It’s Valentine’s Day so how appropriate is it to explain the greatest love song I ever wrote? I wrote this song for the obsessed, wanting, yearning. I wrote it for those who found fire in another persons eyes. I wrote it for those trapped in one place dying to be in another. I wrote it for us.
“Love sick dangerous blood falling from the sky. I want you everyone must die. Love sick unhappiness I scream into the night. I want you wrong or right. Love sick evilness on my way I lie. I want you everyone will cry. Love sick sickness people can’t understand. I want you I am a sick sick man. Love sick tenderness alone we dance. I want eternal romance.” – The Horrorist
Available: iTunes, Amazon and Beatport
This entry was written by , posted on February 14, 2012 at 7:59 am, filed under Uncategorized and tagged Joyless Pleasure, Love Sick, The Horrorist, Things to Come Records. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink and follow any comments with the RSS feed for this post.
It’s a Friday in February, early in the morning dark and dreary. It seems appropriate to tell you another behind the music look from Joyless Pleasure. We are on song number four. This song has the same title as the album so consciously I’ve highlighted it in yellow for you. If you look closely at the album you will notice this song is not the original mix. I’ve had help on this one so now I’ve underlined the song too.
This song is about being in love with sadness. The song is about feeding addiction, depression and danger. It’s about the search for pain and keeping your head up after you found it. I once lived in Chelsea for about a decade. The years I was there a notorious homosexual community was locked in crystal meth addiction. I met some very troubled soles screaming, crashing and melting into each other. There was incredible pleasure. All of it incredibly joyless.
Although I didn’t think of it at the time when I hear the song now and hear the chorus it reminds me of the lyric “Keep your head up (moving on)” in the Eurythmics Sweet Dreams. Not the vocal style or melody but the message. I loved the song Sweet Dreams when I was a teenager. It makes me a bit sad today that I now now what she really means in the song. We have all had times where the only way forward was to just walk, keeping walking and forget. Funny how we preemptively connect with things.
The vocals took about a full month to get right. I would do a verse here and there because sometimes inspiration trickles instead of flows. When I have the lyrics perfect I have to re-sing the entire song because each previously recorded verse was a different take and don’t sound right (different mics, times of day). That usually causes another issue: when I have everything done and want to record the final full vocal all at once I’ve heard the song so many times that instead of singing it with inspiration I sort of parody myself. This is why many times I have to shelve the song for a long enough time so I forget about it, come back to it hit record and hope the first new take after 4-5 weeks is an insprired one. So yes that was the original mix… its just drums, one synth and vocals. I sent it to my most trusted musical friend Gabri Negro (Richter) to hear. He always asks to remix/reedit my work and in this case I was so exhausted by the track I said please do. I didn’t expect what he returned with. Usually I have enough confidence and bravado to think I can always make a better song than anyone else. In this case the original or anything I was going to do wouldn’t be better so I asked him if I could use his version on the album. I should note here he never asks for any money or anything in return. If your looking for a version that can be played on the dancefloor check out Frank Kvitta’s remix (link) on the Joyless Pleasure Remixed album.
Listen to and read more stories from the album here: Modern, We Will Get Wicked and Darkling Lullaby
“I like dancing do much it makes me really crazy. I like you so much come come kill me.”
Buy the song: iTunes, Amazon and Beatport
This entry was written by , posted on February 10, 2012 at 7:02 am, filed under music, promotion and tagged Frank Kvitta, Joyless Pleasure, Richter, The Horrorist, Things to Come Records. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink and follow any comments with the RSS feed for this post.
“Finish what you start.” is a good saying. I agree with it. Last year when I released the album Joyless Pleasure I promised to go song by song and tell you the backstory and technical details. Honestly, I got cold feet realizing I would have to reveal more of myself than I may want to. This blog is useless if I don’t add a personal touch and although it’s 80% music tech it’s music itself that’s important right? In addition I’ve had more than a few readers ask I continue explaining each song. I’m already 6 songs into my next album and want to preview some of it soon. Therefore it’s now or never to get into the details of the remaining 8 songs on Joyless Pleasure. The first two songs are covered here: Modern and We Will Get Wicked.
