BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Chemical Imbalance

Continuation of the SUB ONE Blogline Endeavor; 1998 - Chemical Imbalance

Upon searching through some various cassettes from my days in West Virginia, I stumbled on this gem of an original recording of the instrumental, Chemical Imbalance.

This was another composition that became part of the web site project known as 'Psychoblitzerblobbenbleegen'. This track is interesting because it exhibits a more mellow side to SUB ONE and was also my attempt at experimental ambient music. A remake of this song using sampling and various experimental recording techniques ended up making the track listing for 'IYUS AAS MEMSMIS'.

Another classic from the SUB ONE archive, Chemical Imbalance (WV version).

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... I Bleed Robot

Continuation of the SUB ONE Blogline Endeavor; 1998 - I Bleed Robot

Various instrumentals did see the light of day and were put to wax finally upon creating a website called 'Psychoblitzerblobbenbleegen'. My purpose was to post my music as it was completed and would eventually culminate into a large selection of songs. However, with time and a busy schedule I ended up only posting three songs. 'I Bleed Robot' was my first use of Software synthesizers which I had used on a Pentium 133 PC clone system running Windows 95 along with my Yamaha PSR-500 and the Yamaha GM generic soft-synth. I also used Cakewalk 3 Midi sequencer for most of the MIDI tracking.

Another classic from the SUB ONE archive, I Bleed Robot.

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Ghost of a Chance, Original Demo...

Circa 1997/1998

The beginning of a long drawn out process. Originally, this song was to be an instrumental included for a website I created titled Psychoblitzerblobbenbleegen. My plan was to feature these songs as an internet only download. All songs would be featured in MIDI format and those who were remix savvy could do anything their hearts desired with these songs. Three songs were posted but 'Ghost of a Chance' had remained unfinished at this point.

This demo recording was a work-out session where I was deciding how this song would fit together. Parts of this song were played on guitar (the section I like to call the 'Teddy Bears Picnic' breakdown) and translated into various keyboard parts. Once I made these arrangements, I programmed the rythym using a software synthesizer and other various parts were worked out on my PSR-500.

There are other alternate takes to 'Ghost of a Chance' that I will be posting here on the SUB ONE blog as they become available.

From the SUB ONE archive 'Ghost of a Chance (Instrumental Demo)'.

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Chapter 4, West Virginia Mountain Momma... take me home Country Roads...

West Virginia, Mountain Momma, take me home Country Roads...

Chapter 4, West Virginia Mountain Momma... take me home Country Roads... Circa 1997 - 1999

No, I did not have a flash of inspiration to write country music. Yet during the first months of 1997 my girlfriend and I made a move to Charleston, West Virginia. This put a few things on hold in my life including my music. However, once things changed for the better I was able to sit down again and put some ideas to wax.

Most of my time being Wild and Wonderful was spent recording instrumentals and pieces of songs. A good portion of those pieces ended up being material that would end up on CD releases such as IYUS AAS MEMSMIS and Nillum Noom. 'Ghost of a Chance' is a great example of taking as much time as I could to write and record a song.

Something else notable about my move to West Virginia is that I was able to upgrade my equipment from my typical two-track tape deck to a MIDI enabled computer system. This created possibilities for me that I didn't have before. I was able to run an early version of Cakewalk on my PC and utilize the MIDI functions on my Yamaha PSR-500. Where I was using the Song Editor function on board this keyboard before, now I could assign voices to separate MIDI channels and program each track separately. This made songwriting so much easier and opened creativity for me.

However this was not without difficulties. My time in West Virginia was met with a serious case of writers block. For the life of me, I was stuck in a rut with what type of music I wanted to record and how I was going to take SUB ONE to the next level. It even got to a point where I just wanted to rid all of my equipment and give up on music all together.

I'm glad I never finalized that decision.

A handful of instrumentals were recorded during this time including 'Attention Defecit Disorder', 'Chemical Imbalance', 'Monster Neurality', and a few that have yet to be titled. I will feature these songs here on the SUB ONE blog as I take you on my journey through the country roads of West Virginia.

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... You Are Solitude (90's version)...

"It's a flame that's burnin' you can see..."

After the release of Poom! I started writing and recording new songs. During the summer of 1996 I relocated and moved in with my girlfriend, Tina, who I shared an apartment with in Horsham, PA. This made things difficult as far as having adequte space to set up my recording equipment and have the time to actually sit down and write songs. However, I was able to set aside days and spend hours doing what needed to be done. There were other recordings made during this session for 'You Are Solitude', they included a newer take of 'Turn You Into A Doll' and an off-beat ballad titled 'Forever is Not Far Away'. I want to share the latter title here on the SUB ONE blog but I'm having problems trying to locate it. Once I find it, I will definitely post this in the near future.

