creepy Asian-tinged doom metal -- ** updated **

[Shane Sanders]

Here's another track for my HAMMER[SCAPE] project. I know it's rough around the edges with the niceties like fooling with up/down bow strokes on strings and whatnot, but I'm just after compositions right now. There's some weird noise in a few of the cello notes, too. May be in GPO, can't be sure. Will go back and record some things again and hopefully I'll have the money to get Patrick in a good studio to lay down some live drumming. I'll probably do the cookie monster vocals like I did on some previous tracks already written and posted at hammerscape.com.

This will probably be the opening track, and the bit at the end will set up the pattern for a violent chant over increasingly powerful exotic drums.

edit: updated a bit with an ambient bridge, but still not a final track. Still no chants and not enough groove in the exotic drums. And does anyone think the harmonized string part that comes in after the koto and shamisen are introduced is off? My ear is twisted anyway and I don't know enough theory to judge it by that. Does that part sound right to you?

edit 2: Updated the track with many many improvements:

http://www.shanesanders.com/kvrtemp/the_tree.mp3

The album is going to be a concept album about an ancient tree growing next to a graveyard. With its leaves it hears the living; with its roots it hears the dead. I'm toying with the idea of having a central character that as a boy comes to take sap from the tree and it drives him insane. Then the work would sort of be like the character that Voivod used...a wandering consciousness, etc. Still figuring all this out.

[laputa_sync]

The intro is good.
But when the guitars came in they were not abrupt enough, i think it either has to fade in slowly or massive entire mix consuming guitars for a second or two...
rest of the track is great....

[lateralus778]

really liked it; maybe a bit too short though?
Hopefully it has vocals and lyrics - i'd really love to see that concept of yours truly come alive to unsuspecting listeners (because the music DOES fit)
It's also insanely cool to listen to especially if youre playing Okami...

[Shane Sanders]

Thanks for checking it out guys! Yeah, maybe a bit more smack on that first riff would be good.

And yeah, this is gonna be longer, but longer in the sense of a more linear composition. I'm not aiming for traditional structures at all. Just tryin' to make a lot of moods and doomy 'rooms' to visit.

[polyslax]

Wow! Well done Shane, enjoyed that a lot. The guitar is too metal for me but overall I think it's a strong piece and evokes some wonderful moods and story lines.

[Laguna Rising]

Very nice and imaginative kind of music. I like the mix of oriental melodies and sounds with metal.
The concept behind this music is cool !
I'm not sure which 'harmonized string part' you are referring to, but the one in the intro before guitars is OK by my ears.

maybe a bit more smack on that first riff would be good

Yeah, I agree

Cheers

[Shane Sanders]

Updated with many improvements:

http://www.shanesanders.com/kvrtemp/the_tree.mp3