"Sweet L.A." and "Little Sister"

MiracleOfSound

Fight like a Krogan
Jan 3, 2009
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"Sweet L.A." and "Little Sister"

Little Sisters, saxophones, sticky tape, and hope.

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TimeLord

For the Emperor!
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Aug 15, 2008
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Let me know in the comments which songs you'd like to hear about next month and ask me any questions you like. Was there too much technical stuff in this month's article? Let me know if some of it seemed a little obtuse or boring.
Wasteland Soul.
No.
It wasn't.

Succinct and punchy for you :p

I also want to say thanks to you guys for loving the songs that I also love and for constantly encouraging me to make more adventurous and interesting music.
And that's why we buy your songs! Mainly so you don't die of starvation or trivial things like that. But mostly it's because dead people don't write music as good!
 

Random berk

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Sep 1, 2010
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Almost makes me want to go back and play L.A. Noire again. If only the controls, puzzles, and well, basically everything except the concept wasn't so horrible. Hell, even the songs playing on the radios were not as enjoyable as Sweet L.A., and most of the time I just turned the damned things off.

Hmm, what song to request... how about... Mind of the Bat, or Redemption Blues?
 

JackandTom

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Nov 17, 2010
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I love reading these articles, it almost makes me wish I had some musical talent. Or any talent at all.

As for the next articles song's....what about Redemption Blues? Thats my favourite of your songs, but thats not saying much as they're all great!
 

Fiz_The_Toaster

books, Books, BOOKS
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Jan 19, 2011
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Now knowing all that, I feel I must go back an listen to those again just so I can pick up what you're talking about. I was wondering how many layers your songs have, and now I know, and that's pretty commendable considering you do this all to yourself.

I actually liked the technical aspects of this article, or maybe I'm just boring, and it helps me understand your song structure and atmosphere a little bit better.

Hmm.... how about 'Duke You Used to be Cool', 'Trip to Vegas' or 'The New Black Gold'?
 

Jang

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Mar 21, 2009
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I am loving these articles! Most of my creative endeavours revolve around creative writing, but I also love music and lately I've tried to analyse music with the same rigor that I can analyse a movie or a book. My feeble amateur skills have gotten me some of the way with music in general but hearing you analyse your songs like this is amazing! That thing about the water effects in "little sister" had me blown away, as I was looking for ways to describe exactly that when I heard and tried to analyse the song but couldn't.

Oh! And I would very much like to hear more about "Redemption blues" (IMO your best song) or "The new black gold"
 
Apr 28, 2008
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New Black Gold please.

It's my favorite song, and I would love to know how it came to be what it is.
 

Ulquiorra4sama

Saviour In the Clockwork
Feb 2, 2010
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Little Sister was one of those songs that had to grow on me. I didn't much like it the first time i listened to it, but after a while i started noticing those subtle things and came to love it.

As for your writing i'll only say that you're one of the few writers whose 4 page articles i actually bother reading :p

Oh, and "Trip to Vegas" slightly different tune on that one as well, and "New Black Gold" simply because i haven't been able to get it out of my head ever since it was released!
 

sage42

Elite Member
Mar 20, 2009
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I love reading these more specifically about how the lyrics came together. Next I would love to see New Black Gold and Redemption Blues.
 

NinjaDeathSlap

Leaf on the wind
Feb 20, 2011
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I love reading these. Before when I used to listen to music it rarely occurred to me just how many different layers of sound there are in there, and props to you for being able to make it sound top notch with such limited equipment and software. Just goes to show that you can have all the top of the line tech you want, but it counts for nothing if there's no talent or creativity underneath it all.

Can you also do one of these for 'The New Black Gold', 'Redemption Blues', and 'Wasteland Soul' soon (not necessarily all at once though). :)
 

fer1wi

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Jun 4, 2009
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I've been waiting for this second Encore. I was not disappointed.

On "Sweet L.A.", that saxaphone was sexy as hell, good buddy. And that piano went well to boot. If you do decide to do another song like this, bring those musicians with you. You guys make a great team.

"Little Sister": I took your advise to listen to the song while reading this. Great idea, Gavin. Right when I read about a certain feature, it kicked in audiablly (or however you spell that). Also, 25-30 of you?! dear God, man, I thought it was only 3-4 more!

