recorded 20130812


active / ambient



elements used:


strg_c2_120d_LoopMix1 (2 iterations)
gtr1_I2_120d_LoopMix1
bass1_b2_078a_Cinematic
beat3_d_078a_Cinematic
perc3_d2_120d_Funk
wah1_I2_120d_Funk
wah2_I2_120d_Funk
syn3_I4_085a_Prog
syn1_c4_085a_Prog
3_note_low-ks

however, for those of us who cannot get enough of the full, hypnotic mix, I've also created an extended version of “just” the fully mixed track, which I think makes a nice alternative to the more experimental “sandpiper calls”. this is the full mix, as originally intended, and normally, I would have released this as the normal track – but I felt that in this case, this works better as an extended mix, as an alternate version to the "build" version (“sandpiper calls”).

I love this loop, it originally came together quite quickly and quite organically, it didn’t take long to get the musical elements in place, that probably took less than 30 minutes, but then, I do tend to spend an hour or three tweaking things: adding effects where it makes sense, adjusting the levels, adjusting the stereo image, and so on – and I am really happy with the way this turns out.

it’s quite odd, really – the strings are quite symmetrical, then the guitar is added, which matches them in time – so, strings and guitar, then, silence, strings and guitar, then silence, but then – as each new part is added, the music part gets longer, and the silence gets shorter.

so the addition of the bass part – it just goes a couple hundred milliseconds longer than the strings / guitar, but – it makes the audible part longer…

the drums and percussion, which are added next, are of course, just the rhythmic bed upon which all of these musical elements rest…


then the first wah comes in, which makes the music section longer…
the second wah – slightly longer again
the prog keys – longer still
the second keyboard part – fills up the gap completely…


then, the drone is added, which goes along with the drums and percussion as rhythmic bed, and in fact, it’s the drone that gives the piece the most variance, because it’s all over the map sonically, which over the course of this extended mix is wonderful, in fact, I tend to focus on the drone because it follows such an amazing course over the time that this mix runs – it goes on an extraordinary journey, while the piece flows on hypnotically around it…


so I thought it was interesting the way the string sample starts out quite short, then gets longer and longer as parts are added, until the whole space contains some kind of music. and that prog organ really gets inside your head, too. :-)