Ulver

[hailtiki]

Have you guys ever heard an old black metal band called Ulver? I just recently started listening to Zero Hour and Death Machine... the first time I missed it because I must have been doing something and didn't notice, but the second time I heard the song "A Passage", it instantly reminded me of an Ulver song called "Ulvsblakk" off the album "Kveldssanger". Turns out the two songs are, indeed, very similar in the beginning. Both songs share the same notes, though the Ulver song is a little faster with shorter pauses. Even the first note of the harmony is the same for both bands, but that's where the similarities stop.

Anyway, I just thought it was interesting that two entirely different people at two entirely different times came up with nearly the same thing =) Check the song out sometime if you can find it; it's a little hard to find. "Kveldssanger" is a pretty cool album - it's an entirely acoustical and clean album.

 

[Kenneth R.]

Ulver is AWESOME. I love how every album is different, from black metal to folk to electronic to pop synth alternative. Never know what to expect

 

[hailtiki]

I actually haven't heard any of their other stuff... just the folk album, "Kveldssanger"... but I've listened to it a LOT. Great album. I've been unable to find any of their other stuff, though I have an electronica remix of Emperor's "Sworn" that is supposed to be Ulver's doing... I haven't been able to confirm that.

Noticed in your profile you're an "Audio Electrical Engineer"... that sounds awesome. I actually just graduated in December with a BS in Electrical Engineering (and a BS in Computer Science). Other than the first couple classes, it seems most of my work was with digital electronics. That might be due to the fact that I was trying to get classes to count for both EE and Comp Sci (to get the double major), but I wish I had more analog material. I've been a musician most of my life (piano for 2 years, guitar for 13 years, and bass guitar for the last year), so audio electronics is something I'm really interested in. I hope to eventually build my own amp (though, I doubt I could build anything to best my recently acquired 1976 Ampeg SVT)... sadly, tubes were completely removed from the curriculum... I could probably build a nice transistor amp, but who cares? =)

Anyway, I'm rambling... Cool MIDI on your website... if I had some way to record it with decent quality, I'd offer to lay down the bass track for you (since you said it was a solo project and the bass was sequenced), but sadly, I believe my best efforts would probably sound awful with the (lack of) equipment at my disposal. Any recommendations for a decent, cheap recording device of some kind? Essentially all I would need is some way to hook up a decent mic to my computer and allow me to record to my computer with decent quality... A lot of recording devices have multiple tracks and you can do editting/mixing right on the unit (which is why they're so expensive)... I don't need that... I can get programs for free to do that (you ever hear of Audacity?)... I just need a good way to get the sound from my amp to my computer =)

(I'm still rambling because I'm avoiding work, hahaha)

 

[Kenneth R.]

WOW I didn't think I'd get such a lengthy (and interesting) reply

First off: Ulver! If you like Kveldssanger, check out the infinitely weird and yet strangely catchy "Perdition City". It is most interesting particulary given the context that it poses as a prediction for music of the future, and comes off very Sin City to me. Beyond that, there are their classics Bergtatt & Nattens Madrigal, both black metal, and the most recent Blood Inside. I recommend them all, for different genres but equally well-crafted.

Next: EE, oh joy
I'm in my 3rd of 4 years studying electrical engineering, trying to get a good focus on audio systems for exactly the reason you thought of: amplifiers! I have already designed and built a custom electric guitar, but I would like to try my hand at amps as well and am hoping to get a job working for an amp or speaker company. The math can be tedious at times, but the subject matter is pretty awesome IMO.

3rd: Recording...
I currently use Cubase SX1 to track my music, through a Shure SM58 standard vocal mic and using Line6 GuitarPort as an alternate interface to my soundcard. The MIDI was generated with GuitarPro5 (although I don't recommend it! The "realistic" sound engine is...well...not). GuitarPro4 or even PowerTab Editor are great for sequencing MIDI without access to a keyboard.
My advice on getting sound into your PC would be to buy a cheap mic (I'm sure I've seen decent ones going for $30) and getting a jack adapter (to make the end of the cable into something you can stick in your PC's soundcard.) I would however caution against plugging a bass into a soundcard directly because that low end power can blow it, you're better off with micing your amp.

Lastly: Autumnstone
I'm psyched that you liked my song, although I do admit it is only a MIDI version and a rough one at that. I'm currently spending a year abroad in London, UK studying, and so all my nice gear is at home in the 'States. Thus, I don't have any MP3's up yet, but the album is mostly written (and some of it transcribed in MIDI) and will be recorded sometime this summer.
I've adopted the Dan Swanö approach of "I will do everything myself" unless kind people offer to guest on tracks, which I am really surprised that several have. And now I'M rambling because I'M avoiding work too!

/cheers

 

[hailtiki]

Isn't avoiding work the best thing in the world... Like Office Space, I probably only do about 15 minutes of actual work a day =) Hahaha...

