Gavin Dempsey - Far from a stereotype...

I'm writing today about my nephew, Gavin. He has for a long time had an interest in music and singing and it's only recently I've become aware that he was actually writing song lyrics. Apparently he had been waiting to ask me to assist him in producing a number of tracks but he has never been one to abuse familial privileges. No idea why, it's what family is for!

In all seriousness, I was hugely surprised by the lyrics he produced for me. They were honest, sensitive and vulnerable. Not your typical bravado bullshit that you'd expect from a teen. He had a melody too, so I was tasked with helping him realise the vision he had. Every single thing in the recording was his idea, even my little guitar solo dilly dally towards the end was suggested by him. We goofed around a little for the first day and created a skeleton track which we completely tossed on the second day to create a piece from the ground up.

Gavin is clearly influenced by a little bit of everything. From the classic rock and pop sounds of yester year to the latter day sounds of the rap giants and all that falls in between. Initially we were both scratching our heads as my songwriting production experience is pretty much sandwiched in the rock genre and I was expecting to be inundated with requests for an urban, reverb drenched, compressed shit show that is comprised of current sounds. I was prepared to do this if asked, my only rule from the start has always been no autotune. And I could tell that he was nervous about the vocals as Mother Nature herself has decreed his voice make the shaky transition from boy to man.

I was pleasantly surprised by his production choices, which lent me a certain amount of freedom to have a proper go at the song. Not a single decision was made without his agreement and I think we've created a song he can truly be very proud of. We're already looking towards an e.p. such was the fun we had creating "Stereotypical World". The reception has been great, and the song has even been remixed! Not really to my taste, but I'm sure the kids will lap it up.

Expect to hear more music from the man soon. I'm genuinely honoured he thinks I have the chops to do his work justice. But for now, here's his latest work. Enjoy!

Creating "Majik" (The Corona Sessions)

First blog of 2020 and of course, we're all elbow deep in social distancing / isolation. A double edged sword for me as an "essential" worker as shops need to stay open (to prevent riots?) so I have been stuck in a bizarre limbo of work / home / work / home and "Backyard Gothic" is dead in the water on account.

To counteract the boredom, I embarked upon the "Corona Sessions". Creating music is never boring but I do have a very short attention span, so I've had to force myself to concentrate on creating a viable collection of music. It eventually found it's title in "Majik".

Why this title? Because most of these songs were created in a stream of consciousness, particularly the first and third songs which bear the word in their titles. They in many ways wrote themselves, before I realised I was writing them. To anyone who writes books, poetry or music - I'm sure you understand what I mean, but I can't really explain it in words. As the late, great Tom Petty said:

“Music is probably the one real magic I have encountered in my life. There’s not some trick involved with it. It’s pure and it’s real. It moves, it heals, it communicates and does all these incredible things.”


Amen.

The pictures were taken by my very talented better half and I twisted and distorted them into a cover I thought suited the theme of the EP. The subject matter in the songs is almost nihilist in nature, but I assure you, a pinch of salt is never far from the lyrics I write....

It's currently in the processing stage, en route to spotify / google play / itunes etc courtesy of Distrokid. And the track listing is:

1. Majik, Pt.I: The Man In The Ivory Castle 

2. Throne Ruminations (co - produced by Denika McClean)

3. Majik, Pt.II: The End

4. Who Rules Hollywood?

5. (BANG!) Bombs Are Falling

Stylistically, it's a return to the sound on "Heresy". But with the extra six years experience in the production side (I hope!) It's bigger, more mature and sounds more professional. More importantly, I hope people get a kick out of listening to it, as much as I got creating it. 

Thanks for reading..... and listening. 

Backyard Gothic Soundtrack (A Guide)

So, I have released the soundtrack to Backyard Gothic HERE on BANDCAMP.COM.

"Even before the film is completed?" I hear you exclaim. Yes, it generally works for Christopher Nolan / Hans Zimmer and whilst I'm in no way comparing their world conquering exploits to mine - it seems to have renewed the enthusiasm I originally had for the project and sonically has influenced certain camera angles and techniques so it's a win / win. It's a necessity too.

