COVID-19 - How's everyone doing? Anyone playing more music?

Safe, yes. Healthy, physically. Mentally? The 24 hour news cycle is taking its toll. The political situation in my chosen nation (I'm a Naturalized US citizen, born a Scotsman) is driving me up the wall (I'm of the Floyd from Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem view--"Just play the gig man, don't get involved in politics!" but I keep getting dragged into it), and my new bass won't be here until tomorrow "by 2100 hours." It's already in my state. It's 45 minutes up the road.

I need my new bass. I need it so I can start recording this song.

But yeah, going a bit crazy.

EDIT: Started working with hand independence on piano, and holy crap man, it's INSANE. I can barely play Eighth notes on one hand and Quarter on the other, and now they're throwing Dotted Quarters at me every other note on one hand with straight quarters on the other. There's no denying it'll give my hands a level of mastery of doing their own thing, but dudes. Just... It's almost physically painful how hard it is? Does that make sense? I'm going to have to slow this way, way, way, way down. Like, 10bpm or something.

.my copy of the virtuaoso pianist suggests you set your metronome to the lowest setting it has to start... I still haven't gotten past like 80bpm on those exercises....... Thanks god for sequencers

I'm trying to take a 2 or 3 day current events break but man its hard to avoid this clusterfuck!

I've slowed it down, and I do better, but my left hand just refuses to work with me on it. I'll get there eventually, once that mental/muscle block is broken, it'll be gone for good, and I'm sure I'll be flying around the keyboard in no time.

I've found my depression actually gets worse if I take breaks from the news. So while it's screwing my mental health watching it all unfold, I don't feel as out of the loop. It's a clusterfuck for sure, and it's getting worse every day.

it feels like this and me and my son are in the car

https://images.app.goo.gl/aLBCZvav4j21M5W96

Not sure I get the reference.

So the spouse found out that over 300 people at their workplace are tested positive, including their direct supervisor, their line lead, and everyone in their department EXCEPT them. They have called out the past few days on account of this. They're getting tested either tomorrow or the next day.

In happier news, I'm thinking of doing a Strat/Super Strat build. Found a body blank I really like on Reverb. The only questions I have are the following: Hard Tail or Tremolo (and if trem: locking or standard), and what pickup configuration, S/S/S, H/S/H, or S/S/H? I already know I'm throwing DiMarzios in it, with Air Norton in the Mid, and probably some kind of sustainer (Fernandes or Sustainiac, undecided) in the neck, depending on pickup configuration.

Wiring will be pretty insane. I like the Jazzmaster circuit, I like the Red Special, I like my Vox Bulldog, I like the Ibanez JEM... You get the idea. Anyway, wiring will not be for the faint of heart--which is no big deal, I used to do electrical work. Wiring is nothing.

Anyroad, Yeah, figured that's a good start, if nothing else!

I made a red specialized strat, recommend it

570 people out of 2200 positive at the spouse's job. Yeah, this situation is not OK.

Anyroad, how's everyone else? Not much else on my end other'n that, binge watched the entire Witcher TV series on Netflix. It's good. I highly recommend. Also, the games are/were on sale on Steam, so don't be afraid to give 'er. Speaking of Free Games, until 11AM, GTAV is free on Epic Games via their launcher. Stuff to do to stay busy if you're not feeling musical.

I'm going to bed now, methinks.

EDIT: Also, how long does it take for gear submitted to artist pages to get reviewed? I ask because I submitted a Vox Phantom to Dave Gregory's (XTC) page a while ago, and that's yet to pass the quality rating or what have you.

so is anyone else doing spitfire audio's westworld scene scoring contest? I'm wrapping up my cue this weekend to submit, put my cover song and industrial song on hld. Its been challenging but lots of fun. It kinda late for anyone to jump in as the deadlne is in a few days, but its worth just DLing the clip to fiddle with. I've enver worked on a drama, just documentaries. HARD.

witcher was not as good as early game of thrones but better than later game of thrones. I liked the nonsequential storytelling a lot! All in all its like GOT meets kung fu.... with some of the earthsea books thrown in for good measure.

I prefer the Witcher to GoT. I mean, I've read GoT, and seen the show. I prefer Witcher. Granted, compared to both, I prefer Malazan Book of the Fallen, Wheel of Time, and LotR, but that's just me.

I also like the show better than GoT, but that's just because Geralt. And Yen. But mostly Yen.

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Yeah, mostly Yen.

okay, LoTR? no comparing. Invented genre PERIOD

But as far as pure writing technique and randomplot twists like actual history? Got was satisfying to the history buf in me whereas LoTr satisfies the mythology buff. Scratches 2 different itches. I'm a guy who reads lots of straight scholarly history and also enjoys a good hsitorical fiction doorstopper like Pillars of the Earth, anything by Bernard Cornwell or the criminally underrated Masters of Rome, especialy the first man in rom and the grass crown. Whoa. Witcher I have not read but might kindle it when I finish this doorstopper bipgraphy of Oliver Cromwell I've been reading aloud to my son before bed.

But over all I'm not a big fantasy fan. I read a song of ice and fire very late because I'm just not the AD&D in the basement listening to Rainbow albums type of musician. I don't keep track of Tor releases. After season 1 of the show aired my wife (then mercifully living, unlike ned stark) had to prevail on me to give a few episodes of the show a chance and then read her copy of the 1st book if I liked it. The people whoa re into hardcore fantasy? Different type of nerd than me. I'm really a scifi guy. More that type of nerd. Azimov, Heinlein, Herbert, Card (and all the other great from pulp to present) and most of all Philip K Dick, Burgess, JG Ballard and William Gibson. Yes I used to reread all 3 neuromancer books every year as an act of religious devotion... I haven't in a while and now I have the Chiba City Blues LOL.

