A Drop Of Gin!

During this week I have in between my own material been working on another cover version, this time, The Human League's "Gordon's Gin" off their album "Travelogue". I struggled a bit at first with this one but decided to go for it today and surprisingly I have managed to record the whole track. I have done a rough first mix with effects added to the sounds which I will listen to later tonight and then make any changes tomorrow if I can.

Gary

Some Lyrics For "A Million Stars"

Been working on the track "A Million Stars" mainly on doing some lyrics. I might possibly change the title of this song as i'm not sure about it yet, although the lyrics do have that line in. This is what I have come up with on the lyric front:

We're driving through the city
We're driving through the night
We're lost amongst the debris
Is that a neon light?
I see the patterns changing
I don't know where we are
Lost focus for a moment
I'm sure it can't be far

I'm walking in the subway
I think I am alone
A million stars above me
I can't be far from home
I'm talking on the phone now
We're both passing time
A statue by the old school
Another danger sign

Lyrics By Gary Hunter

Car Crash Flashback

"Car Crash Flashback" is almost complete with the verse vocals done and the middle 8 vocal recorded. Just need to do the chorus vocals. I must point out at this stage that I have a good friend on Myspace, Ian Price (Future Daze, School Of Ambience & Robo cast radio) who is very helpful in respect of ideas for mixing vocals which has really been great as to be honest I just tended to slap a bit of reverb on my vocals but now experiment with all sorts of things like layering the vocals adding both phase & flange effects. So personal thanks to Ian for his guidence. Here are some of Ian's web pages:

Future Daze

School Of Ambience

Robo Cast Radio

My other new song "A Million Stars" still needs a fair bit of work and may have a mess about with that one tonight.

Gary Hunter Official Myspace Web page

Gary Hunter On iCompositions

Gary

A Million Stars

Whilst giving my car a run today I had a new melody in my head which has started to evolve in to another new track. Spent a little time today recording a few ideas in Cubase and have come up with a track which is starting to knit together very well. It has a working title of "A Million Stars".

Changed a bit of the arrangement in "Car Crash Flashback" today as well. Hoping to do some vocals tomorrow (sods law I have a bit of a husky voice today!!).

Gary

Great progress on "Car Crash Flashback" & Joy Division Covers News

I made excellent progress in recording the new track "Car Crash Flashback" yesterday with the bulk of the music now recorded. Once again I am really pleased with this track and it sounds excellent alongside the 3 other tracks I have recorded for the album so far (A Face I Knew, The Glimmer Man" & Stranger In The Room).

Instrument wise on this one I have used the following:

Roland Juno-D synth
NI Pro53 Synth
Superwave Pro Synth
Novation Bass Station
Roland CR78 Drum Machine
Rob Papen Blue Synth
Rob Papen Predator Synth
& A few Other Synths

As the album is very much inspired by the album "metamatic" by John Foxx I came up with the working title of "Systematic" which I do like, so for now, that is going to be the "working title" of the project. Below is the art work for the front cover (Again this might change)



My 2 Joy Division covers continue to get brilliant positive comments and a few weeks back I sent a message to Peter Hook (Member of Joy Division/New Order) about placing the cover versions on to my myspace page. Last night I got a message back from he stating it's fine by him, which is great, but even better is that he has asked me for a copy of my cover versions which is fantastic. Whether he just collects cover versions of the songs or he has heard them and likes them I don't know. Let's hope he likes them, if he does what is interesting is he now does a lot of DJ'ing so who knows these cover versions may well reacher a wider audience ...... I can but dream!

My Official Homepage On Myspace

My Web Page On iCompositions

Gary

Car Crash Flasback & More

Now I am nearing the end of the Joy Division Covers sessions I have returned to my own material for my new electronic album, but, before I get to that this is what has been happening this week:

My cover of Joy Divisions "Dead Souls" still needs a good vocal to finish it off. I may also have a mess around with the chorus synth sounds I have used. If i do manage to nail a decent vocal then I will settle for that.

I have also recorded a fair bit of a New Order cover version. The track I am doing is my all time favorite track of theirs "Bizarre Love Triangle". I have recorded most of the music on that one to and it is sounding excellent. No vocals recorded yet.

..... now back to my album. I have started work on another new track which is called "Car Crash Flashback". So far I have laid down some drum patterns (Once again I am using the Roland CR78 Drum Machine) and some synths and written the lyrics. The song is once again inspired by John Foxx. Here are the lyrics to the song, which may change!

I saw you standing there
By the broken chair
We dissolve the memories
In the fading light

I don't remember you
Why am I off the beaten track?
I can see a silhouette
It's a car crash flashback

We left the smoke filled room
It was early June
We walked and talked all night
In the fading light

I don't remember you
Why am I off the beaten track?
I can see a silhouette
It's a car crash flashback

I'm changing direction
I'm switching scene's

I don't remember you
Why am I off the beaten track?
I can see a silhouette
It's a car crash flashback

Lyrics by Gary Hunter

So all being well I will tidy up the last 2 cover versions and make serious progress with "Car Crash Flashback".

