Wake Up, Detune, Switch Off (Seismic Resuscitation)

[seismic1]

In late 2021, I was still taking tentative early steps with MuLab8, and began work in this piece. Other projects came and went, so this track fell into limbo until I rediscovered it this summer, and decided to continue with it. I re-shaped it, added a new midsection, and restored it to consciousness.

The title refers to my feelings about the media generally, and the advertising industry in particular.

https://soundcloud.com/whatsisname/wake ... switch-off

Generators and processors

Recorded in MuLab 8.7.6
Mixed in MuLab 9.4.12
Mastered in T-Racks 5

Absynth5
ACE
ARP2600V3
Valhalla Shimmer
EQuivocate
Ozone 7 Imager
MuEcho
Satin
MUXModular
Linear Phase EQ
Opto Compressor
Vintage Equalizer
Brickwall Limiter

DR - 9

[mjolnir]

NICE! Also, amazing that you're using MuLab for this project. Pretty cool. Sounds good and clear and dreamy from my laptop's speakers too.

[enroe]

Well, I don't think it really matters which tool or DAW you use. The question is:
what exactly do you get out of it?

And yes: "Wake Up, Detune, Switch Off" is an audio-like journey through a
strange world. I vacillate between apocalyptic end-time feelings and an exciting
journey of discovery garnished with wide spaces, deep abysses and the landing
of an alien ship.

In any case, it's a great journey - spacious and melancholic, imaginatively inspiring.
Well done!

[seismic1]

NICE! Also, amazing that you're using MuLab for this project. Pretty cool. Sounds good and clear and dreamy from my laptop's speakers too.

I don't think it really matters which DAW I use, in terms of creativity or quality of sound. I use two or three different ones, and they all seem to produce decent results. I usually only check these mixes on my NFMs, headphones and HiFi, so it's good to hear that it sounds good on your laptop.

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

[Frantz]

The highlight for me is the mournful, slow moving vocal-like lead. This is best heard from 4:11 onwards after that high-energy noisy sequence. There are some moments of real beauty in the second half and also some interesting use of what sounds like processed voices. It reminds me of a hidden world under the sea exposed by robot submarines.

Despite multiple listens, I find the first half of the piece less captivating. There are lots of exposed, shrill high frequencies up until 1:40. And that plodding bass pattern is featured rather heavily without the tasty bits that compliment it in the second half. Personally I would fade in the piece at around 4:11 and I think it would be an absolute gem.

Good work.

[bacco_music]

Really cool soundscape! I got space vibes almost like cautiously but optimistically approaching a gigantic new world.

[seismic1]

Well, I don't think it really matters which tool or DAW you use. The question is:
what exactly do you get out of it?

This is generally true, although I occasionally require a specific 32-bit plugin. If that is the case, I'll go back to EnergyXT2

And yes: "Wake Up, Detune, Switch Off" is an audio-like journey through a
strange world. I vacillate between apocalyptic end-time feelings and an exciting
journey of discovery garnished with wide spaces, deep abysses and the landing
of an alien ship.

It's interesting to hear other listener's impressions of these compositions. Apocalyptic end-time feelings combined with alien ships gives me Independence Day vibes

In any case, it's a great journey - spacious and melancholic, imaginatively inspiring.
Well done!

Thanks very much for taking the time to listen, and for the thoughtful comments, enroe. Glad you liked it

[eassae]

The bass felt really deep and satisfying. It had just the right fm vibrations. Pitch bends around 3:33 made me go ooooooooo(◑‿◐) The melodies and arps were all engaging. The density of the voices throughout the track seemed just right. If I had one complaint: I wanted tho throw soothe or do some surgical eq on some of the high frequencies in the intro, up to 1:40.

[ChameleonMusic]

So many good things I can say about this, I'd be here all night!

The overall flow is very well judged with parts just dropping (or sometimes fading) in and out at exactly the right moments.

Some of the textures are simply magical.

Subtle yet hooky melodic content in various parts.

Production is also very good to my ear, although I do think eassae has a point regarding a little bit of high frequency harshness in the opening section - seems to be steep peaks that zip out of the otherwise smooth mix...3kHz - 6kHz area? which is one of those mini frequency bands that the human ear can be very sensitive to.

