Name: Mosaic by q_u_b_i_k
Duration: 3 min 55 s
Description: A dark techno/electro EDM track type thing.

It is a wonderful gradation of sound, just as the title suggests.

(Free WAV Download available here under '••• More'; and eventually, as part of a future solo album)

Greetings all you fun and funky SC musicians. I don’t typically upload remastered versions of a song as a new track. I usually just replace the old with the new, and change the title to reflect the remaster. But this one is special, for a few reasons (and if you’re not much into personalized mixing details, you may want to skip this liner note).

First (and most importantly)… I thought I’d lost the ability to edit the original tracks for this song. The last time I opened it up in Logic (updating it for the 2018 album remaster), the siren voices were all messed up (automation in Alchemy can have odd results sometimes). I just assumed the original native file was broken forever, because I no longer had access to that version of Logic. I had to do the album remaster from my only existing mix… and it was definitely lacking.

4 years later, I’m so glad I took a chance on reopening the native file when I concluded this ‘Siren’ trilogy. All the sounds/automations were exactly as I had left them. Prior to this attempt, I just assumed the worst, and never tried again. Thankfully, I was wrong. :D

Second… the remaster turned out much better than I hoped; and the differences were so satisfying, I thought it might be fun to have both versions up (for a side by side comparison, for any interested musicians out there. Here's the older version: https://soundcloud.com/grevusanjl/siren-rising).

So why does this one sound so much better than the original version? (And please take all of this with a grain of salt. I’m no pro. But I have discovered what works for me.)

Honestly, a tremendous amount of credit goes to having a much better understanding of Compression. For many folks, Compression is almost a dirty word. Just the title of the plug-in alone confused me at first. Why would I possibly want to compress my sounds, when I liked them as is? 

But it turns out (for me at least) that the different Compression options really shine when chosen specifically, and used minimally. As an example (and I’m not sure if your DAW offers similar options, but), Studio VCA works brilliantly with strings, female vocals and many of my favorite synths. But Studio FET works great on drums. Etc. And while some might cringe at the idea, I absolutely love what Soft Distortion does to most tracks as well. Used in mild amounts, Soft Distortion adds a phenomenal amount of spacial quality to the sound. I don’t use this one all of the time, but I bet I use it at least 75% of the time now (and Compression in general on about 95% of the tracks).  So there you go… I’m definitely a big fan of Compression… when used responsibly. :)

In addition, I’ve also learned a lot about EQing since I first did this song in 2017; so much so, that I was actually baffled by some of my earlier choices. So a large amount of the repair/update time for the 2022 remaster was spent on getting the EQing for each track set up more effectively.

And finally, I had the opportunity to give the full mix a healthy rebuild. After 5 years, you’re undoubtedly going to have a very fresh perspective on a piece. And I realized a lot of the sounds simply weren’t in their optimal positions in the stereo field. I also reconsidered where sounds faded in and out, and how intensely they did so… and I updated all of that as well. 

And there you have it, the story/history behind one of my all time personal favorites. I’m so glad I had an opportunity to revisit this one (while leaving all the original instruments true to form), and I hope you enjoy all the latest sound enhancements as well. I’m excited to hear what you think of my ’Siren Rising (2022 Remaster)’. :D

WTF! The Musical

Siren Rising - 2022 REMASTER

Yo way simple and straight from the heart.

See Ya Later, Persephone

The last track made for the album Time Enough At Last, released in 2O22
Grab it here: https://zuunzug.bandcamp.com/album/time-enough-at-last
Le dernier morceau réalisé pour l'album Time Enough At Last, sorti en 2O22

Time Enough At Last

Kali

Album

A dark techno/electro EDM track type thing.

Mosaic

Octaeder

Beachside Ripple

Boffins Are Baffled

Nine

Park Hanoi instagram :https://www.instagram.com/parkhanoi/
aurakrai instagram :https://www.instagram.com/aurakrai/

Bleeding Out (w/ Aurakrai)

Cumulus

Cutting Edge Cutting Hedge

Hailing from Essex, QUBIKS’s sound is a kaleidoscopic post-house clash of loops and glitchy percussive beats, overlaid with lush synths and subtle melodies. QUBIK first started creating electronic music in the late nineties with collaborations with Matt O’Brien and Alien. Solo tracks followed with several vinyl releases via Off Key Records.

One part of Control Voltage Events; running regular electronic music nights in Essex and organiser of the Chelmsford EMOM, links below.

Mosaic

q_u_b_i_k

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