EP - Fledgling

The Frontier
Released 29/10/2017

This is this years' EP - hope you enjoy it!

For reference, I didn't have any specific influences going in - unless I have a specific frame of reference (like I did with Fledgling, courtesy of Austin Wintory's Journey soundtrack), I basically braindump all over Cubase.

However, as I got going, the resulting themes made me think of a weird mashup of Don Bluth films (not musically, but visually), westerns (catching Rango on TV might have been a contributory factor) and that kind of thing. So, that was the weird mental context that I ended up writing to. 

Mostly, it was just a lot of fun, so I wasn't particularly disciplined with the arrangement. Doesn't help that I also can't really mix for toffee, and the dynamics got lost in the reverb, so sorry for that.

Kevin Chow

The Frontier

The Timeless Clock

Written: 2021

I've actually been trying to thinking of something to give this title for a decade, something that had a slightly above average tempo with a slightly tragic feel, so really the complete opposite of what I normally do - start with a title first and then write the music. Since I don't write for a purpose these days though it had to wait until something that came out of my brain fit the title, and so here we are.
Having an ongoing piano background gives it a little pace, and while this is also a practice piece for CSS strings (those attacks are really laggy!) I think I pulled off the expression better than most. 
I also stuck to piano, strings and percussion. I could have quite easily added woods and some brass to this but decided against it because otherwise I'd end up with a bit of a mess come mixdown like I normally do. 


Tools:
Cubase 9.5, Acoustica
8Dio Adagio & Agitato Cellos, Violins; Impact Soundworks Rhapsody Percussion; Cinematic Studio Strings I, EWQLSOPP (Harp), NI Komplete 11 "The Gentleman" (Piano)

The Timeless Clock

The Road Ahead

It has been a while coming. 
There is a long way yet to go.
Those of you who are still with us
Hang in there, it'll get better.

Tools:
Cubase 9.5 (DAW), Acoustica (Post)
8Dio Adagio & Agitato Cellos, Violins; Impact Soundworks Rhapsody Percussion; Cinematic Studio Strings & Solo Strings I, EWQLSOPP, NI Komplete 11 "The Gentleman" (Piano), Spitfire Brass (Trumpets, Horns, Bones), Vienna Symphony Library (Woods I).

The Road Ahead

Roquefort and Spam

Written: Early November 2014


After attending VGL, I wanted to write an orchestral masterpiece that was melancholy in execution, incorporated sweeping motifs that tied together an epic scope with memorable thematic narratives that concluded in a beautiful climax.

So, uh, ummm; mission complete... ?

Tools:
Cubase 5, EWQLSOPP (the one violin patch), Sampletank 2, Independence Pro (FINALLY got the bastard working), ymVST, Wavelab 6.


And to think that I don't even *like* cheese.

Roquefort And Spam

The Big Cheese

Written: Mid February 2015

The third track in my "planned-with-hindsight" Four Cheeses bunch of tracks. Yep - it's a boss tune. 
The nice thing about demostyle is that I don't need to give anywhere near as many damns about dynamics and fine-tuning, which for me means I'm maximising the creative component of writing music. Plus, stuff like this is good practice for the mastering process...

Tools:
Cubase 5, EWQLSOPP (the one violin patch), Sampletank 2, Massive & Battery, ymVST, Wavelab 6.

I still don't like cheese, unless it's, say, part of a pizza...


The Big Cheese

Fledgling
#1 Beginning
Release: 20/03/2016

Tools:
Cubase 8.5, EWQLSOPP, VSL Woodwinds, 8Dio Violins, 8Dio Cellos, Spitfire Brass, Wavelab 6

Fledgling - Beginning

Fledgling
#2 Exodus
Release: 20/03/2016

Tools:
Cubase 8.5, EWQLSOPP, VSL Woodwinds, 8Dio Violins, 8Dio Cellos, Spitfire Brass, Wavelab 6

Fledgling - Exodus

Fledgling
#3 Fall
Release: 20/03/2016

Tools:
Cubase 8.5, EWQLSOPP, VSL Woodwinds, 8Dio Violins, 8Dio Cellos, Spitfire Brass, Wavelab 6

Fledgling - Fall

Fledgling
#4 Ascent
Release: 20/03/2016

Tools:
Cubase 8.5, EWQLSOPP, VSL Woodwinds, 8Dio Violins, 8Dio Cellos, Spitfire Brass, Wavelab 6

Fledgling - Ascent

Fledgling
#5 Goodbye
Release: 20/03/2016

Tools:
Cubase 8.5, EWQLSOPP, VSL Woodwinds, 8Dio Violins, 8Dio Cellos, Spitfire Brass, Wavelab 6

Fledgling - Goodbye

Lullaby

Written: June 2017

A slow, melancholy waltz suitable for a contemplative late evening.
Incidentally, I'm not dead, I just took a bit of a sabatical to clear my gaming log, plus a hundred or so hours in Breath of the Wild.
(Rito Village reminded me how much I missed the character of the clarinet - I'm usually an oboe person).

