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The Emergence of an album

Started by Peter, Wed, 2006-08-02, 23:36:58

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Peter

Now, what's even sweeter....

Clive told me a little about the process of how an album comes into life.

It starts with Clive's experimenting with ideas, soundbits, sound schemes and so on, with his keyboards and the 'Puter - y'all know Cubase, dontcha. Clive saves the better ones of the ideas as MIDI sequences. As soon as some 40 or 50 of those come together, the piecing together of the actual album can start, which will also involve the other musicians, as far as I understand. Until then, the creative part of finding good sounds and melodies is the most vital stage.

By now, as Clive told me, he is at about 10 or 15% of that stage. So still, some work to do... :D
Arriving somewhere, but not here....

Deenfan

Weird Way of Working, but it had done a lot of good until now!

;)

keyboardistmatt

Quote from: Deenfan on Sun, 2006-08-27, 12:59:10
Weird Way of Working...

It's pretty standard to my knowledge! :)
...Is this just a dream I'm in?

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Deenfan

It's weird to me, 'cause I always have all the vocal parts finished first. Some times without a melody. Now, that sounded strange, but I mean all the lyrics are written, so the arrangement with regards to verse 1 and 2, chorus, middle eights or bridges is already set.

Now, that probably looks weird, come to think of it, but to me it's like I have a song to begin with, then all the chords, instrumentation and playing is added to that. When you're used to that, it seems a bit strange to start with the spice and the different instrumental practices.

But as I said, it seems to work for him!! ;)

intruder

#29
I'm totally the opossite. The music comes first, which to me is the easy part, and I usually will sing anything to this at the time and record it. And then hopefully after playing it back, I might get a topic or a subject out of the jibberish words I sang, and right the lyrics around that. But it's great news to know the guys are working on a new album.


intruder

#30
 *horns* *horns* *horns* *horns* *horns* *horns* *horns* *horns* *horns* *horns* *horns* ;D

cabo

What is the status on the new album now?

JJ II

#32
Probably not much more than just ideas on the computer. Caamora is to be finished first.

I once had the privilege to listen to some of the content of the folders on Clive's computer. It's very interesting to see how it works. A folder contains many ideas, which can be riffs, melodies, chord-sequences, etc. Some riffs are played on keyboards, but definately written and recorded as guitar-riffs. Sometimes it's just sound experimenting. All these pieces are selected and ranked as promising, maybe interesting and dust-bin. [Inside joke: in the past this section was called GLD] Ideas come from all three writing members of the band. Initial ideas are labeled JM/CN/MP to avoid any trouble on copyrights. Usually it's a combination of things ending up in a song. There's no such thing as 'bringing in a finished song'. The only known exception is Opera Fanatica, which is entirely Clives.

When you hear some of the original fragments, you really have to pay attention. In a 2 minute fragment only a bridge or a certain chord sequence will survive and end up in a song. Interesting and promising bits are arranged and then the backbone of a song emerges. If something ends up being a chorus, it will be copied several times (for example).
In a sequencer (as far as I understood, but I'm not a techician), all these elements will trigger certain sounds, that can be changed then as well. Keys can become guitars or choirsounds.

In a final stage, the samples of drums, guitars etc, will be replaced by the real instruments, but they are already in place in an early stage which is keyboards only. This is the very reason that something like a 'demo version' doesn't exist in Arena-land. There are no 'early versions', there is only one skeleton in the computer that remains and flesh, hair and bodyparts are added on, so to say.

I may have misunderstood some things as I am not a musician, nor a computer expert, and if so: apologies. But this is how I understood is works. Clive, feel free to correct me.

PH

That's a very interesting read there JJ!

The Caamora project will be released in 2008 if I'm not mistaken, but that means there won't be an Arena album up till middle or end of 2008 or something...

Ah well... Until then we have all the great releases of this year! (Dream Theater, Threshold, Kaipa, Magic Pie, Porcupine Tree, Neal Morse, Blackfield, Gazpacho, Rush and many more...)

Herben

So there's a new album on the horizon named the caamora project,
I'm looking forward to listen too it
Walk along the Waterfall, watching as the world turns red
Wonder where the river flows, and the blood on the River bed
Poison lies to close to us, Reach across the salt and Sand
Moving Deeper into the Land