my name is shoe.

ANDREW SHOEMAKER - “DAYDREAMS SITE MUSIC (song version)”

As I mentioned last week, I have been commissioned to produce some music for a website that my girlfriend Heather Apple and Tofer Moran (of In the Circuit of the Sun) are building. The site isn’t live yet, so I can’t really go into detail on what it is or why the music was designed this way. As soon as the site is up, I will be sure to link to it and discuss it in more detail.

This version is not the one that you will hear on the site, at least, not quite. It is an earlier version that I was very happy with but which Heather and Tofer had some minor problems with. I made the changes they requested, but I want to go ahead and share this version as it is. 

ANDREW SHOEMAKER - “DAYDREAMS”

Heather and Tofer are working on a website project and asked me to compose some music for the site. Their request was fairly specific and clear, so naturally I sat down to work and wrote something completely different than what they wanted. I don’t know if all musicians and composers have this experience, but sometimes you start to write something that seems to have popped into existence fully-formed in your brain. I played the two chords here that mostly comprise “Daydreams” and heard everything I needed to hear. I recorded this in about three takes, did some brief editing of the MIDI data, and bounced the track. It can’t have taken more than a couple hours. It’s more cinematic than my work usually is. I could hear it in a film score perhaps. I may continue to work with this song more to build it out a little, but something tells me that maybe I should just leave it alone. It was a daydream, alive for a moment, and then gone, half-forgotten.

UPDATE: I went back into this song and fixed a few notes that were bothering me. I also added some little bits of embellishment to fill some spaces that were a little too big. Maybe the imperfections of the original were what made it special, but I like this version too.

ANDREW SHOEMAKER - “SLUMLORD”

It’s been an embarrassingly long time since my last post. I went back to work part-time at a coffee shop in Kensington. It’s been a fairly pleasant, zen-like experience. I work evenings, alone most of the time, and I’m starting to build a rapport with the regulars. I don’t intend to do this forever, but it is a fine way to earn a wage while I’m pursuing a career in commercial music production.

I’m working on a new song right now. It’s already undergone several major revisions, but today I got it into a shape that I’m reasonably satisfied with. I’m having a hard time identifying the strands of influence in it. Definitely the clickhouse kit was inspired by Telefon Tel Aviv, though I haven’t come near to mastering it. That record is one of my all-time favorites. Melodically speaking, the song shares a lot in common with traditional IDM, particularly Aphex Twin or Squarepusher and the core Warp Records roster. It’s a new style for me, a new set of colors on my pallette, and I look forward to further experimentation with it. 

I’ve been meaning to post these pictures for a little while now, but the holidays managed to get in the way. So nearly a month later, here it is, my home studio. In the top picture here you can see the full set-up. I’ve got an Audio Technica AT2020 cardioid condenser microphone (just one so far, but I hope to get a stereo rig shortly), an M-Audio KeyRig 49 MIDI controller, an MBox 3 running Pro Tools 8, and a pair of M-Audio monitors. The folks at Guitar Center’s Pro Audio helped me acquire this equipment at a very affordable discount, so I owe them a huge debt of gratitude. I’ll include some close-up shots below.

I am working with the software every day to continue learning and familiarizing myself with it, and I picked up some great textbooks for Christmas that will help fill in some holes in my knowledge base. I’m very optimistic for the coming year, and I’m looking forward to applying for jobs soon.

ANDREW SHOEMAKER - “FAR FROM HOME”

The holidays are nearly upon us, and all the shopping I’ve been putting off is now weighing heavily on my shoulders. So, naturally, I’ve been ignoring it and instead working ceaselessly in the studio. The last couple days have been productive, and I’ve managed to crank out another new song. Galen and Heather both independently used the word “lovely” to describe this new song, “Far From Home.” I find it interesting because I don’t think it’s a word that should be applied to really any of my previous work in Garageband. What’s with the change? Well, for starters I now have access to some very high quality MIDI samples, and voices that I would have shied away from in the past are now exciting new colors added to my palette. The strings on this song for instance have a breathtaking quality about them. There is one audio recording here though: the acoustic guitar track under the climax.

The title here has some significance, I suppose. This is my first year living in another state from my family, and as Christmas approaches, I am eagerly anticipating returning to them in North Carolina next week. You can hear that yearning in every note of this song. Home is so close, but so far away.

UPDATE 12/19: Galen was in town this weekend and helped me adjust the snare sounds a little bit here. He also experimented with some light, airy vocal takes, and we layered them over the climax of the song here for a nice effect. I’m even happier with the song than I was before. Thanks, Galen!

ANDREW SHOEMAKER - “WINTER CHILL”

Well I finally did it. I took the plunge, made the investment, and now I’m in my bedroom working with a Pro Tools Mbox system. After getting everything set up on Tuesday, I spent today experimenting, and I wanted to share my results. I’m thrilled with the quality of both the MIDI sounds I’m able to create with Reason and Pro Tools and the recording quality of my AT2020 mic.

For this song, I recorded a few ukulele tracks and applied some thick delay to create a densely textured wash of percussive sound. I also created a bed of cool, minimal synth pads. The goal was to give the listener the sensation of an icy, desolate landscape. It’s been cold here in the city lately, and it’s only going to get worse. I’ll be sure to keep working with this track, and I’ll share pictures soon. 

Earlier this fall, I managed to sell a composition for an upcoming ad campaign. I can’t really go into specifics about that song yet, but be assured that once the ads go live I will be bringing them to your attention. I decided to take a portion of the earnings from that sale to invest in home studio equipment. My goal is to start working exclusively in Pro Tools in order to become versed enough to list it on my resume and to be able to produce professional quality recordings on my own, should the opportunity arise again.

The good news is that because Avid is currently rolling out the new Mbox 3 and Pro Tools 9, I’m in a great position to acquire an Mbox 2 for a great price and get it bundled with the new Pro Tools for a little bit extra. The other needs I have are for mics and a MIDI controller. Which ones you ask? Well that’s what I’m trying to decide.

One mic I’m seriously considering is the Apex 460, a tube condenser microphone that manages to provide a very high level of quality for a very affordable price. It is essentially a clone of the much more expensive Telefunken M16 for about $1200 less, but I have heard that the cut-rate parts might not be worth the savings. Another idea is to get Audio Technica’s AT2020, a high-quality/low-cost condenser mic that can be used on a variety of sources. The AT2020 is affordable enough for me to consider getting two off the bat for stereo recording. I expect that this is the mic I will go with.

As for MIDI controllers, I’m less certain about where to go. My work up until now has been produced in Apple’s Garageband which includes a keyboard “musical typing” interface, so I haven’t had to think about MIDI controllers. Since I will be doing most of my MIDI composition with Reason now, I will need to get a controller. M-Audio is essentially the standard for this type of equipment, and I expect that I will start my search with their Axiom line. If you are reading this and you have any suggestions, I’m all ears.

One of the biggest obstacles towards setting up a home studio was unexpected: space! My apartment is 425 square feet, and there isn’t an extra inch anywhere in the floor plan. We’re going to have to rearrange furniture to allow space for a desktop, and it will probably end up in the bedroom. I do most of my live recording in there anyway because it’s much quieter than in the living room with the buzzing refrigerator and mewing cat.

So that’s the plan for now. As soon as the check arrives, I’ll pull the trigger. Expect lots of updates when the time comes.