A- It gives a little buzz and has reignited conversation about the film and ...

B - Every penny the soundtrack makes is going straight back into financing the movie.

I have been feverishly composing since August and this is the fruit of my labours. I have no doubt, there will be new pieces as the filming progresses but rest assured, anyone who has already or is planning to buy the soundtrack will receive these free as a bonus for their trouble and a huge dose of my heartfelt gratitude.

As is we have.

1: "Main Titles" - Does exactly what it says on the tin, whilst introducing us to our heroes: Charlie and his best friend, Jellybean. His trusty Cavalier King Charles.

2: "Monsters Are Real" - An ominous cautionary narrative from a grown up Charlie as we journey through a storm hit neighbourhood.

3: "Bad News" - It's rare to hear good news on the telly anymore.

4: "Beast In The Backyard" - What lurks outside in the dead of night?

5: "Silver Bullet or Holy Water" - How do you kill a monster? Ok Google....

6: "Cain Gives Chase" - A race for survival as a shocking discovery is made.

7: "A Mother's Love Vs The Big Bad Wolf" - There's someone at the door...

8: "Charlie To The Rescue" - Charlie and his Uncle Eddie attempt a daring rescue.

9: "A Hero Falls" - Not everyone will survive....

10: "Farewell To A Friend / Prepare for War" - Vengeance in the air.

11: "The Final Confrontation" - The proverbial shit hits the fan.

12: "The End" - Or is it?

Still curious, check out HERE with MASSIVE thanks to Pijus Jasaitis!

Film Scoring Update: "Charlie To The Rescue"

Filming "Backyard Gothic" is a slow and tedious task, between getting people together and working on the right dialogue, but as a labour of love, I'll get there by hook or crook.

I would consider myself a competent composer, who enjoys leitmotifs. Leitmotifs, I suppose are a character theme. As ambient soundtracks take hold - themes hold less weight. It's now more about atmosphere and sound fx. Which I've no qualms with. There are some truly wonderful examples of it out there. But for my little short film, I wanted it to be a throwback to the John Williams, Jerry Goldsmith, Elmer Bernstein sound. You know the 80's / 90's BIG sound with leitmotifs galore?

Now, I am not comparing myself to these guys, I am not anywhere near that level but as a reference, there are none better. I also want to use as little hybrid sound as possible. Keeping the electronic sound from the orchestral. I am employing at points but for a retro sound, they are kept to the bare minimum.

I uploaded a version of "Charlie To The Rescue" a little while back and surprise, surprise.....it was missing something. The entire scene is basically child vs The Big, Bad Wolf and it needed more "Oomph!". I added some trumpet triplets and the ominous bad guy motif at the start, with some marching snares deep, but noticeable, in the mix. It's a piece I'm very proud of. And I can't wait to start editing it into the scene.

BACKYARD GOTHIC

Growing up, most people would have been aware of their local "haunted house" in the neighbourhood.

As a young child in what was then, a very different Jobstown in Tallaght back in the late 80's - early 90's. There was Wolfy's house. It was the house of a man that went mad, turned into a wolf and killed his family. It was said on nights of the full moon, you could hear him scarpering around the rooftops in search of his next victim.

Of course, as a child - the original story was much more convoluted and scary. Mainly due to my older sister's gift for embellishing upon it.

However it was a story that always stayed with me and recently, it resurfaced. My music has been coming to the fore in various places so why not take it to the next level? Why not create a short movie inspired by the above story, that will engage the viewer and I can add my own sonic touch to it? It's not hard to make a film, with a slight bit of know how and understanding of the various techniques, all learned through trial and error over the years - I'm confident. Not overly so. It's a low to no budget movie which will be heavily dependent on quite a bit of charity and goodwill but if I get my passion across (and guilt several family members) it is entirely possible. Full credit to family and friends, they are always game for my mad creative tangents. The star will be my young nephew, Paul. Who's cheeky, a lunatic and most important for the role -  has a big, huge heart. The premise is a well used one, hopefully with a fresh take: "What if your neighbour was a werewolf and, nobody believed you?" I'm feeling a fun Goonies meets Fright Night (the original) vibe

 I have fleshed out the story over the bones of the last year and created a poster along with soundtrack leifmotifs for the various characters. I'm looking forward to filming over the next month or so. Laois is an actual goldmine of beautiful and interesting locations that will be well suited to the story so am genuinely excited about getting this up and running.


