20th of December Blog Post

20-12-2024

this, but unironically

Just been leveling my stats up the past month. I reorganized the basement multiple times to create the optimal sound setup for listening to music. I've got a Technics SL-BD27U Turntable, Sony BDPS560 Bluray player, AUX Input through 3.5mm jack, TV Input from Optical going into a DAC, all inputs going into a Harman/Kardon HK550 VXI Stereo Console which has a built in preamp and AM/FM Tuner. Feels good having all of the inputs connected and functional and blasting sound from the Mirage 460 speakers. Sounds great when playing Vinyl, my The Dark Side of the Moon SACD, and 24bit/96khz FLAC files. I'm curious to see what difference a 5.1 setup would make but that's a long-term plan. I definitely have the urge to check out some albums on 5.1 Surround, such as the Pink Floyd masters for Animals and The Wall. My whole justification for maxxing out my sound system is to have the best audiophile experience at my pricepoint to experience music fully as inspiration for songwriting. I've spent too many years listening to the poor quality offered by Spotify and YouTube, and I spend too much time listening to music in general for it to be in poor quality.

I also got a Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 USB Audio Interface primarily to record instruments into my laptop, but also as a DAC for my Sennheiser HD569 headphones. It drives the sound great and allows me to play guitar and bass directly into my DAW, as well as mic input through standard XLR Cable. I got the Interface second hand and miraculously, the previous owner did not redeem any of the awesome complementary software packages that are included with the purchase. I got access to Ableton Live 12 Lite, which is a slightly stripped down version of the DAW included exclusively in hardware bundles, and a bunch of VSTs (Virtual Instruments) and amp simulations to mess around with. I also took the opportunity to load up my DAW with the craziest most expensive plugins so I never run into limits when chanelling my creativity, hopefully. Then again, kind Russians have taken the time to upload them to the Internet making installation a breeze.

I've been messing around in Ableton and I find it far more intuitive than Fruity Loops from my past experience. I got to making basic beats from a PDF containing legendary loops and the workflow is nice and snappy. I then got into recreating some Beatles tracks from scratch, starting with drums, then laying down a bass track through instrument input, same for the rhythm and lead guitars. I got it sounding decent before mastering through comping the best takes together and arranging the parts neatly. Oh yeah and fuck that 440hz noise, this is a 432hz household. It just sounds better, no need to look any deeper into it, there's no grand conspiracy to alter human consciousness through vibration.

It feels good just doing things again. For the longest time I've been paralyzed by a fear of outcomes which has made me dull. It is satisfying to create again. My mind works in a strange way where almost all things are hyperlinked and interconnected, allowing me to have a good mental model/simulation machine which often works in overdrive against me to simulate outcomes accurately which freezes me in my tracks. Pushing through that and making things that are quantifiable, even if they're not to my liking makes a huge difference in my self worth and image. The next part is putting myself out there which I plan to do in multiple projects.

As previously mentioned, I've been working on Beatles covers and I believe that I could produce a 10-track album within a reasonable timeframe. I wanted the project name to be 'The Beat-Less' but some freaks already took that name, so 'The Beatwives' it is then. I know, what a horrible thing domestic violence is. Anyways the tracks are curated by yours truly and include some bangers and sleeper hits. I already have the basic track set down for 'Help!' and I'm working on others at the moment, the whole arranging process is quite therapeutic and a lot of fun. Man loves to play God in his little controlled environment to emulate a fraction of the creative power women naturally possess. Man is the destroyer by default, and it takes a lot of energy to channel that into acts of creation. Anyways expect a release from The Beatwives in 2025. The tentative title is "I Buried Paul". If EMI/Capitol/Apple has anything to say, fuck em. I'm tired of pretending copyright law is legitimate when it comes to the arts, and there's a difference between transformativce covers and profiting from stolen material. In any case, I'm going forward with this project in order to harness the experience needed in performing and producing music to eventually produce my own music. I'm getting comfortable with Ableton, I just need to get faster at the workflow to be more efficient. I picked up playing bass on 'Help!' and it was a great time. Laying the drums, then the bass, and guitar is just such a satisfying process that reminds me of the total creative control I possessed while editing videos. Feels good mang.

Finally, here's a 40 minute, LP-length playlist you can easily listen to that includes some of my favorite tracks on repeat this past month. Enjoy

anw HUGE THINGS COMING GAB LEBLANC FANS!