darrinfrison

The Site's Coming Together

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 15:53:00 +0000

After finding out my site was down I've been transferring file to my new server. It's been fun working on the site, giving it a new look and changing it up a little bit. It's not done quite yet, but if you a moment you should go and check out what I've done so far...

The New Site

Remember, it's a work in progress. So be gentle!

Stix Toons

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0000

So, I've started something. I have a new segment of DLFTv called Stix Toons! I'm really digging the video stuff I've been doing lately, so I'm going to keep bringing it to you as fast as I can!

Hope you enjoy this. IT's on Facebook, I have a Twitter link as well, and if you just go to You Tube it's there. and guess what, it's her too!

Hope you like it!

DLF

DLFTv Interview with Jim Anderson

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 11:06:00 +0000

Finally folks! I got this one edited after the hard drive crash. I'm guessing we did this interview back in the summer. Better late than never! Now that the ball is rolling, and I have a better way to backup and archive, hopefully I won't have another crash. I probably just shot myself in the foot! LOL

Enjoy:

Back to Business

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 14:17:00 +0000

Last week I was more or less preparing for guests. My Rochester Family surprised us with an Easter visit! It was a great weekend filled with fun and family. And as all good thing, they come to an end at some point. So I got the Monday Morning Blues(maybe I should write a song!) My weekend started out taking the boys to see the new GI JOE movie(which was awesome, BTW). Then on a quick trip to Walmart I FINALLY found the new Lays Potato Chip flavors. We had those for lunch(Come to think about it, no wonder my stomach was upset that night...Buttered popcorn and chips?) MY family arrived the weekend was on! >sigh< Just one more day!

But, I did get some constructive criticism, AND some plans for some upcoming DLFTv material. My brother Stan and I sat down in the studio and recorded a few thoughts. I'm excited to get on those, as well as other project. I'm also going to spend some time over the next few weeks and write music. There's some great stuff for my CD already, but the more I sing, the more I want to write lyrics. I was hoping for a hybrid album, but it might not be.

I had to cancel two session for the 58 Steps project last week to prepare for my weekend guests and cook for Easter. We'll get back on track this week for sure. I'm hoping to add some new sounds to my arsenal and start making some big trailer type productions. It's time I spent a little more time on the FILM side of Composer For Film/Tv.

Happy Monday! And Happy First Day of April! Have a good week!

~DLF

Got an update for you!

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 18:32:00 +0000

Sorry I missed out on blogging most of the week. It's been....interesting. Check out the video update!

Crazy times

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 11:47:00 +0000

It was a crazy week last week. Lots of drama going on in my house. Anyone with kids hitting that adolescence/puberty period of life can only imagine what's going on right now. I find myself getting my agressions out in the studio....

Last week I gave you a sample of an a cappella project I've started. I'll continue to "throw you a bone" as I get some of those things done. JVaughn and I are coming close to finishing "The Very Best of 58 Steps". He came into the studio yesterday, and after each of us looking dumbfounded as to what to do, we worked on some stuff on I Believe. It's nice how music ideas come together. I'm guessing we'll have this thing mixed and mastered by the end of April, if our scheduled session remain as consistant as they have been. Maybe we'll "leak" some clips shortly.

I found out that the service that broadcasts my blogs do not include all my attachments. If you ever see a link that doesn't work, just go to darrinfrison the blog (that's a clickable link there Baby!). Everything should be there.

Have a good start to your week. I'll be chatting again soon!

I'm not bragging....

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 12:30:00 +0000

So, I get home from work last night, start dinner, clean three bathrooms, get dinner on the table, and dessert(chocolate dipped chocolate chip cookies from Wegmans!), and had a little time to start what I was talking about earlier. A full evening!

To get a sneak peek, or listen, click here:

or go to fandalism through facebook and check it out. Just a little bit of what I'm doing in the studio!

Hope you like the little teaser!

Slow start to the week

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 14:52:00 +0000

I got all gung ho this week because of my finds when cleaning out the storage area. Then I got another boost because I became a beta tester for some hot products from Sonivox. This company has some innovative software that's inexpensive and easy to use. Being a beta tester is a little closer to one of my dreams, which is being a rep for a music creation company and being able to go out and tell folks about the product as well as train them. Being part of a team that will help with final development of software like this is awesome! And, I get to be one of the first people to use it!

