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Attribution-NoDerivs-NonCommercial
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Description:
This song was recorded on a Yamaha 4-track tape recorder in 1992 in a loft in Brooklyn, NY. The artists are myself, Philip VanDusen aka racerat: guitars, bass and drum machine button pushing (start/stop, woohoo!) and Matt M, aka Sonny Jim on vocals. It is an entry for the Analogapalooza Vintage Music Festival.
There are 6 tracks, thanks to the wonder of ping-ponging, that distructive, fully committed wonderment of the limited-track -tape-limits-pushing set (you know who you are!) There are drums, 2 guitars, 1 bass and 2 vocals. Count'em, 6.
Lyrics:
I’m On Fire
©1992 Matt M & Philip VanDusen
The world turns away from the sun this time of year
And the days get shorter, and the nights get colder
All alone
And I cringe when I think of her
She wells up inside me like a moth to the flame
And I just can’t remember what I meant to say
She strikes a chord in me so deep I can’t say
And when she’d near, it makes me want to run away
I’m on fire
Well her planet's turned so far from my sun
And my nights are long before her days begun
I’m spending time I don’t have, thinking of the one
Who wrecks my life and makes me think that I should run
I’m on fire
She strikes a chord in me so deep I can’t say
And when she’d near, it makes me want to run away
I’m spending time I don’t have thinking of the one
Who wrecks my life and makes me think that I should run
I’m on fire
Hardware:
Yamaha 4-track
Memorex Cassette tape
Shure SM58 mic
Duct tape
coat hangars
Software:
none
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Sonic Youth vs REM vs Husker Du &mdash 08/07/07 - 09:04:34 PM
This is really unusual, original and I think it's groundbreaking stuff. Was bud in the room too?
Those dissonant chords at the beginning did not prepare me for Matt's brilliant vocals. Those vocal harmonies have my head spinning. I'm perplexed. I can hear the sticky side of the duct tape. The guitars are really crunchy and somewhat drunken.
Maybe I've had too many NA beers tonight, but I just don't know what to think of this song. I love it, but it just doesn't sound like anything I've ever heard before. Your voice couldn't be more perfect for this unlikely combination of sounds.
I'm sure bud was in the room.
I've downloaded this baby.
I think it's a fabulous entry into Analogapalooza.
[ Reply to This ]
duct fire &mdash 08/07/07 - 11:15:01 PM
Thanks Five,
Sonny Jim has been off the hook for the last 15 years and counting. His vocals and harmonies on this make my neck hairs tingle every time I listen to it. To think we only had a foot pedal to punch-in with, and I doubt he even used it on this one. It's kinda dark, but then sweet, then harsh. It just drags you around by the throat.
Plus you just can't get that volume and quality of tape hiss these days with Logic. Come to think of it, they should make a "add hiss" filter....;-)
Thanks for the ear.
---
-Philip [ Reply to This ]
Great tune Philip - and excellent use of &mdash 08/07/07 - 09:44:46 PM
your six tracks. That was where I'd usually tried to stop - 4 down to stereo mix - mix back to two and add two more. I really like the guitars and bass and your button pushing is off the hook. I think this is my favorite of the many great vocal performance I've heard from Matt M on previous releases. Nice tension to this one.
About Bob - I think he thinks everyone in Brooklyn hangs together - though in 1992 I was still in Manhattan. But I'm flattered that he would associate me with such a cool session. [ Reply to This ]
bud in the room &mdash 08/07/07 - 11:17:01 PM
Are you SURE you weren't there? Hmmm, maybe it was just all those NA beers.
Thx bud, gotta go check out your submissions now. Ciao.
---
-Philip [ Reply to This ]
LES Sound? &mdash 08/08/07 - 11:44:41 AM
Oh come on guys, are my extra ears so sophisticated that I can detect common influences? I actually scrolled up to read if bud's name was there and it wouldn't have surprised me if it was.
