Free Music Shout-Outs

I decided to give a few shout-outs to some other musicians like myself who create and distribute their music for FREE. Yep. We give it away. We're not whores, we're just a little slutty. That's better, right?

Inappropriate, I know. Sorry. I apologize to all the clean-minded, innocent young folks for my horridly "adult" language. Anyway - I'd simply like to recognize some interesting musicians who may not always be the most technically skilled, but are still creative and capable of making some interesting music that I guarantee you will never hear on the radio. They deserve our appreciation, so let's visit their various websites/pages and give 'em a try. You may find something you like, and it's FREE.

Vortech - now here is a guy that IS very technically accomplished. A one-man band with some guest vocals, Vortech create technical death-metal very inspired by Morbid Angel, but with an industrial undertone via some interesting synth backdrops and atmospheres. Heavy, fast riffage over blast-beats and deep-growl vocals. For fans of Morbid Angel, Zyklon, Deicide, Vader, etc.

Disciples of Zoldon - another tech-death one-man band. The lyrical themes revolve around the fictional God of Metal, Zoldon. I like when an artist uses their imagination to create a whole backdrop for their music, not just spew out violent, Satanic chants.

DIS - otherwise known as Aaron Schilling, from Nunya, Indiana, yet another one-man band with supreme technical mastery of his various instruments, played, programmed, or otherwise created. His project is reminiscent of a more death-metal oriented Emperor. Part Symphonic Black Metal, part Technical Death, always interesting, always heavy, and not at all cliche. I've been a fan for years, first finding his stuff at Soundclick (it's still there!) and now through Myspace and The Internet Archive.

David Fang - on a lighter note, how about some great symphonic classical music? David Fang composes soundtrack music for various video games, but his best work is composed in tribute to the TV Series, Andromeda. He has two different soundtracks available, both over an hour and a half long. You can find download links through his Myspace page, and his Soundclick page. You won't believe the great, full sounds he creates with a computer, some great orchestral sample sets, and super compositional skills.

Thulnar - still along the symphonic lines, but with some black metal mixed in, this Italian duo create an interesting mix of, well, symphonc black metal. Imagine a cross between Austria's Summoning and Italy's Rhapsody In Fire. Or if Rhapsody In Fire created a black metal album, this is probably what it would sound like.

Novistador - one-man band black metal from the frozen wastelands of Canada. Icy riffs played over blast-beats, the guitars feature a warmer, "woolier" tone than usually associated with most raw black metal. Some interesting harmonies greet us over spacey atmospheric backdrops. Harsh vocal screeches vomit forth from the glacial cavern-demons. The production on his self-titled full album is raw, yet clear, allowing us to hear every instrument. The linear song structures are just different enough from most "normal" metal to keep you listening. Highly recommended.

Jacker - here is a musician that does some great progressive-metal (in the vein of Dream Theater), without any real guitars or drums. You heard me, NO real guitars or drums (well, except for ONE guitar solo provided by the singer on one song, but THAT's ALL!). Actually very little is known about this artist. I discovered him through the Toontrack (makers of Drumkit From Hell) Forum, and didn't even realize there were no real guitars in his music until I had listened to most of his album, "The Devil Inside". He offered free downloads of the songs from this album, plus a bunch of other bonus songs at a French Music website called Audio Fanzine. I noticed that this page has recently disappeared, and his posts at the Toontrack Forum are no longer updated, so I uploaded the original album to the above link so that anyone willing would get a chance to hear his incredible music. I hope he hasn't vanished from the music scene, because it would truly be a great loss to us all.

That's all for now. Musicians like these are why I am still interested in music after 32 years of head-bangin'. And it's all FREE. Yep. These are not illegal downloads. They are authorized by the musicians themselves because they enjoy making music for people to hear. Like me.

ThanX.

Last iZ First - a few steps ahead

I've only taken a few "baby steps" ahead on my latest project. A minor snag has been hit with a few of the later songs - I've programmed a few parts that I simply cannot play on guitar. The earlier songs I began composing with actual guitar playing in mind, but the later ones I just let go and added a bunch of parts that are well beyond my ability. Maybe Steve Vai could play them, but I doubt he'd agree to it.

I am reminded of a scene at the end of "Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure" where Bill insists they'd become famous rock stars if they could only get Eddie Van Halen to join their band, Wylde Stallionz. And Ted, with a touch of maturity showing through, replies, "Maybe we should learn how to play our instruments first?" Or something to that effect, anyway.

Well, I do know how to play guitar, just not quite as good as the notes I've programmed, so maybe I'll do one of two things, ...

1. Just let the synthesizer play the parts - don't even bother trying - if the synth parts sound okay, leave 'em. Just find a good "sound" for the synth that works with the part and leave it.

2. Maybe "halve the time" of the particular parts. Adjust them so that they are at a playable tempo, and adjust the notes so that you could actually reach them on the fretboard - that's most of the problem - I can't "reach" some of those notes.

Or just change those parts to a fast riff that you can play. The whole album was composed on keyboard without my guitar in hand. Maybe I should actually pick up the guitar and have it in my hands while I am re-adjusting these parts so I would know if I could actually play 'em.

Duh? Make sense? Maybe? Eh? Might actually be interesting to play some parts composed on guitar again - I haven't actually done this since the "End of an Era" album.

By the way, here's a link to a really talented guy who CAN play all his own guitar parts - a band called VORTECH. Another one-man band who puts most "pro" bands to shame with his unique combination of Melodic Death Metal and Industrial styles. He has FIVE albums available for FREE Download, along with cover art, tablature (!), lyrics, etc. - PLUS you can order a real copy of the CDs directly if you want to support the artist. You can also find him through the Metal Madness link.

Seriously, go the the link and check out his tunes. His style is somewhere between a more modern Morbid Angel, Zyklon, or even Gojira, with touches of Fear Factory (when they were good). Great heavy guitars, very well programmed drums, and some interesting synth textures that really punctuate and accent the music.

I leave you now, hoping that I might be able to solve my own musical dilemma.