HERE'S THE POSTER I CREATED, MAINLY FOR MY AMUSEMENT FEATURING OUR HERO IN A NO NONSENSE POSE,  CREEPILY WATCHED BY THE ANTAGONIST........

TOP TEN Result: The International Horror Hotel Film Festival Scoring Competition.

Celebrating a little victory is important!

1. It makes you feel happy.
2. It gives you motivation to keep going.
3. It builds your confidence.

And boy, is this true! To be specific, I came 9th (yet to be officially revealed) but judging by the number of last years highly commended numbering 20 outside of the top ten, I am gonna celebrate this like I made it to the podium!

I generally suffer from extreme self doubt when it comes to my work (I'm not complaining, I believe it helps me improve  every day) and this was a welcome and timely email to my inbox at a time when I'd been feeling a little jaded as regards to where I am and where I'm progressing - i.e work.

I actually submitted the work last year and immediately doubted the mix after sending it (I was right, I'm never happy) and kept half an eye on proceedings and then slowly..... forgot about it.

I received the email yesterday morning and scared my wife by almost somersaulting out of bed - she forgave me, don't worry. I'll post a link to the video here:Phil McClean - Horror Hotel Scoring 2019. 

Granted the awards presentation and subsequent screening is in Ohio, so unless I can grow money, I'll be celebrating in the Old World with a certificate and a tasty drop of whiskey come Friday when my next day off arrives. Until then I'll be grinding my teeth in retail hell and and cleaning up the loose ends for "The Last Illusion".

Thanks for reading. And more importantly, thanks for listening.

P.S. The above picture was taken by my favourite human, once upon a time in Vegas. In it I'm drinking the most expensive Jameson I ever paid for. It was the last time I felt this rich, albeit more for achievement than cash - but I'll take that anytime!

Cheers.

The Last Illusion (Final Renders & Update)

Am busy mastering the final renders of  "The Last Illusion" and am decidedly pleased with the forthcoming results. My original vision of pseudo ethnic with classical sounds has remained true. And there is metal, crushingly heavy at times but those times are rarer than I originally envisioned but as a result those times are immediate and incredibly effective.

When I started to write this piece (All 13 and a half minutes!) I had a sound in my head almost immediately - Jerry Goldsmith meets Danny Elfman sharing a pint with old school Korn. Not that I'm fit to shine the shoes of those mentioned but the core sound is in that ballpark. I even surprised myself with a cool Jazz trio sound at one point. I call it J(Ass) as I am only a pretender in the Jazz genre.

Next up is a bit of a photo shoot, nothing pro - just a bit of fun to accompany the music's eventual upload into cyberspace. For now, maybe I can pique your interest with the leif motif titles and description. Early reviews have been promising and flattering. I trust it's not just lip service!


1. A THEME FOR HARRY D'AMOUR / MAGIC TRICK (0.00)
2. SECRET MEETING / DEATH FROM ABOVE / INTO THE MOUTH OF MADNESS (2.08)
3. MEETING DOROTHEA / DEAD MAN'S LETTER (3.47)
4. HARRY'S NIGHTMARE (5.31)
5. VALENTIN / SWANN'S BACKSTORY (7.03)
6. ALLEYWAY CHASE / INTO THE MOUTH OF MADNESS II (7.51)
7. BYRON THE POET (9.31)
8. THE BETRAYAL (10.33)
9. D'AMOUR VS HELL (11.06)
10. THE LAST ILLUSION (12.10)

1. Experimental, Gothic, Ethnic.
2. Classical / Electronic Hybrid
3. Gothic / Classical
4. Gothic / Epic / Choral
5. Piano / Ethnic
6. Gothic / Epic / Metal
7. Cool Jazz
8. Classical
9. Gothic / Epic / Metal
10. Classical / Electronic Hybrid

TECH NOIR update

                                                                                                                                       

So am currently hard at work on Tech Noir's final track and to say I'm sorry I started it would be a lie but to say I'm sorry I announced it before finishing it, would be the truth! This e.p. is a world away from "Heresy", which was pretty much an all organic musical affair (guitar, bass, mandolin) bar drum machine and a (now defunct / well retired) Yamaha keyboard.

