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diff --git a/docs/music/early-sunsets-over-monroeville.md b/docs/music/early-sunsets-over-monroeville.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..97b8212 --- /dev/null +++ b/docs/music/early-sunsets-over-monroeville.md @@ -0,0 +1,152 @@ +# Early Sunsets Over Monroeville + +2023-01-16 + +One evening, Mom entered my room when I practiced ukulele. She was like +"you should record smth" so I did. + +I went for Early Sunsets Over Monroeville ("Monroeville" hereafter) by My +Chemical Romance (MCR), for following reasons: + +- I happened to be playing that song +- It's one of the few MCR songs acoustic enough for the ukulele, the only + pitched instrument I can play +- [Billy Cobb made a cover](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVYs4kvBii8) + and I enjoyed it immensely +- There is one more reason but it's complicated so I put it at the end + +The work began on 2023-01-12 and ended on 2023-01-15. + +## Step 1: Learn song + +Monroeville is structured as follows: + +- intro +- verse 1 +- prechorus 1 +- verse 2 +- prechorus 2 +- verses 3, 4, 5 that have more or less the same lyrics but get + increasingly emotional + +I found [the ukulele +tab](https://ukutabs.com/m/my-chemical-romance/early-sunsets-over-monroeville/) +and learned to play the chords. Then I spent a few showers to practice the +vocals. + +## Step 2: DAW + +I know this can't be a one-take because I only have one mic, and the uke +would completely demolish my untrained voice. Also, this song is like +5 minutes long. + +I did try recording and putting together clips in Audacity before, but +without bars and beats it was a pain to synchronize. + +This time however, I installed [Ardour](https://ardour.org/) and gave it +a whirl. A few hours and ready to go. + +## Step 3: Rig + +My rig: + +- second hand soprano ukulele +- USB lavalier mic for online lectures +- overear headphones, never used for six years +- a laptop + +## Step 3: Record strumming + +This is like rhythm guitar in the original composition. Chords were not +too hard, but it took a while to play on tempo. This is me strumming the +intro: + +<audio controls src="../img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/intro_strum.ogg"></audio> + +## Step 4: Improvise + +I improvised a riff to imitate the prechorus melody. This was done by +plucking the G string. I just clipped my nails, so to make it sound +brighter I used a guitar pick. + +<audio controls src="../img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/prechorus_plucks.ogg"></audio> + +## Step 5: Record drums + +I recorded some clips of me slapping my thighs but ended up discarding +them because (a) they sounded off-theme and inconsistent, and (b) it was +stupid. Also this is an acoustic cover so drumless would be just fine. + + + +▲ It was this moment that I decided thigh drums didn't go well with +Monroeville. + +## Step 6: Record lead + +I found [lead guitar tabs on +Songsterr](https://www.songsterr.com/a/wsa/my-chemical-romance-early-sunsets-over-monroeville-tab-s22636) +and transposed some of it for the ukulele. This is the prechorus lead: + +<audio controls src="../img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/prechorus_lead.ogg"></audio> + +My fingers were not good at fretting and picking strings on tempo, but in +a choir of tracks these imperfections were easily concealed. Near the end +I accidentally rang strings I wasn't supposed to touch, but luckily they +were somewhat in key. + +## Step 7: Record vocals + +It took a few tries to place the mic somewhere stable enough, but there's +still this kind of low-frequency oscillations in the waveform: + + + +Good news is it's barely noticeable. + +I could not go as hard and emotional as Gerard or Billy in the second half +because (a) I never trained myself to scream, and (b) I've never had any +experience with a zombiefied romantic partner. As a result, the second +half sounds emotionless, which is a tradeoff between that and being +completely out-of-tune. + +## Step 8: Mix + +It's just playing with faders, panning the tracks, and dragging some +automation curves to conceal the noise in the vocal track when I kicked +over a trash can. + + + +▲ This was the Hackerman moment of the project. + +I also added a reverb filter for the vocals. + +## Step 9: Export! + +Enjoy: Early Sunsets Over Monroeville (ukulele acoustic cover) + +<audio controls src="/static/early_sunsets_over_monroeville.flac"></audio> + +Ardour gave me this window but I don't know if it's bad or good? + + + +## What's the one last reason I did this? + +twenty one pilots did a livestream recently where Tyler shared a few demos +of theirs tracing back to the Regional at Best era, circa 2010-2012. Here +we have a clip (MP4, 17.4 MiB): + +<video controls> + <source src="/static/vessel_stream_trees_demo.mp4" type="video/mp4"> +</video> + +Tyler put the gang