Dave Bryce Posted June 8, 2001 Share Posted June 8, 2001 As many of you know, we are attempting to compile a CD's worth of material submitted by members of this forum. In order to do this, we have posted the entries for consideration and evaluation by all of the members of the forum, whether or not they have contributed a piece. The entries can be found at this web site: http://artists.mp3s.com/artists/261/the_keyboard_corner.html Please go there, and evaluate the piece called "Balthazar", submitted by dB (Dave Bryce). Please post your comments on that tune in this thread. This link will take you directly to this piece. If the artist of the piece would care to post any notes about the piece in this thread, they should feel free to do so. Thanks for listening! dB ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Bryce Posted June 8, 2001 Author Share Posted June 8, 2001 A few notes on the tune: This track started out as a demo piece for the Vintage Synths card for the Alesis QS series...I have way stretched it out to include other synths, as well as other musicians. Nick D'Virgilio (Tears for Fears, Genesis, Spock's Beard) on drums and Jeff (Tascam Guy) Klopmeyer on guitar. Keyboards and synths used: Alesis Andromeda Alesis QS8 w/ Vintage Synths QCard Korg Wavestation SR PPG Wave 2.2 Roland Jupiter-8 Roland MKS-80 Super Jupiter Sequential Circuits Prophet VS Yamaha EX5R Jeff's Les Paul was recorded through a Line 6 POD. Nick played drums on the Alesis/Hart DM Pro Kit Hope you enjoy the tune! dB ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharon Posted June 8, 2001 Share Posted June 8, 2001 Hi there Dave i doawloaded the "Balthazar" and "Evil_genius" from you MP3 page and i must say i have them in my computer and listen to them from time to time. Also i loved Evil genius more the Balthazar but then again they both cool "Pure synth power" http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif I my self into house music dont have something up online yet Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Bryce Posted June 8, 2001 Author Share Posted June 8, 2001 Hi, Sharon... Thanks for your kind words! I look forward to listening to your music as well - please let us know when you have something up on the web, okay? Thanks again, dB ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b_3guy Posted June 9, 2001 Share Posted June 9, 2001 I've also downloaded both Evil Genius & Balthazar, & play them from time to time. I must say I liked Evil Genius better than Balthazar for no specific reason. Things are never equal so liking one more than the other is natural. But the subject is Balthazar. I like how easily & smoothly one theme leads to the other. The female ahhh, intriging, does that come from the Yamaha EX-5? The playing is very good as to to be expected. Presentation is professional & pleasant. Enjoyed the drums. A real drummer is nice. Did he do all the rythyms? Guitar leads excellent. The ending is stellar!!! I knew it would be a good track after listening to Evil Genius. Nice job, Dave!! Steve www.seagullphotodesign.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve LeBlanc Posted June 9, 2001 Share Posted June 9, 2001 I was also into the vocal key sound in the intro, very effective. The guitar sound wasn't what I normally like but hey, it's blows my guitar tone away http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/wink.gif. I understand it can be difficult without a well sound-proofed room and all but the drum sounds (good by digital standards) weren't doing it for me...I'd much rather hear real drums but the playing is excellent. One other minor thing...I was looking for the main theme (melody), I think I found it but it's not the strong point of the tune. OK, now for what I really liked http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/wink.gif: Your solos are great...reminded me a bit of Jan Hammer but also with a few other influences I can't quite put my finger on. Nice choice of sounds for the Solos too. I like the punches (stabs) toward the end, could tell you were feelin it, thought it was a live track for a second there. Overall...nice work...mainly I really enjoyed listening to it which is what music is all about. Lakers in 5! http://www.youtube.com/notesleb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dansouth Posted June 9, 2001 Share Posted June 9, 2001 Excellent, Dave! It's just so "right" that it almost brings tears to my eyes. The guitar is way cool, and the little S&H reso sound at the end it the icing on the cake. My only word of advice would be to choose it's spot on the CD carefully, as the long intro needs to me taken into account. