mjeb video retrospective #25 - Cheap Hotel
#25 in the MJEb video retrospective! Cheap videoclip? Cheap Hotel!
#25 in the MJEb video retrospective! Cheap videoclip? Cheap Hotel!
On the days where the flight path directs traffic overhead, you feel part of the machine.
Thunder in clear air skies, in cab-ranks of planes snaking in and out of Sydney in long lines of commerce, travel and excitement.
Their absence has brought other birds to my skies, Rosella's to the birdbath outside my window.
The Blue around the distance buildings that little brighter, as if a painting of the world had been cleaned. I'll miss the non-deadly changes this thing has wrought. the slow down.
The month of days at the speed of a sunday christmas morning.
And as New South Wales goes back to work, back to jostling for a car park, back to tailgating in traffic and parking and walking with the diffident air of those who are entitled to their space and yours, I'll miss the civillity of solitude.
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After the poetic bit, a few more gigs on the books are gonna be canned as COVID is still a factor. Yargh.
Also, separately, sending Big Healing vibes to Page.
Also Also: Videoclip thing.
Also Also Also: FFY pending for single release. Hmm. Artwork I guess?
Also Also Also Also: No Downtime this week, Fox is On The Run (heh see what I did..i ...oh nvm)
Also Also Also Also: www.paypal.me/stormcellarband to contribute to us doing what we're doing :)
Our mate Agitator did a cool video mashup. Kind of digging on it.
'Fool For You', the first song from our Clarkesdale recordings is off to mastering. Yay! Took quite a bit of fettling...
This was a writing problem as much as a mixing problem. Recording songs that are brand brand new is pretty normal for us, which is why I always figured that the best versions would be the live ones, after they have taken some road testing.
When Millage had to pull out of the tour this year we had a few days spare and opted to push for recordings. That meant a brief but intense songwriting session in Memphis. Just how we like it.
Thanks to COVID we adjusted the expected production chain and brought the files back here to...wait?
I thought Fool For You had the elements of a banger of a tune, if cut well. It defied my best attempts for the last few months.
Friend of the band Marcus said 'nah, re-record mate.'
Friend of the band "Unnamed Engineer' said 'Where do you get these from?'
Friend of the Band Ben said "hmm...lemme clean these up see what you think"
Even the smartest producer in Sydney that I can think of (but not name cos I dont wanna get scalped) was 'hmm, I like the vocals but...'
Cleaned up and set, the problems were still evident. Hit the marble block the wrong way, it'd shatter. Or in this case, the song would suuuuck.
Marcus tested some keyboard. It sounded promising but apparenly every keyboard player in the greater sydney basin was busy for the last six months during the pandemic! Who knew!
Working with randomness is a thing. Hi Thomson, stay safe over there bro.
T. stepped in and 48 hours after I had asked, sent me some ideas. From there it began to make sense.
Thanks to Ben for setting the foundations straight and to Thomson for his excellent keys. Also apparently my hand claps are considered 'non professional' but Theo's are considered 'a professional sound.'
Thanks also to Friend Of The Band, Mr MM who also had a crack at a version.
Funny thing was, while doing this other version, I tried imagining what he might do :) It's curious how we influence one another.
Working on the videoclip idea next.
paypal.me/stormcellarband if you would like to contribute to make the next stuff and finishing this
After a week off, the last few episodes of downtime kickoff with Episode 12, around 12 hours from now :)