One Track Per Week

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tobypearce
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06 Oct 2019

After many years of finishing less tracks than I would like, I thought I'd do something about it.

I've set up a website called onetrackperweek.com, and I'm going to finish and upload a new track every week for a year.

Week two is up now https://onetrackperweek.com/week-2-lapwing-fan/

Everything I do is 100% Reason, and that's not going anywhere anytime soon. I've joined the debate on Reasontalk about the merits of Reason 11, but when it really comes down to it, Reason is what I know and love :-)
https://onetrackperweek.com
One year - 52 tracks - Electronic Dance Music

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craste
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06 Oct 2019

Hi Toby

Loving that you are setting up a goal of completing one track per week, I'm terrible at finishing tracks and when i purchased Reason Suite I set a goal of completing a track in October ansd then one every 3 weeks and then working towards 2 weeks and then a week like yourself.

Watched that video on your website and it's so true, the more you practice (completing tracks) the more we will all improve!

Just had a listen on your SoundCloud and have followed you too!

Cheers

Craig

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tobypearce
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10 Feb 2020

Hiya,

Still going strong. It's been so interesting to keep finishing one track every week. I'm up to Week 19 now, although the link below is to week 18 as I loved that one :-)

https://onetrackperweek.com/week-18-silhouete/

Seeing this thread has reminded me that it would be nice to write a little about how I've been getting on and what I've been learning, so I'll add that to my list of things to do!
https://onetrackperweek.com
One year - 52 tracks - Electronic Dance Music

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tobypearce
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16 Feb 2020

Psytrance, Reason style.
What a mind-blowing genre! I've never made anything like this before.
I even hand-drew the cover art :puf_smile:
https://onetrackperweek.com/week-20-trip-to-varkala/
IMG_1455.jpg
IMG_1455.jpg (162.67 KiB) Viewed 5022 times
https://onetrackperweek.com
One year - 52 tracks - Electronic Dance Music

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SynthGang
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16 Feb 2020

Just wow! What an amazing track @tobypearce! I never realized the connection between Psytrance and South Asia. It's interesting because my wife is Vietnamese and the techno/dance there has been dominated by a very distinctive pattern for almost ten years now and although it is markedly different from either Psytrance or Goa, I do detect some vague similarities - makes me want to explore the origins of dance music in Asia a bit more!

Proboscis
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16 Feb 2020

Your write up on your website is a good approach when posting new material - to give a bit of a backstory to your inspiration to the music.

Have some fond memories of my own 'Trip To Varkala' around 8 years ago. Perched on the cliff's edge during the day looking out to the vastness of the Arabian Sea, watching the monsoons roll in, and nights spend with local southern Indian lads, smoking hashish & drinking Kerala's own honey rum until sunrise. Befriended the managers & staff at the 'Rock & Roll Cafe' and several nights the soundtrack to that venue was some of my favorite British downtempo psytrance stored in my phone (artists that themselves have a lineage that can be traced back to the Goa scene), pumped through their house PA.

As for Goa itself - that scene is long ago dead, and buried. The local law enforcement killed that scene. These days it's more of a foreigners enclave for middle aged Russian tourists. Even the 'full moon parties' of Thailand are no longer what they once were, instead attracting mainstream dickheads who don't know how to handle themselves under altered states of consciousness. There are still some 'scenes' in Southern Asia, but they are mostly pretty underground. Mostly you need to know someone who is 'in' on news about organizers putting nights on, as they aren't readily published. There was once a psytrance forum that could be referenced, but that's a bit dead now. Most likely there are closed Facebook groups for this type of thing.

A few years ago there was a location called 'The Island' in Vang Vieng, Laos, (not really an island, as such - but a walking bridge from the outskirts of VV), which was more or less psychedelic trance/dub until sunrise, lots of cool light projectors set up, hammocks, and an abundance of mushrooms & green stuff, served to you from the same people who tend the bar, all very open, 'shakes' and 'happy pizza' even appearing on the bar menu. Local Police would even drop in for a drink once or twice a night, just to make sure everyone is chilled out (and I guess to collect their gratuities) But again, I think that scene died once Laos started attracting the dickhead crowd rather than the chilled out gen-x hippies, and those who can't handle their substance intake started getting injured or killed.

Proboscis
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16 Feb 2020

SynthGang wrote:
16 Feb 2020
I never realized the connection between Psytrance and South Asia.
It stands to reason that a genre of music called 'Goa' would originate in Goa. :lol:

To clarify though, this started with foreigners in Goa, not Indian citizens. And the birth of the genre started there because for decades before, Goa was a hippy destination in the 70s (part of what was known as 'the hippie trail' that stretched as far west of India as Afghanistan, and as far East as Thailand), and there was an abundance of psychedelics available in Goa.

