blair's blógado gigante » violin

NIN’s “In This Twilight” Redux

blairblends — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 17:38:30 +0000

I’m thrilled that people enjoyed my remix of NIN’s “In This Twilight“…those of you who were able to get your hands on it before I posted it officially today.

I like to experiment with music, and I feel like breaking the rules today. I’m going to not only give you an alternate, instrumental version…but I’m also going to let you hear the individual performances as they were recorded for this remix in the spring of 2009. The piano was performed by me, and the violin was hired out.

Enjoy this look beneath the surface!

Remix: NIN – “In This Twilight”

blairblends — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 17:35:00 +0000

Many of you already have this, but I thought I would officially post my remix of “In This Twilight” by NIN.

You’ll find, as usual, that I’ve tweaked the vocals with Melodyne…and given it an entirely different feel than the original.

Make sure you check the next post, with an instrumental version and even a “behind the scenes” listen to the individual performances that went into the remix.

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.