Darkling Lullaby. If I could have written a song like this when I was 17 years old I would have. I didn’t have the skill or wisdom at that time so I wrote it now. It a lullaby to a beutifull young girl who is on top of the world. She breaks hearts. The song is from the scorned and obsessed. One day the girl will be old and struggle like everyone else. When I listen to the song sometimes I picture a father singing it to a daughter in her bedroom. It’s February so maybe this is fine for a Valentine’s day playlist. Especially if you’re single.
The vocals were written in one take but I changed the last verse a few days later. The main synth is a layer of Fairlight CMI choral samples and a Korg Poly 800 arpeggiated. There’s lots of Altiverb reverb washing over the entire track. The kick is a Jomox Mbase 01. The song took about a week to finish. Be sure to check out the Dom Dumoulin remix on the Joyless Pleasure Remixed album (link). The photos used for the Youtube video still (above) are indeed yours truly. I used to climb the slanted tree to the right of me in the photo almost everyday. Behind me you can see the stream that ran through my front yard.
“I am sorry for what the world will do to you. Darkling I am sad to tell you the truth. Love is a lie like a butterfly. Dear I wish it was different for you. You will cry like everyone cries. I am sorry it’s the truth. Darkling I am sad for for you. My sweet Darkling you will cry. You will cry and cry.” – The Horrorist
Buy the song: iTunes, Amazon or Beatport
This entry was written by , posted on February 3, 2012 at 8:17 am, filed under music, song writing and tagged Darkling Lullaby, sad, The Horrorist, Things to Come Records. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink and follow any comments with the RSS feed for this post.
I’ve been creating some music with Tom Carpenter. He’s the man behind the wonderful Analogue Solutions synths and modules. He did an unexpected “nice” for me and printed my alias The Horrorist on his upcoming Spring Reverb modules. So I guess I broke some new here… yeah AS has a new Spring Reverb module coming up. If you follow Tom on Facebook you can also see his new very nice looking Telemark Keyboard. The first song we recorded is called “Forever for You” although we could change it to Cold Wave.. what do you think Tom? My friend Gabri is also doing a mix and there will be some other tracks. Samples coming soon…
“Your name is imortalised on the new spring reverb circuit board. hopefully it will be released in a few months!” – Tom Carpenter
For more info: thehorrorist.com and analoguesolutions.org.uk/v2/
This entry was written by , posted on January 27, 2012 at 12:41 pm, filed under hardware, music and tagged Analogue Solutions, circuit board, Richter, spring reverb, The Horrorist, Things to Come Records, Tom Carpenter. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink and follow any comments with the RSS feed for this post.
The video for my song One Night in NYC has now over 1,000,000 views on Youtube. It’s a true story. I recorded it in my mother’s basement. I did the song live in just a couple of takes. I used a Roland TR-909 drum machine, Akai S950 sampler, Yamaha TX81z synthesizer, Mackie 1604 mixer, Shure SM58 microphone and Cubase on an Atari 1040ST. I simply muted/unmuted channels on the Mackie with one hand and the microphone in the other telling the story. I never thought much of the song and was embarrassed to play it for people I knew because it was so freaky. In 1996 I offered it to a bunch of labels at the time who all turned the song down (sorry Lenny). I started my own label (Things to Come Records) and released it. In 2001 Chris Liebing flew to New York and convinced me to let him do a remix. He gathered many other remixers and the track went to #1 on the German charts for many weeks. Warner Brothers picked it up and shot the video above at The Limelight. Live life, be inspirired… it’s the only way to make songs that will connect with a lot of people.
“Hello, my name is Oliver and I’m going to tell you a story. It’s about a young girl… She’s only fifteen years old and has blonde hair and blue eyes.” – The Horrorist
For more info: thehorrorist.com
This entry was written by , posted on December 14, 2011 at 8:33 pm, filed under music and tagged Chris Liebing, One Night in NYC, The Horrorist, Things to Come Records. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink and follow any comments with the RSS feed for this post.