The psytrance genre therefore, might be said to have been borne out of those conditions. Whether the genre can be seen as a cultural movement of India specifically.... I'm not so sure... since there were no Indian DJs.

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orthodox
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16 Feb 2020

My brother lives in Goa and produces Psychill and Psytrance. In Ableton :(. Failed to turn him to Reason.

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SynthGang
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16 Feb 2020

Proboscis wrote:
16 Feb 2020
SynthGang wrote:
16 Feb 2020
I never realized the connection between Psytrance and South Asia.
It stands to reason that a genre of music called 'Goa' would originate in Goa. :lol:
I specifically referred to Psytrance - I was well aware of the Goa connection although it would be awfully presumptuous of you to assume that all westerners necessarily know that 'Goa' is a geographical location in India (let alone that it is a genre or sub-genre of music) :lol:

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SynthGang
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16 Feb 2020

Proboscis wrote:
16 Feb 2020
SynthGang wrote:
16 Feb 2020
I never realized the connection between Psytrance and South Asia.
To clarify though, this started with foreigners in Goa, not Indian citizens. And the birth of the genre started there because for decades before, Goa was a hippy destination in the 70s (part of what was known as 'the hippie trail' that stretched as far west of India as Afghanistan, and as far East as Thailand), and there was an abundance of psychedelics available in Goa.

The psytrance genre therefore, might be said to have been borne out of those conditions. Whether the genre can be seen as a cultural movement of India specifically.... I'm not so sure... since there were no Indian DJs.
That is actually very interesting though I assumed there might have been more influence from the locals. I can't speak on the history of techno in Vietnam for instance but know for sure that the vast majority if not basically all current Vietnamese electronic music (going back at least 10-20 years) is produced by Vietnamese producers and heavily influenced by their own culture and music as well. Not sure if you're familiar/able to shed some light on that particular country's relationship to electronic music?

Proboscis
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16 Feb 2020

orthodox wrote:
16 Feb 2020
My brother lives in Goa and produces Psychill and Psytrance. In Ableton :(. Failed to turn him to Reason.
Oh really, there is still some sort of the scene left there ? That's good to know (and surprising to me - I avoided Goa entirely on my last Southern Indian trip, believing it to be all but dead, maybe I'm wrong). Have you been over there in recent years ?

And on his web page for his 'Trip to Varkala' track, Toby speaks of Psytrance as it's own genre, separate from 'Trance'. On this I would agree, buy what then of the subgenres within Psytrance ? I guess what I'm into is probably described as 'Psychill' or maybe 'Psybient'. Much lower BPM, and with a more pronounced dub (not dubstep!) style bass. Yet I still think it carries a lot of the same elements of classic early-days Goa/Psytrance, despite having entirely different energy levels. One might also saay it's kind of 'spiritual' under the right conditions of consciousness. To my ears it has the same 'psychedelic' component in many ways.

Proboscis
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16 Feb 2020

SynthGang wrote:
16 Feb 2020
I specifically referred to Psytrance - I was well aware of the Goa connection although it would be awfully presumptuous of you to assume that all westerners necessarily know that 'Goa' is a geographical location in India (let alone that it is a genre or sub-genre of music) :lol:
True, I forgot that most Americans are at a pre-school level when it comes to Geography :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Proboscis
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16 Feb 2020

SynthGang wrote:
16 Feb 2020
That is actually very interesting though I assumed there might have been more influence from the locals. I can't speak on the history of techno in Vietnam for instance but know for sure that the vast majority if not basically all current Vietnamese electronic music (going back at least 10-20 years) is produced by Vietnamese producers and heavily influenced by their own culture and music as well. Not sure if you're familiar/able to shed some light on that particular country's relationship to electronic music?
No, I have never been to any underground 'parties' during my time in Vietnam. Your earlier post has me interested in finding out more though. Do you or your wife have any links to local artists that you might like to share ?

It bears mentioning that there is a growing metal scene in Indonesia, and I've heard a number of artists in this region, but not sure if I can say there is anything that specifically makes it 'Indonesian'. I'm fascinated my this growing movement, since there was a time when punk / metal was very much discouraged, and even punishable by sending kids off to reprogramming camps. I guess it's a different story today, with the country's President being a proud metal fan himself.

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orthodox
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16 Feb 2020

Proboscis wrote:
16 Feb 2020
orthodox wrote:
16 Feb 2020
My brother lives in Goa and produces Psychill and Psytrance. In Ableton :(. Failed to turn him to Reason.
Oh really, there is still some sort of the scene left there ? That's good to know (and surprising to me - I avoided Goa entirely on my last Southern Indian trip, believing it to be all but dead, maybe I'm wrong). Have you been over there in recent years ?
No, I don't travel at all, just sitting here in Moscow. My brother is in Goa almost a whole year except for the rain season. He tells he often performs live there, sends videos, so the culture lives on.