Actually, it seems the math in EE gets easier as you move along. For example: at first, they tell you to use differential equations to solve for caps and inductors, but then they teach you how to use complex algebra... SO much easier IMO. And later on, Laplace Transforms... They're exciting! Of course, I don't know about your school, but my later classes were all about using PSPICE for most of the math with a bit of MATLAB stuff. Actually, by the end, I don't think I was doing any math by hand. But, like I said, my curriculum focused on digital electronics a bit more than analog because I was doing the double major. Math is a bit more necessary for analog than digital.

Thanks for the recording tips! I just checked out that GuitarPort... does it have mic input? Doesn't look like it. On the other hand, for $10 more, the TonePort seems to have a mic input as well as guitar input. I'd rather be able to mic my amp... I refuse to believe some software is going to give me the same tone as my tube amp.

I tend to stick with free software... Audacity is a good, free mixing program, for instance. It's at least on par with CoolEdit Pro. I've never used Cubase though. For MIDI sequencing, I use a program called Rose Garden. The interface is a little stubborn at times, but, again, it's free and works well =) I also have a Korg Triton sitting around that can do some sequencing on board, but it's been a while since I've had the time to sit down with that thing. Shame really... PowerTab is also cool... It's good for quickly laying out a song to pass to other band members for them to learn it, or even to just write down ideas for yourself so you don't forget.

In any event, I agree: plugging a bass into my sound card would be a bad idea! Any instrument, really... the sound quality is going to be terrible. I've plugged my acoustic/electric and my electric guitar into my sound card before and the quality makes my ears bleed... well, ok... it's not that bad, but... anyway, If you've got time to kill, a couple of my samples can be had here: http://www.squeg.net/music/ With the exception of the first three MP3's, the rest were recorded several years ago by directly plugging into my sound card. Most of them are acoustical... and, ironically, inspired by "Kveldssanger" =) I was listening to that album a lot at the time. The first three MP3s on the page are from my two bands that I've been in, the first of which is more recent than the other two (and is my current band). It was recorded using a boom box in a basement during a practice so quality is lacking. The two MP3's for my older band were actually tracked and mixed, but we were using some pretty cheap hardware and were recording in a barn so the quality still isn't that great. The last two MP3s on the page were sequenced on my Triton... I was just playing around with the thing. I'm only moderately happy with the results.

Indeed, your MIDI was cool. The comments in it ("Rain") gave me a good sense where you are trying to go with it. I'm going to keep my eye on your site! Are you planning on releasing all the tracks for free, or are you going to sell a CD? I'll also have to check out some more Ulver!

 

[Kenneth R.]

i had a really long reply but it got deleted!

anyway in EE i was so shocked when they taught Laplace, because we had already learned the harder methods. why didn't we learn the easy way in the first place!

GuitarPort is cool, i think TonePort is their newer/better version, but like you said, it can't touch tube tone.

I checked out your stuff, cool tracks (especially for the recording methods) & the site is well designed too! Ulver reportedly recorded Nattens Madrigal in a forest, although some dispute this. lol

As for your final question, I have thought much on it... I am still undecided as I feel somewhat guilty for selling music, and yet for the effort that goes into it, and since I am short on money, I may have to come to a compromise with myself of some kind

 

[hailtiki]

Haha... Back when I used Yahoo for e-mail, I found that if I wrote long messages, by the time I was done, my session had timed out and when I tried to send the message, it would get lost because the website would be asking for my username/password... that made me so mad!

Seems everything in EE is taught from hard to easy, huh? =) Oh well, I'm sure knowing the hard methods is necessary to learn the basics.

Thanks for your kind words about my tracks and site. My job involves web-based programming, so, I've had a lot of practice =) In any event, the TonePort does look pretty cool. I like the mic inputs, and the standard 1/4 inch inputs are nice if I just want to lay down something quick (without going through the trouble of mic'ing my amp)... perhaps I'll pick one up sometime in the near future... hmmm... Didn't Emperor record an album in a church to get the echo? I think it was Anthems?

Perhaps if you made a nice, full color, printed insert for the CD, you could get away with offering the tracks for free with the option to buy. You could release the MP3's at 128 kb/s, that way, the MP3's are decent quality, but the CD would be of better quality too, which might be a selling point. I think anyone who likes your material enough would be willing to buy the CD to show their support... especially if you only charge a couple $$'s. Actually, despite what the RIAA wants you to think, studies have shown that most people buy a CD after downloading the music.

 

[ZHJ&T]

Looks like it's another band I need to check out!!!

Sorry for not being able to answer earlier and raise the horns for you guy's

Jasun/ZH

 

[Kenneth R.]

definitely check them out Jasun, crazy band those Norwegian guys!

Perhaps if you made a nice, full color, printed insert for the CD, you could get away with offering the tracks for free with the option to buy. You could release the MP3's at 128 kb/s, that way, the MP3's are decent quality, but the CD would be of better quality too, which might be a selling point. I think anyone who likes your material enough would be willing to buy the CD to show their support... especially if you only charge a couple $$'s. Actually, despite what the RIAA wants you to think, studies have shown that most people buy a CD after downloading the music.

This is a pretty good idea... I like it

 

[ZHJ&T]

Awesome man, I'm always excited for new music.

Jasun/ZH