The focus on this was more on technology driven music without losing the human heart of it. Recent listening forays into synthwave and electropop have been a major influence. Also the subject matter ranges from loss of human connection by technology and fun instrumental asides to pure, insane obsession. With a tasty amount of swearing. I'm such a rebel. Looking to having it finished by the end of March. Anybody with a passing interest can send an email to philmcclean@hotmail.com or find me on Facebook and send me a pm. Thanks for reading and more importantly, thanks for listening,

Phil.

Track Listing (subject to change)

I.   WE ARE AT WAR
II.  GOT NO TIME
III. I'VE MET MORE MONSTERS THAN I HAVE MET HEROES
IV. TECH NOIR: A THEME FOR KEN COLTON
V.   LOVE LETTERS FROM A CRAZED EX
VI. PULL ME APART (GENERATION CYBERBULLY)

Big year, big plans!

So, first of all, happy new year to anyone reading this. It's been a while since I've been on here. A big 2018, gives way to the promise of 2019 and I assure you that behind the scenes, I've been working feverishly as ever.

Having gotten hold of some quality synths, I've been experimenting no end this January, rediscovering my love for Vangelis and Heavy Metal (eclectic, I know) along the way. The first piece, albeit rehashed, of the year has been thrown out there "A Theme For Ken Colton". A tongue in cheek tribute to a colleague and friend of mine. But this is only the tip of the iceberg and I have my fingers in quite a few pies!

Speaking of fingers, I've been blighted by pain in both hands which is quite severe at times, particularly in the cold. I'm not one to self diagnose but it could be a touch of arthritis. It's affected my guitar playing quite a bit but due to the miracle of programming and copy and paste, it's next to unnoticeable. Just a case of looking after myself more as regards to diet etc (fish oils, ugh).

For now, I'm back and more inspired than ever, thanks for reading and more so - thanks for listening.
Take care and a very happy new year,

Phil.

BACK GARDEN GOTHIC E.P.

So after life threw me several curve balls this year, I have decided that it's high time to release another e.p. It's been 4 years since "Heresy". It's not made me famous but as a piece of personal art, it's something I'm proud of, and the satisfaction in revisiting it gives me a buzz every time.

After several false starts, such as "Faith" and "Hades" - I realised I was trying way too hard to reinvent the wheel and songwriting became a chore which led to me producing all instrumentals.

I have had a lot of time to reflect recently. There have been big changes in my life. Between buying a house, family bereavement and growing a little bit older and (hopefully) wiser, I have realised life is a lot more fleeting than we realise. So if I'm gonna promise myself I'll do something, I should keep that promise to myself.

I have selected six songs which, I believe, are up to standard. Each song has been written over the years, a couple have been recorded before, from the mid noughties up until the present. The theme I noticed running through them, is suggested in the name. Neighbours spying on neighbours, children's imaginations running wild, urban legends etc. I can't promise what it will sound like as I don't know myself to be honest. My biggest influence at this current time are Glam Rock, ethnic Romany folk (see "Gypsy" without intending offence) and Yemenite folk music. This doesn't necessarily suggest what it will sound like but I would suggest listeners expect a surprise or 3!

The real work starts on Thursday, my next day off. But the work has already begun and I'm feeling excited about producing songs (of the lyrical persuasion) for the first time in a long time.

Thanks for reading. Watch this space.

RIDE ON

"Ride On" as performed by Christy Moore, takes on a life of it's on when you hear it. It's iconic, hell - it's an anthem. And it is virtually untouchable and to think it could be is pure sacrilege. So the rest of us mere mortals can only tread around a perfect song with our imperfect versions. I recorded my own version over a year ago and being unhappy with it, consigned it to the "vaults" as it were. Said "vaults" being a dusty old hard-drive.

