mistrustmusic's posterous

Twitter ye not!

Looks like an overload at Twitter HQ! Far too many people using Twitter? Whatever it is, Twitter ain't working. If you go on Twitter.com there's a message saying: Something is technically wrong. Thanks for noticing—we're going to fix it up and have things back to normal soon. I hope it's back up soon. I've started to get into now and have quite a few followers, so come on Twitter folk, get a move on....

Filed under  //   blog   blogging   microblogging   personal   social networking   twitter  

Talacre Sands and other tales

[caption id="attachment_133" align="alignleft" width="246" caption="Talacre Beach at Sunset by Tim Blackburn"]

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[/caption] Should have posted this a few weeks ago, but seem to have had very little time these days. Anyway, the "mistrust" clan went away on holiday (vacation) at the end of July for some much needed rest and recuperation. Nowhere really special - just a Haven Holidays caravan park near Prestatyn, in North Wales. The best thing about it was the scenery, including the wonderful Talacre Sands and rabbit warren. Very inspirational for some ideas for new tunes (yes, I DO actually make music!), very calming. The kids loved it apart from the first night when no-one could settle (well, Paul couldn't settle and disturbed the rest of us. We managed to get some great footage on video and some great still photos of the surrounding area. I'll put them up on Youtube and Flickr when I get time. I took one of those small handheld video cameras that uses a memory card - an Aiptek. I was a bit doubtful about what the quality would be like, but in the end I got some great results. Have a look at the header image of my blog site (the one you're on now!) to see what I mean. That was taken on the 3MP setting at sunset on Talacre Beach. I actually submitted the full size version of that photo to BBC North Wales' "Your Pictures" feature a few weeks ago, and it's been added to the "Sunrise/Sunset" section. You can see the picture in full-size on the BBC North Wales site here. In contrast, I nearly ended up in hospital at the end of the holiday.....but that's another story that will appear in a couple of days' time.....

Filed under  //   blogging   family   holiday   mistrust   music   photographs   photography   sunrise   sunset   talacre   vacation   wales  

Stop: Windows misery strikes again

[caption id="attachment_110" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Tree Swirl, by Paul Harrison, aged 15"]

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[/caption] Windows never ceases to amaze me. It's like the be-all and end-all to the world of computing. It's like gateway to a parallel universe, that will only let you in if you meet a million and one criteria, all encrypted in hexadecimal code. BSOD (Blue Screen of Death), followed by STOP: 0x0000007B. What's that supposed to mean, then? Run Chdsk /F or something - that'll get you a ticket to ride the rollercoaster again. I feel like the world's a blur when this happens...... As you've probably worked out by now, my laptop with all my Acid Pro files, VST plugins, and all my work projects, died on me. Or rather, Windows XP Pro died on me. It's a 2 year-old HP/Compaq NC6400, which has been running very slowly for about 5 or 6 weeks but has been more reliable than my old desktop. Should have backed everything up, but there's probably 20 gigs' worth of files on there, but you wonder about viruses and spyware being passed on. Took ages to load up last week, then on Friday evening: STOP: 0x0000007B. Couldn't run Chkdsk because I couldn't get into Windows, so that's not much use. So much for Windows. Lots of trawling on the internet later, a Linux Rescue disk came to my aid - System Rescue, with TestDisk on it. It told me that all the contents of the drive where safe, and not corrupted. Runs from RAM, not the HD. Thank heavens for that! How to get to them without a good knowledge of Linux. Ahaaa! Bypass Windows! Find a sneaky way past the guard dogs at the eternal gateway! Took the drive out of the laptop, plugged into a USB drive adapter connected to another PC, and hey presto! There were all my files, looking the same as ever and (hopefully) not corrupted. This little incident, along with many other run-ins I (and so many people I know) have had with Windows, makes me realise that I should either by a Mac and get some decent recording software, or install Linux on a laptop and make music the open-source way. Either way, I'm getting very tired of having to second-guess the system and waiting around for an error message to appear. I very nearly lost all of the Pitch Black remix stuff I've working on for months, just when I'm clear about finishing off. If you're a Mac or Linux user, please don't laugh at me. I've seen the light and I'll be converted soon.... Don't forget to bookmark this post, in case you ever get this problem!

