The Linear Canvas
This journal is about the wrongs and rights of the world, as I see them.

The Linear Canvas

My Newest Recording – Playground Days

August 27th, 2010 . by Alexander Fisher

My Ludwig's One day I was being nostalgic and started thinking about being in elementary school. I wrote this song about being on that playground, but also about coming back from summer vacation and being with all the other kids, most that I hadn’t seen for a few months. It was always the old gang plus whoever moved into town minus those that had moved out. You never really knew who you had seen for the last time or the first time until the bell rang for recess on that first day.

“Playground Days”

[audio:http://www.linearcanvas.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Playground Days 20100827_1014m256.mp3]

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I have posted this song before, but this is a new mix with some new sounds.

I can’t remember when I wrote this. I can’t tell you if any of the tracks were originally analog or not. If there were any, the analog tracks were originally recorded on a Yamaha MT-100 II 4 track cassette recorder using high speed (3.75 IPS) and dbx noise reduction. I know some were recorded on my Fostex VF-16 digital multi-track. I’d suspect they are all digital.

I think the acoustic guitar I played was a Takamine. I played electric guitar on a Fender Stratocaster and maybe an Ibanez Les Paul (?). The bass was a Rickenbacker 4001. The cymbals, plus some analog editing are from the original recording using my Dr. Rhythm drum machine sounds using a Yamaha MIDI drum pad. I recorded some more cymbals recently using my Zildjian ride cymbal. Because of my ankle injury, I had to add the drum parts on a Yamaha MIDI drum pad, and a Roland Octapad using Session Drummer 3 software.

My Newest Recording – Hard Change

August 27th, 2010 . by Alexander Fisher

Great-Grandpa Fyffe I wrote Hard Change about the influence of corporatist power over government in America. In our case the corporatists have seized the power of religion and the media to keep the fear of fear in the weakest among us. Always keeping us fearful of all the Emmanuel Goldstein’s out there. Real or imagined.

The truth is it will never change. There’s something about being mega-rich and powerful that makes men want more riches and more power. Some would say communism would be the answer, but the truth is men are men and behave the same no matter the style of government. The common citizen is always left holding the check at the end.

“Hard Change”

[audio:http://www.linearcanvas.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Hard Change 20100819_1029m_256.mp3]

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“When fascism (corporatism) comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross.” 
–Sinclair Lewis, in 1935

"In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military (and congressional) industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist."
-President Dwight D. Eisenhower (R) in 1961

“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself”
-President Franklin D. Roosevelt (D) in 1932

The analog tracks were originally recorded in about 1994 (?) on a Yamaha MT-100 II 4 track cassette recorder using high speed (3.75 IPS) and dbx noise reduction.

I think the acoustic guitar I played was a Takamine. I played electric guitar on a Fender Stratocaster and maybe an Ibanez Les Paul (?). The bass was a Rickenbacker 4001. I recorded the percussion more recently using my Paiste and Zildjian cymbals and because of my ankle injury, I had to add the drum parts using a Yamaha MIDI drum pad and Session Drummer 3.  I also added some cow bell.

My Newest Recording – Whoya Lovin’

August 14th, 2010 . by Alexander Fisher

Bashlin 160N_belt I wrote Whoya Lovin’  around the mid 1990’s sometime. I was in London,Ohio when a relative told me that she was gay. I must say, I was stunned and didn’t know how to react. I think outwardly I seemed mostly unfazed, but internally I had many thoughts and emotions that were very difficult to resolve so quickly.

I had a long drive home to think about it and wrote this song when I arrived at my house. It is more than anything, me processing the information and moving from one emotion to the next. It was a turbulent few hours, for sure.

“Whoya Lovin’”

[audio:http://www.linearcanvas.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Whoya Lovin 20100814_1105m256.mp3]

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I am not sure when I recorded these tracks. I assume it was around 2000. I used my Fostex VF-16 digital multi-track and I didn’t get it until about then. I have worked on this re-mix for weeks now, and I am glad I have finally let go of it. I had a couple more ideas, but I have got to move on, finally.

Syncing the track to the computer time caused me more headaches that it should have. Other than allowing the measures to fall on the beat markers, I’m not sure why I even bothered. Had I recorded the tracks with some time code data originally, I might have had an easier time syncing it. Back then, I usually played  a digital drum track into the Fostex as an analog signal. I presumed the digital drum machine could maintain a solid beat. What I found was that it was off by a few tenths of a beat from what I set it at. Not too much, except for over several measures the beat would drift off on it’s own. So much for digital precision.

I played the electric guitars on a Fender Stratocaster. The bass was a Rickenbacker 4001. I recorded the percussion more recently using my Paiste and Zildjian cymbals and because of my ankle injury, I had to add the drum parts using a Yamaha MIDI drum pad and Session Drummer 3. My wife Jill provided some of the handclaps. I added some cow bells and handclaps too.

I recorded the original tracks into my Fostex VF-16 digital multi-track, then transferred the tracks to my computer. I added and processed the audio with Cakewalk Sonar v8.5 Producer and Sony Sound Forge v9.