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Bryce Posted June 9, 2001 Author Share Posted June 9, 2001 The female ahhh, intriging, does that come from the Yamaha EX-5? Heh...one of my favorite sounds in the piece. Would you believe me if I told you that it was the Jupiter-8? It is...no MIDI - played it live in one pass. The key is haing the ability to have the PB wheel also control the filter. A real drummer is nice. Did he do all the rythyms? Nope - I did those, using the Vintage Synths QCard . the little S&H reso sound at the end is the icing on the cake. That, and the same electro-burbly sound at the very beginning of the tune are both Andromeda, as is the nasty little filter sweep right at the end of the JP8 vocal line. Thank you all for your comments! Lakers in 5! Ya gotta stop smokin' that stuff, Stevie... http://cwm.ragesofsanity.com/otn/other/bandit.gif dB ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Jones Posted June 9, 2001 Share Posted June 9, 2001 Originally posted by Dave Bryce: A few notes on the tune: This track started out as a demo piece for the Vintage Synths card for the Alesis QS series...I have way stretched it out to include other synths, as well as other musicians. Nick D'Virgilio (Tears for Fears, Genesis, Spock's Beard) on drums and Jeff (Tascam Guy) Klopmeyer on guitar. Keyboards and synths used: Alesis Andromeda Alesis QS8 w/ Vintage Synths QCard Is this ur piece? Michael Korg Wavestation SR PPG Wave 2.2 Roland Jupiter-8 Roland MKS-80 Super Jupiter Sequential Circuits Prophet VS Yamaha EX5R Jeff's Les Paul was recorded through a Line 6 POD. Nick played drums on the Alesis/Hart DM Pro Kit Hope you enjoy the tune! dB "I may be a craven little coward, but I'm a greedy craven little coward." Daffy Duck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Jones Posted June 9, 2001 Share Posted June 9, 2001 Originally posted by midirat: Is this ur piece? "I may be a craven little coward, but I'm a greedy craven little coward." Daffy Duck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Bryce Posted June 9, 2001 Author Share Posted June 9, 2001 Originally posted by midirat: Is this ur piece? If you are asking me if I wrote the piece, yes I did. I did not just dress up someone else's demo. I used to demonstrate Alesis' synthesizers, and I wrote this to show off one of the QCards. Sorry for being unclear. dB ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faruk Posted June 10, 2001 Share Posted June 10, 2001 It`s nice piece of music, but who am I to say. I like the drums very much - they sound very smart, esspecially the fill ins. Passes from style to style are very smoth, in fact I never heard before that someone did it like you DB. Solos are cool, voice is great (By the way have you by ant chance wrote and played that techno-opera piesce in Fifth Element movie?)Maybe the only thing I dont like is the fact that this piece really sounds like the demo song for Alesis products, it does not sound like a structure on it`s own, but egsactly like the demo song - all possibbilites and motives at once in the first row, but as I said before how am I to say anything DB. Finally - we need more composers like you on this planet, you wonderfull man. Faruk http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif Fat But Fast Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
synthetic Posted June 11, 2001 Share Posted June 11, 2001 I've always liked this piece. I really like the synth voice in the intro. I would have liked to hear a "head" which the song starts with and ends on. It seems to start with a solo and end on a solo, and it would be more memorable with a melody. I agree that the guitar tone could be a bit fatter. Is the snare panned to the right? That was an interesting choice. (I can't really tell, my mixer is acting up.) I like to anchor things like that in the center, but maybe I'm old-fashioned. Overall, a great piece with some great playing. Thanks, -jl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magpel Posted June 11, 2001 Share Posted June 11, 2001 Balthazar is an interesting contrast to "On the Skidz" and "Aftershock," both of which are are more conceptually focused and minimalist, while this one seems to be a *maximalist* and slightly schizophrenic rave up, which may be explained in part by its origins as a synth demo. And of course, it's positively littered with brilliant sounds and slick keyboard playing/programming. The female voice is astonishing, my favorite bit here. I also like the first signficant transition at 1:31. I like that angular groove, but not that breathy, mallet-y sound that takes over the lead for a while. To me that voice sounds like it's in there just to show it off (again, a demo). My least favorite part is the whole rocked out final section, including the half time guitar solo break, but that's just a matter of idiosyncratic taste. The section has too much of a "monster rock" feel for my liking (albeit a perfectly executed monster rock feel--if I tried to do something like that it would sound like Balthazar falling down a flight of staris while sloppy drunk). But this is a minor quibble. The man obviously has chops, ideas, and gear to spare. Say Dave, spare some gear? Magpel Check out the Sweet Clementines CD at bandcamp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Llarion Posted June 12, 2001 Share Posted June 12, 2001 My goodness, lovely layering! Dense, but highly articulate and dimensional, easy to pinpoint each and every sound! LOVE the voice sample, almost indistinguishable from real!!! Very impressive, complex, accessible, and charged tune! Diggin the almost whimsical comping at 2:35... Superb work! The squarte-wave analogish stuff isn't as much my bag from a stylistic view, but HOLY FRIJOLE, do you do it well!!! ------------------ Cheers! Phil "Llarion: The Jazzinator" www.mp3.com/llarion Smooth Jazz Cheers! Phil "Llarion: The Jazzinator" Traynor www.llarion.com Smooth Jazz - QUESTION AUTHORITY. Go ahead, ask me anything. http://www.llarion.com/images/dichotomybanner.