In this post, I have gathered some projects from the past that resonate with me and give an indication of my taste in music. I also want to share some pieces of history from my musical journey, although my solo projects are on pause at the time of writing.
The picture above is my home studio from 2017, that later became a nursery for my firstborn.
All my solo work (in not-very-organized order) is available at https://soundcloud.com/hide1n.
"Have You Seen Her" - A Timeless House Track
This track will always have a special place in my heart. It’s from 2017, and while there are plenty of things I would do differently today, it still has moments that I love.
The abrupt change in tonality and chord progression at the 1-minute mark, followed by the more "progressive" structure through the rest of the track, reminds me of late-80s underground house.
I remember experimenting with some samples from Alien (the movie) — that’s the drone you hear at 0:23 and again in the outro. In a similar happy accident, I shuffled some parts around and stumbled into the transition from intro to the body of the track. The rest was a blast: just vibing to the groove of the drums and throwing ideas on top.
The track was featured in a few music blogs, which was a big deal for me at that time.
"Champion" - Rumbling Electronic Soundtrack
Originally from around 2016, "Champion" is a track that I have a hard time putting any specific genre to, thus why I think it's a nice addition to this post.
The whole track is built around the drop part at the 1:36 mark, which features a sample from Deus-Ex: Human Revolution video game. I'd argue that everything else is just there to accompany that theme. I don't remember where the sound of the bass originates, but the rumbling element of it sounds like a faraway thunder. The combination of the thunder and the ethereal male vocal paints a picture of emerging energy, a champion.
MGER Project - Label Collaboration
During my university years, around 2016, I had to come up with an artist name. To my surprise, I still remember how I got to "MGER": I was an active member of our university's DJ club, and was often asking the senior members of this club to open the door for me during the weekends. I was given the nickname Ovi-Ville. Ovi is Finnish for "Door".
From "Ovi" I went to "Door", then to "Moger Door" (as in the actor Roger Moore), and from there to a more simplified "MGER". It wasn't a particularly cool name during that time, and unfortunately, it still isn't. But either way, that name has a Spotify page to this day.
Amongst - Released by Outertone (2016)
I remember quite clearly the time in I was working on this track. During this time, I usually strived to make my music sound quite "artsy" or non-mainstream, but somehow I found myself making something that felt more generic. The final section of the track, with heavy synths and obscure vocal effects, is something I like to this day. The rest of the track serves more as a showcase of how to create interest in a relatively generic drum beat.
While creating this track, I felt there might be a label interested in it, but I faced a challenge: I needed to buy the rights to use the female vocals you hear in the song. The price was around $100, which was a large sum for a broke university student. Against all financial realities, I paid the fee and was finally free to send the track out into the world.
Not long after, Outertone, a relatively big label focusing on free music, showed interest. I was thrilled, and soon after, the track was released by the label with 50/50 royalties. It gained some attention and, to this day, has reached 100k listens. I also made my $100 back—over 9 years, the track has paid out $460 in royalties (wohoo).
Mrvin - Released by oblique (2016)
"Mrvin" was the first of the few tracks released under MGER. I sent some tracks to this small but original label called oblique. This was my first time sending anything to labels, and how thrilled I was, when they responded back with great interest.
A friend of mine said that the synths at 1:17 are "snowy", and I find it hard to disagree. The white noise layered on top of the synth with a changing filter resembles gusts of wind or a blizzard.
This was also a track where I realized the classic phrase "less is more". Instead of slapping sound after sound on the track, I created a break section that starts at 1:48. Sound-wise, it's nothing special, just fewer sounds. But in the big picture, it calms down the track and takes it from the melodic, windy vibes to underground.
That same "less is more" mentality applies to the Bruno Mars vocals that are heard at 2:50. There's not much happening sound-wise, but there is no need for either. The drums, mellow synth, and vocals are all that is needed.