The girl from Ipanema (Jobim)

When I started to do this track, it's purpose was to appear in a commercial of a motorboat company. So the film that was given to me was full of epic wakeboard-shots, captured by the great outdoor DOPs and camera-operators Raphi Schläppi and Menk Ruifbach from Switzerland.

So the idea was to create something «Sparkling, Fresh and Wet». These were my lead-tags in order to start working. I knew instantly that I want to give it a modern color. So digital syths were a must. I wanted big pads that filled out the space in the slower start and midpart.

At the same time I wanted something that people also could dance to. Something for a cool summer night in a beach club. That requirement screams after a simple but pulsing beat and some catchy (electric) bass. Very simple but yet very effective. In this situations a always trust my guts. If you have a 4/4 beat there are some very effective articulation in it's rhthmic structure to add that dance/disco-feel. 

I was always amazed by the simplicity and effetifity of the eurpbeat and trance rhythms of the 90s or some badass HipHop-grooves tahat just get to your ear and made you shake your body. I came up with something like this:

Low, bassy drumhit in the «1» and th «3and»
High, clappy drumhit on the «2» and «4»

Sothe 4/4 beat is arranges by a micro-time of 8th notes.
The microtime strikes at «3 and».

A further element, that for me provides that freshness are some funky guitars in the style of Neil Rodgers (Chic, Daft Punk etc). On thing that love «Get Lucky» for, is that it brught back these funky guitar to a global audience. So that was the direction i wanted to to go with it. I arranged them a little left-side in the stereomix because I wanted then not to jump literally in your face.

Sparkling, Fresh and Wet - without vocals (Electro/Dance)

Rain Commander

The Core of Things

Musical pieces like that are somehow always in my mind. They are part of what I like very much in ife: Fantasy, myths and legends. The books, the music, the movies...many areas of art were inspired by tales.
Even very old tales are still common good: 'Odyssey', 'Antigone', the whole Bible, 'Das Nibelungenlied', 'Hänsel und Gretel', 'The little prince'...

These are all stories I came in touch with, when I was very young. Some I didn't understand back then and were intellectually 'too far away'. But that doesen't really mattered because they made me think about stuff way beyond reality, way beyond the laws of physics and why I had to go to school and do homework...

I heavily got into metal music around the age of 14. It was around that time that I became hooked by the whole 'power metal' genre (I don't know their names anymore. But great bands like 'Kamelot', 'Gamma Ray' or 'Savatage'). I started to realize how many images this music provoces. Images of the medieval times, of battles, and kings and wizzards...

There were many bands  that also started to add orchestral parts to their composition. Because there is nothing as epic as an orchestra. And the is nothig more 'into-your-face' that a metal band. 

In my opinion both genres were somehow reinvented by this fusion. It was a perfect fit and meant to be. Some bands took the stoy element more far and started to create real concept albums. 

To me there are two albums that sum up everything I love about this genre. Records that made me feel an incredibly strong sense of storytelling, combined with a immense creativity and virtuosity.
Ok, here are these albums:

1: 'The Odyssey' by Symphony X (2002)
2:  'Six degrees of inner turbulence' by Dream Theater (2002)

I know there are bands like 'Rush' or 'Savatage'...but these are my two goldies.

To me this music is like film music. maybe a litle too rock/metal-like but it tells stories. Soooooooooo many stories!
And both albums were actually concept-albums, meaning that the music was written around a certain story.

The Tale of the Crystal Gate - Chapter VI (Modern Orchestral)

This piece is funky and groovy and shaky, shaky. Good lord, I love these kind of big-bandish soul/jazz/funk/motown-stuff. The 70s were exeptinalfor this stuff.

The harmonic structure of this pices is very sophisticated so are it's rhythms (the placements of the kicks). But it really doesen't sound like that. It all gets carried away by the straight forward 16th note-funk feel.

I mentioned the 70s because of bands like 'chic' or 'the average white band' who both took that 'james brown-type' music  into more comercially arranged area. Hyms like 'le freak' or 'pick up the pieces' represent this partucular style until today. Not too many people know even the band or song names. but as soon as they listen they go: «of course...i know that.»

but also bands who - back then - delivered this type of sound to the more sophisticated listerners, are classics in their own fields: the brecker brothers, the jaco partorius big band,  thower of power, etc.

Endless Nights at Coco's

'midnight speed' is a sort of a power-funk-groove kind of track. it is based on a dorian chord progression in c. it oviously features funky guitars in the style of nile rodgers and a pumping electric bass in the style of bernie edwards or jaco pastorius (sice it was played on a fretless). i guess that these two guys (rodgers and edwards - check out the band 'chic'. and check out jaco...what can one say?!) are always kind of the reference point if you want to go in this particular direction.

'midnight speed' basically was built around the idea of building up tension and never really release it. so sequence after sequence it gets more and more intense and heavy.

i woud have liked to have vocals on the track. but since i am a poor singer i couldn't do the job. so if there is anybody willing to give it a shot....

Marihuana

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