From the SUB ONE archives, 'You Are Solitude'.

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Turn You Into a Doll (90's version)

Turn You Into A Doll (90's Version)


"I wish I could just turn you into a doll so you can be at my disposal as you hang from the wall..."

The subject matter of this song is, of all things, Masturbation. Yes! I will not beat around the bush!! I am singing about how much of a pervert I really am! Blow up dolls, phone sex, pornography, sex toys, and a desire for sex is the contextual makeup of 'Turn You Into A Doll'.

This was the original version of this song recorded in 1994. The middle part using the samples, sound effects and weird voices was added later. A few years later, in 2001, this song was re-recorded for the IYUS AAS MEMSMIS CD.

This song happens to be one of my personal favorites, specifically this 90's version. This is one of the first recordings done where I had ditched my previous tape deck (a personal boom box) with a pro dual cassette deck. Using this deck created a nice, even compression to the signal and any future recordings I did had more of a saturated tone to the over all sound of the mix. These recordings still sound great to this day.

Yet another unearthed gem from the SUB ONE archive, 'Turn You Into A Doll' by SUB ONE.

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Silicon Penis

Silicon Penis


"I got a lion raging in my pants, as I grab ahold with both hands..."

Another weird composition from the same sessions as 'Take A Listen', 'Silicon Penis' was my attempt at incorporating humor into music. I would have liked this song much better if I would have had some sort of effect, whether it be compression or distortion, on my vocals. This is one song that has remained in the SUB ONE archive since it's inception back in 1994.

One part that stands out in this song is the chaotic random sequence that occurs toward the end of the middle eight solo section. Crazy man, crazy!

Yet another unearthed gem from the SUB ONE archive, 'Silicon Penis' by SUB ONE.

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Take A Listen

Take A Listen


"You got needles sticking through your arms... YOU'RE INSANE..."

One of my weirder compositions, there is also an alternate take to this track that includes chaotic synthesizer laser bleeps and blurbs before I come in with the phrase "You've got no remoteness..."

The context of the lyrics to this song is talking about a roommate who had recently moved out and he left his trash scattered throughout the back room of the upstairs. Not to expose too much detail, but the phrase "You're taking drugs..." is a reference to him as well.

Another unearthed gem from the SUB ONE archive, 'Take A Listen'

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Pounding (Hold for Operator mix)

Pounding (Hold for Operator mix)


"What you're feeling is an urge to dance and it's POUNDING inside your brain..."

This is an alternate version of 'Pounding' that was recorded separately from the version for the POOM! demo. As for the sample used at the beginning and at the end of the song, I'm not sure where it was lifted from but I was using a separate tape deck to play various samples that I would record on a separate cassette.

What else I found rather unique after listening to this after so many years is that during the solo you can hear a chopped up vocal track. I was able to achieve this effect by hitting the cue switch on the mixer very rapidly while I was belting out the next verse of the song.

From the SUB ONE archives... 'Pounding (Hold for Operator mix)'

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Whip It by Devo (Unfinished Devo cover)

Whip It by Devo (Unifinished Devo cover minus vocals)


"Crack that whip..."

Adding to the theme of SUB ONE covers, this is a previously unearthed gem found in the SUB ONE archive. I could not resist the temptation to record my own version of Devo's hit, 'Whip It' from the early 80's.

There were several takes of this song, and yes I did record vocals. If my memory serves me correctly, I was working a valet service job at the time and it was my job through the week to hold on to a set of two way radios that we used to communicate with parking lot security. I decided to use these radios to record the vocals for the 'Whip It' song but none of the takes were done to my satisfaction. One thing that threw off the recording using two-ways was there was a level of magnetic interference that caused the recording head to react and it sounded like static on an old radio. In some instances I might have thought that was cool but it didn't sound right on this recording.

I'm sure at some point in the not so distant future, I could record proper vocals as an overdub to this instrumental track.

In the meantime, the instrumental track is a premier here on the SUB ONE blog.

Another unearthed gem from the SUB ONE blog, Devo's 'Whip It' (Unfinished) as covered by SUB ONE.

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Pink Floyd Cover: Atom Heart Mother

Atom Heart Mother (Pink Floyd cover performed by SUB ONE)


Circa 1993/1994

In an all night marathon back in 1993, I recorded several tracks which included two Pink Floyd songs (Saucerful of Secrets, and Atom Heart Mother), two Untitled instrumentals, and several takes of a cover of Devo's 'Whip It' (yes, I will post this in the very NEAR future).

