My music: Rastan (Remix)

Rastan by Father of Syn

I figured I should use this blog to post about the music I make myself, as I seem to be reviewing albums with about the same frequency as I finish tracks, and neither happen as often as I'd like.

So, the track above is one I finished recently; a remix of the main theme from the arcade game Rastan, released by Taito in 1987. I based it on the theme from the Commodore 64 port, by Martin Galway (Which you can hear here), as opposed to the arcade version, and as such there are a few minor differences. I think Galway's version is a little more readable.

I started the remix by transcribing the original track; simply recreating the original melodies using basic synths. Once I had everything down, it was a case of assigning synths to the individual parts. The bassline was as good a place to start as any, and I made something Moog-like, with a bit of release to make it sound less dry. I initially considered using a live loop for the drums, but nothing I tried worked, so I used an old drum machine kit, the 909, instead. Other sounds I used include an ocarina I played and recorded (And subsequently processed to get around the fact that it only has an octave range), a sample of a steel guitar that I processed and reversed, and a fairly straightforward lead synth.

With the basic sounds in place, I set about extending the track from the 50-second length of the original. I looped it once, changing a few things the second time around (an additional line to the ocarina melody, different drums, and a slightly altered synthline at the end), and then ran the entire track through a bit crusher for a breakdown. I took this opportunity to change the time signature, from 4/4 to 7/4, and brought the elements back in. It was interesting to write a long synth solo in an unusual time signature, and I didn't think it was going to work at first. Once I'd added the bassline and chord progression, however, it fell into place.

After 8 bars of this solo, I changed the signature again, this time to 5/4, and wrote another 8-bar solo, this time to be played on the ocarina. Again, the progression of the bassline is what makes it work. This solo is followed by 9 bars in 7/4 again. For all of the solos, the drums are a lot more complex than at the start of the track, and underwent a number of revisions to get them sounding right. My final concern was how to finish the track off. I added an extra beat to the last bar of the 7/4 solo, which leads back into 4/4 quite neatly, and then reprised the initial bridge section. I brought the bit-crusher back into play, and made the entire track crunchy and distorted again.

After this is was just a case of getting the mix right, by adjusting the volume levels of the individual sounds, and putting a compressor on the track. There's a bit more to it than that, of course, but those are the basics.

Clark - Totems Flare

Clark, formerly known as Chris Clark, seems to have become one of the new stalwarts of Warp Records, in a relatively short space of time. Following the breakaway accessibility of 2005's 'Body Riddle', his second album under the new shortened moniker, 'Turning Dragon' took things in a harder, glitchier direction, but enjoyed less success. The 'Growls Garden' EP, released at the start of 2009, hinted that the forthcoming album would mix elements from the previous two, and that is largely what you get.

There's more to it than that, of course. Clark has created an album that is constantly shifting, coming up with new ideas and only dwelling on them for short periods before moving onto something else. The end result is something that's almost progressive in nature, always remaining fresh and interesting. Case in point is 'Luxman Furs', which marks the start of the album's impressive mid-section, three tracks with several common elements to tie them together. It opens with a playful synth that seems to stumble around drunkenly, becoming progressively more distorted, while the drums are kept simple to highlight the melodic work. Shortly past the halfway mark, however, they fall away and the track mutates into something upbeat and frantic, all intermingling synths. This happens again in the next track, 'Totem Crackerjack'; it starts at a relatively sedate 150bpm, and is cranked up to 210bpm at around two minutes in. The initial section frequently swaps out drums and synths, but does so without appearing too obvious. After the tempo increase, initially delicate synths become gradually grungier, culminating in an intense finale. Two short melodic pieces round off the track.

'Future Daniel' opens with one of the grungy synths from the end of 'Totem Crackerjack'. It's as beautifully melodic a track as he has ever produced, with a clean, simple lead synth that sounds like 8-bit game music being recounted by a robot with a slightly broken sound chip and a poor memory. Clark pieces things together expertly, but just as things seem to be getting going, the whole track degenerates into a distorted growling. A delicate reprise follows, before receding into ambiance.

