Session Start: Sun Mar 30 23:02:41 1997 Chat with Sidewinder Bl: BluRry / 0P8 Sw: Sidewinder ------------------------------------------ Bl: So what's up with the sheep fascination? Sw: i love wool heh bl: hehehe.. I noticed. Sw: you seen my page then? bl: god, yes... :) You've changed it around a bit, haven't you? Sw: recently. putting a few more songs up there Sw: so I can try and promote my CD as well as my sheep tendencies. Sw: my new album will have SHEEP. Sw: i'm also coming out with a line of stuffed sheep toys. bl: :) cool... are you still with the 4-channel mods? Sw: always 4 channel. I find it rather amusing everyone thinks multichannel is better. For me, I like a challenge.. 4 tracks are better ;) (my opinion anyways) bl: You sound like Deathjester. ;) Sw: how's he doing? haven't talked with him since 1992. damn i forget bl: He's alright. He fried part of his amiga, and should get it back to commission soon. He's also starting to use pc trackers (ft2 and the like) Sw: oh no PC trackers.. wow I'm the only Texan using an Amiga exclusively! bl: He hasn't released anything PC yet, so you two are still in the ranks. :b bl: How long have you been tracking? Sw: too long Sw: I'm a legend.. heh * blurry feels like he walked into a rest home -- j/k :) Sw: imagine being a legend for only being on the scene for 4 years or so.. and still not getting paid for any of it… hah! Sw: yea 1990 or so bl: _damn_ Sw: 1992 discovered PT bl: Protracker has to have been the "Sliced Bread" of the tracking scene. Sw: it's my butter it's my jam Jell-O and whatever else I put on my toast Sw: i also like MLED Sw: but it's so far far superior to any thing out there of course it was never accepted bl: MLED? Is that similar to OctaMed? Sw: nope, tho it has multichannel capabilities (up to 16 I believe) bl: On an Amiga? (A four-channel machine in nature -- not bad!) Sw: full synth engine emulation wave sequencing it's mind-blowing Sw: it does 8 no prob on my A3000 even Sw: it's sequencer -- puts PT and anything on the PC to shame even! (works on any Amiga even 500) bl: <:O Sw: on aminet MLED1.15 :) bl: What got you into tracking, anyway? Sw: boredom. I was overseas. It was hot and I was inside my air conditioned room. Then I remember getting a package from a friend in Finland -- Teijo Kinnunen bl: Is he on the scene? Sw: he's the inventor of MED bl: Kewl. :) Sw: OCtaMED Soundstudio those things Sw: i didn't care at the time i just wanted to trade music disks heh bl: A lot of stuff was based on MED wasn't it? (multi-channel and otherwise) Sw: MED was to Protracker like BetaMax was to VCRs. Sw: awesome, slower in some ways, more of everything, never accepted even though Teijo made probably millions on it later selling to the US market. bl: Wow. (I was still potty-training on a //e at the time) Sw: hehe. I'm still potty training. It never stops. Sw: I hate.. WINDOWS.. argg ok. just though i'd say that now.. bl: I d/l'ed "Just Like That" from your page -- Is that one of your newest? Sw: those songs there you found on my front page are the newest released Bl: how long does it take for you to crank out a tune? Sw: takes about 1 night and 1 day.. generally i start around 2pm end at 6am [the] next day bl: Did you sample yourself for JLT? Sw: yea.. i'm a real great singer as you can see haha (hear, even) Sw: my vocals phear my range! heh bl: What is your opinion on the music scene at the moment? Sw: I believe the scene is a world all it's own bl: Any differences since Amiga's downfall? (Commodore, I mean) Sw: dont' ask me.. it just goes on without Amiga heh Sw: hey Amiga was just bought btw Sw: GateWay2000 heh Sw: it's now called Amooiga Sw: it's had 4 owners.. all have died horrible and costly deaths. It's the Amiga curse.. my hope is now that a major PC maker has bought Amiga slowly all PC clone manufactures will own Amiga and that will effectively kill off the PC bl: How do you decide what goes and what stays in a mod when juggling 4 channels? Sw: good question-- let me think.. hmm Sw: I start with a sample from my keyboards Sw: I have a song cut up, spliced, take parts i think can fit in 2 channels. Sw: so all my new songs will sound beautiful at least on headphones (you know that 4 channel curse) Sw: I basically chop and cut loops to fit huge amounts of music into well 1 MEG or less usually bl: Yeah, but aren't repetitive loops a pain to work with? (you don't want a tune to sound all the same, do you?) Sw: not at all! Sw: i love getting more out of it.. there are secrets if you listen and take apart my