Upon finding the cassette that included the recordings of the Pink Floyd songs, I realized that I accidentally recorded over 'Saucerful of Secrets' yet 'Atom Heart Mother' was left unscathed.

Unfortunately, due to the limitations of the PSR-500, I wasn't able to duplicate a full orchestra yet I got the horn section of the song pretty darned spot on!

Another unearthed gem from the SUB ONE archive... Pink Floyd's Atom Heart Mother!

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Religion (Front 242 Cover)

Religion (Front 242 cover performed by SUB ONE)


"Let me... BURN YOU DOWN!!"

An attempt to create and manipulate my own version of Front 242's 'Religion' from their 1993 release, 06:21:03:11 Up Evil (match the numbers with the letters of the alphabet, kids).

Remembering back, this is one that almost got erased however I believe this is a tape copy of a tape. Programming cover songs on the PSR-500 was not easy. If you were not familiar with each individual track of the song, it was like building the Empire State Building out of lego blocks.

This is the first cover song I recorded as SUB ONE.

From the SUB ONE archive, 'Religion' (original recording by Front 242).

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... All Tied Up

All Tied Up


"Whatcha gonna do when you're all tied up?..."

This was my best effort to make my Yamaha PSR-500 sound like a random tone generator. The inspiration for this song came from an early Devo tune titled, 'U Got Me Bugged'. With the PSR-500, I was very limited to the factory sounds and found it difficult to emulate most synth voices. However, I was rather impressed with the simple rhythm sequence that I came up with for this track which happened to be a Fretless Bass patch where I played the lower notes on the keyboard to get the pulsating tone.

On top of the instrumentation, the vocal track is me singing falsetto passages of such phrases as "Whatcha gonna do when you lose your mind" and "Volts of power will feed my blood." At various points in the song, the instrumental phrases break down and your left listening to me try to sing the rest of the phrase.

'All Tied Up' was part of a separate tracking session from the original SUB ONE sessions.

From the SUB ONE archives... 'All Tied Up'

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Human Surroundings (Control This Joystick)

Human Surroundings (Control This Joystick)


I want to follow your instinct, I want to make you alive...

The count in and the random blips that pound into your brain is what begins the trek as SUB ONE. 'Human Surroundings (Control This Joystick)' was the beginning of what was to become a long lasting relationship with electronic music and the use of synthesizers in my musical ventures.

Comparing the songs of Prismatic to SUB ONE, one thing is clear. There is not so much of an emphasis on lyrical style as what you had with songs like 'Last Hurrah' or 'Crawl (You and Me)'. This is what I considered straight ahead rock and roll with machines. If you were to ask me about some of the lyrical content of early SUB ONE material I would tell you that I wasn't so sure what I was singing about. With SUB ONE, I stripped everything away that I had as Prismatic and with my early works. It was a return to basics so to speak yet there was a new arsenal of equipment at my fingertips.

'Human Surroundings' was also to be included on what was to become my first released demo EP titled POOM! One other song that was recorded during these first sessions was 'Tubes' which didn't see the light of day until about 10 years later for the CD release, Nillum Noom.

Another classic and the very first SUB ONE tune from the SUB ONE archive... 'Human Surroundings (Control This Joystick)'.

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Chapter 3: Change!

SUB ONE: First Sessions and a Fresh Attitude!

My artist bio states it perfectly; 'Measure for Measure' was the first song I wrote and it was a heartfelt song. A lot has changed between that time and now.

1993 was coming to an end, and so was Prismatic...

I felt the time was right upon graduating from the Art Institute to not only find adequate work but to also apply myself to new avenues in creating music. What I was doing with the Prismatic material was good, but I felt that the musical paintbrush was creating broad strokes. I wanted to narrow the field a bit.

I was gaining more respect for what was labeled as 'industrial' rock and also gained more of a respect for what I grew up with in the 80's - specifically new wave, punk, and synth pop. Bands such as The Fixx, The Cure, Devo, Ministry, Skinny Puppy, Einsturzende Neubauten, Nine Inch Nails, Cabaret Voltaire, Foetus, The Tubes, Utopia, Frank Zappa, U2, Information Society and Joy Division were all making their way into my musical vocabulary.

I cannot exactly pinpoint where I decided to change the moniker from Prismatic to SUB ONE but it wasn't too soon after I graduated that I started writing new material that was a total change from anything I had done before. Once I sat down with my keyboard, I took it upon myself to come up with some very simple rhythm lines and piece together what would remind an average listener of typical 80's synth New Wave rock. Two songs were recorded in the first days of SUB ONE, 'Human Surroundings (Control This Joystick)', and 'Tubes'. It wasn't until 2003 that 'Tubes' saw the light of day. Upon finishing these new songs, I came up with more new material that will be showcased here on the SUB ONE blog. There will be some stuff that has never been played before and there is also alternate takes of material as well as studio outtakes that I have since unearthed.