Gary

My Second Joy Division Cover Is Now Online

My second Joy Division cover version is now complete and has been uploaded on to my page at iCompositions. You can listen to the track here

A reminder also that my other Joy Division cover of "She's Lost Control" can be listened to here

I am working on a third and probably final Joy Division song called "Dead Souls" which is progressing well. I have to admit though that it has proved bloody difficult to do an electronic version of the song as it is quite a powerful track. I have given it a very heavy electronic feel to it and is barely recognizable to the original except for the chorus sections. Most of the music is recorded and have done a few vocal takes and also think the vocals on this one will be quite a challenge for my very limited vocal range!

www.myspace.com/garyhuntermusic

www.iCompositions.com/artists/garyhunter

Gary

Getting Away With It All Mixed Up!

I have done some mixing down today of my Joy Division Cover of "Love Will Tear Us Apart" and I have to say this version of the song I have done has blown me away. I am amazed at how "Live Sounding" I have managed to get a drum machine to sound. It is very powerful and I think people are going to be very surprised at my take on LWTUA.

The song is almost complete and I will tidy up any issues with the mix in the next day or so.

It should be on my iCompositions page at the end of the week.

Official MySpace Page

iCompositions Page

It is well worth checking out my iCompositions page as there are around 30 of my recordings!

Gary

Love Will Tear Us Apart

This week I am working on another Joy Division cover version. This time it is the brilliant "Love Will Tear Us Apart". Recording of the track has gone really well with all the rhythm and instruments recorded and a vocal done. I am now, over the next couple of days, going to do the mixing. I have given the track an uplifting electronic feel whilst keeping to the original key elements of the track and have once again tried to re-create the original rhythm section. Hopefully the track will be posted on my iCompositions web page later in the week.

Here are the instruments used on "Love Will Tear Us Apart"

Boss DR550 Drum Machine
Roland Juno-D Synth
NI Pro53 Synth
Vanguard Synth
Rob Papen Predator Synth
Rob Papen Blue Synth
JP-8000 Synth

All recording done using Steinbergs Cubase

My other Joy Division cover version "She's Lost Control" has been gaining some stunning positive feedback which I am absolutely delighted with as I wanted to try and do justice to this truly excellent song without ripping apart the original arrangement. If you have n't heard the track yet then you can here

A good friend I have on the Myspace scene is Ian Price who records his own music under the names Future Daze and School Of Ambience. Ian asked if he could do a re-working of my new electronic track "The Glimmer Man" which he has now completed. The re-worked version of "The Glimmer Man" can be listened to here

My original recording of "The Glimmer Man" will also be uploaded to my sites shortly after I have made a few minor adjustments to effects on my vocals.

Gary

Control - Mission Accomplished!

Did the mixing down of my Joy Division cover "She's Lost Control" today and also re-recorded a couple of the vocal elements I was unhappy with.

I have to say that I think this track is stunning even though I say it myself - I am really amazed at how this track has developed and how the finished version sounds.

Instruments used on this song:

Novation Bass Station
Vanguard Synth
Boss DR550 Drum Machine
Alesis HR16 Drum Machine

Gary

She's Lost Control!

A while ago I recorded a very rough demo of Joy Division's "She's Lost Control" which I thought was ok, It was certainly different! Today I decided to record the whole song again with new vocals. I am really delighted at how it has come out. I have decided to re-create the original rhythm track of the song and then electronically looked to take the song to a whole new level. It is very electronic bordering on the edge of trance I would say and I do think it is a very original way to tackle a cover version. (Whether Ian Curtis would approve I don't know!)

I hope to have the song on my web pages at the weekend. All the effect processes have been done and I need to tidy up bits of the vocal and then mix the whole thing down.

Keep an eye out for it.

Gary

This weeks progress

This week I have been mixing down "Stranger In A Room", "A Face I Knew" and "The Glimmer Man". Both the tracks "A Face I Knew" and "The Glimmer Man" have had a lot of work done on the vocal sections with some nice effects added to them to add "warmth and depth" to them.

In addition I have also done extended mixes of "A Face I Knew" and "The Glimmer Man".

All being well next week I will be starting work on a brand new version of "Rewind To Zero" as I want a version that fits with the current sound I am using. "I remember You" will get a similar makeover.

"Stranger In A Room" was featured on the latest Robo Cast Radio show which is the first time that the song has been heard any where.

"A Face I Knew" is the only track featured on any of my website's at this stage but the other new songs will appear soon. The version I have on icompositions is an early version of the song.

Instruments used for the new songs include

Roland Juno-D Synth
Korg M1 Synth
NI Pro53 Synth
Vanguard Synth
Predator Synth
Superwave Pro Synth
Roland 808 Drum Machine
Roland C78 Drum Machine

www.myspace.com/garyhuntermusic

www.iCompositions.com/artists/garyhunter

www.soundclick.com/garyhunter

Gary