I may mix up genre names, everybody calls it what they like. Here is my brother's album, which I class as Psychill:


thedjjudah
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16 Feb 2020

Tobypearce, I very much like Week 18. Good stuff man! Keep em coming!

EDIT:

I'm listening to Trip to Varkala now, it's amazing, good job.

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SynthGang
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17 Feb 2020

Proboscis wrote:
16 Feb 2020
SynthGang wrote:
16 Feb 2020
I specifically referred to Psytrance - I was well aware of the Goa connection although it would be awfully presumptuous of you to assume that all westerners necessarily know that 'Goa' is a geographical location in India (let alone that it is a genre or sub-genre of music) :lol:
True, I forgot that most Americans are at a pre-school level when it comes to Geography :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
Quite a generalization to make about 328 million people but I digress ;) ...and Goa is a place containing nary 1.5 million people in a country of over a billion - I'm not convinced that meets the threshold for "need-to-know" places requiring its own lesson in any public school Geography class but again I digress :P I for one am French-Canadian in any case... do you know what St-Jean-Chrysostome, Chicoutimi and Rouyn-Noranda have in common? :puf_wink:
Last edited by SynthGang on 17 Feb 2020, edited 4 times in total.

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SynthGang
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17 Feb 2020

Proboscis wrote:
16 Feb 2020

No, I have never been to any underground 'parties' during my time in Vietnam. Your earlier post has me interested in finding out more though. Do you or your wife have any links to local artists that you might like to share ?

It bears mentioning that there is a growing metal scene in Indonesia, and I've heard a number of artists in this region, but not sure if I can say there is anything that specifically makes it 'Indonesian'. I'm fascinated my this growing movement, since there was a time when punk / metal was very much discouraged, and even punishable by sending kids off to reprogramming camps. I guess it's a different story today, with the country's President being a proud metal fan himself.
Well the club scene in Ho Chi Minh city seems to be alive and well - at least since I first visited Vietnam back in 2010-2011. Given the drinking culture in that city there doesn't seem to be much need for doing much of anything underground, lol - there is an entire club district where police pretty much turn a blind eye :lol: :? Though I do always hear Hanoi is quite different and far more conservative so that might be a factor in my ignorance to the underground scene.

All that aside though, I can't think of any particular DJ. Surely there are some standout artists but based on my exposure (me and some friends actually used to own a Viet karaoke here in Canada and I did the DJing believe it or not :lol:) the market seems to be quite saturated with all sorts of smaller artists. That's my impression at least. To my ears the sound has definitely evolved since I first heard it, but I find it still retains some characteristic features that make it stand out to me enough in its style and approach to the EDM genre at large that it warrants being its own sub-genre.

I did hear that, at least at some point in the last ten years, Indonesian metal/hard rock was becoming a thing but am not sure where that scene stands today. I did have the chance to see some Vietnamese punk and metal bands at a well-known place in Sai Gon called Cafe Yo Ko - pretty awesome!

It sounds as though you have probably traveled a lot more than I have - I'm curious to hear your opinion: in what country did you hear the most awe-inspiring/amazing music? Sort of a corny question but I've always felt there is such a difference between live and recorded music - and so many genres that I'll never listen to recorded but absolutely love live!
Last edited by SynthGang on 17 Feb 2020, edited 4 times in total.

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tobypearce
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17 Feb 2020

[/quote]

One might also saay it's kind of 'spiritual' under the right conditions of consciousness. To my ears it has the same 'psychedelic' component in many ways.
[/quote]

I agree. There is a spiritual dimension to psytrance, and this thread runs through the derivations. I saw an interesting documentary on Amazon called Electronic Awakening. It didn't feature Asia as much as America, but did a wonderful job of bringing back memories of consciousness expanding events.
https://onetrackperweek.com
One year - 52 tracks - Electronic Dance Music

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tobypearce
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17 Feb 2020

Thanks also for the feedback! I'm having a blast with this, and it's lovely to know that you are appreciating the music :-)
https://onetrackperweek.com
One year - 52 tracks - Electronic Dance Music

Proboscis
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17 Feb 2020

SynthGang wrote:
17 Feb 2020
in what country did you hear the most awe-inspiring/amazing music? Sort of a corny question but I've always felt there is such a difference between live and recorded music - and so many genres that I'll never listen to recorded but absolutely love live!
In the tribal regions of Northern Pakistan, along the Afghanistan border, around 1993. For all I knew it was Afghanistan - on other occasions I was told that I'd ended up there - to people of that region, there is no border... I was the guest of a family in a small regional village for about a month, and implored them to turn me on to some traditional Pashtun music.