As for the name, SUB ONE, this is another thing I cannot pinpoint but I can say it was another one of those cases where I was trying to think of a new name and several things came to mind. One thing I was thinking of was the fact that I was using machines to play and write music. Being one person making everything work, I felt that the word 'ONE' should be in the name. I think SUB was somewhat of a reference to SUB Zero (the character from the Mortal Kombat video which I played religiously back then), yet I also think back and there was also a mathematical philosophy to this as well.

"If I am one yet I am human, won't using machines to do my work make me less than human? Therefore, I am SUB ONE."

Pretty deep, eh? That's why they call me Thee Sub One Genius!

So the moniker has stuck with me ever since. Sure, there have been times I thought of changing to another name but as for any music that ends up on wax, it's known as a SUB ONE project. Now, from time to time I have deviated with various electronic instrumental music and have used such monikers as CREATURE BLONDE, A-GEN, and ALL TIED UP but in the end it's all created by the same genius!

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Prismatic Live at The Art Institute of Philadelphia...

Philadelphia: 1993

"Your childhood, growing up, going to school and pursuing higher education are what make a lasting impression on your life." -Quoted from a Wise Man, 2010

Back in March, 1993 the Art Institute of Philadelphia hosted a student talent showcase open to any and all students who were interested in getting involved. This was a fun night packed with music of different genres, styles and attitudes.

For this show my original intention was to have my brother's band, Veritas, play one song and it would be my name on the entry. Once my brother discussed the situation with the rest of the band, they backed out because they found it unnecessary to lug all of their equipment into the big city just to play one song for a talent show. This prompted me to either withdraw my entry into the show or actually play something in their place.

Well, the organizers of the show notified me that once I submitted an entry I couldn't back out so the show had to go on. I ended up being booked for the big stage since that was where Veritas was set to play.

Prismatic took the show and performed a re-sequenced version of 'Lost (Inside Your Eyes)' being preceded by the song 'Rain' from The Beatles. This is the only known video recording of this performance and it happens to be the first and only live Prismatic performance!

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Forever We Will Live the Night (90's Version)

Forever We Will Live the Night (Circa 1993)


A Return to Roots, Circa 1993...

Returning to my roots in a sense, this is a newer version of 'Forever We Will Live The Night' recorded most likely sometime in 1993. There is not much I can say about this version because I truly do not remember recording this. This could have been around the time of recording the Prismatic demo and it could have also been during the transition between Prismatic and SUB ONE. In any case, I just happened upon this recording while combing through my library of cassettes.

From the Prismatic archives... 'Forever We Will Live The Night (early 90's version)'

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Art Institute Class Project; Footstep Paranoia Music Video

Prismatic circa 1993 - Footstep Paranoia (Class Project Video)

Ahh yes, back to the days of the Art Institute and one of my final classes before graduation, Video Broadcasting. There is quite the story to be told about this video and the song 'Footstep Paranoia'.

THE SONG

Previously posted here on the SUB ONE blog along with the lyrics, the context of this song refers to a "DAYMARE" that I had. As I was relaxing one summer afternoon, I started daydreaming and as I began to reflect on my relaxation it all started to go wrong. I was staring at the floor of my bedroom and imagined a dwarf making his way into my house carrying a knife and slashing my throat. The rest of the "DAYMARE" gets a little more graphic as this dwarf gets excited over the sight of my blood and proceeds to rape me even though I'm dead!

Yes... I know... very wrong indeed... you don't need to remind me... however...

This very graphic turn of imaginary events prompted me to write some of the weirdest lyrics I had ever written for a song.

RECORDING

Two takes were recorded when I finally sat down and had the instrumental tracks arranged. The acoustic riff was fed through the ART processor with delay and flange and my vocals were also given treatment by the ART processor. The effect I used was a slap-back/faded delay which is the reason my voice has that crazy-spacey sound to it. During this recording session, I also laid tracks for the song 'Bossa Me Lost Ya'.

VIDEO

During our Video Production Class at the Art Institute of Philadelphia (AIPH for short), we were required to not only come up with our own individual idea for a segment production but at the end of the 12 weeks of class, it would all be pieced together for a variety show that included a studio audience. The variety show that we did was called "Juan's World" which was based on the Wayne's World SNL sketch and movie but with a Cuban/Latino theme to it.

