New ambient track

[MariaMx]

So I love making music and I've been especially inspired lately. More specifically, as I've mentioned before, the news of Laura Jane Grace of Against me! made a huge impression on me, so a few weeks back I fired up yee old studio and wrote this piece of music while thinking back to the time of my transition. I've spent a good 30 hours this weekend recording, producing and mixing the track and I thought I might share the first draft of the mix here on the forum

[Sephirah]

Wow. You are very talented. I love it!

[MariaMx]

Thank you. I'm glad you liked it 

I'm actually very pleased with how this one came out, especially considering it's not in the style I usually make. Now I just need to let it rest for a few days before I iron out the last of the kinks and send it off for mastering.

I have a few more that I'm working on. I'll probably post those too once completed

[Violet Bloom]

Beautiful!  I was going to say the same thing about Jean Michel Jarre.  Perhaps it's that one particular synth.  Makes me wish I'd gotten serious about electronic music making long ago.  I've got enough gear lying around.

The first quarter sounded like it was threatening to break into a psy-trance track.  Ever done anything like that?

[Constance]

Sounds like a Moog in there. Very cool.

[MariaMx]

Beautiful!  I was going to say the same thing about Jean Michel Jarre.  Perhaps it's that one particular synth.  Makes me wish I'd gotten serious about electronic music making long ago.  I've got enough gear lying around.

Thank you! Mybe you should get into it again. I absolutely doing it. It has been my true passion for many years and I'm finally starting to make a little money from it doing mixing and producing for other people. Just recently I made an intro and outro track for a metal bands new album, I mastered a tribute album (on which I also produced one of the tracks) and produced and mixed an EP with xmas songs for a singer. Making and working with music is great!!

The first quarter sounded like it was threatening to break into a psy-trance track.  Ever done anything like that?

It's funny you should ask that. The answer is yes. Infact, I have made so mych psy-trance that I tend to default to that genre unless I have a clear idea of what I want to make when I fire up the studio. Right at the end of the 90ies, a few years before my transition, I was heavily into that scene and even did a few live performances at the underground parties at the time. I'm not so much into that genre anymore because that was a very dark, painful and self-destructive period of my life. I was filled with a lot of anger and frustration at the time dealing with my condition and it came out in the form of some very aggressive and at times rather distasteful and vulgar music. Psy-trance often bring back a lot of bad memories of that time so I tend to shy away from it. That said, I often drawing inspiration from from it and use it in music I make these days which probably explains why the start of this track has that vibe. Actually I'm currently working of a wicked cold war themed track that is in fact very close to being psy-trance. I will post it when finished some time this summer

[MariaMx]

Sounds like a Moog in there. Very cool.

I wish I had a moog. I'm guessing you are referring to the lead synth that can be heard at about 0:50 and at the end. For convenience I mostly use soft synths but this sound I did with a hardware keyboard recorded through the Fractal Audio Axe-fx processing unit. The blue keyboard (Yamaha An1x) that can be seen in the middle in this panorama of my mess but awesome studio

[Violet Bloom]

I'm sorry to hear you can't disassociate bad memories from the music.  For me electronic music, and particularly Trance, have been like medicine and emotional release therapy.  (Listening to the Trance Around The World radio program as I type this )  The anonymity of raves is how I learned to let go of my paralysing self-consciousness and just dance like crazy and be my expressive fun self, all completely drug-free.  Psy-trance is really one of my favourite genres and I thankfully do have some good memories of a few events.  I haven't been able to meet a lot of people who appreciate it or the other similar types I like.  I'm pleased that we have two rather un-common things in common   Seriously - how likely was it that I would detect a TG Psy-trancer after just joining this forum?!?  Crazy!

[Violet Bloom]

I forgot to add that I'm an eager audience for any of your electronic productions past, present or future.  Perhaps you will motivate and inspire me too.