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Filed under  //   0x0000007B   Apple   BSOD   Blue Screen of Death   Mac   STOP error   Windows   audio   blog   blogging   music   pitch black   technology   thoughts  

Audio Podcasting for the idle blogger

Apart from actually reading out the various posts on here and recording what I'm saying, the only other way I can make an audio podcast of my blog ramblings is to use one of the many "audio feed" tools that are out on the web. There are quite a lot of these things suddenly appearing all over web, and if you're not familiar with them, they take the RSS feed from your blog and play it back using an articifial voice. I've used Talkr on my blog before and it had a nice synthetic feminine lilt to its voice. However, I can't seem to get on to their site anymore and fear that my audio feeds are no more.  So, what else can I use, seeing as though it's impossible to get any peace and quiet at home to record a podcast myself? Well, according to various blog posts, reviews, and promo sites there are several, so I thought I'd test what some of them sound like, and what other things they offer (eg the ability to add your audio blog to iTunes. Let's have a look at a few and compare what they sound like. First up.... odiogo Offers a whole "audio" and sharing page, including a link to subscribe in iTunes (which I've added to my "subscribe" links on here), plus a direct mp3 stream for each post. It also creates an M3u playlist. Here's an example or two - see what you think: A is for Amazon (on odiogo) Stream all articles Audiofeed This is the "free" version of Readspeaker, which seems to be making a big impression with allsorts of companies and organisations. It offers a HTML link to your own "audiofeed" page where there are a few sharing options, in addition to a player and direct to mp3 download for each 'cast. There's a really useful link to a mobile version of your page. More soon.... By the way, I'm trying out this new social networking toolbar called "GetSocial", to make it easier for people to bookmark these posts. So go on then, give me a whirl!!!

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Filed under  //   add me   audio   blogging   getsocial   mistrust   music   odeo   podcast   podcasting  
Posted July 14, 2008

A is for Amazon

Not exactly music-related, but some news anyway. I've recently had an article published in a popular e-learning magazine in the USA. I wrote about how young kids are growing up learning the language of the World Wide Web and how we should encourage them to become proficient in using the internet at an early age. The article was reproduced from my own e-learning blog that someone from the magazine found a while ago, and asked if they could publish it. I'm quite chuffed, as you can imagine, and it just adds to the the list of other articles/letters I've had published in the last year or two (eg in Future Music magazine). You can read the whole thing (and the rest of the magazine) online in a virtual magazine reader here at E-Learning Magazine's website (go to page 50 of the NextBook edition.) or see it in its original form on my e-learning blog. Also.... I'm seriously considering moving all my other blogs into one place (here!) as it's easier for me to keep tabs on what I'm writing and who's reading them.

Filed under  //   b2bmediaco   blog   blogging   children   e-learning   family   kids   mistrust   music   web2.0  
Posted June 17, 2008

Presonus Firestudio - shall I get one?

I've been using Acid Pro, samples, plugins, etc for ages but I'm now seriously thinking of going "hardware" (much more fun!). Thought about getting a basic mixer but I need more flexible routing and control (MIDI/Audio), and someone recommended the Presonus Firestudio. It looks like it's the sort of thing I need, so maybe someone who's reading this has used one? I think it's around £500 and seems to be worth it - it includes loads of plugins and comes with Cubase 4 LE, Reason Adapted, and loads of other stuff. I've already got a computer so it might be the complete package - it got a great review in MTM too! There's an offer on at the moment where you get a rebate on the MSR remote control for the Firestudio.... Anyone else used one of these? If you have or can offer some advice, please let me know....It's a big outlay so I want to get it right!