So after a few days of walking between townships and having some hushed conversations, one night a pickup truck arrives, and I was gestured to hop in the back. All I was told was 'we make music for you tonight'. As we drove deeper into the rural areas (no street lights, traffic, or any signs of civilization, more or less like the place that I called 'home' for four or five weeks, only even more remote), the truck stopped along the way and more people (men only) draped in camelhair blankets, thick beards and AK-47's hopped in. No words were spoken, and there was definitely a weird mood in the air. For a while I wondered if I was being kidnapped.

Eventually the truck arrives at a farm gate, to which we all alighted, and walked through a poppy field towards a small shack, down a set of mud stairs and into a basement filled with members of that area's tribe, around 20 or more, the air thick with hashish smoke, with only a single gaslight illuminating the room. My truck buddies were all warmly greeted, but I, despite also wearing the local clothing & blanket, was looked upon with some reservation. Not 'grabbing for the rifles', more the inquisitiveness & paranoia of a bunch of stoned people.

There were four musicians.... a Rhabab player, two percussionists on strange home made tabla-style drums, and a singer. Once they were convinced by my host (the only one who spoke any English) that I was not a CIA spy, I was handed a 'cigarette', given a hearty pat on the back and an all-round 'welcome', then the music kicked off. It appeared that they were in fact waiting for me to arrive. This night was put on for me, or at the very least as a result of my inquiries days beforehand.

And holy crap, it was the most moving live performance I have ever encountered. The reason for the mysterious vibe was that this music is forbidden, and if it were to be known that this impromptu event was happening, the participants would be shunned by their community. Serious business. But as the night rolled on, the hashish passed around in what seemed like an endless game of 'pass the parcel', members of this exclusive little crowd would often join in on the singing. Others would be crying out of sheer passion for the music. Now, these were very hard men, fierce fighters who had battled the Soviet Union, and won, albeit at a great personal cost to their family & friends. All were reduced to states of emotional ecstasy, and before long I too was crying at how passionate and beautiful this music was.

At one point I asked my host to try an interpret some of the singing, and the story went a little something like this

"I met a girl, the most beautiful Ive ever seen. Yada Yada Yada. One day she asked me to join her for a picnic. Fell in love on the spot yada yada yada. She reached over to kiss me, but Allah says I can't because we are not married". *cue the pained lyricism over the great tragedy of their faith restricting their passion*.

"Then she pulls out a bottle of the sweetest red wine, but Allah says I can't because it's haram" *cue the pained lyricism over that

And so on . Definitely lost in translation. Apparently a lot of these old Pashtun songs are complaining about being obedient to their religion. Hence why it's forbidden to perform them.

So there you have it - it's not any wild and crazy mushroom fueled psytrance beach doofs, cavorting with nubile younggen-x hippies that holds the fondest memory for me. It's a bunch of battle-hardened guys cloaked in blankets moaning about Islam because they can't get drunk or get laid !

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TritoneAddiction
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19 Feb 2020

This thread has inspired me to do something similar. But instead of writing a track a week I’ll go with 2 weeks per track. It’ll be 5 tracks in total. Also once those 5 tracks are written I’ll add another 2 weeks to make some final tweaks and coming up with track titles. So in total it’s a 84 days project. That’s my deadline.

Thanks for the inspiration 🙂

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tobypearce
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02 May 2020

Hi again,

I don't want to overload the dear reasontalk forum with everything I do, but I do want to share this week's track. Production wise I think it's up there with the best I've done, and plus it's really summery!

https://onetrackperweek.com/week-28-summer-wave/
https://onetrackperweek.com
One year - 52 tracks - Electronic Dance Music

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Loque
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02 May 2020

Nice one.
Reason12, Win10

WarStar
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02 May 2020

For the uninitiated, wheres a good place to start in terms of psytrance and goa artists and songs?

Also, as far as genre and production, is it common to quantize in this genre? My guess is yes from just listening

WarStar
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02 May 2020

tobypearce wrote:
06 Oct 2019
After many years of finishing less tracks than I would like, I thought I'd do something about it.

I've set up a website called onetrackperweek.com, and I'm going to finish and upload a new track every week for a year.

Week two is up now https://onetrackperweek.com/week-2-lapwing-fan/

Everything I do is 100% Reason, and that's not going anywhere anytime soon. I've joined the debate on Reasontalk about the merits of Reason 11, but when it really comes down to it, Reason is what I know and love :-)
Awesome stuff man! I'm not really into dance music but nice to hear something pleasing to the ear.... Your arrangements are super solid! Everything in its own place.. mix is great too!

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