vocal track on solo where he was like "__HELLO__ e-yeah +a-yeah a-yeah hello hello hELLO". It was cringe af but the song was +incomplete without it. + +And I, a musically illiterate engineering student, have one more reason to +justify my own piece of carefully mixed cringe. diff --git a/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/editor.png b/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/editor.png Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..47b49da --- /dev/null +++ b/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/editor.png diff --git a/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/export_analysis.png b/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/export_analysis.png Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..cb0f944 --- /dev/null +++ b/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/export_analysis.png diff --git a/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/intro_strum.ogg b/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/intro_strum.ogg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..5811be9 --- /dev/null +++ b/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/intro_strum.ogg diff --git a/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/mic_oscillations.png b/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/mic_oscillations.png Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..61767c9 --- /dev/null +++ b/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/mic_oscillations.png diff --git a/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/mixer.png b/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/mixer.png Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..a2eafd5 --- /dev/null +++ b/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/mixer.png diff --git a/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/prechorus_lead.ogg b/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/prechorus_lead.ogg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..0b0d4e2 --- /dev/null +++ b/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/prechorus_lead.ogg diff --git a/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/prechorus_plucks.ogg b/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/prechorus_plucks.ogg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..88f9699 --- /dev/null +++ b/docs/music/img/early_sunsets_over_monroeville/prechorus_plucks.ogg diff --git a/docs/music/img/index/ibanez.jpg b/docs/music/img/index/ibanez.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..4ba6ed6 --- /dev/null +++ b/docs/music/img/index/ibanez.jpg diff --git a/docs/music/index.md b/docs/music/index.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..0f9e272 --- /dev/null +++ b/docs/music/index.md @@ -0,0 +1,50 @@ +# Music + +I was not raised a music person. As a young kid I had near zero exposure +to formal music education. + +In sixth grade I joined a brass band as a percussionist (the conductor +looked at my teeth and said "nyeh"). For most of my band career I was in +charge of the bass drum, but I did learn the snare drum, the timpani, and +the drum kit a lil bit. My favorite performance however was Takarajima, +where I played the agogo (the soul of this musical number, despite being +just one bar over and over again). + +As a side effect, a disadvantage I had to all the other band kids was that +I can't really read pitch. I did not know what a Bb minor was. + +Fast forward to 2021. The summer I graduated high school, I decided to +challenge myself to learn ukulele. My father got one secondhand for me. it +turned out you only need a tiny set of "easy" chords to get started. You +can sing in other keys with a capo. And if that doesn't work, the song +probably isn't made for the ukulele anyway. + +The uke sounds pretty, sure, but I'm afraid my hands are too fat to press +adjacent frets, especially bar chords. My setlist effectively stopped +expanding as of 2022. + +So in the winter break, early 2023, I took the other extreme and invested +in a bass (known in guitar world as long boi). It is a red Ibanez GSR200 +PJ bass, the only model that'll ship in 3 days. The date of arrival is +2023-02-02. + + + +I learned most of my songs from [Rod +Nieder](https://www.youtube.com/@rodnieder). + +However only less than a week later I found out I was somehow admitted +into UMich. Afraid that the airline might wreck it, I decided not to take +it with me across the ocean. Instead, I will buy a Squier that costs about +the same. (I know it makes no real difference, but I kinda prefer the +Telecaster-style headstock that has all pegs on one side.) + +Sorry about the infodump. Here's the blogposts under this category. + +## [Early Sunsets Over Monroeville](early-sunsets-over-monroeville) + + + +I recorded the ukulele, did the vocals, and mixed them in Ardour. Result +is an acoustic cover of "Early Sunsets Over Monroeville". |
