zondag 17 april 2016

That thing about "Open Up My Parachute"

The process of songwriting/ recording/ mixing/ mastering

May 2014 I began writing and  recording the new stuff. Already had a flow of ideas in the bag, so no worries in that department. I've been spending a lot of time mixing and mastering the songs though.  Youtube and other friendly sound engineers helped me out with the technical know how much more further. Yes, I try to learn about every aspect of the process. Next time I hope to do things much more efficient in the recording process.

Inspiration for the title

Every year I try to come up with another appropiate title that epitomise what these songs stand for.
Guess Zappa's quotes brought me the one that connects those 12 songs. 

    


And...I already had a few songs with a "parachute" reference. Your mind only works if one opens it. With songwriting, that seems not that difficult for me. Just jump fearlessly into the free air...just dare.
That introvert face on the frontcover stands for my introvert side and my wife's selfie reflex has captured that right on the spot.

I sort of invite you all to open up my parachute and you'll see/hear...... the songs will jump out of my head.


(next: released a parachute and where did it land?)

                                                                                                                                                          
You've listened already? Here's some information about the 12 parachutes. I think this is my most accessible and dancable record so far, so let's follow our restless feet, while reading. Hope you like.

It's all in the mind


01.Chalky
A burst of  restless energy I tried to put down in a tight fit arranged funk. Started as one of the first new songs for this album, inspired by the dense grooves of 1980's Remain In Light era Talking Heads, but heading (totally?) elsewhere eventually. The working out of the tightness in accents and the finishing of various arrangements took me almost a year, before I was really satisfied. I am now.

02.Dancing Dutchman
A little nostalgic  throwback to my numerous dance moves I left on the dancefloor hearing those seventies soul (Chic, Kool & The Gang, Rose Royce, KC & The Sunshine Band) in those after midnight discotheques. Proud of the melodic chorus and the groove, which convinced me to put on my dancing shoes again.

03.Everything Is A-Okay
Is it okay? Most of the time. With this song I think I've reached a very accessible side of the melodic and the rhythm of exotic coolness with a few instrumental adventures in the middle too.

04.Jump For Your Life
Searching for that parachute that brings joy and playfulness. Just jump and watch what happens. Old fashionated pop and bluesy funk.

05.The Riddle Room
One song idea from the last album sessions that needed more time to develop. Just a funny motive on piano started another riddle in my room.

06.It's A Struggle Honey
Two ideas (one melodic, another rhythm) put together in dreamlike fashion. An old trick: use that mod & pitchwheel on the keyboard. I freaked a lot throughout the album.

07.Hipster Mind
Hipster was the word of 2015 (but it's so old), but the hipness is gone. A piano & guitar motive accent on a pulsing  groove pushed this into a song. Starts off like an voice-over intro to a hip chatty radioshow, but that slow, threatening groove gets in the way.

08.Issues?
The question mark says it all. I connected this funky bassline with a accenting guitarpattern and voila. Just dance the seventies (Gap band, Ohio Players,...) to it.

09.Parachute
A song for superman! Slapstick enters. Silent movies. Finally flying! Goofing off.

10.Cosmopolitan Circus
Instrumental stuff to rest my voice. I liked working on this a lot. It's different. A bit Kurt Weilish. European vaudeville? I recorded piano parts in a few takes. I put a few "hymnlike voicing" plugins on the melodies for the angelic atmosphere. Proud of this.

11.The Slippery Slope
Inspired by the 1965 movie "Mirage" featuring Gregory Peck. I like mystery, so a song developed from there. It begins and it ends more or less the same.

12.Ha Veda Va
Latinesque. That chant doesn't mean a thing, just a few fitting spanish words put together for us to sing: Ha= it has. Veda= farewell. Va= will. Cryptic? Yes maybe, but what does "trolololololo" mean? Hope I don't offend anyone.
Solo on keyboard at the last part, that's me pitching the sound, combining horns, organ and guitar.

