Bathe at Your Own Risk (Seismic Regenerative Pre-Conditioning)

[seismic1]

Five rivers flow in the underworld of Hades. Without the correct password, Lethe is the default option for unauthorised personnel.

Ambient Online Compilation: Vol 26 was released earlier today, featuring 49 tracks of diverse ambient music with a running-time of over 5 hours, all made by members of Ambient Online. This compilation is available as a "name your price" release, and is well worth exploring.

This track was made in MuLAB over a couple of evenings in January 2023. I'll describe this as ambient, although a pinch of salt may be advisable.

https://soundcloud.com/whatsisname/bath ... r-own-risk

Recorded/Mixed in MuLAB 9
Mastered in T-Racks 5

Apparatus and Gadgets

Absynth5
Sampletank -> Audacity -> Paulstretch -> Iris2
Equivocate
GrainStrain
Shimmer
kHs Gain
Satin
Linear Phase EQ
EQP-1A

DR - 10

The album may be found here:-

https://ambientonline.bandcamp.com/albu ... -volume-26

EDIT:20250519 I remastered this in December 2024, ready for an album release. It's a touch louder than the original.

https://soundcloud.com/whatsisname/bath ... 024-master

[Frantz]

Five rivers flow in the underworld of Hades. Without the correct password, Lethe is the default option for unauthorised personnel.

The ancient Greeks had poor security practices. Their passwords can be cracked in seconds on a modern PC using rainbow tables.

The mix sounds very good on first listen. More later....

[] Peter:H []

Nice one seismic ... enjoyed listening

I think it can have some low, "far distant" taiko drums at the end of the part begining at 1:35 to add to the dramatic feel. I know ambient an "drums" seems to be a no-go, but that was what immediately came to my mind.

Don't want to sound negaive, but to my ears (untrained musican, listening over headphones without EQ correction) I feel there are some unpleasant resonances ... just guessing in the "mud" area around 250 - 350 hz, for instance starting from 1:35.
And mybe you can review your high end and add some "shimmer" and "fairy dust" to it.

[SuitcaseOfLizards]

I'd call this Ambient with a side of fries.

There is an occasional soundtrack feel to me, the repeated motif with instruments performed over it has a semi-drone-y 'Shaker Loops' vibe as well.

Note that I am weird. Just a full disclosure.

I quite enjoyed this, it's 4:45am here and this track goes well with coffee.

[Frantz]

I am getting lots of hazy greys from this. It reminds me of a sketch done in charcoal. We have the clear, broad outlines of a piece that make sense but there is not much color and detail. If this is a river, then a lot of the view is obscured by mist and fog. It does open up a bit towards the end with a bit of sunlight cutting through the fog.

Overall, a solid mood piece. I think the mix is very good.

[seismic1]

Five rivers flow in the underworld of Hades. Without the correct password, Lethe is the default option for unauthorised personnel.

The ancient Greeks had poor security practices. Their passwords can be cracked in seconds on a modern PC using rainbow tables.

Not true. The Ancient Greeks loved their salt.

The mix sounds very good on first listen. More later....

[Frantz]

Not true. The Ancient Greeks loved their salt.

Touché

[folderol]

Very much enjoying this - hardly surprising, eh?

[Allomerus]

Very much enjoying this - hardly surprising, eh?

Me too!

[Allomerus]

Just gorgeous!

[seismic1]

Nice one seismic ... enjoyed listening

I think it can have some low, "far distant" taiko drums at the end of the part begining at 1:35 to add to the dramatic feel. I know ambient an "drums" seems to be a no-go, but that was what immediately came to my mind.

I have managed to squeeze drums/percussion into ambient pieces in the past, but didn't feel that this was the right place to do that, bearing in mind the possibly nefarious nature of the memory-cleansing being depicted here, although the film "The Ipcress File" offers a different perspective

Don't want to sound negaive, but to my ears (untrained musican, listening over headphones without EQ correction) I feel there are some unpleasant resonances ... just guessing in the "mud" area around 250 - 350 hz, for instance starting from 1:35.

Maybe I'll take a look at that. There are only a couple of instruments present there.

And mybe you can review your high end and add some "shimmer" and "fairy dust" to it.

As with the addition of percussion mentioned earlier, I didn't really want this to have too "bright" a sound in keeping with the soporific vibe that I felt should be an essential component of the process of having one's memory removed.

Thanks very much for taking the time to listen and comment, ] Peter:H [ Glad you enjoyed it

[KENFLO]

[seismic1]

I'd call this Ambient with a side of fries.

That's actually very close to the way I hear it

There is an occasional soundtrack feel to me, the repeated motif with instruments performed over it has a semi-drone-y 'Shaker Loops' vibe as well.

Note that I am weird. Just a full disclosure.

I hope that you're referring to John Adams' excellent composition, and not to a downloadable sample-pack although I think the comparison would not stand any serious scrutiny.

I quite enjoyed this, it's 4:45am here and this track goes well with coffee.

I presume that your 4:45am coffee is taken after waking in the morning. I'm lucky to be in bed before 2:30am. Coffee after mid-day is something I try to avoid.

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

[seismic1]

I am getting lots of hazy greys from this. It reminds me of a sketch done in charcoal. We have the clear, broad outlines of a piece that make sense but there is not much color and detail. If this is a river, then a lot of the view is obscured by mist and fog. It does open up a bit towards the end with a bit of sunlight cutting through the fog.

Overall, a solid mood piece. I think the mix is very good.

This was written after taking its primary inspiration from events relating to the "soul-processing centre" in the Greek Underworld, so your comments regarding hazy greys, charcoal sketches, mist and fog, and a lack of color and detail are quite appropriate.

On another level, this piece also takes "inspiration" from my distrust of the media, in all of its forms.

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

[VCA-089]

Great as always!

It's very calm but mysterious and a bit stressful. A quiet moment before the big journey while starring at the sky...