UPDATE: If you like this, then check out Dying Breed: https://soundcloud.com/fynix_fynix/drizztopher-walken-dying-breed

When I first wrote this beat, I thought it was a little too old school. I thought it was a little old fashioned, and just plain. But damn! @drizzty said he would write something, and he completely rejuvenated the beat!

I started with just a simple keyboard riff. It's just a basic bass riff in the left hand and chord stabs in the right hand. It's not very active, and it alternates between IM7 and IVM7.

The rest of the beat just fell in place after that. I layered on saxophone, bass, strings, drum kit, and auxilliary drums.

At first I sent this beat to another rapper, but he said it wasn't his style. So I was worried that it was a little stale. Then I sent it to @drizzty and I expected to hear the same thing. But when I got his rhymes, they seemed to hug the beat. Like the rhymes and the beat were forged as one.

The two flowed so well together that I did almost no editing. I shortened up the intro and put a fade on the end, but otherwise I just dropped in the vocals.

Thanks for listening!

Tempo (feat. Drizztopher Walken)

Our submission for the second community cypher at therapcommunity.mn.co.

When I started writing this, I wanted to write something that people wanted to rap over. So I deliberately left it pretty open. I just tried to make the bass big, and write a decent drum part. Then I put a big horn part at the end, and people seemed to like it so I went with that.

The verses are by three different performers, @itztitoreal, @StephRamen, and @grxod

How it Began feat. Tito, Steph Ramen, GRxOD

So this track began life as an experiment. I wanted to write something so slow and chill that it was difficult for a vocalist to work with. I dragged the tempo down as far as I dared, then put a super slow chord progression in place. Then I soaked it in reverb and ambient synthesizers.

Of course, the idea that a track is difficult to work with only makes sense for rappers who are inexperienced, or who just aren't very versatile. So I sent the track to @drizzty and he loved it. He wrote something in like one or two nights, and I was just gobsmacked.

There was definitely a reciprocal or iterative pattern of development on this track though. When he sent me the vocals, I reworked the track to fit the feel of the vocals. Then I edited the vocals a bit, and he wanted to redo the vocals. So we did a bunch of rounds of editing.

In the end, we ended up with a track that sounds very lonely. We sort of dug into the idea of solitude, and loneliness to the Nth degree. I think it works, and I hope you like it too!

Thanks for listening!

Drizztopher Walken - Somber Sonnets

Damn, how can I describe this one? TLDR, @djcohen and @drizzty made a banger, and I got to spice it up a bit.

This track started on therapcommunity.mn.co. I said we should trade remixes and when the time came to do it, I was working with @djcohen. We talked about which tracks to trade, and when he mentioned GBAD, I was completely on board. 

The problem with a tune like this is that the original mix is such a banger that it's difficult to know exactly what to do. You don't want to completely tear it down and destroy what's there, but you need to do something to remix it.

I started by shortening it a bit. I took out one repeat of the refrain and a little bit of the intro and outro. Then I pulled out all the drum layers except the kick and the snare. This left the track feeling pared-down and minimal. So I started building from there.

I noticed the lack of a deep bass, so I added a bass. It mostly stays on one note, but I put in a descending riff on the refrain. Then I wanted to draw out the theme of time travel in the lyrics, which is already represented in DJ Cohen's original mix by lots of reversed sounds. So I added reversed drums in spots. Then I tacked a little reversed section on the intro. Then I added tape-stop/scratch effects to put in little reversed bits here and there.

Finally, I added a few little extra touches. I added the crowd noise when the final verse begins. I added risers. I added a glitchy outro that I wanted to sound like a CD skipping (which is retro these days).

Then I spent a few days tweaking the mix, and that was it.

A million thanks to @djcohen and @drizzty for letting me remix their dope track!

Go Buy a Delorean (Drizztopher Walken, DJ Cohen) FYNIX Remix

Alisa said she wanted to come over to jam, so I sat down at my piano to write something. I spent about 15 minutes working out a simple refrain at the piano, then shifted to the computer to lay out a rough sketch. When she came over later that day, we laid down the vocal for the refrain.

Then I layered in my usual instruments and synthesizers. I added some vocal effects and risers, then I shared it on therapcommunity.mn.co. I asked for anyone who was interested to write me a rhyme for it.

Of course, the hardest working rapper in the game, @drizzty, got back to me first. He wrote a catchy lyric that fit with the refrain.

After getting the vocals, I spent about a month tweaking the arrangement and the synthesizers. I'm still not totally happy with the arrangement, but I think it's in a good place. I got such a good performance from the vocalists that I really can't screw up the music that bad.

Thanks for listening!

In the Middle of the Night (feat. Drizztopher Walken and Alisa Tantraphol)

I have a sentimental feeling for this track. When I first had kids I kind of vanished from the music scene. I both stopped making music and stopped going to concerts. The album that finally got me back into it was Pharmacy by @wearegalantis. I loved that album, and I went to see Galantis when they were in SF, and now I'm back to my old life of making music and going to concerts as often as I can.