Same (but to a lesser degree) with the lead sound that first enters at 3:38

Neither really affected my enjoyment of the listening experience, but I was aware of them in the back of my mind...if that makes sense?

One more listen!

[Hezekiel]

Very good. Nice melodies too

[seismic1]

The highlight for me is the mournful, slow moving vocal-like lead. This is best heard from 4:11 onwards after that high-energy noisy sequence. There are some moments of real beauty in the second half and also some interesting use of what sounds like processed voices. It reminds me of a hidden world under the sea exposed by robot submarines.

All of the sounds before 1:40 are from Absynth5. The bass synth and arps are ACE and ARP2600V3. The processed voices were another Absynth preset which sounds like it belongs on Ricochet Part1

That robot submarine reference is quite interesting. It seems to jive with the slow sequences in the piece.

Despite multiple listens, I find the first half of the piece less captivating. There are lots of exposed, shrill high frequencies up until 1:40. And that plodding bass pattern is featured rather heavily without the tasty bits that compliment it in the second half. Personally I would fade in the piece at around 4:11 and I think it would be an absolute gem.

Good work.

I quite like the slow-ish development of this, but I might take a look at the HF situation in the first 100 seconds, maybe later this weekend, maybe next week. (I'm finalising an album for release later this month).

Thanks very much for the listens, and for the detailed comments, Frantz. Glad you liked it

[ecamburn]

@seismic1. I like how the plucky sounds are front and center and that the pads provide a subtle backdrop. Love the spare instrumentation. I really like the section beginning around 1:30 with that repeating synth part. That part stayed constant for almost 2:00 minutes but you kept interest by moving a lot of different parts in and out in the background during that time. Fantastic arranging and sounds.

[seismic1]

Really cool soundscape! I got space vibes almost like cautiously but optimistically approaching a gigantic new world.

I love the different interpretations/associations that listeners ascribe to these pieces. They are in stark contrast to my original intention, but just as valid, and maybe more so.

Thanks very much for listening and the great comments, bacco_music. Glad you enjoyed it

[seismic1]

The bass felt really deep and satisfying. It had just the right fm vibrations. Pitch bends around 3:33 made me go ooooooooo(◑‿◐) The melodies and arps were all engaging. The density of the voices throughout the track seemed just right. If I had one complaint: I wanted tho throw soothe or do some surgical eq on some of the high frequencies in the intro, up to 1:40.

The non-arp bass at the beginning is Absynth5 (as are most of the sounds here). I've made a first (and second) attempt at tweaking the EQ filters. I've dropped the low-pass corner freqs by 2-3k and maintained similar filter slopes. I'll re-upload in a few days when I'm happy with it.

Thanks very much for the detailed feedback, eassae. Glad you liked it

[seismic1]

So many good things I can say about this, I'd be here all night!

The overall flow is very well judged with parts just dropping (or sometimes fading) in and out at exactly the right moments.

Some of the textures are simply magical.

Subtle yet hooky melodic content in various parts.

Production is also very good to my ear, although I do think eassae has a point regarding a little bit of high frequency harshness in the opening section - seems to be steep peaks that zip out of the otherwise smooth mix...3kHz - 6kHz area? which is one of those mini frequency bands that the human ear can be very sensitive to.

Same (but to a lesser degree) with the lead sound that first enters at 3:38

Neither really affected my enjoyment of the listening experience, but I was aware of them in the back of my mind...if that makes sense?

One more listen!

I was aware of those pesky highs, but decided to wait until somebody pointed them out before dealing with them

I remixed it 2-3 weeks ago, but wanted to be sure that I hadn't removed too much from the picture. After listening to the original vs. the remix so many times within a couple of days, my ears had become desensitized to the music, so I let it sit on my hard drive for a couple of weeks to cool off. I've uploaded the new mix, because I think it's an improvement on the original. I reduced the corner freqs on the LPF for almost all of the Absynth instances and increased the EQ attenuation on those frequency bands. I also took the opportunity to give the low-end a minor clean-up.

Thanks very much for the detailed and thoughtful comments, Mark. Glad you enjoyed it