Studio Projects Progress Reporting Thursday January 27th 2011

On a roll

My studio work is flowing beautifully. I am remixing, producing, editing, and thriving today. I produce at least two tracks a week and have taken something priceless away from the experience of re editing for fun. I remembered fun. I also read a great book called ‘Art and Fear’ which I think every single artist should read, but mostly I discovered that despite my relative financial failure, my complete and abject failure as a business man (something I should have never tried to do and will never do again) I was having fun, real live actual fun producing electronic music again.

So whenever I break down in tears at my desk – something which happens a few times a week still – I stop, I look up, and I ask myself “How can I make this fun?” And I get this malicious little look on my face and I begin to get into mischief. I route the drums through a ring modulator and destroy them. I grab Dennis Ferrer’s amazing kick drum and side chain it through a compressor and suck the bassline out of the mix completely whenever it hits, I grab the mic and start recording one of my diatribes, and then once the song is done I delete the track, I play the work in progress on Sunday Soul, and for friends – as an act of objectivity and trust – and actually listen to what they have to say about the songs. Most importantly I have given up imagining that there is some utilitarian purpose for this work, even though there most certainly is, I am a musician, and musicians make music. That’s what I’m doing. And I’ve never had more fun or been more satisfied with the outcome.

Progress Report

Updated February 9th 2011

Of the two records principal recording for all the tracks is done and has been complete for some time. However, for the King Street album it’s not that simple…. I need to consider the tempo (remember, they wanted 125bpm and I was working at 118bpm – things don’t sound good when you simply speed them up usually) and they want the main song, a dub mix, an instrumental and a acapella of each tune. For the Treehouse Muzique album I could easily just slap something together, but the spirit of the record is meant to pay tribute to you, and to me too. So that will never do. Here is the status of the records thus far:

King Street Album

Belda can’t find the groove (cause she had it the whole time)

1. Come To Me
main mix
instrumental
acapella
* working on a re edit

2. We Are What We Are
main mix*
dub version
instrumental
acapella

* still not happy with the main mix
trouble is do i include the diatribe or not

3. Dirty Love
rough and long mix
dub edit
instrumental
acapella

* working on a re edit for the album

4. This Love
down tempo version
acapella
instrumental

* struggling with how to make this a dance track

5. While You Were Sleeping featuring Carmen Martines
main mix
dub version
instrumental
acapella

6.Do It For The Music
Rough mix done
* still need final version
instrumental
acapella

7. I Can Feel Sunlight On My Face
dub version
instrumental
acapella

* still need to find a way to make this a dance floor track

8. Beautiful Daydream
rough version done – 14.22

* need to edit and produce a cogent arrangement

Treehouse Muzique

Gas Masks and Crazy-Girls

1. Higher
handmade mix
instrumental
acapella

2. The Sky Is Full Of Stars
rough version
live version

* still working on a formal studio version
instrumental
acapella

3. The Absurdity Of Possession
rough mix
live version
main mix
instrumental
acapella

4. mememe
rough version
live version

* still working on the official version
instrumental
acapella

5. Out Here
basic tracking done
needs final arrangement

6. Fill Up My Heart
main mix
instrumental
acapella

* still want to do a re edit or handmade version for the album

7. Secrets
main mix
edit
* Cure Cover

8. Rise
main vocal version
instrumental
edit
* Not sure about this either because it’s a Herb Alpert Re Edit with my vocals and drums

Tracks I’m still not sure what to do with:

1. Four Million Miles
main mix
instrumental
acapella
2. I’ll Take You There
basic tracking done
needs final arrangement
3. I Got Your Back
vocal version
dub version
instrumental version
acapella

Closing Remarks

I have also been very busy at the end of last year and the start of this one already with remixing. I completed remixes for Jaswho? – ‘Longtime’ Remixes and ‘Eye2Eye’ Remixes for New Droid Muzik, I completed a complete rework of ‘The Sun’ by Heat Merchantz for Hallucination Ltd., I completed a rework of ‘Future’ by Halo for Siesta, ‘Hubabuba’ by Dana Bergquist, ‘Peak Time’ by Native Intelligence and a remix of Statedlife’s lovely and amazing ‘Soul Touching.’
You can hear some of these mixes (and many of the re edits as well) on my soundcloud account and you can also hear more of the original tracks in the shop at treehouse muzique.

I also scored my first score. Dancer, choreographer, and visionary Jenni Bregman approached me at the planning stages of her residency at the Garage SF for her pice titled ‘Intimate City‘ and I agreed to collaborate with her. I produced my first score, and the piece was so beautiful. I found this to be completely inspirational, and want to do a lot more work like this and a lot more work with Jenni.

I’ve got a few more remixes in the queue, but they are all going to have to wait for me to get these two albums done. I think we’ve all waited quite long enough, and despite my trials and tribulations it’s time to focus on my own music.

In other news, I’m playing a lot this year already, For the first time since 2009 I am personally outbooking Dubtribe Sound System by at least 5 to 1. I have a very full schedule extending out until June of 2011 already – including a trip back to Asia, Florida, Washington DC, Baltimore, Seattle, San Francisco, Panama, Canada, Los Angeles, Denver, Asheville, Atlanta, Raleigh, and more… It’s on for me everywhere apart from Europe. Dear as my friends are there, and devoted and beloved as we are to each other, it just hasn’t come together there for me yet. But I believe it will.

Thanks for letting my play catch up here, and I hope you are as inspired and having even half as much fun as I am. All is well. And I trust and believe that you are well and loved and happy.

Yours,
Sunshine

4 Comments

  1. lorin:

    please let me know (in advance this time!) when you will be Atlanta. :)

  2. Sunshine:

    Right now we’re talking about the weekend of march 19th
    And… I’ve started putting a little concise list of upcoming bookings right here on the index page of this site.
    Hopefully with months notice you won’t miss it.

    : )

  3. Lance:

    Will Dallas ever reappear on your radar? You still got it Sunshine, I purchased your ‘Seven Tracks’ album and it gets airplay weekly.

  4. Sunshine:

    I’m not sure about Dallas. There’s nothing planned or in discussion at the moment. Dubtribe played a lot in Texas last summer. What can you tell me about the deeper, more personal electronic music situation in Dallas these days? If there’s a posse I’d love to come rock it!