So I took my kids to the beach last week, and what did they ask to listen to in the car? The "peanut butter jelly song"! At first I assumed I was in for something dreadful, when my wife pulled up "Peanut Butter Jelly" by @wearegalantis.

It was so strange, to hear this song that I loved, being sung by my kids. So I thought that when I got back from vacation I would write a straight-ahead, happy, poppy dance track in the style of one of my favorite pop acts of all time, Galantis.

I wrote this track the day we got back from the beach, and it just came together in one day. I improvised a riff on the piano, then arranged it in Reaper. I wanted to put my own spin on things, so I included a little solo section in the middle. Then I added risers and effects, and that was pretty much it.

Thanks for listening!

Don't Stop Me Now

This track is difficult to describe. I've found my love for @wearegalantis again and I'm letting that influence filter into my music. So this is a pretty straight ahead dance/trance track until the trappy break arrives in the middle.

This track began with the riff on the steel drums. Although the first riff I wrote was completely different. In fact, it was a bit derivative of the simple riff at the beginning of Hey Aligator. But I wrote the entire track around an imitation of that riff that just goes 7-1 on the downbeat.

I wrote the vocal part, then the breakdown, and pretty much had the entire track in place. The track was too much of an imitation of Hey Alligator though, so my last job was to go back and rewrite the steel drum part.

After rewriting the steel drum part, I added the big toms, the risers, and the musique concrete. I wanted to use crashing ocean waves as some spice here and there so I scattered it throughout.

In the end, the track was way too long. Clocking in at 5:46, this is the longest track I've uploaded to SoundCloud. I like to make pop music so this seems to be two minutes too long. Still, when I listen to it, I feel like the form is just "right" in this way. So I decided to release this mix and just give it the "Trance" tag.

In the future I may go back and make a shorter pop mix.

Thanks for listening!

I'm So Shy (Trance Mix)

My daughters had been asking about my music. They were curious about what I spend all my time doing at my computer. It's confusing. When I play the piano, they can immediately see and hear what I'm doing. But when I make music on my computer, it doesn't outwardly look like anything other than playing some music (on Spotify, Pandora, etc). So they started asking me questions, and eventually they came up with the idea that they wanted to use the microphone.

So ten days ago I set up the mic in the kitchen, and I told them to shout all these various things. Since Lucy is four years old, and Leta is two, it was immensely adorable. I will eventually share the results on FreeSound.

Right after the recording session, I edited their voices into this track, and it just came out perfectly. They are the perfect finishing touch for this pop/edm track.

As usual, thanks for listening!

Love Grows Gradually

I wanted to do a remix of @drizzty's dope Magnum Opus track, but it was a little tricky because the original setting/samples are so strong. The original backing track is so good that I thought I couldn't really do a new take on it if I used them.

So I scrapped them entirely and rewrote the entire backing track. As usual, I did a mix of pop and soul. The track really grooved when I got a few sax stabs behind it. Then I edited down the vocals a bit, and the track was pretty much done. 

Getting the vocals to sit right took me a long time, but I'm proud of the result!

Drizztopher Walken - Magnum Opus (FYNIX Remix)

This story begins in a thrift store. I was browsing the racks at Goodwill, trying to replenish my stock of vintage tees, when I spotted an unusual sweater in the rack across the aisle.

I remember being dragged to thrift stores by my mother in the 1980s and 1990s, and they were always stocked with sweaters like this one. If you were wearing vintage turtlenecks in the 1990s, then the thrift stores in Pittsburgh had you covered. At the time, I couldn't fathom anyone ever wearing them.

And I guess nobody did, because you NEVER see sweaters like that in thrift stores today. So when I saw it there, it just jumped out at me.

It was exactly my size and in perfect condition. It was a dark brown that almost matches my hair. I never wear turtleneck sweaters, but for some reason this one seemed just too good to pass up.

So I took it to a changing room in the back, and when I pulled it over my head I was suddenly at a loft party in 1962. The carpet was orange, the people were wearing natural fabrics, and the women's hair was hairsprayed up into impossible styles. Everyone was smoking. The air was so thick with smoke that I started coughing immediately. Nobody reacted to me or even seemed to think I was out of place.

I walked over to the bar and looked around for a glass. There was some sort of kerfuffle by the door. The host was closing his door in anger. Then he threw something at a girl. He saw me, and pasted a smile on his face.

"Hey buddy, I didn't see you get here," he said as he extended his hand. "I'm Peter."

"Fynix," I said with a dazed expression.

"I assume you didn't come with him," he said as he gestured toward the door amid scattered laughter. "You like a Martini?"

"Sure."

When I took a sip of the drink, this was the music I heard.

Turtleneck Sweater

I'm not going to lie. When I put on that Turtleneck Sweater and found myself at a party in 1962, I felt very free. Being displaced in time has a way of freeing you from your worries and inhibitions. So I had a little too much to drink.

When I woke up the next day I was in the back seat of a Chevrolet from the late 1950s. Rain was pouring down on the roof and windows. We were parked outside of a diner in the city. I was bleary eyed and sore.

Then I noticed there was a girl wrapped in a thick pea coat asleep in the front seat, her red hair curled thickly around her shoulders. When she heard me moving she started coming around. When she sat up and looked at me, we both just started laughing uncontrollably.

