Other Desert Cities

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Other Desert Cities is a road sign you might see heading out of Palm Springs. It’s also the name of an excellent effects plugin that I used to create this piece. I only use an iPad Pro and headphones, so the end result could probably be better. Years ago, a talented recording engineer told me that, regardless of the quality level ($$) of the studio, everything ultimately comes down to two tracks, left and right stereo. Most likely listened to in a car, or on an average home entertainment system. I always remembered that, and try to do the best I can with what I have. Comments welcomed.

https://soundcloud.com/paulieworld/other-desert-cities

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Dang, very different genres the track explores - love the ambience guitar washes and vocals and the electro stuff at the end. Good job but why cant i download :)
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Touch The Universe wrote: Sun Aug 31, 2025 6:07 pm Dang, very different genres the track explores - love the ambience guitar washes and vocals and the electro stuff at the end. Good job but why cant i download :)
I didn’t think anybody would actually want to download it! I just fixed that. I would love to hear what you can do with it. Have fun and keep me posted. Let me know if there is anything else on my SoundCloud site that you would like to play with. Have a great day!

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Thanks! Yeah, from 2 minutes onward, definetely digging the track - lots of creativity and interesting sounds. How did you make them - ie the reverse guitar licks and most importantly the sfx at the end? I'd be stunned if they weren't samples.
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Touch The Universe wrote: Sun Aug 31, 2025 7:07 pm Thanks! Yeah, from 2 minutes onward, definetely digging the track - lots of creativity and interesting sounds. How did you make them - ie the reverse guitar licks and most importantly the sfx at the end? I'd be stunned if they weren't samples.
Actually, almost everything in this piece was done from samples. Some of them were from an app called Launchpad. Some I created myself using assorted synths and a MIDI generator called Piano Motifs. It’s the best iOS app I ever purchased. You should look into it. Tell Fernando Paulie sent you. He is quite a guy, and PM is the best! Do you like to collaborate?

The end was not planned. This was originally supposed to be a dub techno track, but lost its way. I thought it sounded unexpected, so I kept it.

Message me on SoundCloud if you’re interested.

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"Other Desert Cities": Here you get the feeling of vastness and desert – lost
in the sun-dried, endless sand. In that respect, this song is a fantastic fit
for the title and the theme. It expresses precisely that.

Sure, you're showing that you can achieve great results even with simple
tools. I think the vision you have in your head is the most important thing.

The drums at 3:40 are a bit surprising – it's definitely worth listening for!
Overall: Great song! :tu:
free mp3s + info: andy-enroe.de songs + weird stuff: enroe.de

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enroe wrote: Tue Sep 02, 2025 10:08 am "Other Desert Cities": Here you get the feeling of vastness and desert – lost
in the sun-dried, endless sand. In that respect, this song is a fantastic fit
for the title and the theme. It expresses precisely that.

Sure, you're showing that you can achieve great results even with simple
tools. I think the vision you have in your head is the most important thing.

The drums at 3:40 are a bit surprising – it's definitely worth listening for!
Overall: Great song! :tu:
This actually started out as something entirely different. A few weeks ago, I chanced upon a series of tutorials by a gentleman doing his masters thesis on "dub techno". I was amazed at the depth and detail of his presentation, and was immediately drawn in. I created several exercises using his techniques. I decided to combine them into a finished piece. I put it away and came back a few days later. I didn't like it as much as I thought I would. It sounded like 5 different thoughts, roughly chained together. I ended up taking out at least half of the content, and stripped it down to almost nothing. I still had one little bouncy techno section left that I liked. I almost deleted it, but tacked it on at the end. I also thought... that's a bit surprising!

In the end, I came away with a new respect for the people that create in this genre. Thanks for listening and your kind comments. Have a good one!

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Had another chance to give this one a listen, during a meditation session - Definetely a winner. Even inspired a few ideas for me, wouldn't mind doing a remix of it if you are kind enough to send over the stems. Regardless, once again, good job!
100 High Quality Soundsets: Omnisphere 2, Dune 3, Tone 2 Synths, Pigments, Uhe Synths, Halion, Spire, and others.

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Touch The Universe wrote: Sat Sep 06, 2025 2:25 am Had another chance to give this one a listen, during a meditation session - Definetely a winner. Even inspired a few ideas for me, wouldn't mind doing a remix of it if you are kind enough to send over the stems. Regardless, once again, good job!
I would enjoy hearing that. Unfortunately, my workflow doesn’t lend itself to stems. My projects consist of little bits and pieces scattered across dozens of tracks in Cubasis. I’m sure I could find a way to do it, but that would be like “work”. I enabled downloads if you would like to add to it. I think there is enough headroom to expand on it. Please feel free to have at it. Have a great weekend!

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Yeah, that does sound like work, haha.
Here's what Gtp says. This looks like it might take a minute or two of work. If that's too much, no biggie.

Option 1: Backup Project

In Cubase, go to File > Back up Project.

Choose a new location.

Select “Minimize Audio Files” and/or “Remove Unused Media” if you want to trim it down.

Cubase will copy all used audio and samples into the new project folder.

