Key Of Grey

Photo courtesy of 3 Sons Productions March 4th, 2010 - So lately, I've been thinking a lot about sampling. Legally it's pretty straightforward, if you take a piece of someone else's recording then you have to secure rights to do that. Whether or not you agree with the way the legal system is set up, is not what I want to discuss here. I've discussed my take on sampling before and while my feelings on the subject have evolved slightly, I still largely feel ... Read More

Photo courtesy of Brocco Lee February 26th, 2010 - With the strong growth in the population of DIY electronic wizards, it seems like almost everyday there's a new robot that can play music. Such roboticized musicians have served as more of a curiosity than anything; musicians haven't been threatened by robots taking their jobs just yet. So why is it that when Dave Cope unveiled Emmy, there were plenty of angry detractors, and even supporters were disturbed by the implications. Emmy (or EMI as ... Read More

Photo courtesy of davetron5000 February 25th, 2010 - Sam Greene over at AudioPropellor suggested I missed some points when writing the original "Minimum Gear, Maximum Impact" post almost 2 years ago, and he's definitely right. That article deserves a little refresh so I thought I'd post a few more ideas on the subject. Of course, the biggest improvement to any set up is you. This does not necessarily mean that you need to go to school and get a fancy engineering degree (although that ... Read More

Photo courtesy of Steven Snodgrass February 14th, 2010 - So it looks like I won't be completing the RPM Challenge. This is not to say that I won't be finishing a solo album any time soon, but at this point, it is unrealistic to expect that I'll be able to do it. With that in mind, I've turned my attention to orchestrating the release of a four song EP for a friend. He's never released anything and, in fact, I am one of ... Read More

Photo courtesy of RobotSkirts January 29th, 2010 - Today I thought I'd write about a topic that's been bothering me for a while. There is an attitude out there that a real musician plays real instruments; that individuals playing on a Monome, an MPC, or turntables, aren't real musicians because they're just "button mashing" or "making noise". That's bullshit. I would be considered a traditional musician; my interest in electronic music and turntablism is pretty recent. My parents had it in their mind that ... Read More

January 16th, 2009 - A topic I keep getting asked, whether it's through Youtube, email, or comments to this site, is about using the Vestax Spin/djay combo for making beats. Specifically, people want to know how to use the Spin in conjunction with a MPC or MPC-style controller. These questions stem from a misunderstanding of the Spin itself, that I thought I'd address. First off, it is technically possible to make beats with the Spin. Because the Spin has a built-in soundcard, you ... Read More

January 14th, 2010 - Sometimes I have really stupid ideas, and they eat away at me until I have to do them, no matter how ridiculous. One of these has been a DIY windscreen, also known as a pop filter. For those of you who don't know what it does, it basically blocks your microphone from some of the wind a singer generates when spitting out T's and P's. Normally, these cost between 15 to 40 dollars (at least where I live) but ... Read More

January 4th, 2009 - As a classically trained pianist, my formative years were spent learning to play as a soloist. I needed to play as a one man band; kind of a lone wolf. In most situations, a classical pianist is playing by himself, save for the odd duet. Even when playing concertos, classical pianists tend to be off in their own world, leaving the conductor to wrangle the rest of the orchestra. As you might imagine, it was quite a rude awakening ... Read More

Photo courtesy of Eustaquio Santimano, you can access his Flickr page here January 1st, 2010 - So everyone is doing an article on their top posts of 2009. I was feeling left out, so I've decided to create one too. Why 8 posts? I have no idea but I figure I'd choose some weird number. Anyways, here are some of my favorite posts from this year: 1. Controversies with modern mixing 2. Mixing Tip of the Day : cutting frequencies 3. Marketing yourself 4. How I Mix 5. ... Read More

Photo courtesy of Jsome1 December 31st, 2009 - So here we are heading into 2010 and I know everyone is thinking about resolutions for the new year (not new decade, that's in 2011). Of course, for procrastinators like me, annual resolutions never work. Something that does work is the David Allen's GTD methodology. For those of you that can't seem to get things done unless it's absolutely urgent, I suggest you pick up a copy of "Getting Things Done". I don't use all ... Read More