Recently having moved, a lot of old stuff has popped up out of everywhere and upon reviewing the files on my hard-drive, I rediscovered my recording. There was a certain charm to it, my view had softened through time. My broken down voice surprised me coming out of the speaker. It had been that long since I recorded my vocals, I'd forgotten the sound of my own voice. I've always veered between trying to sing and struggling with a singing voice a good few years of chain smoking can produce, but I kind of liked this version.

So yesterday, I sat down with the rough version and added a few strings and an oboe. That was what I'd been missing in the mix. Amazing the clarity of a year can produce when you've thrown something by the wayside. I love this song and I'd never do it a disservice. I only hope someone else will find a place in their ears or heart for my own humble version. This is "Ride On". Thanks for listening.

I employed my trusty Partsocaster "Selena", and a treble boosted Boss CE-5 into a Liverpool pedal (Vox Sim). The strings and woodwinds were samples from Eastwest Hollywood Strings, Woodwinds respectively.

2018 - Plots and plans.

A very happy new year to you all! I've been pretty busy musically. Personally too - and this will take precedent over the next couple of months as plans come to fruition so expect my musical output to be significantly less during this time.

I've signed up for an international trailer scoring competition, which I have completed over the Christmas but the final judging takes place in April, so I must keep the piece to myself before then. Anyone who is curious or willing to take part can find the details at HORRORHOTEL.NET.

I've reviewed the previous competition winners and it does seem pretty competitive and high quality. I'm also happy with my own efforts and quite confident in my ability, as one would need to be. It involves scoring a trailer (provided) which is shorn of the original music.

The trailer is of the film "The City Of The Dead" renamed "Horror Hotel" for American audiences. It features Christopher Lee in a Hammer-esque role typical of his career at the time c.1960.

It provides pure gold in terms of theme and timing and I think I may be on to a good thing with what I have created. Watch this space and thanks for reading.

THE BATMAN

Here we go again, you're saying! Yep, here we go again. This piece has been a long time in the making. Over two years in fact. I produced more imperfect ideas of it but being limited as regards to my instrumental pallet, I was never truly happy with it. 

I originally had a different idea, utilising my nephew's vocals to produce a piece more in line with an early Danny Elfman sound. But over time, his voice started to break and it was obviously no longer possible to use it. I worked on other things in the background but this was a distraction and a half. It was always that piece I couldn't finish. 

So I decided to revisit it and work on it until my ears and fingers bled. It is now practically unrecognisable to the original demo idea scraped together, which I uploaded almost a year ago, having exhausted all avenues to find a replacement for my nephew's voice, which I obviously didn't. You can watch it here.

Between the instruments and the massive learning curve a year gave me, I think the resulting pieces are an interesting study between themselves. Some ideas were kept and embellished upon, others were dumped entirely. Suffice to say, I'm very pleased with "The Batman" and I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I enjoyed making it.

Bechstein Debauchery & An Ode To Danny Elfman

I recently acquired a Bechstein D 280 concert grand piano. Well the sound samples of one anyway! My dream piano, and unfortunately, I don't possess the fortune or solid gold bank account to buy one.

Eastwest QL pianos have a collection of 4 pianos: Steinway, Bosendorfer , Yamaha and Bechstein. A very expensive collection but upon investigation I discovered that I could buy just one of the models, thus saving a fortune and the Bechstein tone won it out for me.

Having a tinkle on the (plastic) ivories today, I tested the dynamic of the touch sensitivity by playing the opening chords to Danny Elfman's "Beetlejuice" and it struck me that I'd never really paid tribute to the man who is by far one of my biggest influences. So I utilised the driving hammered piano style and added trombone, french horn, 3 part choir (men and women in stereo, boys in mono), some deep staccato brass ensemble and some cheeky organ. I finished with celesta, boys choir, some flautando strings and the oboe. I'm very pleased with it and named it "Oiche Shamhna" as it is that time of year!

I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I enjoyed creating it. You can listen to it HERE.

