blair's blógado gigante » Eastern

Music: “The Oracle Speaks”

blairblends — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 04:49:01 +0000

A new track that’s just come off the mastering rack. Careful, it’s hot like fries from Whataburger at 3 in the morning!

Music: “The Hajj”

blairblends — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 16:41:13 +0000

If you’ve never read about Hajj, you will no doubt find it interesting and worth your respect, regardless on your feelings of religion in general. Here’s a cue to go with the trek that people make at least once in their lives — often at the expense of their own life.

Music: “The Ascent”

blairblends — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 16:36:53 +0000

Rolling out lots of masters in the next week. First up is a piece from 2007 that never got the proper master treatment. Now, it’s finished. Enjoy!

Music: “Keeping The Peace (Reprise)”

blairblends — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 15:57:47 +0000

There were many questions about the original piece “Keeping the Peace”, specifically about the strings and Duduk. I had more than a few people casually wonder or ask what they sounded like in more isolation. That is, to say, a bit more prominent.

With that in mind, I began to just…”tinker” is the technical term, I think…and began to do a “backdoor” remix. You might say I arranged the ending slightly for a reprise, bringing out the strings and the solos (both vocal and woodwind).

So, without further ado, here’s a shorter reprise of the main piece. Enjoy!

Music: “Keeping The Peace”

blairblends — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 04:09:20 +0000

I’m glad to be done with this one. I originally started it in October of 2008, and could never quite get the “mix” right.

B Duduk (Center)

I’ve come to learn that Eastern instruments tend to occupy the same sonic range, so when you begin to mix and match them, the mix and master can become total “mush”. So, it wasn’t until tonight that I had patience in a mastering role to clean up some of the mess.

As with previous posts, a lot of this is inspired on the images, stories, and videos I got from friends in Iraq. The solo instrument that you may not recognize is the Duduk. It’s an Armenian instrument, and I employ it in music frequently. However, unlike all my other tracks, this is a B Duduk, with a slightly more harsh and breathy sound. I thought it could go head-to-head with the violin solo better.

The percussion consists of many layers, but the one that will likely stick out the most is the tabla ensemble, which has been run through…I can’t even remember what stack of filters…to give it that sharp, electronic sound. Likewise, all the guitars have been run through many, many iterations of Guitar Rig to get that “distressed” sound that seems to fit in well with the overall vibe of Eastern music.

Enjoy.