Everything was made with nothing but opensource tools. I was using DeMuDi, but switched to a hacked up version of Ubuntu/Xubuntu after I got the realtime kernel working with it. I’m using an RME Hammerfall 9652 coupled with a Behringer Ultragain ADA-8000 AD/DA converter and a BCF-2000 motorized controller board. All percussion up to the beginning of 2006 was done with Hydrogen. Everything was recorded with Ardour + Jack using only LADSPA plugins and the occasional Line6 board, with mastering by Jamin and final cutting and trimming with Audacity.
Links to some of the songs for the terminally lazy:
The bass is in through a Line6 Bass Pod XT Live with nothing else before it hits the converters. I have three or four custom settings for the sounds.
There are three distinct guitar sounds. One is a Line6 Spider II 2x10 cabinet, with a single Shure SM-57 capturing the sound direct from the speaker into the converter. The second is running through a rackmount Digitech processor for basic distortion (can be heard on “Junkie”) ; we actually used a baritone Danelectro electric guitar for that. The third is raw sound pushed through a series of three or four LADSPA effects, usually including parametric eq (to take out the rumble), amp/cabinet modelling, and sometimes a rectifier or other distorting effect. Needless to say, the acoustic guitar (a 1960s vintage Martin dreadnought) was mic’d, as soundhole pickps kill the sound.
Vocals were recorded clean with LADSPA effects (usually gverb), sometimes through a simple processor to keep it from peaking and/or varying too much in the volume department.
I was wondering what license these songs were released under. I am the co-host of the Open Source Musician’s Podcast and we would like to use one of your songs at the end of the next episode. For that to work, your music needs to be under a Creative Commons compatible license. If it’s not but you are fine with us using one of your songs, we could put a disclaimer in the show notes.
Nice work, great recordings, thanks for sharing. Perfect Nine has a great vocal indeed, I’m not real keen on the guitar sound, a little too direct IMO. Great riffs on Eighth Floor Junkie I would like to hear more lead vocal though. Just nitpicks…I really enjoyed your tunes. All the best!