I was interviewed for Industrial/EBM web portal Side-Line. If your into this type of music the forums are a great place to hang out.
“Chesler, who lives in New York, released a new album this year, “Joyless Pleasure”. You may expect the remixed version of it to be soon out as well. In between recording sessions we asked him a couple of questions…” – side-line.com
Read the full interview: side-line.com/id=47205_0_2_0_C
This entry was written by , posted on at 4:03 am, filed under interviews, promotion and tagged EBM, industrial, interview, Side-Line, The Horrorist, Things to Come Records. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink and follow any comments with the RSS feed for this post.
Robert Snelten sent me a Facebook message showing me his Things to Come Records cake. While it has some issues I’m honored. Thank you Robert!
“Dumbest idea ever……..Musicians should NEVER bake pies ! Congrats with the remixalbum though.” — Robert Snelten
For more info: thingstocome.com
This entry was written by , posted on December 11, 2011 at 10:35 am, filed under promotion and tagged cake, Things to Come Records. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink and follow any comments with the RSS feed for this post.
I am very proud to announce the release of Joyless Pleasure Remixed. Haujobb, Frank Kvitta, Phil J, Tomas Tulpe, Millimetric, Cute Heels, Acrosome, Rumpelfilter, Steinkind, Miss Duckin, Miro Pajic, Humandroid, Raytrace, Mac Vaughn, People Theatre, Johann Afterglow, Dom Dumoulin, Angst and Stamba have all created remixes. Everyone did a fantastic job. It’s available today on iTunes, Amazon and the Andtroid Marketplace. Next week it will be available on Beatport. So do tell me which mixes you like the best. The best way to support Wire to the Ear is to buy some of my music and/or click over to the places this release is for sale and give it a nice review and rating. I wish I could still fit into that grey suit and orange turtleneck.
“Joyless Pleasure is like a jewelry piece but in electronic music.” – morganistik.com
Available now: iTunes, Amazon, Android Market
This entry was written by , posted on December 10, 2011 at 1:29 pm, filed under music and tagged Joyless Pleasure, Joyless Pleasure Remixed, The Horrorist, Things to Come Records. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink and follow any comments with the RSS feed for this post.
Frank Kvitta is a well established german techno DJ and producer. I met Frank when I performed last summer in Spain at the Monegros Festival. He was in the same van traveling to the show from the hotel. We clicked, stayed in touch and next week we will release a monster techno EP called Electronic Pleasure. Frank knows everyone and was able to gather remixes from Ben Sims, DJ Rush, Patrick DSP, Dave the Drummer, Submerge, Alex Kvitta, Boris S, David Christop and more. To start the promotion here’s an interview to let you know a little but about who Frank is.
1. Let’s start with software. What DAW to you prefer and name three
plug-ins you can’t live without.
Hello Oliver, thank you for having me for your great blog. My favourite software for producing used to be fruity loops in the very beginning 10 years ago. After that i started using Reason for many years but i was never satisfied with the sound engine. Then i found Ableton Live and since i found it i use it the most or let´s say, only Ableton Live. I like the workflow and the functions. It´s superfast and easy to use and i can be very productive as i can just concentrate on making the beats and not concentrate how to make the beats. My Top plug ins i never want to miss anymore are the “Waves” of course, Nexus and the FM8 and some secret plug ins ;)
2. What is the oldest piece of hardware you have in your studio?
The oldest piece in my studio is my keyboard M-Audio Oxygen 8 hehe. I sold my old stuff long time ago already, as i just use digital software and some midi controllers and the Presonus digial mixer for productions.
3. When you have been working in the studio too long and you need to
take a 30 minute break what do you do?
Mostly i go outside (if it´s not too cold), have an espresso, do some phone calls, listen to different music (hip hop, rnb, 80´s) and then i go back to work. My ears need a break too, otherwise after too many hours you can´t concentrate anymore and everything sounds the same because ears get tired too.
4. Do you think DJing makes you a better producer? Do you grab loops
from records/tracks or always make your own beats?
