KVR Audio

seismic1 · Post by **seismic1** » Tue Apr 26, 2016 2:59 am

The Ambient Online Compilation: Volume 6 has just been released. Here is my contribution to the album. I put this together quite quickly (not really surprising, given the minimal nature of the piece), although it felt like the music was assembling itself, beyond my control. The only difference between this and the album version is in the mastering. The track itself is a belated response to a major "lifestyle" event a few years ago.

https://soundcloud.com/whatsisname/ventilator

The full album may be found here:-

https://ambientonline.bandcamp.com/albu ... n-volume-6

At $9.99 this represents excellent value, featuring 114 tracks, provided by the members of AmbientOnline, and clocking in at over 18 hours!

Machines and Modifiers

recorded/mixed and pre-mastered in EnergyXT2.7 - Mastered in T-Racks 3

Wollo FMERA2
IK Sampletank2
Nugen Stereoizer3
Eventide BlackHole
T-Racks EQ PG
U-He Satin
T-Racks Linear Phase EQ
T-Racks Vintage Equalizer EQP-1A

DR - 10

EDIT: 20230124 I remixed Ventilator in June 2022. I intended to focus on the mix EQ and levelling, particularly of the Sampletank vox., but made a few other changes, too. I took the Sampletank vox., PaulStretched them, and added them back into a new track via Iris2. I added a subtle DUNE bass synth, and then swapped it out for ACE. I removed Stereoizer, and replaced BlackHole with Aether. Then I re-levelled and EQ'd everything, and mastered.

https://soundcloud.com/whatsisname/vent ... ks5-master

Audio processing in Audacity/PaulStretch
Recorded and mixed in EnergyXT 2.7
Mastered in T-Racks 5

Wollo FMERA2
IK Sampletank2
ACE
Iris 2
Aether
EQuivocate
U-He Satin
T-Racks Linear Phase EQ
T-Racks Vintage Equalizer EQP-1A

DR - 14

EDIT:20250424 - almost 9 years later, also on YouTube as a static video

markkuja · Post by **markkuja** » Wed Apr 27, 2016 8:57 am

A pleasant drifting in the soundscape.. slightly exciting, but still nice ambiance

astrochimp · Post by **astrochimp** » Wed Apr 27, 2016 6:30 pm

ambient, but not relaxing at all(!), very good though and very intense!

jethrobull · Post by **jethrobull** » Wed Apr 27, 2016 6:46 pm

Damn this is good. Love the eerie atmosphere it gives with the fading aaahh's it gives me goosebumps

Fantastic work

You must of been in a dark place if it is related to a major lifestyle event in your life..

seismic1 · Post by **seismic1** » Fri Apr 29, 2016 2:49 am

markkuja wrote:A pleasant drifting in the soundscape.. slightly exciting, but still nice ambiance

Thanks for the listen and the comments, markkuja. Glad you enjoyed it

"Slightly exciting" is a good summary of my week so far

seismic1 · Post by **seismic1** » Sun May 01, 2016 2:06 am

astrochimp wrote:ambient, but not relaxing at all(!), very good though and very intense!

Good to get your comments on this one, astrochimp. I think this track may have turned out just the way that I hoped it would.

Thanks for listening. Glad you liked it

Frantz · Post by **Frantz** » Mon May 02, 2016 3:57 am

Disquieting. It feels like the earth is slowly dropping away. For a moment, you feel free and weightless. Then you realize the earth took its atmosphere with it and you can't breath!

Perhaps it owes something to Ligeti's "Lux Aeterna"?

Excellent sound design although I think it is perhaps too quiet. When I play it loud some of the sounds seem ever so slightly distorted.

Good job.

annode · Post by **annode** » Mon May 02, 2016 2:33 pm

expired

Allomerus · Post by **Allomerus** » Tue May 03, 2016 7:02 am

Excellent unsettling drifting music Tim! I am floating along with this heading somewhere, but I am not sure where it is and I probably don't want to go there either!
Well done!

Although the end sounds like you issue was resolved (at least a bit). All the best!

seismic1 · Post by **seismic1** » Wed May 04, 2016 2:18 am

jethrobull wrote:Damn this is good. Love the eerie atmosphere it gives with the fading aaahh's it gives me goosebumps
Fantastic work You must of been in a dark place if it is related to a major lifestyle event in your life..

Glad it had the desired effect. I wrote a couple of earlier pieces which attempted to express what I felt, but whilst they were reasonably successful musically, they didn't really convey that feeling. With this track I managed to remove the handcuffs.

Thanks very much for listening and for the comments

layzer · Post by **layzer** » Thu May 05, 2016 9:09 pm

eerie and spooky, good to listen in bed all covered up under the blankie.

seismic1 · Post by **seismic1** » Fri May 06, 2016 2:32 am

Frantz wrote:Disquieting. It feels like the earth is slowly dropping away. For a moment, you feel free and weightless. Then you realize the earth took its atmosphere with it and you can't breath!

A great description which might not be too far from where I was trying to take this track.

Frantz wrote: Perhaps it owes something to Ligeti's "Lux Aeterna"?

I love Lux Aeterna and Requiem, and find myself listening to both of these works with increasing frequency, but I think the comparison is a little ambitious

The sounds I used here probably capture of some of Ligeti's influence, but there is no use of micropolyhony here, other than as a by-product of the mingling reverb tails.

Frantz wrote: Excellent sound design although I think it is perhaps too quiet. When I play it loud some of the sounds seem ever so slightly distorted.

Good job.

There wasn't any real sound design here at all other than the choice and slight tweaking of one synth preset, and the choice of a Sampletank instrument.

It is quiet. I had the synth/sampler levels up almost as far I they would go. I could have boosted them using FX, but decided to leave it alone as I wasn't really going for volume with this track. There is definitely some distortion on here (especially apparent towards the end), but I can hear some throughout the piece, and not only at high volume levels. I quite like it.

Thanks very much for listening and commenting, Frantz. Glad you liked it

folderol · Post by **folderol** » Sat May 07, 2016 9:06 pm

I think there must be something wrong with me. I found it very relaxing. Didn't pick up any sinisrter vibes at all

seismic1 · Post by **seismic1** » Sun May 08, 2016 2:10 am

Allomerus wrote:Excellent unsettling drifting music Tim! I am floating along with this heading somewhere, but I am not sure where it is and I probably don't want to go there either!
Well done!
Although the end sounds like you issue was resolved (at least a bit). All the best!

Thanks very much for taking the time to listen and comment, John. Glad you liked it

Drifting sums this up quite well, in that I was trying to express a sense of being helpless and completely at the mercy of an electro-mechanical process (the sequencing here is very rigid, although masked by the dreamlike nature of the sounds).

seismic1 · Post by **seismic1** » Wed May 11, 2016 1:58 am

layzer wrote:eerie and spooky, good to listen in bed all covered up under the blankie.

Thanks very much for checking this out and commenting, layzer. I hope you liked it.

Don't forget to let the cat out before turning in

Ventilator (ElectroProg - Seismic Catharsis)