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Filed under  //   MSR   artists   blog   blogging   firestudio   presonus   recording   remote  

I'm in Music Tech Magazine

Just to let you know I'm finally in Music Tech Magazine for winning the Motif XS6 synthesizer! The article is in February's edition - but in case you don't want to buy it, the editor sent me a copy of the page, and I've attached it here as pdf (the whole page) and a jpeg (click to see the whole pic).

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Other news... the manager of a band from New Zealand called "Pitch Black" has said I can have a go at doing a remix of a track from their new CD, "Rude Mechanicals". If it's good enough, it'll appear on the band's remix CD and as a download on music sites like iTunes and Beatport. More on that soon when I decide which track I want to have a go at.... Non-music stuff: we took Paul to see a residential school in Shrewsbury today. Absolutely amazing place. Part of a 16th century hall and estate. Class sizes are usually 2 students and one teacher - it's for kids with autism. He sounds relatively keen on it, but we'll have a job on convincing the education authority to pay for him. It's around £30,000 per year! Page from MTM magazine reproduced by kind permission of Music Tech Magazine/Anthem Publishing/Yamaha UK (c)

Filed under  //   band   blogging   creative   family   label   mistrust   mp3   music   pitch black   rude mechanicals   xs6   yamaha  

Now form a band

Just came across an interesting site which gives a really good breakdown on the things you need to do these days to get your music "out there". It's been set up by Last FM, the music networking site, who are calling the site "Now form a band", and has a manifesto of "The Campaign for Better Music". Aren't we all looking for better music? Well, hopefully this will explain.... The Campaign for Better Music is here to say: it doesn’t have to be like the old days. We’re going to show you how to produce, promote and distribute your music, without spending a load of money, and without lots of other people getting involved. Have look for more information over at Now form a Band.... 

Filed under  //   artists   bands   blogging   group   label   lastfm   mistrust   mp3   unsigned  

Winner of Star Letter, Music Tech Magazine October 2007

I've tried to write about music-related things recently (when I've actually had time to get on the computer!), as that's what my main interest is. I struggle as a bedroom (or rather, lounge - as in where the tv, sofa, children, wife, etc. live) musician, hoping that my tunes will make it onto some tv or movie blockbuster, so I can invest in some better recording equipment. That may not happen for a while or a long time, so the only way I can seriously get some decent gear is to either steal it (no way), borrow it (who from?), or win it. Which brings me nicely onto the fact that I wrote a blog post a few weeks ago on the new Music Tech Magazine Ning community, saying what a great place the site is. Then a few days ago, I got an email from the site admin people, saying they'd used my blog post in the latest edition of the magazine and I'd won the prize for "Star Letter." Talk about chuffed. My ramblings published in a major music tech magazine, and winner of Letter of the Month. The prize? A "Rode" studio microphone, complete with all the trimmings. Not bad, eh. If you're into music production, music technology, or anything like that, get yourself over to Music Tech Ning and join in....

Filed under  //   blogging   letter   magazine   mistrust   music   ning   tech   technology  

More satisfaction recording with hardware?

Is there more satisfaction and enjoyment to be had from recording with hardware and outboard equipment, rather than the latest plugins and softsynths? Are professional musicians and engineers drifting away from all things soft and going back in time? I've noticed that a lot of magazine tutorials, youtube videos, and general features on recording (bands, engineers etc) lean more towards recording with hardware rather than soft synths, outboard effects rather than plugins. The people in question spend ages patching things together and twiddling knobs to get the required sound. I've read many times in various music/music tech mags and forums that you can't write a tune on a computer. I've always this was rubbish, especially as there are so many great compositional tools out there. I'm beginning to think it's true because there's just so much that gets in the way when you're on a computer - which softsynth to use, record midi or audio, the list goes on....I'm sure I had more fun and was more creative when I had my Jen SX1000, cheap drum machine, and recorded everything on to tape. BSOD anyone?

Filed under  //   artists   blogging   hardware   music   recording