Hey, we support your multiple genres. It's great that an artist can have that kind of freedom. Hell, I loved Big Ten on YouTube. Sounds like a Mexican Standoff of epic proportions (which I guess was your goal)! And it works beautifully! Look at the amount of fans you got, man! We support you,Gavin.

As for the songs for next edition, I suggest either Redemption Blues, The New Black Gold, and/or Santiago's Lament. Those are some of my favorite from you.
 

Redlin5_v1legacy

Better Red than Dead
Aug 5, 2009
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I always love it when you try different genres and having the extra benefit of two additional musicians in Sweet L.A. was awesome. As for your blues voice, trust me, I've heard worse. As a huge Jazz fan (guilty of being the son of a Jazz musician) I would definitely love to hear more in the future but I know it's really dependent on the title.

You've managed to impress with what I now know are pretty slim recording resources. The fact your stuff always delivers really speaks to your talent Gavin and I hope you can get some more sophisticated equipment soon.

Please keep writing these encores, they've so far been a good read every time :)
 

CounterAttack

A Writer With Many Faces
Dec 25, 2008
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Let me know in the comments which songs you'd like to hear about next month and ask me any questions you like. Was there too much technical stuff in this month's article? Let me know if some of it seemed a little obtuse or boring.
Hmm... I'd like to hear a bit about Trip to Vegas and/or Redemption Blues, if possible.

In regards to questions:
- How long does it take, on average, for you to get a song just the way you like it? (After having recorded the vocals, guitar, arranged the drums, etc.)
- Do you have a favourite game at present, and if so, have you written a song about it?
- What do you usually use as the basis for the songs you write? I get the impression that most of them focus on a specific character in a game rather than the game itself... and I like that.
 

AlexKasper

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Feb 8, 2011
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I wouldn't mind reading about Mind of the Bat and The New Black Gold. Loved the article by the way.
 

Riddle78

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Jan 19, 2010
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Gav,I love your Encore articles. They provide beautiful insight to your proccess. Just thought I'd put it out there.

Picks for next month:
-The New Black Gold (Every great commodity's been sold~)
-The Ballad of Clay Carmine (Boy,get yer head down!~)
-Mining All Day Long (Hey,hey,hey-a! I've been mining all day long!~)
-Mind of the Bat (Riddle me this,now,and riddle me that~)
-Wheatley's Song (I am not a moron,you fostered balloon!~)
-Necromorph Soup (It's a real easy recipie;just giblets,guts,and goop~)

Those songs I simply love,and I've always wanted to know what your thoughts were on them. Also,how the HELL did you make Dead Space sound so HAPPY!?
 

MercurySteam

Tastes Like Chicken!
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Apr 11, 2008
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Little Sister is one of my favourites, and I'm probably going to download 'The New Black Gold' soon. Such talent, Gavin! Thank you for sharing.
 

chantzzzzz

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Nov 7, 2008
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I have to say, I love your stuff. I've been hooked since "Age of the Dragon" way back whenever that was. There are very few artists out there where I can listen to their entire catalogue and not get bored with it.

As far as songs I'd like to hear about? "Fire In Your Hole" because it's one of my all time favourite driving songs - if I hear it come on in the car, it makes me wanna put my foot down. Also, what about "Age of the Dragon?" It was your first song that was posted as your regular series here, so what went into your debut? Did you find it more stressful?

Also, in general, are you a fan of cars? I often tend to think of songs in terms of what sort of driving soundtrack they'd belong on. For instance, "Fire In Your Hole" always makes me feel like speeding, while I'd listen to something like "Wasteland Soul" during a long, relaxing cruise down the highway.

Finally, have you considered doing a song based on the Jak and Daxter series? I haven't the foggiest idea how it would sound, but I'd love to hear your take on it.

Other than that, keep doing what you're doing. You've got a fantastic sound and listening to your stuff is always a treat. One thing though: could you release a digital version of your album? I don't even remember when I last bought a physical CD, but on both iTunes and Zune the songs are all split up. A digital compilation would be greatly appreciated!
 

maxmanrules

New member
Mar 30, 2011
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Allow me a horrendous pun
"Like a Baus"
Thank you.

All of your songs are excellent and these Encore articles are great to see how you do it. Even if I don't originally like a song it grows on me till I've memorized and and am waltzing around the kitchen singing them! Make more!