ago. i tried a whole bunch of times and it kept "finishing" at different sizes.

 

woah!

 

 

edit: ok so looks like my webserver is pretty shitty. Im moving all these big files over to a different one and will update accordingly when the transfers are done.

[FLA FUR BIS FLE]

this is great, though I would suggest setting the hotkeys to something other than letters or puncutation keys that you use regularly, as it seems to start and stop the playing when I type. Otherwise, awesome shit dude.

[awepittance]

this is great, though I would suggest setting the hotkeys to something other than letters or puncutation keys that you use regularly, as it seems to start and stop the playing when I type. Otherwise, awesome shit dude.

 

yeah the J & K choices are poor ones, ill change the webpage instructions.

 

ok 1 minute and 12 seconds after i post this the working zip should be up. if anybody has any problems with this new zip please let me know.

[Guest moo duck]

thanks man. downloaded ok, listening by traditional way. really good flow

[springymajig]

Well...

 

I reckon the mash up concept is a really cool idea, and it works well. To be honest, I don't think the music stands up by itself all that well, but that's mainly cos I don't personally like this sorta music very much (well written, emotional melody/atmosphere is important to me in most cases), but also because I think it's too close to Autechre's live material. I know whenever someone makes music that is similar or influenced heavily by one particular artist, many will defend both artists in question saying there are indeed subtle but important differences. And most times I agree with these kind of statements.

 

But I can't bring myself to think of this as not being an Autechre rip-off, rather than Autechre influenced. Even the method of creation and the mashup thing is not far from what Autechre/Gescom have done in the past.

 

But anyway... I do really appreciate the effort and concept behind this, I think it's great. I tried listening to it straight and didn't get very far. So I thought I'd try the mash up thing and actually listened to it all the way through like that. I think I liked it more that way because, with twice as much stuff happening, it seemed more engaging. And also, like I say, I'm a sucker for a pretty tune, and if I don't get that, I need something else to keep me entertained. In the case of bands like Autechre and Boredoms, I like the dense, chaotic lunacy they create. It's like watching a trippy movie, you're just sitting their thinking "I can't believe how nuts this is". And when I played this album on mashup mode, it gave me that feeling.

 

I think it would have worked better if there was more variation in the tracks. It sounds more like one 40 minute song than an album. There's nothign wrong with that, but I just think it'd be more interesting if it sounded like a crazy album that is always different, rahter than a song that's always different. Also, I can't help but wonder what a more melodic album would be like using this mash up method. I'd like to give it a go but I'm sure I'll never get round to it :P

[awepittance]

But I can't bring myself to think of this as not being an Autechre rip-off, rather than Autechre influenced. Even the method of creation and the mashup thing is not far from what Autechre/Gescom have done in the past.

 

thanks for the criticisms, i would totally agree this was influenced by Ae's live sound, which ive preferred for a long time over their studio work as many here know. IF you are a musician you should try this type of exercise sometime. It is surprising what the results can be, especially what influences might carry over in the process.

but as far as the gescom concept goes, it was not invented by autechre. many people have theorized random playlist albums before. It's a concept i think that goes all the way back and probably before George Anthiel, a 1930s composer. John Cage release musical scores where random events were the means to instruct which part is performed when.

The AE release was the first minidisc release enabling no 2 second gaps and meant to be played on shuffle. I would argue that Autechre did not nearly exploit the potential of the minidisc format enough to validate it on this format. The tracks were not loops and most of them did not have rhythm, containing mostly soundscapes. I love gescom minidisc. It is one of my favorite electronic music releases. I think if anything minidisc showed me the potential and its flaws and gave me an idea to take it's concept further. I would like to in the future make a more refined version of the mashup concept with totally different styles of music. Something specifically composed around the random shuffle where every song is the same length loop and melodically linked.

 

To be honest, I don't think the music stands up by itself all that well, but that's mainly cos I don't personally like this sorta music very much (well written, emotional melody/atmosphere is important to me in most cases),

 

it's hard for anyone i think to create deeply emotional melodies on the fly or in real time (i know some people who can do this but they do not make music and it kills me) . but to ad on my earlier point this mashup idea i think would work beautifully with something that was more deliberately composed instead of improvised. But i am glad the afterthought of a listening idea made the album somewhat entertaining for you

[awepittance]

It sounds more like one 40 minute song than an album. There's nothign wrong with that, but I just think it'd be more interesting if it sounded like a crazy album that is always different, rahter than a song that's always different.

 

yes in some ways it is more like a really long song because part 1 was done between a few sittings at the equipment. In reality it was like an 8 hour long song i edited down to 40 minutes.

[springymajig]

To be honest, I don't think the music stands up by itself all that well, but that's mainly cos I don't personally like this sorta music very much (well written, emotional melody/atmosphere is important to me in most cases),

 

it's hard for anyone i think to create deeply emotional melodies on the fly or in real time (i know some people who can do this but they do not make music and it kills me) . but to ad on my earlier point this mashup idea i think would work beautifully with something that was more deliberately composed instead of improvised. But i am glad the afterthought of a listening idea made the album somewhat entertaining for you

 

Haha yeah sorry I forgot it was all improvised cos I got so caught up in the mashup concept! And yeah this is true... it is very hard making up good tunes on the fly... my noodlings on piano are usually super cheesy :P

[kcinsu]

i wrote a long rant on improvisation, but realized i would be thread hijacking, and that no one cares.

 

so i'll better spend this time by downloading this now.