Tools:
Cubase 8.5, VSL Woodwinds I (Clarinet, Flute and Bassoon), 8Dio Adagio Cello, EWQLSOPP (Double Bass), Komplete 11 "The Gentleman" and "Maverick" (Pianos 1 and 2).
Wavelab 6.

Lullaby

The Frontier
4 - The Journey Onwards
Released 29/10/2017

This whole EP started as a rework of a "stub"/WIP that went nowhere.  However, something clicked during the rewrite and I ran with it, and had a heck of a lot of fun doing it.

I actually ended up writing this track first, and the result had a lot of ideas that I thought it would a good opportunity to practice expanding in out. So, this track is the start of my little adventure into this series, but the "end credits" track to the EP, which works out kinda well because it has most of the important themes in some way shape or form in the EP. Apart from adding to my cumulating tinnitus, it was a heck of a lot of fun. Kinda like Roquefort & Spam, but a bit more seriously.

Unlike with the Fledgling EP, I wasn't trying to be particular elegant with the arrangement, so for better or worse, I've written it in my usual over-orchestration matter.

Tools:
Cubase 8.5, VSL Woodwinds I (Clarinet, Flute and Bassoon), 8Dio Adagio & Agitato Violins, Cellos, and Allegretto Violas; EWQL SO-PP (various), Spitfire BML Bones, Horns and Trumpets; Komplete's  "The Gentleman".
Wavelab 6.

The Frontier - 4 The Journey Onwards (Into the Sunset)

The Frontier
3 - By The Campfire
Released 29/10/2017

This whole EP started as a rework of a "stub"/WIP that went nowhere.  However, something clicked during the rewrite and I ran with it, and had a heck of a lot of fun doing it.
I actually ended up writing the last track first, and the result had a lot of ideas that I thought it would a good opportunity to practice expanding in out. 

In order of writing, this was the last one. For some reason I seem to be writing a lot more piano these days, although I'm pretty much constrained by my lack of ability, so the actual technical complexity is quite low. Still, this track helps to reset the pace, and serves to join the first two tracks to the end, which is essentially the denouement.

Unlike with the Fledgling EP, I wasn't trying to be particular elegant with the arrangement, so for better or worse, I've written it in my usual over-orchestration matter.

Tools:
Cubase 8.5, VSL Woodwinds I (Clarinet, Flute and Bassoon), 8Dio Adagio & Agitato Violins, Cellos, and Allegretto Violas; EWQL SO-PP (various), Spitfire BML Bones, Horns and Trumpets; Komplete's  "The Gentleman".
Wavelab 6.

The Frontier - 3 By The Campfire

The Frontier
2 - Apprehension and Deliverance
Released 29/10/2017

This whole EP started as a rework of a "stub"/WIP that went nowhere.  However, something clicked during the rewrite and I ran with it, and had a heck of a lot of fun doing it.

I actually ended up writing the last track first, and the result had a lot of ideas that I thought it would a good opportunity to practice expanding in out. 
This was the third track in order of writing, and introduces the element of tension, as well as some of the main thematics that I retconned into this track.

Unlike with the Fledgling EP, I wasn't trying to be particular elegant with the arrangement, so for better or worse, I've written it in my usual over-orchestration matter.

Tools:
Cubase 8.5, VSL Woodwinds I (Clarinet, Flute and Bassoon), 8Dio Adagio & Agitato Violins, Cellos, and Allegretto Violas; EWQL SO-PP (various), Spitfire BML Bones, Horns and Trumpets; Komplete's  "The Gentleman".
Wavelab 6.

The Frontier - 2 Apprehension And Deliverance

The Frontier
1 - From Humble Beginnings
Released 29/10/2017

This whole EP started as a rework of a "stub"/WIP that went nowhere.  However, something clicked during the rewrite and I ran with it, and had a heck of a lot of fun doing it.
I actually ended up writing the last track first, and the result had a lot of ideas that I thought it would a good opportunity to practice expanding in out. So, this track is actually the second in order of writing, and serves as an introduction to the little adventure.
Unlike with the Fledgling EP, I wasn't trying to be particular elegant with the arrangement, so for better or worse, I've written it in my usual over-orchestration matter.

Tools:
Cubase 8.5, VSL Woodwinds I (Clarinet, Flute and Bassoon), 8Dio Adagio & Agitato Violins, Cellos, and Allegretto Violas; EWQL SO-PP (various), Spitfire BML Bones, Horns and Trumpets; Komplete's  "The Gentleman".
Wavelab 6.

The Frontier - 1 From Humble Beginnings

Tradecraft
Released 29/10/2017

I didn't have a specific idea in mind going in, as with my usual spontaneous method, but about half way through it sounded so inclined that I tried to reorient it with a more cold-war narrative to it (this is probably more evident in the beginning and the end, with a sojourn to India in the middle). Not to be overly political, but this feels rather timely in today's world.