Recalling the segment production, for preparation, all I had required was a blue board (which I ended up doing the painting on my own time) and the AIPH video production studio. Each individual segment was assigned to each student in the class and they were responsible for assigning team members as well as job assignments to each member.

Tyrone Mitchell, who was known to most as Mitch or Mitch Mitchell (after the Experience drummer) was given the assignment of line producer. His job was to be a liason between the action going on in the studio and translate that to those working in the control room.

As Mitch and I sat down to discuss how the video was going to be choreographed, he was given a lyric sheet and he was jotting down notes as I told him what I wanted to accomplish. Upon reading each line, he would tell me what he was going to direct to the control room and they would in turn direct the camera operators. Mitch reads the line "He raped me with circus toys" and flat out loses it! He could not keep a straight face after that and it transpired into the whole class getting word of what my song was about. In turn no one could keep a straight face - not even our Instructor, Pat McGrath.

Pat was one of my favorite Instructors from the school. He had a cool, level head and he was very professional when it came to video production. He wasn't one to fall out of his professionalism while he was teaching but the day I produced this video, he could not keep his composure. I remember his reaction to my project being very positive and he was constantly complimenting me on my efforts. Pat, if you're reading this, you should hit me up on Facebook.

PRODUCTION

So during the actual production and taping of this video, I decided I wanted to have a video overlay from what was going on in the studio and play another video of some previously shot material that was chroma-keyed as a background. Well, watching this video during class caused some classmates to lose it once again. In all seriousness, the background video could have supplemented the 'Footstep Paranoia' song rather sufficiently. Yet my idea to have two classmates with the longest head of hair on either side while I was doing my thing was a benefit in the end. Those two classmates names were Vince Mount and Jose Nieves. Side Note: It's later I realized it would have been so much better to have some hot stripper babes on each side of me, but I had to make due.

In the end, this was a fun project and you notice it from watching the video. I could not keep a straight face while I was doing this. Each time you see me bending over and flopping my long hair to the ground, I'm actually trying to disguse that I'm laughing so hard. Several things were making me laugh. Vince and Jose kept making faces at me, I would watch in the control room as the video crew were watching what was being fed as the background video. The short Kaboom! segment would play and everyone would laugh and Mitch was cracking a big smile yet I had to pay attention to anything he had to signal to me. Watching Pat try to keep a straight face through it all and seeing people out in the hall and looking towards the studio with a perplexed look on their face was not helping to keep matters serious in any way. All in all, the whole class had fun doing this. I'm glad I could make it fun yet productive.

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Footstep Paranoia

Footstep Paranoia (Original)


"Footstep paranoia, a man who could fit through a pipe..."

The best way to describe this song, Footstep Paranoia, would be to show the lyrics. WARNING: Viewer Discretion is advised...

He slit my throat when I saw him there
I knew he was part of my fears
I envisioned him in a green hobble suit
As if a trip was for years

Flashback magic hit me again
I envisioned him two feet tall
Crawling from an empty room across the way
He threw me into the wall

It brought out my nightmares of youth
It made me very scared
With this dwarf morphing inside my mind
It turned me very weird

Ahhh, Footstep Paranoia
A man who could fit through a pipe
Crawling through a window without a sound
Bringing on a sudden fright

Ahhh, All in a two second vision quest
It's as if it was more than real
There he was running into my room
I don't think that I could deal

I don't think that I could deal
I don't think that I could deal

He fondled me tearing my genitals
He raped me with circus toys
My deepest thoughts were of his feelings
Of anger, fear and joy

Of anger, fear and joy

I don't think that I could deal

Now some of you may be asking... Mr. Prismatic, what is wrong with your brain? Or you might be asking... Ummm, did you eat paint chips when you were a kid? Or maybe you just want to know what kind of drugs I'm doing and if I have any more? ...well...

This song was revamped as a SUB ONE track for the CD release, IYUS AAS MEMSMIS but originally appeared on the Prismatic release.

From the Prismatic / SUB ONE archive... 'Footstep Paranoia'

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Crawl (You and Me)

Crawl (You and Me)


"Lightning strikes the rain must fall, ripples form upon the ground..."

My musical tastes were changing, my creative landscape was changing, times were changing and so my songwriting was changing.

'Crawl (You and Me)' is an upbeat, eclectic tune with a very distinct disco rhythm. I belt out the phrase "TALK ABOUT SOMEONE WHO ANALYZED" at the beginning of the song. The story behind this phrase comes from a conversation I had with a friend (who shall remain nameless) where I was discussing a class I had at school. In this class, our professor was discussing certain songs track by track and what type of effects were being used, how the audio field was processed through panning each track in the mix, so on and so forth. Upon explaining this to my friend, he says "**tsk** Gee!! Talk about someone who analyzes WAY too much!" So I figured on taking that much of the conversation and running with it.