"Who are you?" she asked when the laughing subsided.

"I'm Fynix," I said as I pointed at the diner. "Do you want to get breakfast?"

"Yes," she said as she pulled herself together.

As I walked into the diner, I noticed a sign that read "Whites Only." For a moment I was taken aback. I'd never seen anything like it before. The girl noticed my reaction and pretended not to notice by looking at her shoes and fixing her hair.

"I'm sorry," I said. "I just remembered that I didn't know your name either."

"I'm Theresa," she said.

"After Mother Theresa?" I asked as I held the door for her.

"If that is another name for St. Teresa, then yes. My parents are Catholic."

"But not you?" I asked cheerfully, but at this too, she responded by looking at her feet. She seemed distressed, and I felt obtuse. A minute later a waitress led us to a booth and I slid in across from her.

For a moment we looked a menus in silence. Then I caught her eye.

"I don't think we..."

"What?" she interrupted with shock.

"We didn't..."

"No. Of course not."

"Right," I said and looked back at my menu. "It's just that my memory is a little hazy. I don't even remember talking to you last night."

"To be honest," she replied, "I don't remember much either. But I would remember THAT."

We ordered coffee and pancakes.

"Where are you from?" she asked.

"Out of town" I replied vaguely. I didn't know where honesty would lead.

"You had a full gas tank though."

"That's not my car," I shot back.

"Well it's not mine," she said. "I don't even know how to drive." Then she reflexively looked down, but she had no shoes to look at. So she spooned some sugar into her coffee and stirred it carelessly.

"I'm sorry, but I can't remember how we met last night. You seem upset. Did I..."

Then she started crying.

This was the music they were playing in the Diner.

Back Seat Window

This remix was really a treat. The vocals on Bad Vibe Queen are so great. I'm honored to be able to remix them. The vocalist is @peignchip.

I started by editing the vocals a bit. I removed a couple bits that didn't fit with the remix, then I crafted a refrain out of two lines that sounded good together. Then I nudged everything up by one semitone because I thought it sounded nice, and to put it in an easy key.

Then I tinkered with various basslines and chord progressions to try to see what worked with the vocals. I experimented with lots of different instruments, but in the end I thought a pretty sparse setting with just bass and organ sounded best.

Finally, I added all the little EDM touches. I added risers, drum fills, and formant shifting.

It was actually a really easy remix because I started with such a great vocal.

7thPathPeign - Bad Vibe Queen (FYNIX Remix)

There's so much greatness in this track that it's hard for me to talk about. The original song and vocal part by Courtney Grace is excellent. It was really easy to recontextualize it in an interesting way, and Drizz's featured verse really ties it together.

Check out the original here: https://soundcloud.com/courtney-grace-11/i-wanted-you-you-wanted-me

Check out Drizztopher Walken here: https://soundcloud.com/drizzty

Courtney Grace - I Wanted You, You Wanted Me (FYNIX remix, feat. Drizztopher Walken)

Check out M. Jay's amazing work here: https://soundcloud.com/mjayofficial

M. Jay - Love Is (FYNIX Remix)

Check out Darius Mines on SC: https://soundcloud.com/dariusmines/tracks

Darius Mines - Alone (FYNIX Remix)

Check out Drizztopher Walken: https://soundcloud.com/drizzty

The End of Summer (feat. Drizztopher Walken)

Check out Cameron London: https://soundcloud.com/cameronlondon

Rise Above (feat. Cameron London)

Check out On Tilt: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6vLWc0YAtJYuOzRkF4c9bs?si=8AEBY7H3R6W2nVHsdny0Tw

Minimal Funk (feat. On Tilt)

Check out Meltt: https://soundcloud.com/melttmusic

Meltt - Love Again (FYNIX Remix)

Darius Mines - Fish Out of Water (FYNIX Remix)

Check out Informal here: https://soundcloud.com/musicofinformal

Check out Drizztopher Walken here: https://soundcloud.com/drizzty

Informal - Close (FYNIX Remix, feat. Drizztopher Walken)

Check out the original here: https://soundcloud.com/gianni-matteo/boo-hoo-1

Gianni Matteo - Boo Hoo (FYNIX Remix)

C3LO really transformed this beat. I think I made it a little too syncopated at first, but he managed to find the groove and turn it into gold. Check him out: https://soundcloud.com/celoambriz

C3LO - InMyCity (prod. FYNIX)

Check out Flüsso: https://soundcloud.com/nicoluciani

Work (feat Flüsso)

Drowning

Knocking

Don't sleep on C3LO: https://soundcloud.com/celoambriz

C3LO - Inception (FYNIX Remix)

A preview cut from the Drowning EP coming in December.

When It Breaks

I'm just a DJ with a time machine.

Based in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Send me a DM for bookings/remixes/collabs, or hmu on email: contact [at] fynixmusic [dot] com

"FYNIX has taken the time and consideration to build something from scratch yet that allows the natural soul of the original song to shine with absolute brightness. Beautifully done." - Stereo Stickman

FYNIX

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