Hello fellow forum dwellers and metalheads.
My name is Björn, I go by BKM on the internet. I've acquired a small following on YouTube over the last couple of years doing video game music metal remixes, mostly of - but not limited to - the OSTs of the Half-Life series.
Over the past year, I was finally able finish up Oracle, a 8-track debut (mini-) album, which was in the works roughly since 2013. Thematically, I'd describe it as a wordless story, dealing with themes of self-doubt, insecurity, and depression, but also of healing and overcoming. Musically, it's a wild mixture of all my influences, ranging from Metallica, Dream Theater, Tool, Devin Townsend, and Meshuggah to the likes of Ola Englund, Keith Merrow, and Periphery. In fact, every single track contains a sneaky nod to one or multiple of my favorite artists. Listen to the full album here:
It's no masterpiece. It's rough around the edges, it's not straight forward, and it's not really there to please. I'm super happy that it's finally out and I can share it around, but first and foremost, this was an outlet during trying times when I had nowhere else to turn. And that shows a bit. It's just not as pre-planned and cohesive as I would have liked it to be, but that's just kind of how it turned out.
The BKM project is an unsigned one-man effort; I've written, recorded, and mixed everything myself. Mastering was done by Ermin Hamidovic @ Systematic Productions, who is no stranger in this forum. In fact, I am neither, I've just been lurking for many years since I never really felt I had something worthwhile to contribute.
I used CDBaby for publishing.Besides YouTube, Oracle also up everywhere else where you can find music online these days (SoundCloud, Bandcamp, Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon MP3, ...).
This album was recorded on relatively inexpensive gear and completely in the box because shared flat. Here's some of the stuff I used:
Still, the final product didn't turn out too bad - at least that's what friends and family keep telling me. To be entirely honest, the only reason it sounds decent enough is thanks to the eye-opening and game-changing feedback I received from Ermin during the mastering process. I'm in the recording stage of a new project (metal remix) and it sounds so much more like a song from the get-go because I made much more informed decisions wrt. tones and amp settings this time around. Long story short: I learned a sh*t ton during this project.
Anyways, I hope some of you guys like it. Let me know what you think. I'll gladly answer any questions relating to the project, mixing, or the gear that I used. Also, I'm on Twitter, if anyone wants to connect.
Best,
Björn
My name is Björn, I go by BKM on the internet. I've acquired a small following on YouTube over the last couple of years doing video game music metal remixes, mostly of - but not limited to - the OSTs of the Half-Life series.
Over the past year, I was finally able finish up Oracle, a 8-track debut (mini-) album, which was in the works roughly since 2013. Thematically, I'd describe it as a wordless story, dealing with themes of self-doubt, insecurity, and depression, but also of healing and overcoming. Musically, it's a wild mixture of all my influences, ranging from Metallica, Dream Theater, Tool, Devin Townsend, and Meshuggah to the likes of Ola Englund, Keith Merrow, and Periphery. In fact, every single track contains a sneaky nod to one or multiple of my favorite artists. Listen to the full album here:
It's no masterpiece. It's rough around the edges, it's not straight forward, and it's not really there to please. I'm super happy that it's finally out and I can share it around, but first and foremost, this was an outlet during trying times when I had nowhere else to turn. And that shows a bit. It's just not as pre-planned and cohesive as I would have liked it to be, but that's just kind of how it turned out.
The BKM project is an unsigned one-man effort; I've written, recorded, and mixed everything myself. Mastering was done by Ermin Hamidovic @ Systematic Productions, who is no stranger in this forum. In fact, I am neither, I've just been lurking for many years since I never really felt I had something worthwhile to contribute.
I used CDBaby for publishing.Besides YouTube, Oracle also up everywhere else where you can find music online these days (SoundCloud, Bandcamp, Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon MP3, ...).
This album was recorded on relatively inexpensive gear and completely in the box because shared flat. Here's some of the stuff I used:
- Rhythm guitar: Schecter C1 "Exotic Star" modded with EMG 81/60 (which gave me all kinds of headaches - literally, it's so honky and squeaky!)
- Lead guitar: ESP LTD FX-401 (because everyone wants to be Hetfield at some point)
- Bass: Ibanez SR-505 (by far the best, most balanced, easiest to use & mix piece of equipment I own)
- Interface: super cheap 2-channel Alesis iO2 (I just upgraded to a UAC-2 and am just now realizing how BRITTLE the Alesis is/was)
- Cubase 7
- Mercuriall U530 amp sim
- Rosen Digital IRs (American Custom)
- Mixed on Audio Technica ATH-M50 using ToneBoosters Morphit to flatten the curve a bit
Still, the final product didn't turn out too bad - at least that's what friends and family keep telling me. To be entirely honest, the only reason it sounds decent enough is thanks to the eye-opening and game-changing feedback I received from Ermin during the mastering process. I'm in the recording stage of a new project (metal remix) and it sounds so much more like a song from the get-go because I made much more informed decisions wrt. tones and amp settings this time around. Long story short: I learned a sh*t ton during this project.
Anyways, I hope some of you guys like it. Let me know what you think. I'll gladly answer any questions relating to the project, mixing, or the gear that I used. Also, I'm on Twitter, if anyone wants to connect.
Best,
Björn