This was another song written for the Prismatic cassette and was also re-recorded later as 'Face' as the B-side for the SUB ONE - Inner Nine single release.

From the Prismatic archives... 'Crawl (You and Me)'

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Bossa Me Lost Ya

Bossa Me Lost Ya


"When the music starts, when the lights go down..."

Let's just say I had one too many during this particular recording. There's a first for everything. In any normal situation when I'm recording a song I won't engage in any type of illicit activities. However, if my memory serves me correctly I decided to record after a visit from the Veritas boys. During the winter months of 1993, Veritas was using my apartment as a practice spot and they had left their equipment with me on several occassions which gave me free reign to do what I wanted. The bass player at the time, Matt Skirpan left me with an ART effects processor that I put to good use. Most of the vocal material that was recorded for Prismatic was mixed using this processor.

During one practice, I drank myself stupid and after the band left for Allentown I was left to my own devices and a case of beer. I really didn't have anywhere to go so I decided to record a few songs that I had been working on. One was 'Footstep Paranoia' and the other was 'Bossa Me Lost Ya'.

The context of this song is very confusing. At one moment it's as if you're listening to Wayne Newton meets Ween with lyrics courtesy of Barry White. The next moment, you hear a very haphazard acoustic guitar solo as I am whispering "I like the sound of the acoustic guitar." The song reaches it's climax as the words "Baby, Baby, Baby" are uttered very enthusiastically and repeatedly. This ends up morphing into a repetitious chanting of the name "Dannay BON-AH-DOO-CHAY"!! Yet we are left muttering "Baby, Baby, maybe" once again as the song ends in a flutter of squeaks, and coughs and belches!

THE END... HA HA!

So without further a-doo... 'Bossa Me Lost Ya' from the Prismatic archive.

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Prismatic (You Feel Space)

Prismatic (You Feel Space)


"With a fire in your head, you feel space, with that look in your eye, you feel space..."

'Prismatic (You Feel Space)' takes the record in the SUB ONE/Prismatic archives as the recording with the most takes. After digging through my library I found 4 different cassettes with different instrumental takes, vocal takes, vocal overdubs and even an acoustic guitar overdub version.

Even though a lot of work was put into making this song happen, it still remains "unfinished and dissatisfied" to this day. The version I have included on the SUB ONE blog is the best mix I could find out of the batch and it still has a lot to be desired (at least in my opinion). The instrumental track is overcompressed due to the rather inferior equipment used in the recording process. Other reasons for my dissatisfaction would include the overpowered mix in the vocals and there is also a small reference to a Pete Shelley song, "Homosapien" that I find rather weak and mundane. Listen for that and my cheesy laugh towards the end of the keyboard/guitar solo.

However, I did feel that this song was adequate enough to include on the Prismatic cassette release. One thing that I find interesting after listening to this song so many years later is the be-bop/avante-garde jazz element within the instrumentation. So there is a silver lining of sorts to this song.

Here it is, from the Prismatic archive... 'Prismatic (You Feel Space)' by Prismatic

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Lost (Inside Your Eyes), Demo and Edit

Lost (Inside Your Eyes) (Demo)


Lost (Inside Your Eyes) (Edit)


"Sitting all alone with a dream in my head, dreaming about tomorrow..."

I was inspired to write all new material. There were several songs I wrote in a matter of days and as I would record one song, I would move on to the next. With 'Lost (Inside Your Eyes)' the lyrics came in a flash of inspiration to me as did several other songs that made up what was to become Prismatic (the cassette demo release).

The first version posted here is the original demo of 'Lost (Inside Your Eyes)'. There are various features in this song and others from Prismatic that you might take notice to. First, everything was sequenced via the Yamaha keyboard and recorded live to two tracks. Unlike the early days where I would record instrumentation to one cassette, then record vocals and the playback from that cassette to another tape. Secondly, I refrained from playing acoustic guitar on this track. Most of all I am using a different vocal style very much unlike the style reminiscient of such tracks as 'Measure for Measure', 'Breakout', or 'Forever We Will Live The Night'.

The second version is the final mix version that incorporated a flange effect on my voice.

From the Prismatic archive... 'Lost (Inside Your Eyes)'

CLICK HERE TO PLAY DEMO VERSION OF 'Lost (Inside Your Eyes)'

CLICK HERE TO PLAY EDIT VERSION OF 'Lost (Inside Your Eyes)'

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Casm (featuring T. Harris Utain)

Casm (featuring T. Harris Utain)


Flashback, early 1993...