Now the project folder contains everything your friend needs — the .cpr file plus an Audio folder with all referenced files.

Option 2: Archive with MediaBay / Pool

Open the Pool (Ctrl+P / Cmd+P).

Choose Media > Prepare Archive.

This makes sure all used files are copied into the project folder.

Option 3: Zip & Share

After preparing with either method above:

Zip the entire project folder (not just the .cpr file).

Send the zip to your friend.
100 High Quality Soundsets: Omnisphere 2, Dune 3, Tone 2 Synths, Pigments, Uhe Synths, Halion, Spire, and others.

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Touch The Universe wrote: Sat Sep 06, 2025 6:26 pm Yeah, that does sound like work, haha.
Here's what Gtp says. This looks like it might take a minute or two of work. If that's too much, no biggie.

Option 1: Backup Project

In Cubase, go to File > Back up Project.

Choose a new location.

Select “Minimize Audio Files” and/or “Remove Unused Media” if you want to trim it down.

Cubase will copy all used audio and samples into the new project folder.

Now the project folder contains everything your friend needs — the .cpr file plus an Audio folder with all referenced files.

Option 2: Archive with MediaBay / Pool

Open the Pool (Ctrl+P / Cmd+P).

Choose Media > Prepare Archive.

This makes sure all used files are copied into the project folder.

Option 3: Zip & Share

After preparing with either method above:

Zip the entire project folder (not just the .cpr file).

Send the zip to your friend.
Yikes! That’s freaking nuts. I’m an old man and this just sounds like gobbledegook to me. How about if we just do something from scratch? I’ll put down a simple rhythm track and you can go to town… or vice versa. I’m digging on the idea of collaborating with you. Like Colonel Sanders said, Keep it simple!

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Aye, in that case, what about simply exporting the stems?

Have a look at this 30 second video to see if it looks like something you can or are willing to do.



I don't have cubase but I can remix with the stems in studio one. Even if we swapped project files, I believe we would still need to share the samples via export stems.

You are using cubase, if you can navigate that, I'm sure you can figure out to export the stems :)
100 High Quality Soundsets: Omnisphere 2, Dune 3, Tone 2 Synths, Pigments, Uhe Synths, Halion, Spire, and others.

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I use Cubasis on an iPad. Not sure if this would work. Cubasis is very limited compared to Cubase for desktop. I really appreciate your interest, though. I have already started a few new things. I just posted “4 Quarks” on SoundCloud. I would welcome your thoughts. Have a great day!

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Paulieworld wrote: Sat Sep 06, 2025 1:44 pm
Touch The Universe wrote: Sat Sep 06, 2025 2:25 am Had another chance to give this one a listen, during a meditation session - Definetely a winner. Even inspired a few ideas for me, wouldn't mind doing a remix of it if you are kind enough to send over the stems. Regardless, once again, good job!
I would enjoy hearing that. Unfortunately, my workflow doesn’t lend itself to stems. My projects consist of little bits and pieces scattered across dozens of tracks in Cubasis. I’m sure I could find a way to do it, but that would be like “work”. I enabled downloads if you would like to add to it. I think there is enough headroom to expand on it. Please feel free to have at it. Have a great weekend!
If either of you know someone with Ableton Live 12 or Steinberg SpectraLayers, the various components (stems) could be easily extracted. Interesting track.
Paulieworld wrote: Tue Sep 02, 2025 1:19 pm A few weeks ago, I chanced upon a series of tutorials by a gentleman doing his masters thesis on "dub techno". I was amazed at the depth and detail of his presentation, and was immediately drawn in. I created several exercises using his techniques.
Link?
I'm not a musician, but I've designed sounds that others use to make music. http://soundcloud.com/obsidiananvil

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Shabdahbriah wrote: Sun Sep 07, 2025 4:08 pm
Paulieworld wrote: Sat Sep 06, 2025 1:44 pm
Touch The Universe wrote: Sat Sep 06, 2025 2:25 am Had another chance to give this one a listen, during a meditation session - Definetely a winner. Even inspired a few ideas for me, wouldn't mind doing a remix of it if you are kind enough to send over the stems. Regardless, once again, good job!
I would enjoy hearing that. Unfortunately, my workflow doesn’t lend itself to stems. My projects consist of little bits and pieces scattered across dozens of tracks in Cubasis. I’m sure I could find a way to do it, but that would be like “work”. I enabled downloads if you would like to add to it. I think there is enough headroom to expand on it. Please feel free to have at it. Have a great weekend!
If either of you know someone with Ableton Live 12 or Steinberg SpectraLayers, the various components (stems) could be easily extracted. Interesting track.
Paulieworld wrote: Tue Sep 02, 2025 1:19 pm A few weeks ago, I chanced upon a series of tutorials by a gentleman doing his masters thesis on "dub techno". I was amazed at the depth and detail of his presentation, and was immediately drawn in. I created several exercises using his techniques.
Link?
https://m.youtube.com/@bahadirhankocer

Lots of great information and cool techniques. Not just for techno, either. I have found things to incorporate into my other “stuff”. Have fun!

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