Brian arts, Brian Kelley, links, Music, video, YouTube

Revisiting electronic, instrumental music

I have been pretty obsessed with the electronic, instrumental music featured during the Opening Ceremony of the 2012 London Olympic Games, especially the brilliant “And I Will Kiss” by Underworld (see video below), and it has rekindled my interest in the genre.

Back in the early 1990s, when I was part of a techno-industrial-rap project with my friend Christian Beach, we wrote something that I believe we were calling “Why Can’t We Live as One?” at the time. The original intent was to have rap vocals accompany the music, but what we got around to recording actually provides the foundation for a pretty cool instrumental track.

Anyway, here is the original instrumental version of “Why Can’t We Live as One?”

[audio http://tandemwiththerandom.com/misc/music/WhyCantWeLiveAsOne-Original.mp3]

And below is a new version of the track that I recorded last weekend with GarageBand on my Mac…

And here is the reason for my renewed interest in electronic, instrumental music…all 17 minutes, 16 seconds of it…

“And I Will Kiss” by Underworld (featuring Dame Evelyn Glennie on percussion)

Brian Brian Kelley, Music, TalentTrove

New song: “Alliel”

Back in November 2007, more than a year into my relationship with my now-fiancee, Alison, I had recorded an early, instrumental version of a song for her. I had worked out some lyrics for the choruses and the first verse, but that was it.

Because Elvis Costello wrote the ultimate song called “Alison” — a song my Alison can’t stand, by the way — I just couldn’t bring myself to call it that. Hence, I constructed the name “Alliel” by combining my fiancee’s first name and her last initial. My Alison only spells her name with one l, but “Alliel” looks better than “Aliel” so I added the extra l into the song title.

Anyway, a few days ago, Alison went to a baby shower, leaving me home alone to clean and do some things around the house. Instead, I fired up GarageBand on my MacBook, finished writing the lyrics, changed/added some of the piano parts from the 2007 demo and recorded a more finished demo version of “Alliel.”

I realize my voice isn’t the greatest, but once I start recording vocals, I seem to always find myself trying to do some interesting things with harmonies. And then I added the “big vocals” at the end of the song, which was inspired by a Trevor Rabin (former Yes guitarist who does a lot of composing for films these days) solo album from the late 80s.

Anyway, I posted the song on my TalentTrove.com profile, but you can also listen to it below:

“Alliel” (4:43)
Written, arranged and performed by Brian Kelley

Brian Brian Kelley, contest, links, Music, TalentTrove, technology

Don’t want to be a pest…but I still need your vote!

BK
BK

As mentioned previously on this blog, one of my songs — “Vortex (2009)” — is up for Best Piano/Keyboard Performance on TalentTrove.com, an online talent community, with a $100 prize going to the winner of the contest.

You can help me win the contest by visiting the site to place your vote for “Vortex (2009)” (it’s the third song down from the top in the list of songs).

“Vortex (2009)” is a reworked version of a techno instrumental song I originally wrote in 1992 or so, featuring the sounds of a Roland Jupiter synthesizer I used to have. You can listen to it on the song’s TalentTrove.com media page, or you can listen to it using the embedded player below.

It is a tight race and “Vortex (2009)” is in second place as I write this. Voting ends this Sunday night (June 7), shortly before midnight.

Now, you do need to register on TalentTrove.com in order to vote, but I would greatly appreciate it if you went the extra step to support me — and my song — in this contest. Besides, you may have a talent you want to share with the world and TalentTrove.com may be the place for you to do that.

Again, if you can, please vote for “Vortex (2009)” by midnight this Sunday, June 7.

I would like to thank you in advance for your support.

And I especially would like to thank all of my family and friends, and the all of the readers of this blog who have already voted for “Vortex (2009).”