Originally on the 2009 album 'It's always a bit more work than you think' - from live recordings of me & Dave Nicholls on guitars, bass, keys.   can't remember who did what.  but the guitar playing is good - so it must be Dave.  the 2009 version was a great arrangement, but a terrible mixdown.  reworked here, with some vocals - but by and large the track is very simliar to what it originally was.  
when the guitars come in after the breakdown....  goosebump moment!! haha.

Turn It Off And On Again II

It's Jan 2025, and I'm putting up some of the last few tracks on albums that weren't mixed or mastered very well.  Relatively quick fixes to get the tracks out - as they're not the best on the album. (Otherwise they would have been long since sorted).
This is from Opportunity Disaster, and was written in my last 3-4 months in Shanghai.  When I was on gardening leave and had far too much time on my hands....

React To All the Divas II

This is effectively the instrumental version of 'Little Girl'.
The original chords were 'inspired' by the theme music to the video game Mass Effect Andromeda.  
I'll often write an instrumental before adding the vocals.  But i rarely keep the instrumental as a stand-alone track in it's own right.  But here, I liked the name and the cover art.  And the track's ok. Haha

Rocks in the Pool

I've just posted Slide (Green) - the slower version of this track.  Slide (Blue) is the same manic tempo as the original from 1996/97.  though I do slow it down a bit in the middle.


Slide (Blue)

A remake of the 2009 track, now that I've got Cubase working again for the source files.  resisted the temptation to overload with too many vocals!!!

Get In There II

This track was started in 2020 during Covid.  The title refers to the fact that I was down to my last few weeks before I wouldn't have any money or be able technically to stay living in Singapore as i hadn't worked for more than 6 months.  And then I got a contract, about a week before my time was up.  and then another one, another one, and thankfully now in 2025 I've been working since.  but it took a while to come back to a track called last legs.
i'd left it in 2020 as an instrumental, and put it on the album Press Pause as it was pretty much finished.  Now in 2025 it's taken a different shape with epic building vocals and a driving, if frenetic drum beat.  for some reason it reminds me of Arcade Fire, even though it doesn't really sound anything like them. some in the end finale that echoes the original take of No Cars Go.

Last Legs II

This track was originally done in 2009 for It's Always A bit More Work Than You Think.  Most of the sounds were bounced down - so it was pretty easy rebuilding it. Although it took a while to find the right Sugar Bytes Effectrix patches.  And, my word, there were quite a few of them!

As with a sizeable number of my tracks, the ending turns into a different song entirely. 
Going from G Minor to G Major.  Now with vocals added to it, the difference is even more pronounced. 

That's my on guitar (Fender Strat), recorded in Dulwich, London.  
(The original Route 15 is also up here on soundcloud, should you wish to compare and contrast.  https://soundcloud.com/gagey501/route-fifteen?si=4d8ac3b08c7549bcb594b03ae763f529&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing )

New artwork, courtesy of AI. 


Route 15 II

Well, here’s a little number for the lovers on the dance floor…. 

Originally the track ‘Galling’ from 2009’s ‘it’s always a bit more work…’ - this was an awkward track.  Never knowing whether it was in A minor, A major, D minor or D major. Some nice little guitar parts though. 

Race forward 16 years and with a trashy male vocal sample from loopcloud, it’s turned into some sort of electroclash party. 
We all just want to party? 

Cover art by AI. Check out the unfolding threesome on the right. 

You Just Came To Party Too

This is a reworking of the track 'Lighter Fluid' from 2006's Sonambuilism.  Th original is pretty much intact - except cut down from the sprawling 9 and half minutes - meandering trip hop with no hook or direction!!  Here we've got some dance vocals meant for about 135 BPM, feeling much more thoughtful and intimate when brought in at 100 bpm. 

echoes of imogen heap's hide and seek in here - not just because those words are in the vocals. though no vocoder has been used.  just waves harmonies, which is damn excellent.

Better Stay Away From Me

This is a 2025 remake of the track 'Roger Williams' from Sonamnulism in 2006.  The original name came from spending 2 weeks in New York and living in that hotel in Midtown.  I'd been to NYC once before only for a couple of days, so this was awesome.  8-9 years later, I very nearly moved there to live.  Everything was organised, and then I pulled out at the last minute after my salary was being cut to lower than in Singapore - with a massive hike in taxes.
anyhow, back to this track - it was written when i got to London.  A long ambient dub fest, where I even reecording my own singing on it.  which is very rare for that time.  
everything's pretty much kept here.  added some female vocals (giving the new track name).  some synths remapped from Atmosphere that I used back in 2006 to Omnisphere.  a touch of extra percussion and drum fills, a proper mix and master.  and here we go!
Cover art courtesy of AI image reworked in Pixlr app.

Under My Magic Spell

30+ years of writing music.  now back to lots of hardware to complement the soft synths.  And of course, the compulsion to add the kitchen sink, fridge and oven is still there!

Kit:
Logic 
Cubase
Ableton Live
Reason
Expose
Loopcloud
Arturia V collection, Pigments
Arturia microfreak, minifreak, matrixbrute, minibrute, Spark 
Roland boutique Juno, Jupiter, JP3, 808 and 909
Arturia Audiofuse
Focusrite Scarlett
Roland Jupiter Xm, JD-Xi, Gaia SH-01 MDC-1 Dance Module
Korg Modwave, microKorg, MicroKorg XL, korg ER-1, korg 05RW, kaoss pad
Novation ultranova, mininova, a-station, Circuit Tracks
Access Virus-b
Beringher Deep Mind 12, UB-Xa, TD-3, Crave, MS-1
Nord Stage EX
Sequential Prophet 2000
Waldorf Pulse
M-audio Venom
Native instruments kontakt, massive, reaktor, FM8, battery, guitar rig, traktor, maschine, absynth, and the rest of the ultimate collection 
Spectrasonics Omnisphere
Spitfire Albion 
Aria orchestra 
Softube Parallels
Waves Gold and a lot of their plug ins. Abbey Road TG, brauer motion, butch vig vocals, ovox, flow motion
Isotope ozone
Sugar Bytes effectrix, looperator, turnado, factory, cyclop, obscurium 
Audio damage dubstation, panstation
AAS lounge lizard, strum, chromophone
UVI relay 
Fender Stratocaster 
Schecfer Diamond Electric 
Line6 Pod Guitar Mukti Effects 
Boss guitar multi effects and various other pedals 
Peavey Bass 
Yamaha DTX electronic drum kit 
Alesia drum pads 
Stanton turntables

New tracks tagged #sugar bytes