20) Visual imagery
As the recording process comes to an end, with very little left to track, and a mixing session beginning Monday 26th October, much of my attention has been on the supporting tasks of an album release, such as cover art, photos, and label coordination. Here is an...
19) Exotic instruments
Tracking one of the more exotic instruments that features on the new album - a tongue drum made by Burning27.
18) Hurdy gurdy
I'm pleased to announce that the forthcoming album will feature the iconic medieval hurdy gurdy instrument, courtesy of Steve Tyler - one of Britain's most revered exponents of the instrument. Steve regularly tours and performs these archaic sounds, keeping the sounds...
17) Violin
Violin parts for a song on the upcoming Wolcensmen album have been beautifully performed by Rebecca Raby with the engineering assistance of her husband JR, whose other passions include the relatively new but exceptionally good heathen music project Skyhenge. Look it...
16) Organising production
The military operation of album production is about to begin. Due to the variety of instruments that will feature across the album, it's usually prudent for me to be quite this organised. Here's an example track sheet for one of the songs. Last minute decisions will...
15) Fear and trepidation
In some ways, this is the first Wolcensmen project that I have approached with trepidation and nervousness, and believe me that makes it significantly harder. Writing and recording a (good) album is a mammoth task. Some musicians make it look easy, and those tend to...
14) Live distractions, lyrical meaning and guest announcement
I had to take a little break from the album project to prepare for a small tour of Finland, which took place from 3-5 July. On one hand, live performances serve as distractions, but they also remind you that the music you compose means a lot to people, and that it has...
13) Compositions complete, studio time booked
It's been over 2 months since the last update, but a lot has been happening behind the scenes. It's looking like the album will consist of 7-8 songs with an average length of about 6 minutes. I personally prefer albums with a playing time of 40-45 minutes. Previous...
12) March update
Those of you following this journal might sense that progress is slow. It is. Some bands/musicians can write an album in a couple of weeks, but that's not how I roll. It doesn't suit my family and work life, and I need to let ideas and songs 'hang' for some time to...
11) Inspired by new sounds
I'm no pianist, but I am finding my new analogue synth to be unexpectedly inspiring, in a way that the VST soft-synths I've always used previously were not. It's a joy to find new sounds which immediately carry you away to some new dimension, and for those sounds to...