Tesco's Got Talent Relections

Performed with 3 other colleagues at the now annual "Tesco's got Talent" heats. All for charity and a lot of fun, technical issues and biased judging aside. It got me to thinking how interesting it would be to recreate "HERESY" live.

For anyone new here, "HERESY" is a 6 song concept e.p. I created chronicling the torment of a priest trapped in a mysterious desert who is battling demons both mentally and in reality. A quick tap on "Heresy" in labels should take you there. I really enjoyed jamming with the guys, there was a certain chemistry in our ragtag group, though I was not happy with my own performance in parts. Afterwards, feeling hopeful, I enquired about the possibility of producing the songs in a live setting. The guys seemed open to it and I hope that this comes to fruition. It was truly a labour of love and having waited since 2014 to do this, I am cautiously optimistic about it happening.

Below is the video of our performance from the other night. It is the exclusive property of Ginte Cepaitis. He is the singer of the video playing the Tele, and hopefully he won't mind me sharing it!

Tools, Tools And More Tools!

I can't remember ever really explaining the tools behind the music I create but there are no real secrets behind what I do. But knowing how to play music is pretty much standard. You don't need to be a prodigy and the tools certainly help both at work and helping to inspire.

The DAW I use is Reaper. Incredible value with all the modern assets for the modern producer. I can't afford Pro Tools or the like but I have everything I need with Reaper. Pro Tools is a great tool but extortionately overpriced and Reaper has every thing I possibly need.

A great producer only sounds as good as his samples and that's why I have chosen my libraries VERY carefully. High quality samplers and plugins are usually not cheap:

EastWest Quantum Leap Silk (Caters to my love of Indian and Persian sounds)
EastWest Quantum Leap Gypsy (For that ethnic folk sound - think Violin, Accordians, Dulcimer)

These are my go-to samplers. I have a certain "sound" in my head and I always seem to find it in these.
For the big lush Hollywood sound, I employ:

EastWest Hollywood Strings Gold
Eastwest Hollywood Brass Gold
Eastwest Hollywood Orchestral Percussion Gold
Eastwest Hollywood Woodwinds Gold

The realism in these is at all times absolutely breathtaking and can be upgraded over time as a less costly option when purchasing the licences.

For the more interesting "blockbuster" sounds, I use U-he Zebra. A Synth with incredible capabilities and highly adaptable sounds. Hans Zimmer is a big fan and he uses it in virtually all his later scores such as The Dark Knight, Inception, Interstellar and Dunkirk.

Kontakt Instruments I employ are

SoundIron Apocalypse Ensemble (For a huge drum sound)
SoundIron Mercury (A boys Choir)
SoundIron Olympus (Full Adult Choir)
India (Again a lot of fun ethnic sounds)
Soniccouture Glass Works (Weird and wonderful Glass Instruments)
Waves Factory Mercury (Piano)
Kirnu Cream (A fun arpeggiator)

A pretty modest collection but one that is growing slowly but surely!

For The Love Of Woodwinds.

The venerable Woodwind section. I've never really used it in my pieces, but I do love listening to them. Especially when they are used well. Media-wise Ennio Morricone and Jerry Goldsmith do them the most justice. It takes a certain talent and subtlety to bring them to the fore (and well) but being I do love a good brass section, I've overlooked them.

Let's be honest, a loud enough brass instrument on it's own could probably demolish and entire orchestra, and seeing as I don't do "subtle" well, it's been a learning curve both writing and producing a piece which utilises two woodwind instruments as the lead. Namely the Oboe and the Flute.

I've actually employed an older piece (Magpies & Rockstars Pt. I) to create this piece and I've kept it true to the original but I've replaced the guitars with Violas & Violins and the two above instruments. I didn't want to copy it exactly as regards melody and the two Woodwinds both compete and harmonise with each other throughout the piece, but never impeding each other. I hope. I through in a restrained trumpet duo just to add a little "ooomph" in the final third. I hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoyed producing it. Thanks for listening.