What Clark adds to the mix this time around, which isn't apparent from the middle three tracks, is vocals. Anyone who has heard the 'Growls Garden' EP will know what to expect from its title track, which also makes an appearance here; Clark's voice is heavily processed, matching the dirty synth that the song opens with. Rather than forming the centrepiece of the track in the traditional sense, however, Clark's vocals are more part of the sonic landscape. This is also the case in 'Look Into the Heart', a more straightforward track with drum programming by Wax Stag. Here he is vocoded and synthetic-sounding. Rainbow Voodoo is a more traditional vocal-driven song however, though the lyrics are a little impenetrable. Driving and frenetic, the distorted vocals are carried along by rapid kicks and a dirty, glitchy bassline. At the height of its intensity, the vocals become an incomprehensible white noise; it's almost like having an aneurysm.

In spite of 'Rainbow Voodoo's fevered intensity, however, it is at heart a playful track. The vocals sound like Clark is having a lot of fun, and after a breakdown in the middle the intensity is scaled back and he breaks into a keyboard solo that sounds like something you might hear performed by a gin-soaked musician in a Working Men's Club, circa 1985. He then ends things on a heavy note, with some huge drums. Similarly large drums are present in 'Suns of Temper', but only after a breakdown at the two-minute point. Initially upbeat, the tempo is halved, and the synth work is as slow and deliberate as the kicks. Repeated vocals round the track off, driving the point home. The album's final track, 'Absence', is a melodic guitar piece that reveals that both Clark and Bibio have been learning from each other. Aptly, it sounds like a sunset.

'Totems Flare's strength is its diversity; listen closely and you'll spot elements from all of Clark's back catalogue, an impressive production portfolio in itself, but gathered in one place like this it never ceases to intrigue. From 'Growls Garden's grungy bass, to 'Future Daniel's melodic splendour, to 'Suns of Temper's all-powerful drum programming, Clark grabs you and makes you feel everything.

Bibio - The Apple and the Tooth

2009 has been a busy year for Bibio, also known as Stephen Wilkinson. He started it by releasing an album and an EP on Mush Records, and mid-way through the year moved to Warp to release 'Ambivalence Avenue'. This, his fourth full-length album, was something of a departure from most of his previous work; his distinctive vocals now featured on over half of the tracks, and there was much greater diversity in production styles, taking in elements of hip-hop and dancier electronica, as well as his usual ephemeral folk.

What to expect, then, of 'The Apple and the Tooth', his fourth release of 2009? It is, essentially, a four-track EP coupled with a selection of remixes from the previous album. The new material opens with the title track, a short piece of beat-driven folk with a number of interweaving flute melodies; this soon makes way for Rotten Rudd, a folk rock number which keeps you on your toes with mixed time signatures, and backs things up with more sonic texture than is first apparent. It ends somewhat abruptly, and 'Bones & Skulls' begins with vocals that initially seem to echo 'Abberiw', Wilkinson's first vocal track from 'Hand Cranked'. These are eventually replaced by a vocoder that recalls early electronic music with its naiveté and simplicity. After a short and pretty interlude of piano and guitar, 'Steal the Lamp' bursts in with a slightly brash melody and sporadic drums. The track's true agenda is revealed shortly after its half-way mark, with the appearance of the Amen break wrenching things into Drum & Bass territory. Bibio's usage of the ubiquitous loop makes it sound fuzzy and lo-fi, but the complexity of his programming keeps it interesting.

And that's it for new material; it's a brief but sweet tour through a small part of Bibio's musical landscape as it currently stands. Clark leads the remixes, with a broken and glitchy re-envisioning of 'S'Vive'. It gives the impression of being a dance track, but he layers on enough chopped-up vocals and distant, dischordant singing to make it a little too quirky for the dancefloor. Eventually things degenerate into white noise, and a short reprise leads the way for Wax Stag's remix of 'Sugarette'. As melodic as Clark's remix is noise-driven, Wax Stag layers delicate retro synths on top of each other with a practised flair; the sounds may be familiar to fans of his work, but they're no less relevant here. They complement the original track's mangled vocals well, even following their melody at several points.