That's it folks, my story. Maybe you listen to these songs with other ears now.

zondag 10 april 2016

Flat earth radio

Sunday afternoon, sun on my head, feet on the floor. Relaxing, enjoying the springtime, slowly creeping in the sky.
I've been collecting all of those (JoosTVD) radioplays again. I was just wondering how to find those radiostations.
I'm grateful for them, because it has widened my audience of listeners all over the planet. The list keeps on growing, so with a list I try to make sense of it all. There are such highpoints if a broadcaster has chosen my songs for his/ her shows, like when Tom Robinson played "Bomb Won't Go off" on his prime time, saturday evening BBC6 radio show. A recognition from a musical hero of mine is like "winning" an oscar.
Some DJ-less radiostions have a playlist that have regularly featured the same songs, so the list is long.
Twitter gives you a pretty good idea which songs (old and new) have been played so far. Search for Joos TVD and voila:
                                         Twitter search for Joos TVD radiowaves

Tom Robinson's playlist 2012 BBC6


Frequent plays:
-Route 66 radio US  Song: I Want It back [2005]
-R Sud International radio  Songs: Violent Boy [2008], You Know You're Dead [2009]
-Radio Breeze Jazz radio  Song: Follow You Like A Camera [2008] 
-Barbwires.com rock radio  Song: I Want It Back [2005]
-Radio Monte Carlo Jazz lounge  Song: Jack And The Scandal Shop [2009]
-Libre FM Spain  Song: Paranoiac With A Gun [2015]
-Radio RMJC french  Song:  Follow You Like A Camera [2008]
-Croydon Radio London  Many songs (too many to mention, stuff from 2012 on)
-Rocker's Dive radio  Song: Stupid Song(s) [2013] Unscrew Yourself [2015] 
-Bairesrock FM Argentina  Song: Buy Me A Bible Of Beatles [2005]
-Neujahrkonzert classical (!) radio Spain  Song: Wonder [2008]
-AVA Live radio Miami  Song: Unscrew Yourself [2015]
-Tournesol radio Spain  Song: I Want It Back [2005]
-Radio Ballaro Italy  Song: You Know You're Dead [2009]  
-Radio Madein US  Song: Velvet Shoes [2014]
-Talentcast Groningen, Netherlands  Many songs: Guru In A Lovetown, Limo [2015], Chalky, Dancing Dutchman, Everything Is A-Okay [2016], It's A Struggle Honey [2016]

 Once:
-Shockpop radio  Song: Stupid Song(s) [2013]
-BBC6 Mixtape Tom Robinson London  Songs: Bomb Won't Go Off [2009], Stupid Song(s) [2013]
-BBC6 Tom Robinson Show London  Songs: Bomb Won't Go Off [2009]. Chalky [2016]
-BBC Introducing Hereford & Worcester Wales: Bomb Won't Go Off [2009] 
-Radio Eins Germany  Songs: Don't Mind The Blues, Big Bad Boy [2013], Unscrew Yourself [2015]
-Amazingradio UK  Song: Lost Toy [2010]
-Mijke's Middag radio 6 Netherlands  Song: You Know You're Dead






zaterdag 9 april 2016

No, I probably will not begin to sing in the shower...



Grateful for this!

Joos TVD - Open Up My Parachute (Nathan Nörgel source: Wasser Prawda)

Nathan Norgel's translation of a german review for
Joos TVD - Open Up My Parachute

You should sing his new songs in the shower says Joos TVD. And it's not necessary to have a parachute with you there. What does that mean? Joos TVD did an album full of humor with "Open Up My Parachute". And he does a coursing across every musical style you may think of in his songs.

What does it need to get great pop songs? Of course you need melodies, that go straight to your head and a groove to make you dance on the spot. And every great pop song needs lyrics to make you laugh or cry. Yes, you can say: "Open Up My Parachute" very close to be a perfect pop album!

Joos TVD has once again put together rhythms and melodies in his studio, that make you think of Frank Zappy (without the guitar, but with his sense of humor). Sometimes you may also think of the jazzy pop by Steely Dan or even of songs by The Talking Heads (when it gets funky). With songs like "Hipster Mind" the Dutchman starts to rap even. The song about the parachute, which does not want to open, reminds me of movie songs of the 1930s. There are really no limits for Joos TVD. And that's a good thing - because it is never boring to listen to his new and old songs .

No, I probably will not begin to sing in the shower. And I really don't have a parachute with me. But I most certanly wil listen to "Open Up My Parachute" a lot in the next weeks. This pop music is very addictive!


donderdag 7 april 2016

Platforms like....

