DRi here, just like the previous message. For some bizarre reason the back end code we are using for this blog doesnt create USERS from the ADMIN panel, it has a wierd cookie system which is more stuffing around then we wish for. So i will just write DRi whenever its me typing... Dejan and others can do the same.

The sounds for the game are finished... the game is a first person shooter called The Unseelie by Eyecon here in Brisbane, Australia. Eyecon are an interesting company in that they teamed up with a Canadian company to release the game GORE, which they mumbled wasnt a massive profit but from the gamers ive talked to, has many fans to this day.

My input on The Unseelie was a host of sounds for the demo, which to my knowledge they are shopping to their publisher at the moment. It was 100% foley work from me, lots of organic and earthy sounds meant my sample library and synthesis skills were useless, so i set up mics everywhere and recorded lots of things smashing and snapping, my cats growling and so on. One of my most recent mic purchases is the Rode NT3, a lovely hyper-cardiod made here in Australia, which performed better then expected. Its self-noise is low but screams for a better pre-amp then my Mackie XDR's, so add some TLA's front ends to my shopping list.

In other news ive been playing some live sets again, taking to stage once more for a bunch of gigs. I was a little wary, its a big step going from touring Aus with Superfluid doing minor sampler stuff at big gigs, to hitting the stage solo and rocking it off of MPC for smaller clubs and one off events. All went well though, and gigs have popped up in resulting fashion. My current live rig consists of:

Akai MPC2000XL (maxxed out and custom-modified)
Akai S3000XL (maxxed out)
Mackie 1402 VLZ PRO
Korg Microkorg (dejans actually)
Shure SM58
Korg Kaoss Pad2

Pretty minimal. Im happy leaving the bulk of my studio at home these days, i think you grow out of filling up the stage with your gear once you both reach your mid-twenties and play weekly gigs. The allure of setting up over 200 kilos worth of expensive gear, not to mention setting it all back up in the studio later, fades fast. Some things, such as my precious Juno, dont leave their keyboard stand let alone the studio.

Im relenting under work commitments and pressure to purchasing a laptop soon, and im waiting in anticipation of the amazing sounding Novation REMOTE25 "Extreme".... which is a midi keyboard with a heap of controllers, as well as a midi interface and 2 pre-amps with 24/96k convertors. On top of this they are installing the guts of the Novation K-Station which makes this the perfect partner to a laptop for recording/performance on the run. Andy at Musiclab tells me its a few months off as they are having trouble getting the K-station chip working properly... but i await in awe nonetheless. I will also be buying an MPC1000.... which will complete my little laptop setup. Small and Compact are the keywords for electronic artists on the road... bring it on i say.

Dejan's got me firing into some blog action whilst he tidies up the back end of Analogik.Org, the daughter site of our Analogik.Com collective, and to be used as a more verbal record of the multimedia and creative exploits of the collective and all things that catch our eye.

Today im finishing up a contract with a gaming company, i wont list their name just yet. Its a great little company and ive been hired to provide the sounds for their new demo of a first person shooter game, the title of which i also wont mention yet. Its been a return to form in terms of my live recording work, as ive eschewed using any samples whatsoever and all the sounds have been a result of foley work in my home studio, even the the extent of setting up mics in the hallway and smashing various rocks, tiles, bricks and coffee mugs in the pursuit of rock rumbling.

Invaluable have been the guys and girls over at G.A.N.G, and on the gameaudiopro mailing list, with some great advice for uses of contact mics frozen inside blocks of ice and then ruptured with boiling water. If not for the sudden deadline id be having a lot of fun with this.

In other news im patiently awaiting my GB Exchanger to arrive from singapore/hong kong/wherever they tell me it is now.... basically its a ROM exchanger for the Gameboy.... now why would i want that? Well you'll have to wait until im ready to mention it more... as im currently writing a paid article about it all... mmmm paying the rent is such fun sometimes.