[MariaMx]

I'm sorry to hear you can't disassociate bad memories from the music.  For me electronic music, and particularly Trance, have been like medicine and emotional release therapy.  (Listening to the Trance Around The World radio program as I type this )  The anonymity of raves is how I learned to let go of my paralysing self-consciousness and just dance like crazy and be my expressive fun self, all completely drug-free.  Psy-trance is really one of my favourite genres and I thankfully do have some good memories of a few events.  I haven't been able to meet a lot of people who appreciate it or the other similar types I like.  I'm pleased that we have two rather un-common things in common   Seriously - how likely was it that I would detect a TG Psy-trancer after just joining this forum?!?  Crazy!

Yes indeed, chances must be slim psy-trance being a fringe genre. Most people go "psy-what?" when I mention it 

I still have a soft spot for the genre having been so deep into it. Mostly I had a deep fascination for those pulsating mechanized bass lines, so I often find myself twiddling knobs and playing around with stuff like that when I have nothing better to do, but I have a hard time going beyond that these days. I like OTT and Simon Posford though. I find their music to be quiet inspirational 

It's not so much the music it self I have a problem with. Beyond my own issues at the time it was all the other stuff that went with that scene that left me with a foul taste in my mouth. It was a very much so underground thing were everyone involved eventually knew each other and it was totally messed up. Some people were okay but most were self centered deadbeats hippie types with rapidly maturing drug and alcohol addictions. People sleeping with each other left and right, stds passed from one person to the next. I was never at the center of it so I pretty much cut all ties when I left. I still have a friend that keep tabs on the scene and he recently told me that it is still going on and some of the people from the old days are still going strong. Some are dead and some I occasionally see walking around like zombies by the train station downtown looking to score. Just for the heck of it my husband and I went to check out this one outdoor party in the forrest about 6 years ago and the first thing to meet us was a screaming and sobbing girl on the ground and her bf frantically asking if anyone was a psychologist and/or if anyone had any valium to spare. Then the police helicopter with the searchlight showed up, we left and I've stayed as far away from these people as I could ever since.

[MariaMx]

I forgot to add that I'm an eager audience for any of your electronic productions past, present or future.  Perhaps you will motivate and inspire me too.

Okay, maybe I can dig something up My gear and skills of the old days were quiet rudimentary compared to today, but there were certainly some interesting stuff. I will definitely share any new stuff as it gets finished, and it would certainly be cool to get to motivate and inspire someone into music making

[Violet Bloom]

I certainly understand what you mean by "the scene" and "the people", especially where it concerns smaller underground circles.  Overall I've been very selective and fortunate with the events I've attended.  Perhaps it depends a lot on the city/venue and the organizers.  I've also gone purely for the music and usually alone and just unplug from my daily life via losing myself in the experience.

[MariaMx]

I certainly understand what you mean by "the scene" and "the people", especially where it concerns smaller underground circles.  Overall I've been very selective and fortunate with the events I've attended.  Perhaps it depends a lot on the city/venue and the organizers.  I've also gone purely for the music and usually alone and just unplug from my daily life via losing myself in the experience.

That sounds a lot better and certainly a lot healtier for both the mind and the body. I'm glad to hear you enjoy it

Btw, I sent you a PM

[Constance]

I wish I had a moog. I'm guessing you are referring to the lead synth that can be heard at about 0:50 and at the end. For convenience I mostly use soft synths but this sound I did with a hardware keyboard recorded through the Fractal Audio Axe-fx processing unit. The blue keyboard (Yamaha An1x) that can be seen in the middle in this panorama of my mess but awesome studio

Studio_panorama

Not long ago, I became enamored of the Roland SH-201, a digital analog-modeling synth. It would give Moog-like functionality but at a fraction of the cost. Sadly, I didn't have the cash to get one and now they're discontinued. Oh, well, there are other analog-modelling synth's out there.

[MariaMx]

Not long ago, I became enamored of the Roland SH-201, a digital analog-modeling synth. It would give Moog-like functionality but at a fraction of the cost. Sadly, I didn't have the cash to get one and now they're discontinued. Oh, well, there are other analog-modelling synth's out there.

The Roland SH-201 is a great little keyboard. It's basically a repackaging of the JP-8000. I have the JP-8080 which is the keyboard less version and it is great. Love all the sliders, buttons and knobs.