Paraxial (ElectroProg - Seismic Remodelling)

[seismic1]

Some loopy reconstruction featuring self-plagiarism. I stole a 3-note motif from one of my earlier pieces, and constructed another quasi-ambient setting for it. I noticed a not entirely unexpected inconsistency in the rendering behaviour of EnergyXT, but managed to incorporate its effect into the track with positive results.

EDIT:20221231 mp3 link deleted

as an indistinct mass, in the welkin:-

https://soundcloud.com/whatsisname/paraxial

apparatus and appliances:-

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

TassMan4
Skanner XT
FMERA2
ARP2600 v2
Tremor
Superior Drummer
Modular V2
Blue Cat Gain
Replicant
B2
EnergyXT Delay
FreqAnalyst2
DP Meter Pro 4
EQ PG
EQ 81
Satin
T-Racks Linear Phase EQ
T-Racks Opto Compressor
T-Racks Vintage Equalizer
T-Racks Brickwall Limiter

DR - 12

EDIT:20230225 - I remixed this in June 2022. I swapped the original B2 reverb for CSR Hall, replaced the IK EQs with EQuivocate and made some small changes to the EQ/panning and levelling. I have mastered the track in T-Racks 5.

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

Recorded and mixed in EnergyXT 2.7
Mastered in T-Racks 5

TassMan4
Skanner XT
FMERA2
ARP2600 v2
Tremor
Superior Drummer
Modular V2
Blue Cat Gain3 Stereo
Replicant
CSR Hall
EnergyXT Delay
FreqAnalyst2
DP Meter Pro 4
T-Racks Metering
EQuivocate
Satin
T-Racks Linear Phase EQ
T-Racks Opto Compressor
T-Racks Vintage Equalizer
T-Racks Brickwall Limiter

DR - 11

EDIT:20250515 - almost 9 years later, also on YouTube as a static video

[abstractcats]

A+!!

[dark water]

/'/

[seismic1]

A+!!

Thanks very much for listening Scott. Glad you enjoyed it

[Frantz]

The piece builds beautifully starting from gentle ambience, adding long bass notes, drums, and eventually the singing synth makes its big entrance. All of the layers mesh seamlessly. The track flows effortlessly for its 10+ minutes, gaining momentum as it goes which is quite an accomplishment.

Some notes on the mix. The beginning is very quiet and hard to hear properly with normal background household noises (air conditioning, dishwasher, etc). When I do turn it up loud, the ambient beginning sounds distorted which I find a bit off-putting. Eventually the drums cover any distortion although the hats have too much HF snap for my liking.

Nice work.

[camsr]

Enjoyed this much at low volume (65dB), more dynamic in the frequencies of the synth will really bring it far.
Extremely peaceful sounding!

[seismic1]

/'/

"Parallel our sights"

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

[dark water]

Haha, I got a bit stuck with my above edits there

It's a very nice track and I fully agree with Frantz's first paragraph.

The song really grows well from a luscious life-creating primordial soup into an energetic bright young thing!
I particularly like the evolving drum timbres and patterns.

Excellent stuff, and very relaxing too

[Hezekiel]

Very good ambient music. Mix was good imo and very nice sounds. You got talent.

[markkuja]

Cool ... interesting composition and soundscape ...
enjoyable slowly ambiance and sounds.

[seismic1]

The piece builds beautifully starting from gentle ambience, adding long bass notes, drums, and eventually the singing synth makes its big entrance. All of the layers mesh seamlessly. The track flows effortlessly for its 10+ minutes, gaining momentum as it goes which is quite an accomplishment.

Some notes on the mix. The beginning is very quiet and hard to hear properly with normal background household noises (air conditioning, dishwasher, etc). When I do turn it up loud, the ambient beginning sounds distorted which I find a bit off-putting. Eventually the drums cover any distortion although the hats have too much HF snap for my liking.

Nice work.

I agree that the beginning is relatively quiet. I've got old-fashioned ideas about volume/dynamics. I rarely make any effort to balance the volume of a track between its different sections on these "softer" pieces, although I have occasionally done so with my more energetic tracks.

Yes, the Tassman patch could certainly be characterised as containing some distortion. I've used it before. I like contrasting that with "cleaner" sounds. I think it makes me feel fluffy. The hats are Tremor. I cut the volume by a couple of dB before rendering this. It might be worth checking the filter settings before I make the final mix for the EP release. Alternatively, I may look at the wet/dry channel balance.

Thanks very much for listening, Frantz, and thanks very much for the helpful comments. Glad you liked it

[davidstiles]

I love this track. It has really interesting and unusual sounds, and it evolves in a beautifully unhurried sort of way. And I love the theremin-type sound that shows up around the 7:00 mark.

[Jesse Gorter]

I like it as background music, but I have to say I found 10 minutes a bit too long for this track.
Still awesome produced as always!

[Frantz]

The hats are Tremor.

Aah, that explains it. I demoed Tremor and found its sounds always called attention to themselves instead of blending. I didn't get along with Tremor's sound engine which is quite distinct from a typical "analog" drum synth.

I think it makes me feel fluffy.

You could wear bunny slippers to maximize your fluffiness.

[seismic1]

Enjoyed this much at low volume (65dB), more dynamic in the frequencies of the synth will really bring it far.
Extremely peaceful sounding!

Thanks very much for the listen and comments, camsr. Glad you liked it

Are you referring to the lead synth towards the end of the track? I was wondering about shifting the solo up or down an octave in places. I'd probably have to defeat the portamento during the register changes, or I fear that the effect could quickly become annoying.