Secret Mixter + Listening Party
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Reviews for "Who ate the pies?"

Who ate the pies?
by radiotimes
Recommends (6)
Thu, Apr 24, 2008 @ 10:00 PM

Uses samples from:

 
Alan Lu
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permalink   Thu, Apr 24, 2008 @ 10:19 PM
This is a creative interpretation of Gurdonark’s spoken word ‘pell. You are/have a talented saxophonist: clear tone playing a nice improv-sounding melody.
Careful with the compression and reverb the second half. Piccolo sounds a bit drowned out, too.
Full of ideas. Good stuff.
 
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permalink   radiotimes Fri, Apr 25, 2008 @ 4:10 AM
Thanks for the words and glad you like it.

The sax is played by myself but as I have said before I play small samples and then manipulate these in Melodyne due to my technical expertise!:) This is why sometimes my saxes go from baritone to tenor in one puff!!

Not sure what you mean on the compression and reverb perhaps you could elaborate further.
 
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permalink   Alan Lu Fri, Apr 25, 2008 @ 3:10 PM
Listening to it again, I’m thinking maybe it’s just the contrast between the sections is so stark that makes me think a compressor was involved. But then again, elements like the piccolo are pushed back in the sound field by reverb, and similarly, the heavy reverb on the strings and brass seems overpowering in the mix.
But yeah, I could be talking out of my ass. :P
duckett
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permalink   Fri, Apr 25, 2008 @ 3:14 AM
I really like the idea behind this, but the “Part 2” comes off to me as almost sarcastic, in being so lushly orchestral. Maybe it’s intentional, or maybe it’s just my particular taste, but while the 1st section was working for me, the 2nd was like “O Fortuna” accompanying a Dorothea Lange slideshow, it just didn’t seem to fit.
 
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permalink   radiotimes Fri, Apr 25, 2008 @ 4:06 AM
Well thank you for liking 50%!:)

Part 2 is not intended to be sarcastic and I don’t think it is. The orchestral arrangement is a fairly standard one for creating a dark atmosphere and the sax is included to bridge the first and second part. My intention was to strengthen the effect of the message not the tone of the words which Gurdonark very cleverly put over in an ironic way.

Anyway we all see things differently so thanks again for your comments
 
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permalink   duckett Fri, Apr 25, 2008 @ 4:44 AM
Didn’t mean to come off as snarky; though I may not agree with all of your choices, the approach to the sample is still impressive.
 
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permalink   radiotimes Fri, Apr 25, 2008 @ 7:56 AM
Hey! No offence taken. I’m always grateful for an alternative point of view. Its a good chance to look at things again with a little help from someone else.
Kaer Trouz
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permalink   Fri, Apr 25, 2008 @ 8:24 AM
This is quite well thought out and more complex than one would originally have perceived- The more dramatic orchestral section was a bit of a jolt, because I was getting lost and dreamy in the repetition of the poem and the guitars. Overall unexpected and good.
gurdonark
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permalink   Fri, Apr 25, 2008 @ 8:24 PM
Gainesville is about half an hour’s drive from the University of North Texas, where lab bands have fun with horns almost as much fun as this song. The first half works very well—and then the orchestral overlay begins and it’s so unexpected that it’s fun. I love that remixes can veer and vary so easily from the moment before, and it’s part of the fun of the experience. Great saxophone work. I like that little piccolo popping in, too. Then you hit back into the vocals for a moment, and it’s all got a dramatic swell that is cinema-without-film, which is the kind of non-celluloid cinema I most enjoy.

thank you for a fascinating and unexpected mix. I am deeply grateful.
 
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permalink   radiotimes Sat, Apr 26, 2008 @ 12:21 AM
Well I’m glad you like it as I had great enjoyment in making it. It was one of those pieces that for me was meant to be. As soon as I heard the spoken words I knew what I needed and just reached into my goody bag and the next thing I know the mix is there.

Your delivery on this poem is just right and it was this that helped me create the feel of the piece.
 
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permalink   gurdonark Thu, May 1, 2008 @ 4:34 AM
The historical incident upon which the poem is based fascinates me. My county in north Texas, as well as the county in which Gainesville was located, voted against secession when the Civil War began. When secession carried the day state-wide, a number of local farmers resisted conscription. This led to the situation described in the poem—a little vignette of how a very small-town place suddenly got caught up in a big world of emotions and death.

I was really pleased when this one got published, because its simple “story-telling” nature is different from a lot of things I do.
spinmeister
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permalink   Fri, Apr 25, 2008 @ 10:45 PM
this totally works for me - it’s a different kind of piece of music (at least for me), kind of theatrical, or as a weird little interlude thrown into an epic album - a playful whack on the head just to make sure, the audience is still paying attention.

Or maybe best: I can totally imagine this being performed live - with the poet, the sax player, the guitarist and a symphony orchestra.

If they would have done more stuff like that I might have kept my seasons’ subscription to our local philharmonic orchestra for another few years…

I like it!
 
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permalink   radiotimes Sat, Apr 26, 2008 @ 12:28 AM
Thanks!

I love orchestras and if you ever get the chance to work with a good one take it. It’s a great experience but also very humbling when you see how they can translate a piece of work into something special.
Anchor
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permalink   Sun, Apr 27, 2008 @ 10:32 AM
RT
this had a very fine sense of story-telling…I really was not perplexed by the difference in part 1 and part 2 - to me it added to the dreamlike quality of a surreal reminissence. I didn’t know you played Sax!