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Bryce Posted June 12, 2001 Author Share Posted June 12, 2001 My goodness, lovely layering! Dense, but highly articulate and dimensional, easy to pinpoint each and every sound! LOVE the voice sample, almost indistinguishable from real!!! Thanks, Phil. It ain't a sample, though...it's a Jupiter-8. http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/biggrin.gif 'Preciate the kind words... dB ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Llarion Posted June 24, 2001 Share Posted June 24, 2001 Boink! Cheers! Phil "Llarion: The Jazzinator" Traynor www.llarion.com Smooth Jazz - QUESTION AUTHORITY. Go ahead, ask me anything. http://www.llarion.com/images/dichotomybanner.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rod S Posted June 25, 2001 Share Posted June 25, 2001 I really dug the female voice. Great tune, and the style that I would like to head towards (still a long way). "Drum fill" at 2:23 seemed out of place though (actually 3 hits) (?) I kind of like evil genius better, but excellent tune. Great soloing. Cool guitar tone. I don't know why people diss the pod so much, I really like the tunes that I've heard with it. Gotta listen to some of Jeff's stuff when I get a chance. Do you still have the version that was done with just the vintage synth card? I really dig that card, 80% of the sounds I use from my qs6 are from that (actually, maybe not for long since I just go the eurodance and vintage keyboards card at a recent blowout). Rod Korg Kronos X73 / ARP Odyssey / Motif ES Rack / Roland D-05 / JP-08 / SE-05 / Jupiter Xm / Novation Mininova / NL2X / Waldorf Pulse II MBP-LOGIC American Deluxe P-Bass, Yamaha RBX760 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Bryce Posted July 4, 2001 Author Share Posted July 4, 2001 Originally posted by Rod CA: I kind of like evil genius better That seems to be a recurring theme... Do you guys think that I should put EG on there instead of this one? I have no problem with that... dB ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b_3guy Posted July 4, 2001 Share Posted July 4, 2001 Originally posted by Dave Bryce: Do you guys think that I should put EG on there instead of this one? I have no problem with that... dB Yeah!!! Steve www.seagullphotodesign.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gus Lozada Posted July 4, 2001 Share Posted July 4, 2001 Originally posted by Dave Bryce: Do you guys think that I should put EG on there instead of this one? I have no problem with that... Absolutely NOT ! Sir... It is not that I did not like EG, but this one seems to be ALIVE. EG has an electro environment all the time with VERY interesting textures and Fx, but this one is way more musical. It has more changes in rhythm and the fact you invited two fine musicians to gig with you makes a big difference in the mood of the song. "A little Pink Floyd" http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/biggrin.gif ... if the lead instrument at the beginning was a guitar I'd swear it was PF... but not... this was dB ... Músico, Productor, Ingeniero, Tecnólogo Senior Product Manager, América Latina y Caribe - PreSonus at Fender Musical Instruments Company Instagram: guslozada Facebook: Lozada - Música y Tecnología www.guslozada.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Klopmeyer Posted July 5, 2001 Share Posted July 5, 2001 Originally posted by GusTraX: "A little Pink Floyd" http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/biggrin.gif ... if the lead instrument at the beginning was a guitar I'd swear it was PF... but not... this was dB ... When I tracked the guitar part on Balthazar for Dave, I definitely was summoning the spirit of David Gilmour to help me along. But as a dB composition, the last thing I wanted to give guitar any predominance over synths on this tune. Dave produced...I just came in as a session cat to give him what he wanted. Fun song...me like. - Jeff Marketing Communications for MI/Pro Audio My solo music and stuff They Stole My Crayon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve LeBlanc Posted July 5, 2001 Share Posted July 5, 2001 Don't go switching songs Dave...this one is cool. http://www.youtube.com/notesleb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tusker Posted July 11, 2001 Share Posted July 11, 2001 This is a great piece which I reviewed earlier. I wont waste your bandwith by reviewing it again. A couple of comments though. This is more of a players piece than Evil Genius (which may be more of a producers piece?). So for my $0.2 it is better for the cd. I am glad you kept it. From the initial sample and hold onwards it arrests and keeps my attention. (And the female voice gets me every time.) Stand-out synth playing, from someone who knows synthesizers intimately. The fact that it is a journey through many styles, works for me because of the thoughtful rhythm parts which evolve gracefully. Cheers, Jerry ------------------ www.tuskerfort.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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