Eskmo takes the stage next, with a slow and deliberate remix of Dwrcan which hinges around its central kicks; while there is little rhythmic variation, percussion comes in many forms, dipping in and out, and in spite of its 70bpm tempo, it never feels ponderous. Where the verses are characterised by sporadic percussive elements, the chorus is characterised by a delicate synth, and it's all held together with a grungy bassline. It's a very confident effort from the San Fransisco-based producer. Letherette follows with a remix of 'Lovers' Carvings' that is very much in the style of instrumental hip-hop. He makes a pleasing mess of the vocals, almost turning them into a form of instrumentation, and sets them over the top of a heavy beat and jazzy chords. The Gentleman Losers slow things down with a pretty and somehow typically Scandinavian reworking of Haikuesque. The instrumentation is largely understated, and sits perfectly with the vocals. The guitars, piano and steel guitar are complemented beautifully by a synth melody for the last third, and eventually the song just drifts off.

With his remix of 'All the Flowers', Lone initially appears to have done little with the original track besides add some slightly shambling drums and compress everything so that they side-chain rather jarringly with the guitar and vocals. As the original track was a mere minute long, longevity is gained by reversing the vocals, after which he drops the syncopation on the beat and concentrates on melody. It's only really at this point that the track makes sense, which is kind of a shame. Keaver & Brause's remix of 'Fire Ant' also disappoints; it opens with what should have been a bassline, had it not been filtered so much, and doesn't really fill the low registers with anything except kicks. The remaining synths are a little too sporadic and disparate to hold the track together, and it passes by without much further incident. It's up to Bibio himself to round the album off, then, with a remix of 'The Palm of Your Wave'. It's a beautiful retelling of the original, adding much to what was initially a rather brief journey into the melancholy of parting.

As the sum of its parts, then, the album is exceptional. The new material is accomplished and displays Bibio's willingness to improve himself while retaining his singular sound, and the remixes are, on the whole, expertly crafted and carefully selected to take in a range of styles that seems to mirror Bibio's own musical diversity. Undeniably, he has moved on since his first three albums, and it's hard not to be excited about where he's going.

Hanne Hukkelberg - Little Things

Imagine being a fan of the Norwegian Doom Metal band 'Funeral' circa 2004; former vocalist Hanne Hukkelberg left the group the previous year to work on a solo album. If you enjoyed their 2002 album, 'In Fields of Pestilent Grief', you might have been looking forward to more of her dramatic vocals. What, then, would you have made of 'Little Things', her solo debut? You'd probably have been confused; instead of being epic and dramatic, it's intimate, warm and heartfelt.

After a short introduction in which Hanne scrapes a dish brush against a metal box, the album opens proper with 'Searching', and 'intimate' is a good word to describe it. 'Conspiratorial' is another; it's almost as if she's imparting a great personal secret to you. Instrumentally, the song is quite spare; a theremin, seemingly played in the manner of a steel guitar, a glockenspiel and a mandolin all make an appearance, but never in such a way as to feel too busy. Much like the introduction, the percussion consists largely of objects being scraped against other objects.

This theme of 'kitchen sink' percussion continues throughout the album, with pots and pans, wine glasses, a plastic bottle, bicycle spokes and curiously, eggs all being utilised. The instrumentation continues to offer up surprises, also; 'Little Girl' opens with a slightly discordant melody played on a Casio keyboard, and ends up sounding like a chaotic, disorganised skiffle band. But in a good way. 'Do Not As I Do', arguably the most accessible song on the album, echoes 'Searching's theremin by introducing an actual steel guitar, which serves as an interesting contrast to the track's jazz drums and Hanne's lounge singer vocals. 'True Love's initially disparate backing pulls itself together for a couple of beautifully melodic choruses, before dispersing again.

Hukkelberg's vocal style varies considerably from track to track; in 'Words & A Piece Of Paper' she is quiet and melancholy, humming a haunting chorus for the finale; in 'Ease' she is chipper and upbeat, singing from a male perspective with a certain false bravado; in the beautiful 'Cast Anchor' she manages to sound both warmly nostalgic and quietly yearning. Generally, however, she sounds like a jazz singer whispering into your ear from over your shoulder, and effectively sends a similar shiver down your spine.

On the whole, 'Little Things' is a confident and eclectic début, full of beautiful, heartfelt song-writing and unashamed either of its honesty or of its quirks. If you had been a fan of Norwegian Doom Metal in 2004, perhaps you would have been charmed in spite of your expectations.