Decembered

That's how it's going to look.

The album is now completed.

Okay, basically the new album is finished, as I have completed the last track earlier today. This all will take some extra tweaking soundwise, but essentially I am done here.

Phew.

Another recent discovery in the area of freeware VST synths and effects is this pretty plugin:



Nostaljia by Greg Schlaepfer, a neat VST FM synth, which sounds pretty much like old time OPL2/OPL3-based soundboards such as AdLib or some of more-or-less early SoundBlaster cards. The sound is especially similar with 'lo fi' mode on, which alters the sound's 'taste' by adding some pesky digital noise. :)

Just as with any other FM synth, this one is great for bright sounding leads, bonging SFX, menacing sweeps etc., but not too hot on soft pads. Anyway, it indeed can add some bright (even overbright) edge to your mix if necessary.

Nostaljia has quite a simplistic interface which is at the same time is good and bad, 'cause all you're left to do is to move sliders to and fro (for hours) trying to find a needed timbre "by groping".

Getting it infested by the handmade full-blown 128 GM timbres set would be a good idea, but extremely time-consuming.

Nostaljia is highly recommended, anyway.

The new album is incoming, possibly will be ready by the end of the next week, unless I find some extra free time to do it earlier.

I used different tools, not the same as before - lots of free VST synths (mostly from Psychic Modulation (http://www.psychicmodulation.com/plugins.html), and Krakli (http://krakli.wordpress.com), along with hardware synths - Korg 01/W FD, Wavestation SR, Yamaha DX7, Roland Juno-D.

Also this entire album to a degree is a demo for working in Reaper, and heavy usage of Rayspace reverb.

Also I overprocessed bass guitar this time more than ever before. Possibly it's just self-deceit, but I feel that using new tools indeed brought some new sounding into all of this, and increased.

Off to bed now. Come back in a week. ;)

And - take a look at the 'Decembered' page @Facebook:

Finished what will probably be the last track for a new Decembered's album. Can't say I feel accomplished anyway, for I failed to achieve what I wanted to do with it - before the thing came to be on its own. Paradox? - None of that: at some point you feel that it sounds properly, no matter if it looks the way you wanted it to be, or not.

Actually I'm tryin' to do some experimenting with spatial effects it is not just about reverb, it's about simulating real space with arbitrary and alternating geometry - which is hard to achieve with a mere stereo... But possible.

With some other track probably I will have to create some small-scale custom map for, say, Doom III or Half-Life 2, but I don't really know if I will have enough time for it... And enough of Intent, yep. Geez, I have to!!

Then - more of a problem is how to record this... OMG)) This is going to be The Challenge.

I don't know what will come out of this new album, anyway. There's little of concept, just a few discrete ideas, hopefully I will be able to get them real.

Hello, if anyone listen here

Last night started working on a new Decembered album. Working title is 'Confined Spaces', a subject to change, though.

Not much there to show (off) yet, and no idea when it is released. Before Dec. 21st, 2012, anyway ;)

And for now - just a selection of my own favourite tunes recorded so far:

1. Das Vaterland
2. The Thaw
3. Vocatus (feat. Serenite)
4. Martian Sunset
5. Reprise: The Endless Infinity I Am Unknown To
6. Der Schattenangriff
7. Innerchill
8. The Moonwind
9. О чём поёт ветер (стихи А. Блока)/What wind sings about (by A. Block)
10. "Только пепел знает..." (стихи И. Бродского)/Ashes only know... (by I. Brodski)