Opus Pica Pica: An Insight

This piece of music is split into three sections and it is an aural study of the relationship I have with my better half. The first piece was originally written for a film I was in talks to score. This fell through, not through animosity - more so lack of communication. I hope the film makers in question treat those who choose to work with them in a more respectful way than ignoring them completely as they wont be going too far in the industry based on what I've experienced.... Rant Over.

I was thrilled with this piece of music. I was also afraid it would never see the light of day in context to the above. It was written to convey fear, dissolution but ultimately, hope. I realised it was merely a reflection of everyone's journey and it was only the beginning......

My wife is a fantastic muse - so much personality, so much passion. She fuels almost everything I do, musically. So I took the first peace and rejigged it a little bit. This is the first instrumental track in which I've not used any synth sounds to stay true to a more classical sound.

Part I: Ups & Downs. The story of how the road in life is never straight for us or indeed anyone.

Part II: Silver Linings. This is signalled by a playful bass line and grows into a choir led crescendo with flutes and some unexpected glass armonium.

Part III: When We Soar. Violas and Violins duel in opposing but complementary melodies while accompanied by big drum ensembles in stereo which grow in intensity towards the end whilst the glass armonium returns in a more rhythmic, less chaotic fashion this time.

For the curious "Pica Pica" is the latin for the Eurasian Magpie. "Magpie" is a playful name I call my wife for how easily distracted she is. Like a magpie to a shiny object....

Piano musings: "Mercury"

It appears I've been neglecting my blog quite a bit recently.....

I've been up to my ears in work commitments. Alas, retail  is a cruel mistress. But as always - there is plenty of time for music and I finally got around to securing myself a piano simulator. Which is frankly incredible, as the piano is my favourite means of composing! I wanted the best of the best and I researched all possible software before discovering "Mercury" for Kontakt by Waves Factory. It's a HUGE sample factory based on Freddie Mercury's Fazioli piano which he employed at the turn of the 90's before his untimely death. A huge chunk of his work from "Innuendo" and "Made In Heaven" were either composed or performed on this particular piano, which now resides in "Metropolis Studios", London.

I'm frankly blown away by the sound. It is truly remarkable, but due to such a huge amount of sampling it is quite taxing on the CPU so I don't employ all 5 mic positions at once. Nevertheless it sounds phenomenal and I am looking to using it on some of my pieces very soon. For the curious, here's a demo video:

HADES THEME Part I: Through The Valley Of The Kings

The sands of Cairo carry a massive host in the distance, which moves forward - as though sailing through the parched earth. The shape grows bigger and bigger as it approaches the pyramids. The behemoth object ceases to be a mirage and reveals itself through the wavering heatwaves as a gigantic schooner ship, but she is no ordinary schooner....

The ship carries the stench of death on her. Made of burnt black wood and rusting steel, she almost resembles a boat built around a gigantic rib cage. But even more curious, is the way she makes her way through the sands....

Thousands of men, or what once were men, carry the ship on their shoulders. They carry the rot of a thousand years and more on their bodies. Each one guilty of crimes against humanity so great, they were personally selected for this particular task. Rapists, murderers, the treasonous, the dictators. Each one retrieved from the darkest, vilest corners of history.

On the deck, stands a tall dark figure. With the horns and face of a goat, leering into the distance. The schooner is flanked by two horses on either side, carrying ghostly riders. These are named Pestilence, War, Famine and Death. The sun seems to grow dimmer, casting a deep orange glow over the procession.

Back on the deck, the goat figure swings a whip towards a captive man on the boat, contained by huge chains. He screams in pain and spreads a blood spattered pair of wings. The captive is Gabriel, who struggles to his feet, lifts a giant golden horn and blows. The noise is both deafening and terrifying. As the boat nears the city boundary, her name comes into view. It reads "Hades".

(THE MUSIC IS A WORK IN PROGRESS AND WILL BE UPLOADED THIS WEEKEND. I WILL NOT UPLOAD IT, UNTIL I AM 100 % HAPPY WITH IT. BUT THE SECOND PART OF THE STORY HAS BEGUN AND "HERESY" WILL FINALLY REACH IT'S CONCLUSION.)