songs. for instance try sheepdance.lha Sw: there is much variety even more so than my original 16bit version Sw: and even that fit under 1 MEG with total sound you would think I had 32 channels :) Sw: i in term translate what i sketch later on into my sequencer and sometimes the MOD version sounds better hah bl: What all do you have for equipment? Sw: really for my now MODs are just something to draw my ideas Sw: Ensoniq keyboard, SQ-2/32+, cheap mixer, some effects, beer.. Sw: yea i've got all i need i think bl: Are there any sample sources you've used that you would consider "unusual"? Sw: my dog? i did a song funny for ACME BBC once, it had my dog in it. Sw: just good fun clean bouncy silly pop music bl: Okay, I'm going to throw out a word -- just give me the first response that comes to mind... 'kay? Sw: sheep Sw: ok bl: hehe... Sw: false start bl: Workbench Sw: OS! bl: Workgroups Sw: BOUNCY bl: Kurzweil Sw: STICKY bl: Sheep Sw: LAPDOG bl: Gates Sw: HEAVENS bl: Spaceballs Sw: ANNA ::sigh:: Sw: she's a babe Sw: Anna is the girl in the State Of The Art demo Sw: i wrote to her once.. Sw: to tell her.. I LOVE YOU.. or something silly Sw: she had those hip gyrations bl: That demo rox. Even for today's stuff... Sw: Amiga ruled.. she just rocked Sw: ::sigh:: it's been 5 years already since that was released i've YET seen anything come close not even the sequel to that bl: So what advice do you have for the "newbie" trackers? Sw: get a job heh Sw: don't do it for money -- never! Sw: get into MIDI.. then get paid Sw: these days we have so many tools to work with and MODs are just a part of history bl: What are your plans in the future? Sw: I want to travel to Europe.. Sw: promote my new CD when I get that done Sw: get married have a kid and name him after me. Sw: i'm 30 now.. so i guess i should look for a life.. bl: Is your real name disclosable? Sw: if you can pronounce it ;) Sw: Eric Gieseke (GEEAASEEKA) Sw: i get by.. can't say what i do for a living tho. bl: Why? (dope smuggling? hehehe -- my ex-roomate did that) Sw: heh no comment next question :) bl: Where did the handle come from? Sw: OK I SELL SHEEP FOR A LIVING!!! haha * sidewinder is a sheep dealer.. Sw: i've had my handle for about 20 years Sw: i .. SHEEP .. had it because i had a snake bite me and it stuck with me, since i didn't die, i was 'SIDEWINDER' (back in the mid 70's) Sw: i can't see at all Sw: (40-80 [vision]) can you see me now?.. heh oh wait damn screen in the way bl: heheheh... bl: So what should the people of the scene know about Sidewinder the snakeslayer? Sw: i love snakes Sw: missiles too Sw: i'm WIneCider the sheep keeper Sw: and also Camel Jockey Extraordinare! Sw: i'm a perfectionalist Sw: buy my CD if you have $12 it's a bargain and i'll even sign it bl: And what about your tracking style? what do you feel makes your stuff different from the "norm"? Sw: i only use 1 finger bl:1 finger for what? (or should I be afraid to know?) Sw: ooh and hehe for tracking and i also never know what the hell i'm doing. Sw: i really never know.. i'm drunk .. bl:All the time or just now? :> Sw: right now.. i'm so wasted.. i can taste the camel cider. i'm happy bl:"I AM SIDEHOLOIO! I NEED SHEEPIE FOR MY BUNGHOLE!" Sw: i can't get along with other musicians very well in real life.. fuck.. hard to get a band started. bl: Okay, this is my opinion -- Mod musicians can't get along with members in a band because in developing their style, they learn to depend on themselves for a full sound... whereas a band is a whole, and each member is a part. Sw: i got into music just because i had an accident. bl:Accident? Sw: and i could release all my life shit into my tracker. Sw: hey did i mentioned i talked to Moby? bl: No... When was that? Sw: years ago on a conf call. hah -- remember those? yea that was my highlight.. Sw: MOBY the MOD guy is my friend too Sw: MOBY the techno-badass is not heh Sw: he's rich i bet now.. Sw: why do people accept him and not me???? Sw: I TAUGHT WILLY NELSON HOW TO TRACK! bl: really? (or r u kidding?) Sw: heh i asked him that once :) Sw: asked him.. offered i mean bl: Deathjester taught me how to track, so you can imagine how weird my style was initially. :) Sw: oh my! Sw: i hate MODS sometimes. bl: Why is that? Sw: they tend to break nails.. making them that is… Sw: i've spilled every known substance on my keyboard. you know my Amiga has sticky keys Sw: my PC is very bouncy and posseses a responsiveness that is akin to a hummingbird in it's tactical feedback.. i don't track on it that's why bl:What would