      Bandcamp!

zaterdag 19 maart 2016

Modern times: storage

Maybe I'm exaggerating. Maybe I'm a pompous fool. Maybe we all are. So this for the fanatical music collectors out there.....
Anyone recognizes this situation? Sure, come on, you have to! How to handle all this data I've been buiding up all these years. The digital way of organising stuff is almost getting out of hand.
I've got 6 harddisks now: 2 ssd's, 2 intern hdd's and 2 extern hdd's. Too much? Well I've been a compulsive collector of music (my own and my favourites), books and video. Some of it you can digitize, some you just have to keep plain analog. I still got all my vinyl and cd's stored up safely (these are definately shrinking now) for sentimental reasons more or less, but I've got them all backed up too. Movies on VHS tape an cassettes, well, you can't watch them after 10 years I guess. I've been collecting and organising more and more and I need more space. kb, mb, gb, tb......?
SSD harddisks are very popular (read here Benchmark Reviews), so I've added the latest 850PRO ssd I already had a ssd 840PRO from Samsung to work better (more smoothly and faster) with Po Tools.
More speed, more space, more, more, more...!


maandag 14 maart 2016

Let me hear/see THE Promo video!

Ok, ok. Not only you can hear it, there's something to watch by.
When everything goes as planned, the new album "Open Up My Parachute" will arrive globally around 4 april on the usual streaming services, like Spotify, Deezer, iTunes, Amazon. Links will follow ASAP. Fingers crossed, legs necked!

So no better way than to start off with THE promo:



Inspiration for it aka who is this "Chalky"?

What you hear is the song that opens the album: Chalky. The supporting promo video shows all the pictures that have been involved with the artwork. You can see the changes in design, colour, fonts. Yes, it's all in a lowbudget DIY way that keeps it personal and what drives me to do it like this.
My rhythmic side pushed forward and I seem to use each frame as a rhythm response to any accent in the music. Well, it's a funky track so I had to.

Who is this... "Chalky"? It's inspired by that afro-american guy, who played this cool, smooth survivor in the thrilling TV series Boardwalk Empire. Chalky (White), a ironic nickname. I liked the sound of it and it fit perfectly with this "dangerous" groove I've been working on.
Enjoy!
Chalky White

maandag 7 maart 2016

Show us your new work!

Just heard from the disribution company AMAdea that the album is approved: ready to take off. Expect to hear it around 4 april 2016 on almost any online service (see picture for proof)! Spotify, Deezer, iTunes, Amazon, Google music, to name a few.
Fingers crossed, legs necked.


Lot of services!
The artwork.
 
So sure, I'll show you my new work! Here are the Covers, title & the songlist for the new 2016 album. Which pictures did I choose?
The following steps will make it clear:

1.The original which I boosted a bit in colour?

2.The sober variation?
Yeah, that's me "full" in the face. The narcistic pose. Growing grey, but not bald yet, haha. At first not really in the mood for a selfie from the wife sitting next to me, after an endless bicycle tour. But what the heck, we were on holidays and I was looking for a bit of deserved peace and happiness..... 

3.Mr. sepia with brown coloured accents?
The original picture was in colour I kinda liked, though I wanted to put my own stamp on it. I tried B&W first, which I also liked, but eventually I chose the old fashionated sepia, which I really liked! Colour? A little accent in the lettertype.

Who cares about a title?
                                                                                                                  
Me of course. Identity! As for the title, the word "parachute"- also featured in two songs- gave me positive vibes. I never ever did jump literally, but I often opened up to a few things, both positive and negative. Dare.
So with this album, I just seem to say: "let's jump, hear/ see what happens..."
Don't pull my hair please...
                                                                                                                                                                                               
                             Open Up My Parachute

The original frontcover
Unfortunately, as I uploaded the picture to the distribution department, I had to remove the familiar "The Vanished Dutchman" name as most online stores only allow the artistname. Yeah, vanished!

Frontcover without "The Vanished Dutchman" name


Remember?
For the backcover I chose another picture- made by the wife during our holidays- that I liked. It contrasts with the cover of my previous album, where I ascend the stairs. This time I descend the stairs, walking into the unknown.Well, sort of.


                                                                
1.The original boosted colour
                                                                       


2.B&W: more mystery


                           

3.Sepia coloured with black framework
                                              
 
Back Cover (notice "The Vanished Dutchman" name present)
 (Next: promo video)




                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

vrijdag 4 maart 2016

Something's coming, right?

 Slowly revealing....



It's almost working...

Update: just submitted my new songs for the distribution process. I have to wait for approval so fingers, legs crossed!

(next: show us your new work!)

vrijdag 26 februari 2016

This not THE promo!

Well, curiousity killed the cat. Went out for a lunch after mixing and mastering the latest tracks. Someone (me), sneaked into my studio, sniffed around and touched my jewels! All captured (me) on tape. (me) Hit some forbidden bar and some song (from me) starts playing...at the wrong speed. Better not watch. Yet. Don't-do-it. Don't! Wait for the real one.




I've warned you, didn't I? It's gonna be allright. Soon...soon!

(next: Show us your new work!)