During the months leading up to my graduation from the Art Institute, I was enthusiastic about recording music, performing music and collaborating with other musicians.

One of my collaborations included T. Harris Utain who remains an accomplished blues player from the Philadelphia area. I met up with T at school and I was rather impressed with his skills. I was working on a Frippertronic-esque tune that I felt was missing something and I couldn't quite put my finger on it. Once I heard Mr. Utain play, I realized I found the missing ingredient.

During the sessions for 'Casm' we both performed and recorded this song in one take. Everything clicked together and I appreciate T's work on this song. It really added a spark that was previously missing.

From the Prismatic archive... 'Casm' featuring T. Harris Utain.

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Chapter 2, Prismatic - A Time for Change

Flashback, 1993...

1993 was a new year with new ideas and a fresh look at creativity on the music front! Gone were the days of 'Measure for Measure', 'No More Mr Nice Guy', and 'Look Into The Light'. Although they are some of my more memorable tunes, I really believed they lacked in production value. What could I do? With limited resources for songwriting and recording, I had to make due with something less than professional. Bringing in the PSR-500 and a new attitude about music technology it was only fitting to create from the ground up. Not only that, I felt it was a time to change how I represent myself. The days of using D.H. Chandler, or David H. Chandler, or D.H.C. were done. My name was worn out and bored to death. It was time to come up with a Moniker. Trent Reznor did this by calling himself Nine Inch Nails (although they are a full-fledged band now), Richard James calls himself Aphex Twin. Ozzy could get away with using his name to sell his records because he has a cool name. Same with Miles Davis or Frank Zappa, their names were Rock and Roll. David Chandler was not a Rock and Roll name, nor was it even an Alt-rock name. My name would fit more into a stage name for someone like my grandfather who was a night club act in the '40's and 50's, that would be cool then but seriously using my real name is just downright BORING!

What should I call myself then?

I cannot remember where the name Prismatic came from. Perhaps I was just beating names through my head and I just thought Prismatic sounded cool. This is how I would come up with release titles when it came time to name my latest CD (or in this case, cassette) so I'm thinking that's how it all worked out. I just thought the name slipped off the tongue and it fit my style of music at the time.

As mentioned in previous posts, I had approached a few classmates about some of the new material I had been working on. Two songs, 'Lost (Inside Your Eyes)' and 'Crawl (You and Me)' were something that I presented to them and were very impressed. The aforementioned classmates and friends were T. Harris Utain, Hal Strong, and Vince Mount. They had expressed to me that they were interested in a future recording project where we would all submit any and all material we had been working on and this would end up being a recording we would release independently. Unfortunately, this project never got off the ground which was a shame because I was dealing with some very talented people. However, T. Harris did collaborate with me on an instrumental titled 'Casm'. I will be posting this song very soon as I contribute more to the Blogline Endeavor.

Since the idea of a recording collaboration had fallen though the cracks, Prismatic stayed a solo project and I had written and recorded several songs that became the first official self-titled Prismatic cassette release. Song tracks included 'Lost (Inside your Eyes)', 'Crawl (You and Me), 'Last Hurrah', 'Prismatic (You Feel Space)', 'Footstep Paranoia', 'Bossa Me Lost Ya', and of course 'Casm'. I will be posting these songs to the SUB ONE blog in the coming days so check back often.

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Last Hurrah (Demo)

Last Hurrah (Demo)


"And you'll sing do, re, mi, fa, this my Last Hurrah..."

This is the original demo for Last Hurrah and this also marks the beginning of what is now historically known as Prismatic.

Prismatic was first an idea to engage in a recording project with a few of my fellow classmates from the Art Institute. Those involved were Hal Strong, T. Harris Utain, Vince Mount and I. As much as all of us were passionate to collaborate, we had also found it difficult to get around each other's schedules as well as even more difficult to find reliable transportation to each place of residence. There was one collaboration with T. Harris and I which culminated in a song titled, 'Casm'.

This demo for 'Last Hurrah' was recorded at the very end of 1992 and had been re-recorded as part of a 4 song demo properly titled Prismatic.

From the SUB ONE archive... 'Last Hurrah (Demo)'

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Tracks from Electronic Voodoo

Aren't I sexy?? GRRRRRR!! HA HA!

Stratosphere (Instrumental)

The Next (Instrumental)


From Electronic Voodoo, Early Fall '92

My musical tastes had changed at this point and this was reflected in my music. The two songs posted here are experimental instrumental tracks and were part of a group of songs titled, Electronic Voodoo.

