I actually did something with music for once! W. A. Production just had a big remix contest, and I actually entered! I can't upload the remix here for copyright purposes, but y'all can take a listen on SoundCloud and tell me what you think!

If you like it, please vote for me on the remix web page! It's the "ChroPh0re Remix."

Soundcloud

W. A. Production Entry Page

Good evening on my side of the world, guys! It's been an extremely eventful year for me. A lot of major issues that have ultimately been to my benefit and blessing. Music had gotten to a point for a long time where working on it was nearly intolerable. I was so trapped in the drudgery of trying to make music that everybody would like, and grew to hate what I was making as a result. It was never good enough. I've been able to finish a song here and there, and I'm immensely proud of the songs I've completed, yet still struggle with the feeling that "if only I had done _____, it would have been loved more." These are feelings internal to myself, and they're things that irk me when I want to actually enjoy things without guilt or shame.

So this year, I've been doing things a little different.

I have no songs near completion that I want to work on. I am learning to play again - to just fiddle around with knobs, faders, keys, and drum pads. Instead of dialing in a perfect, original sound on every track, I am playing (with much halting and bonafide OCD) with loops, presets, and practicing just liking a sound instead of forcing it to be a certain way.

This is slowly becoming liberating. Instead of doing what I've always done, which used to work fine, I'm experimenting with new things.

And I am starting to feel a little more joy each day that I take time to sit down and practice playing. Not even practicing an instrument, per se - just playing, as in with buttons, silly sounds, beautiful noises, gorgeous pads, stabbing leads. Suddenly, the drudge work is less drudgy. Believing in God, I believe he is helping me to enjoy things that I have been too burdened of late to enjoy otherwise. It's a slow process. I have a lot to learn, and I am not quite as afraid of the learning process sucking as I used to be.

SOOO, haven't done much on here in a while. To be honest, I have been struggling for the past couple of years to really complete any music. During that time, I've been practicing drumming, singing, and even started a YouTube channel! I review plugins, test them out, and give tips/tutorials on how to use FL Studio for newbies. Being a content creator is pretty cool, and much more demanding then I thought. There's a lot of work that goes into making a video! Though noobish, I'm starting to figure out some decent little tricks to make each video just a little better than the last. So, come watch me play with plugins and be too formal!

I do have quite a bit of musical material in the pipeline, so I will be uploading a new album in a few months.

https://youtu.be/CNZfQ34SLBs

Been a few months, and music production has slowed significantly, being replaced instead with consistent daily practice and musical studies. I've been disatissfied for some time with my musical skills - 15 years of self education and I still am producing at only an above-average amateur level. I finally invested in online courses with Producertech, which is fantastically cheap and WONDERFULLY informative, and I'm practicing playing my instruments with Melodics, which is also equally fantastic. It's like playing DanceDanceRevolution for drums, finger pads, or piano, so practice is significantly less laborious - the twelve-year drum practice deficit is much faster and easier to overcome. The yearly subscriptions for both are so inexpensive compared to college or formal, one-on-one lessons, and I find that for me, they work incredibly well. I highly recommend both for anyone wanting to increase both knowledge and skills with music production.

I finally obtained an electronic drum kit after dreaming of picking up the sticks again for over 12 years, and I finally have a decent enough MIDI keyboard that I can practice playing piano with it. My goal this year is just to practice and learn as much as physically and emotionally possible - I want to come out of this year ready to hammer out new tracks, with the performance skill to make new material far more easily than ever before. It is extremely busy doing this on top of caring for three kids, marriage, working full time, doing part-time college for said work, and attending to religious duties. Right now my days off, such as today, are becoming wonderful days of rest from these incredibly challenging labors. It's nice, because doing all of these things requires so much of me, and yet I feel so deeply fulfilled knowing that I am giving these important efforts my all. I'll be able look back on this time of my life in the future with few regrets. That's worth more than all the hardship I can bear.

I'm really pleased with how things have been going musically. I finally finished a second song in a month again, and I feel like I've got momentum once more. Playing Hollow Knight has been especially inspiring - I freaking love that game, and am already hard at work on a second original piece inspired by it, this time with much more synth work. I'm thinking of doing a 3 song EP and calling it "Hollow", but the fact is that the game is so awesome I may do more than that. We'll see how it goes.

So psyched to have finished my song inspired by Hollow Knight :D out of the 24 songs I intended to make this year, that one comes out at number 13, so I'm definitely behind on my production goals xD by the end of the year I should have at least 16 done, so I'll have a bit less catch up to do than anticipated.

I'm really proud of "The Hollow Knight", and it makes me think I ought to produce more orchestral/cinematic pieces. I loved producing it, and it seems a few people here on NG have enjoyed listening to it as well, so far. I'm thinking of "expanding my brand", so to speak, by starting a YouTube channel (I don't keep up with the movies section here anymore. Is there something I can do like that here as well?)

I'd post "let's play music" sorts of things detailing my production process (partially so I can measure my own performance - progress measured leads to improved progress!), and I'm also looking to do product reviews of different plugins and bits of software. I was curious to see if that's something y'all would be interested in seeing! Let me know!

Follow me on Twitter @StargameMusic for my dumb shenanigans

Definitely been an interesting few months! 3rd child was born 6 months ago, and we're just starting to hit something of a normal phase where she has a decent sleeping routine. I've still been working on music, and I've been focusing mostly on my mixing skills, particularly as I learned it was a big weakness from the NGUAC contest. I still have so much to learn, and I've not finished anything in the last three months until today. However, I'm not dead! Just dying xD I've got a lot of exciting material in the works, including a new album which will drop on Spotify in the next few months. Say tuned!

Frontpaged twice!? This is seriously a big deal for me. After years of just being told "it's good" whenever I show people my music, this happens... Again, whoever is putting these tracks up there, thank you. I hope to keep producing material that is enjoyable to everyone. I'm actively working on a new piece that HOPEFULLY should be done this week. I've got a lot of material from the past couple years that I'm putting on here little by little, including the remainder of my album "Aphelion", so be expecting a lot of new music! Some of my songs have been released publicly on Spotify. You can find my stuff at the following link.

Spotify

I don't know exactly how it happened, but whoever front-paged Rock n' Roll Rangers, thank you! That is a very big complement, and I am thrilled that that has happened! I've been working my butt off on music this year. Means a lot. Thank you to everyone who has faved, listened to, or downloaded my music. That is a huge blessing right now, and it's a boost I greatly needed. I've been discouraged of late about producing, and this gives me the drive to keep making more. Though I'm just a little indie artist trying to figure out how to do more with my craft, and though I may not have thousands of followers (yet), every play and every follower lifts me up immensely. Thank you.

I recently got back onto NG and found, upon going through my responses to old reviews, that I was a total jerk. I k ow it's been 12ish years, but to anyone I may have offended who reads this, I am sorry. I was a dumb teen, and did not understand what I was doing or saying at the time. I may still say dumb stuff at times. I'll always try to be kind, and if I fail, I'll always try to fix my mistakes.