20ans

Z to A.          (c2021)

#electropop #pop #vocals #house #quickonthedrawing

Polyglot

Lyrics, guitar & engineering: A.J. Kaufmann (@ajkaufmann)
Vibraphone and other instruments: Matthias am Klavier

AJ Kaufmann and me both lived in Berlin for some time and when he send me this song, I was directly inmersed in the feelings of my time living there. Not always the nicest feelings, but with a taste of art, darkness and adventure...

(obviously influenced by Bowie's, Nico's and Lou's very early sounds...) 

Lyrics:

Walking down same old alleys
Looking for my face in the wind
Imaginary radio
Plays some Sinatra for me
Yeah I know it's cheap
But it knocks me off my feet
Anyhow

There were times of wicked beauty
Met in old Berlin
A cigarette & a cup of coffee
A woman in between
Yeah I know she's fine
But she couldn't read my mind
Anyway

Give me the blues
And blow me away
For a day

With her whip she looked so sweet
And she moved with grace
Oh but I swear a man like you
Wouldn't like to be in my place
Yeah that's how it is
She's got her little whip
And a smile

We ran wildly thru the streets
Flew like the Zeppelin
Not the one that crashed to the ground
But the one that flies in your dreams
We didn't ever want to land
We had so many plans
Now they're gone

Give me the blues
And blow me away
For a day

Wild days, wilder nights
Amphetamine & drinks
Oh how I pity you catholic boys
And all you catholic girls
Joy is my name 
My woman is insane
Still we fly

Give me the blues
And blow me away
For a day

Bard's woman in the cool of the summer breeze

Little Whip

AJ Kaufmann & Matthias am Klavier - Little Whip

Targets
lyrics & music by Kate Stanton
guitar by Garrett Kirby

You're like a diamond
from pressure and heat
they'll think they crushed you
like grapes under feet
so fine wine they will drink
keep shooting at your targets
cuz we'll dodge them...

I see you child.
Blossoming through the concrete. Open your window.

Your spark was dancing 
light on the rain
puddles that glisten 
christened in the pain
we don't sulk in defeat
there's beauty in the ashes
and we'll still love them.

I see you mother.
I see you sister.
I see you brother.
I see you father,
see you child.
Oh, I see you child.

You're like a diamond
from pressure and heat
they'll think they crushed you
like grapes under feet
so fine wine they will drink
keep shooting at your targets
cuz we'll dodge them...

Targets (feat. Garrett Kirby)

Frustration

Recorded in Modesto, Ca   Featuring Alto Saxophone solo. Vibraphone solo. Flute solo. Acoustic Bass. Roland Synthesizer Bass. Acoustic Piano Rhythm. Fender Rhodes Electric Piano Rhythm. Drums Trap drum set. Percussion Ago go Bells, Triangle Partido Alto. Timbales, Cowbell, Ziljen Crash Cymbal.

Lighthouse

Midnight

Basado en la novela del escritor costarricense Jose Leon Sanchez. Quien sobrevivio mas de 30 años de prision en la Isla de San Lucas.

Basierend auf dem Roman des costaricanischen Schriftstellers Jose Leon Sanchez.  Der mehr als 30 Jahre im Gefängnis auf der Insel San Lucas überlebt hat.

Based on the novel by Costa Rican writer Jose Leon Sanchez.  Who survived more than 30 years in prison on the Island of San Lucas.

La Isla de los Hombres Solos

Overdubbed guitar duet arrangement dedicated to my wife of 20 years.
Recorded 1998
Remix version
Artwork by Joshua Lasky

Soon

This track is a tribute to the Great Australian Aboriginal artist Albert Namatjira.
On Bandcamp.

Eucalyptus Dreaming

This is my first song using only eurorack modular synth gear for all the sounds (except the beat, from a "toy" Yamaha PSS-50, & the guitar solo*).  It's also the first in decades with me doing "real" singing, haha, & whistling, wth?! ;)  It needed vocals so I made up some lyrics (below) which fit the creepy mood.  Don't worry, it's not autobiographical.

*Special thanks to Allan Abrenica for performing the guitar solo! - I composed it on a synth but it needed a real guitar.  Check him out https://soundcloud.com/lost-ph and https://soundcloud.com/ageara/tracks. Thanks as well to Steve Newland https://www.thelightafternoon.com/ for his generous assistance with noise reduction for the PSS-50 & Clint Collins https://soundcloud.com/user-836903146 for finding the perfect song image: "Hand with Reflecting Sphere" by Maurits Cornelis Escher (colorized).

Lyrics:
You, looking at me, want to know what I'm thinking
But I won't tell you oh no
Won't tell you
None of your business

Do, do you really think
There's the slightest chance
That we will ever agree on anything?

No, you're not my kind of person
No you're not my kind you see
This is just the way it is
Try not to blame it all on me

So I'm blocking your transmission?
Can you forgive this imposition
On all of your well-laid plans?
Shame on me
So inconvenient

No, you're not my kind of person
No you are not my kind you see
This is just the way it is
Try not to blame it all on me

No, you are not my kind of person
No you are not the kind I need
This is just the way it is
Try not to bleed all over, me...

-

Mirror Rant

Pieter Rotthier - Belgian artist, based in Antwerp. He produces electronic music, a blend of techno, house, ambient and experimental electronics. His music has often a darker or more melancholic vibe. It is danceable, but it also serves as a soundtrack for movies, that yet have to be made.

Quick on the drawing is also a visual artist, making drawings (hence the name), paintings and illustrations. The artwork of the tracks are exclusively made by Quick on the drawing.

Gear:
Ableton
Garageband
Arturia MK 2
Novation Launchpad MK3

Polyglot

Quick on the Drawing