This recording session was the building blocks of what was to follow and become Prismatic. What is heard on 'Stratosphere' is a series of spasmodic electronic toms, synth drones and layers of crazy synth instrumentation. Whereas 'The Next' has more of a new wave/industrial feel to it.

In any sense, it's rather interesting and surprising to find these songs in the archive as I was absolutely sure these particular recordings had been erased. This is like finding Gold!

From the SUB ONE archive, 'Stratosphere' and 'The Next'

CLICK HERE TO PLAY 'Stratosphere'

CLICK HERE TO PLAY 'The Next'

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Creeping Circuit

Creeping Circuit (Instrumental)


Flashback, Summer 1992...

Experimentation was the key to creativity for me at this point. I had produced a series of songs titled, Electronic Voodoo. Although I had yet to introduce the monkier, Prismatic, I had settled with my initials - D.H.C. How boring!

This particular song never made the cut for Electronic Voodoo, but others did including 'The Next', and 'Stratosphere.' Both were strictly instrumental songs.

From the SUB ONE archives... 'Creeping Circuit'

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Samba Ugly

Samba Ugly (Instrumental)


From the Instrumental archive...

Changes were being made to my creative life at the end of '91 leading into '92. New tastes in music, new living and working environment as well as new equipment being added to my arsenal.

For Christmas 1991 I was presented with the Yamaha PSR-500 keyboard which was very different from the type of keyboard I had been using previously. First off, the PSR-500 had MIDI connections as well as a library of realistic sounding instruments. If you were the kind of person like me who enjoyed composing music without the headache of dealing with a band, this keyboard was the right instrument. The drawback to the PSR was the lack of synth sounds as well as not being able to edit any of the factory patches.

Some of the first songs I wrote using the PSR were strictly instrumental. The song posted here was one of those songs that contained elements of jazz fusion, new age, and a touch of latin dance. To this day, the song remains untitled but for the sake of this blog we will give it the title 'Samba Ugly'.

This song was composed early summer '92.

Another classic from the SUB ONE archive... 'Samba Ugly'

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Two songs from the summer of '91

Please Don't Tie That Bow (Around My Tree)

I Want (Inside You)


Flashback, Summer of 1991...

Keeping with the theme of Syd Barrett and Pink Floyd, here are two songs that I recorded during the Summer of 1991.

Upon taking a break from classes, I was jonesing for some sort of musical satisfaction. The melody to both of these songs popped into my head and I grabbed my portable stereo system right away and recorded both 'Please Don't Tie That Bow (Around My Tree)', and 'I Want (Inside You)' in a matter of minutes. My roommate at the time had his own arsenal of equipment that he used to add effects to his guitar playing. I figured what would it hurt to use this equipment for a brief period and use a delay on my vocals. My purpose here was to sound as close to the classic 60's slap back delay and apply that to my voice. After first listen, I realized this sounded a lot like Syd Barrett during his solo period.

This also paved the way for what was to become Prismatic.

Prismatic was originally a project that me and some friends from school were going to work on in our own time. We didn't know if this was going to be a full fledged band or if it was just going to be a one-shot recording project that we would put out as an independent release. There were three other people who were slated to be involved, they were Hal Strong, Vince Mount, and T. Harris Utain. Out of the three, T. Harris showed up for the original sessions but only recorded one song. I will post this song in a later addition to the Blogline Endeavor.

Needless to say, Prismatic ended up as a solo project.

CLICK HERE TO PLAY 'Please Don't Tie That Bow (Around My Tree)'

CLICK HERE TO PLAY 'I Want (Inside You)'

BLOGLINE ENDEAVOR... Effervescing Elephant

Effervescing Elephant


"An effervescing elephant with tiny eyes and great big trunk..."

From time to time I record some of my favorite songs from other artists. You can find other examples of material I have covered elsewhere on my blog.

One of my favorite and one who I find to be a very influential artist on the music world is Syd Barrett. Syd was a member of Pink Floyd during the '60's and wrote most of the material that you hear on some of their early works including 'Astronomy Domine', 'Arnold Layne', 'See Emily Play', and 'Lucifer Sam' to name a few. Syd left Pink Floyd in 1969 to pursue a solo career and one song that I like from that period is 'Effervescing Elephant'.

Recorded in early '92 at Berks Street Studios, 'Effervescing Elephant' took less than an hour to record. This is my tribute to the Crazy Diamond, Syd Barrett.

Thanks to LAST.FM for the photograph.

CLICK HERE TO PLAY MP3