I think without beeing a dj or performing in any other ways music, you can be a good producer too, but while you perform you have the chance to see reactions on specific sounds, breaks, melodys which inspire me again to do my next tracks. Also when you perform you have also a great feeling for music and beats which can be very usefull with producing too. It depends, sometimes i mash up loops and sample and cut things out to make new ones, sometimes i start all over and create my own sounds and loops. Really depends on which track i m doing and which style. And i have enough time for a track or not, deadlines are sometimes really tight hehe.
5. How many songs do you finish per month?
Well i can have days where i finish a whole track in about 3 hours from starting with the mainloop until the final arrangement. Sometimes it takes much longer, even days or weeks. IT depends always on the mood, creativity, ideas. If my head is full with ideas and i m in a great mood to produce i can be pretty fast. If those things are not given, thx god we can hit the save button and continue the next days.
6. If you found someone breaking into your music studio what would you
do to the person?
I would take him next to my side and show this person how much work and love and passion has been spent to create all these tracks on this computer and how hard it was to achieve a studio like this over all the years, then i would slap the shit out of him and call the police haha.
7. What is the best snack to have around while making music?
I always have a sandwhich with melted gouda cheese and a “BiFi Roll” and of course loads of drinks. I love snacks.
8. Do you think buying new gear and software helps with creativity
and/or inspiration?
Yes sure, always when i buy something new i get excited like a little kid and start playing around with the stuff and get always new ideas. I think everybody knows the feeling of getting something new and playing around with it.
9. If you were not a DJ/Producer what would be your profession?
hmmm good questions. to be honest i don´t really know. Probably still something with music. Sound engineering or selling hot dogs.
10. Tell us briefly what your master plan for world domination is in 2012.
I have many big plans for 2012. We plan enhanced music podcasts (which actually started already), alot of releases of other genres with new music partners (including you for example), expanding the bookings agency with more people, promote all of us more in the media again (videos, photos, tv) and many more which are my secrets and i can´t talk about them, otherwise this emails explodes and if you survive i have to kill you hehe…kidding…
For more info: frank-kvitta.net
This entry was written by , posted on December 8, 2011 at 2:15 pm, filed under interviews, music and tagged Frank Kvitta, Germany, techno, Things to Come Records. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink and follow any comments with the RSS feed for this post.
I’m back from Malta and I had a superb time! For some reason the long travel didn’t phase me. I read a couple hundred pages of the Steve Jobs bio and watched some movies. Here’s my quick movie reviews… Contagion: I thought it would be better but still entertaining. A Better Life: Pretty good and makes you have a warm heart for Mexcian and S. American workers in the USA. Crazy, Stupid Love: Ryan Gosling is good inspiration for the gym and there’s a good enough romantic scene if your into that kind of thing (I am). Limitless: A strange pro-drug movie which is not all that great yet it’s stuck in my mind.
Now to the live show report. The club Tattingers was crowded and the stage area was very tight. You don’t need security in Malta with respect to violence however some crowd control would have been helpful. About half way through the set when I started to throw out some of the new stickers from the stage kids rushed up and knocked the table hard enough that my new Macbook Pro went flying down about 20 feet. The music went off and nicely the kids started chanting Horrorist over and over very loudly. When I am on stage I’m locked in the zone so once the computer was handed to me I just restarted and and the show went on. My Apple fanboyism is stronger than ever because there’s only a very small mark on the corner where it must have hit the floor. I do have an SSD in the thing which may have saved the night. In fact the chanting really pumped me up so much that the rest of the show was so energetic I was completely sweat wet when it was all over. If you make music you have to get out an play live there’s nothing in the world like it.
Pet Duo had a mountain of computers, Ableton Launchpad controllers, CDJs, etc… and held the club in a hard techno daze for hours. I always love performing in Malta and the promoter has promised me the next gig will be in the peak summer season and I get to take his water scooter out for a ride!
To see the full set of photos from the show: click here
For more info: thehorrorist.com and petduo.com
This entry was written by , posted on December 6, 2011 at 6:38 am, filed under live performance and tagged Malta, Pet Duo, The Horrorist, The Horrorist Live, Things to Come Records. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink and follow any comments with the RSS feed for this post.
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