So as of finishing season 3 of Westworld where it goes full on Cyber Punk with all the deep AI psychology insinuating itself into human affairs, sociological musings, pseudo apocalyptic future history, man vs mahcine and yet reliant on said machine plus the generally oppressive dystopian malaise (here updated for the 21st century in an all to recognizable form)? I feel Westworld shames all these fantasy shows and finally picks up the torch from BladeRunner (although the bladerunner sequel was shockingly good and manages to do far more justice to the source amterial than ridley's original for all its power). I also enjoyed altered carbon on netflix, season 1 more than season 2. Watchmen was of course excellent but its more of an alternate hsitory than a future story and, well, superheroes. Love 'em and ahte 'em. Its respect for the original source material compared to the patchy film adaptation was a relief and Trent's score was bang on perfect and really badass even without the imagery. But Westworld. If you have not watched it, do so. All of it. Yes Season 1 is very much a deeper version of the Chrichton film. Just a warm up for Jurassic Park with robots but it morphs into soemthing ore akin to his noval the Terminal Man before becoming the Nuromancer. There are even strains of John Carpenter here. It hits most of the right notes and shames all these sword and sorcery epics as viewing just like Neuromancer's terse and direct style obliterates the scifi that came before while absorbing and homaging everything that was previously great in the genre.

See, if I were to do a deep dive into the books I read and why.. I'm mostly a fantasy guy. Not because D&D, though I do play (and run games). Lord of the Rings for me, while it absolutely did define the genre, it made mythology more accessible--I'm the guy who did his senior research paper comparing and contrasting Greco-Roman mythology with Norse mythology--and I love that about it. Malazan Book of the Fallen, now there's one that has it all. History, characters, worldbuilding, plot, characters, plot, worldbuilding, more worldbuilding. It was written by an anthropologist. Highly recommended if you've not read it.

Wheel of Time though is a whole 'nother level for me. Personal reasons, won't bore ya.

Sci-Fi. Oh boy. Dune is king here. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely adore Rendezvous with Rama, Chronicles of Pern, most anything by Asimov... list goes on... But Dune is just so... massive. Like, the universe is epic in span and scope. I do not like the David Lynch film. I have mixed feelings on the production photos I'm seeing for Dune 2020. But yeah. Dune. Also a massive Trekkie. Like, Way Huge. Just started watching Voyager for the first time (gotta remember, I didn't grow up in the western world--so while I know about a lot of TV shows, some I have to catch up on). DS9 is my favorite of that. Babylon 5 is better.

Will have to check out Westworld. I loved the movie. Found the book... eh...

But yeah, with books, I'm Fantasy First, Sci-Fi Second, Historical Fiction Third (I love Anne of Green Gables). Bit rambly there. But then again, you lot are probably used to that by now. I'm kind of ADHD/stream of consciousness. Can't help it!

PERN!!! the THREADS!!! get on yuor dragons and ride motherfuckers! or better still, teleport and go back in time!

I just cherry picked all the best story arcs of enxt gen recently, went by alien race or topic starting with the borg.... I get it

and I knew you played D&D, no one who loves prog rock can resist dungeons and dragons.... LOL

and I knew you played D&D, no one who loves prog rock can resist dungeons and dragons....

I don't just play it... I've spent a socially unacceptable amount of time building an original setting for my players, complete with a unique magic system, new spins on fantasy trope creatures, and how the elements work. I also have written down a fair amount of history, kings, rulers, battles, borders, historical events of significance, religions, each region has cultures unique to that region...

Yeah... I uh...

I mean, hey, when you grow up in the middle of nowhere, you've got fuck all else to do, I mean, you learn to play music, and you write.

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A LOT.

I've really been picturng myself isolated in the scottish highlands lately.... current events make the nmiddle of nowhere look like somewhere to be

I NEED A FAVOR. For days my westworld score's YouTube stats have been frozen at a paltry 74. Since getting those hits lots of friends have contacted me with feedback and I know I should easily have 25 more hits. [It eventually moved to 114 and froze again despite getting hit more than 40 times in a matter of hours] This is a bit academic because it's not a popularity contest but I want to see if when everyone who reads this slams this video with a couple of plays each if the thing updates or if I'm being chastised for not being a habitual youtuber. I don't even ask that you listen to the piece, feel free to mute your phone. Just please click the link and play it once or twice. I need your help for this experiment. It's an informal inquiry into fairness practices at Google. If I'm wrong and my plays move so be it. If not we have the makings if a fun little article! Thank you all.

in the time since I posted this to social media I've had a little motio but not amtching the number of friends who rolled the clip. Its weird.

https://youtu.be/jfTShWk6emI

let me know if you play it and if the coutner moved... its erratic

and the counter suddenly jumpd gain even though no one played it for me over night.... weird

As an occasional YouTuber, the count system is somewhat... tetchy... until you've monitized your channel, apparently.

It tends to update in batches, some views will be removed if people use VPNs while they watch, other crazy things... The whole thing is just odd.

But that's YouTube for ya.

hulk smash monopolistic google conglomerate! ever notice that MUSIC sites instantly update when someone listens past a certain point n the tune? For once the music business is more honest.

I have. Hell, YouTube used to. But they're becoming more and more hostile towards small channels, which is a cryin' shame, because it's already a tough gig to break into anyway.