you do if forced to use a pc? (build a linux/x-windows box, perhaps?) Sw: FORCED? i'm being forced now bl: How so? I thought the Amiga is stil working. Sw: it is.. it's alive it breaths it consumes electricity it has a disk drive with a screwdriver in it bl:? Sw: i got pissed off at my Amiga once and i stabbed it hard. i killed my boot drive Sw: it still works it just makes a klicking sound and the disk inside is permentantly attached to the belt-chain Bl: Ouch. <:O Sw: nauu that's the good part i also had a fire trying to chase the roaches away from my computer. i sprayed something into it. (this was a while back) a large family was living in my A500 bl:What happened to the machine? Sw: it burned. damn thing worked still! ( roaches stayed.. tho) bl:Really? BWAHEHEHE.... Sw: i can say i loved that thing Sw: 7 years of abuse in 4 continents Sw: i miss it heh * sidewind fights back tears bl: I remember when John Sculley killed the Apple // line... I felt like my dog had died. Sw: yea you know what i'm talkin about then Sw: it's like your world is.. well it's your life.. Sw: PC to me gives you a warm fuzzy feeling only when I accidentally touch something I shouldn't.. Sw: SHEEP FACTS Sw: There are About 1 billion sheep on the planet! Sw: There are About 900 different breeds of sheep! Sw: Each sheep is About as unique as you! Sw: Yes, each sheep has a noseprint as distinctive as your fingerprints are for you! Sw: i spread that message Sw: that sheep have the right to be respected and not eaten Sw: they are beautiful lovely and very polite and never complain Sw: sheep are wonderful warm and .. hmm what else.. just rock Sw: i'm surrounded here [in San Antonio] Sw: drive-by shootings Sw: if you listen carefully on my MODs you can hear GUNSHOTS in the samples sometimes Sw: yea i like it here. bl: Really? or r u kidding? Sw: nauu.. listen to some of them ;) Sw: it's fucked up here on the weekends -- WARZONE Sw: it's funny i get a lot of girls on my page i got voted in some hunk of the month club.. I laughed my ass off Sw: you know BLuTex? bl: No... Who's that? Sw: some guy i knew. he's from Texas too. bl: So many damn texans... ;) Sw: yea tell me about it! hahahaha Sw: i was at the TG'97 channel and tried to get a MOD into the compo.. damn it was hillarious but i tried anyway Sw: i nearly got married twice to girls i met online, funny eh? bl: Yeah, but it sux when their online personalities don't match their real ones (I've had it happen before -- it sucked -- she was a bigger lewzer than me and JUST WOULDN'T FUCKIN GO AWAY!!) Sw: HAHAHHAHAHA Sw: i hate girls sometimes Sw: shit i met another one and then i figured out love sucks again. right now I'd rather enjoy their company. fuck love Sw: i get into my music and women just screw it up bl: I hear ya. I've written three kewl tunes to women -- and 2/3 of them ditched me in the long run shortly thereafter. :( Sw: tons of tunes i dedicated to girls bl: What kind of music do you listen do? (besides the droning 20" speakers zooming down your street at 12am) Sw: i don't listen to much radio bl: Why not? Sw: i like classic shit like Tomita or Vangelis or something Sw: i don't like music a lot bl: No paticular favorite artist or anything? Sw: nope.. nobody bl: So why write it? Sw: that's a good question Sw: i enjoy the process of making it bl: Ah... But even artists need to consult other artwork to get ideas... Sw: yea i like to hear things -- my music is nature ya know?? STORMS, or a feeling Sw: i hate pop music yet i embrace it, technically bl: Maybe you try to redefine pop? Sw: to love and to hate ones own art.. bl: And that's a big struggle... Sw: is an individual taste yes it's a struggle, too. You seek what you need and carve out the rest. bl: Music Philosophy Lesson #1 : Fuck Theory. :) Sw: STAB IT GOOD. hahahha Sw: i let my hamster free once. he played me a song. musta made no sense to him at all but i liked it. Sw: yea Sw: well that's my life bl::) Sw: same old thing ya know pain, revenge, Jealousy, booze, love, hate, death, sheep, PCs, sex, drugs, and the occasional mod bl: How come you don't take the one-instrument-to-a-channel approach? It could cut the size down considerably... Sw: i'm from Texas you see Sw: and we do things BIG BIG BIG! Sw: you ever go to RAVES? bl: Teah, they do wonders for the pulpy mass we call our brains... Sw: haha Sw: i wanna go! bl: Tell ya' what, if you can make it to Austin, yer welcome to crash over here man.. :) Sw: cool.. i got yer emails. Seeya then! bl: 'Night! Session Close: Mon Mar 31 01:16:54 1997