Chronologically, I actually started writing this in January 2017, with the intention of writing a 3-track set to this theme, but given my usual problems, followed by running out of talent, I ended up parking it for a long while (and writing The Frontier in the meantime) before finally getting around to completing it now, just so that I have a "clean shop" going into 2018.

I also had a pair of artificial constraints, which is "no woodwinds" and "no cymbals", which is totally arbitrary and probably to the detriment of the track, but what the hey.


Tools:
Cubase 8.5/9, 8Dio Adagio & Agitato Violins, Cellos, and Allegretto Violas; EWQL SO-PP (various), Spitfire BML Bones, Horns and Trumpets; EWQL Ra.
Wavelab 6.

Tradecraft

The Lounge Lizards
Released 07/12/2019
I'm not dead, honest

Although I my piano repertoire consists mostly of ragtime played badly (I'm not a major classical fan), this is probably my first (second?) real foray into something more jazzy. Blame Adam Neely.

With that said, I have been wanting to go in this direction for some time, although not necessarily lounge/smooth/cheese jazz - it's just that right now I'm not particularly competent with the more technical side of music, despite having been doing this for 20 years. Hopefully that'll change in time.

Tools:
Cubase 9.5, Wavelab 6
Piano: The Maverick (Kontakt)
Sax: Straight Ahead Jazz Horns Tenor Sax
Cello: 8Dio Adagio Cellos
Drums: Battery 4
Bass: something something Yellowtools

The Lounge Lizards

Raindrops and Stormclouds
Released 07/12/2019

Technically I wrote this after Lounge Lizards, which had been lying around on the computer for a couple of months beforehand; I just decided to finish them both up at the same time.

This is a pretty straghtforward track - a little more progressive than I'm used to, which was interesting, but otherwise good practice for such slower-paced things. Arrangement is also pretty basic, and as always I spent more time fussing over the technical aspects rather than the creative ones, but such is life.

Tools:
Cubase 9.5, Wavelab 6
8DIO Adagio Vioins & Cellos & Strings Anthology
Cinebrass Core
The Maverick (probably)
EWQLSOPP for the harp.

Raindrops and Stormclouds

Raindrops And Stormclouds

The Returners
Released 22/03/2020

(Yep, I played FF6 a looong time ago, although when the rest of the FFs came out, I never really had the time or consoles to keep that up. The music has nothing else to do with FF though.)

This is the track that almost made me quit, mostly because it had a number of good ideas in it but they were all disconnected, and I tried very hard to try and link them all together. If I were a better composer, it might have come out better and not been a disconnected mess, but such is life.

I originally started writing this track in March 2018 - the name came from a Returners T-shirt that I got in one of the GDQs in years gone by, and although there was a potential wealth of associated inspiration, I basically went off the name alone, and did my own thing. I did have one aim though - write a 10 minute track.

It's a pretty shitty aim, as it's pretty arbitrary when it doesn't have a specific purpose, and as expected I ended up writing a large number of disconnected ideas, although the way it evolved the track had two natural parts.

I spent a hell of a lot of hours trying to reconcile everything, but the fact of the matter was that the first part was a confused mess, and the best idea that I had was to just drop it and concentrate on the second half. I could, in theory, revisit the first half, but I'd probably have to throw away quite a lot just to make it work, so... sod it.

Fast forward to the flustercluck that is early 2020, and I've spent a lot of time trying to figure out the mixing process. It's still a mess, but as good as I'm probably going to get with an inconsistent and dense arrangement like this. 

Either way, I'm done - time to move on with life. I'll try and get the next one out quicker. ;o)


Tools:
Cubase 9.5, Wavelab 6
8DIO Adagio & Agitato Vioins & Cellos
Cinebrass Core
VSL Woodwinds I & II
Spitfire Bones, Horns and Trumpets
Impact Soundworks Percussion
EWQLSOPP
Probably more things I've forgotten

The Returners

The Race Against Time

Written: End of 2020

This was a combination of ideas, mainy the slow bit at the beginning and the Zimmer-style staccato. Arrangement in Cubase was actually finished before Christmas 2020 so I've already managed to forget most of the driving force behind it, but I do remember that trying to maintain some semblance of musical continuity was a bit tricky when you have disparate sections that seemingly have no connection. 
Turned out okay, for the most part, although my usual over-orchestration ended up happening again, with the associated mixing/mastering difficulties.

Tools:
Cubase 9.5
VSL Woodwinds I&II; 8Dio Adagio & Agitato Cellos, Violins and Anthology; Impact Soundworks Rhapsody Percussion; Spitfire Bones, Horns & Trumpets; Cinebrass Core, Cinematic Studio Strings I, EWQLSOPP (Strings & Flute 2), Komplete 11 "The Gentleman"

De_Gopher

Pinned to spotlight

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