Besides, doesn't everyone in Brooklyn hang out together?
This song is even better this morning than it was 12 hours ago!
---
she'll love five extra arms. [ Reply to This ]
I%u2019m On Fire &mdash 08/08/07 - 12:08:13 PM
nice work realy I m enjoyin the singin
the second vocal is good as well ...!!
lol Coat Hanger !!?
thnx for sharin this here !! [ Reply to This ]
extra equipment &mdash 08/08/07 - 12:57:28 PM
Coat hangars and Duct Tape are the spit and bailing wire of the amateur (and maybe professional) studio. I can't tell you how many mic stand additions and pop screens I've created over the years with coat hangars. Just thought I'd send out the props to the hangar gods! Thanks for listening!
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-Philip [ Reply to This ]
Races on Fire &mdash 08/08/07 - 01:48:42 PM
Feckin' great this - hints of REM/Byrds being taken out for a ride round the darker side of town . Matts vocals are fantastic - he has a really distinctive voice - I love how he reaches up in desperation to the chorus.
I'd forgotten how much I love drum machines like this.
How come I can't get stuff to sound this good with 3K worth of equipment and Logic Pro (er, talent???).
How come you never got a record deal with stuff like this????
Great track. [ Reply to This ]
Memory Lane &mdash 08/08/07 - 07:52:11 PM
Well, it's good to hear this here; a bit of a change of venue from those limited- edition CD runs.......!
For me, the interesting thing about these old songs is that they point up Philip's early interest in production (both pre- and pro-); I can assure you, those vocals didn't sound anywhere near as nice on their way INTO the mic.
Plus, he played everything!
Thank you to everyone for the props.
[ Reply to This ]
Mr. Jim short-changes himself &mdash 08/12/07 - 07:50:14 PM
The real props Mr. Sonny are to you. You pulled these vocal takes out of your pocket like they were pennies, rarely a second take, and certainly no looping or comping . Harmonies spot-on without a batted eye. Many times you did them without ever actually having worked out what you were going to sing, or much less what the words were you sang in the first place. Your passion and energy ooze out of these old tracks. Hats off.
---
-Philip [ Reply to This ]
At one point, when I was still working with my Boss BR-8... &mdash 08/08/07 - 08:39:12 PM
I thought of sponsoring a contest or challenge on MacJams, of creating songs with only eight tracks... which, back when I WISHED to heck that I could afford an Alesis ADAT, with EIGHT DIGITAL TRACKS (!), seemed like all I could possibly need, ever...
Now I grouse when I've filled twelve to sixteen tracks on things that started out as relatively simple folk songs, wishing I had more power and more RAM...
There's something so cool about working within limits, and coming up with something so cool sounding from it...
I really like the hook line, and the vocals...
Ed [ Reply to This ]
less is more &mdash 08/12/07 - 07:54:32 PM
Agreed! Back in the day (hear the rocking chair creak...) we had to think a lot more about what the song needed, because we would only have 1 or 2 tracks left to work with. If it gelled, we were psyched. If it didn't, we moved on and wrote and recorded another3 or 4 songs in the afternoon. Now, we labor over a song for weeks, tweaking, looping, re-arranging, mixing mastering,...repeat. I sometimes wonder which was better....
---
-Philip [ Reply to This ]
ahead of its time &mdash 08/12/07 - 08:03:01 PM
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Those dissonant chords at the beginning did not prepare me for Matt's brilliant vocals. Those vocal harmonies have my head spinning. I'm perplexed. I can hear the sticky side of the duct tape. The guitars are really crunchy and somewhat drunken.
Maybe I've had too many NA beers tonight, but I just don't know what to think of this song. I love it, but it just doesn't sound like anything I've ever heard before. Your voice couldn't be more perfect for this unlikely combination of sounds.
I'm sure bud was in the room.
I've downloaded this baby.
I think it's a fabulous entry into Analogapalooza.
[ Reply to This ]