Well, last night as I settled into the captain's chair, I got ready to start testing the first unit...First bug of the day? couldn't get it to work. I immediately hit the forum and a few others are having the same issue. So, now its wait for the patch. I should have taken that time and continued with something else in the studio, but instead I deferred to making a cocktail and watching Tosh.0. I have my priorities! LOL

Hopefully my next blog will be about my success with the beta testing, or my success in just getting stuff done. I now remember I have two a cappella ideas I wanted to get on "tape". You'll have new music in a couple days if I follow through.

Wish me luck!

Spring Cleaning

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 12:01:00 +0000

So, I spent some of this weekend cleaning out the storage area on the side of the studio(for those of you who know, the room with the sound booth in it). I made an amazing discovery....

Other than the fact that I AM a pack rat(only because momentos are near and dear to me), I found just about a filled box of lyrics, photos, CASSETTE TAPES, and song ideas. I'm really excited to go through that box and see what I can shed some light on. What makes working on the 58 Steps project and Coming To Terms so much fun is that I'm getting back into lyrics, both writing them AND singing. I'm back to telling stories, literally through my music. It's awesome. One of the treasures I found was one of the first songs I every wrote, even before becoming DLF, titled Mistakes. I wrote it in Brighton High School's Auditorium with my friend Karen at my side. The paper is yellowed and faded. A true piece of history! That song has had many makeovers over the years, but I may go back to it's original, piano only, simple style.

Who knows what else will come out of that box!

I also uncovered a reel to reel deck my brother Jim gave me back in the day. I'm going to see if that puppy still runs. I can't wait to put something on it and let the kids listen. They already love my "museum", filled with cassette tape decks, phonographs, vinyl records, mini discs...Oh! And I found my first VHS-C camcorder. The thing weighs about 20 pounds and is as big as a garbage can! Good times cleaning out the storage area!

So, time to start writing some music for you all to listen to. With my reconnection with my "music box", this should be a fun week in the studio!

Studio Upgrades

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 19:43:00 +0000

I've been checking out different hardware/software for the studio. It's all very exciting/depressing. Why? Well there are TONS of great products out there. It's a tough decision on what to get, what to upgrade, what would be cool/look cool in the studio. It get depressing when I look at my wallet and how thin it is. LOL

I want to step up my game composing wise. The more I learn, the more I can produce and get out to libraries. My goal this year is to work on hybrids. Theres a big genre mash-up going on out there and I want to be part of it. I've dabbled in Orchestra, but I want to do some Dubstep/Orchestral pieces. Something you'd here in a video game or possibly a movie trailer. I want to make a hybrid using my Dance/Electronica experience and other genres...

Check out this dance remix of "Cotton Eye Joe" :

What's that? Hillbilly Dance? I want to do it!

I'll keep you posted on my progress. If you come across any hybrids, shoot me a link!

What's Going On?

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 15:14:00 +0000

That's the name of one of our songs on the 58 Steps project. It's pretty cool, the song is. One of my favorites.

So I took a day off of sorts from music. I really never do, but I didn't step foot in the studio. I did listen to the project a few times, and started putting the songs in the order that I thought made sense. If you've worked on a CD before, you know the process. Creating the CD isn't just about the music, it's the flow of the music from song to song. You don't want to break the listener out of the flow, unless of course you want to. Sometimes the journey has some bumps in it, so you want to convey that to the listener.

I also started thinking of video ideas for some of the songs. Because the world has become a visually stimulated on, I would like to create something to go along with some of the songs. It'll be a nice touch. Let's see how that one goes....

Speaking of video, I need to get back to editing some DLFTv stuff. I let music take control over the past couple of weeks, but I do have a couple of interviews that I should be working on. Again, if you or if you know of anyone wanting to be interviewed, let me know. I will set it up! I'm looking forward to doing more of those, and other things on DLFTv.

So, it's only Tuesday and my mind is going a mile a minute on stuff. Hope my brain doesn't burn out by Friday! LOL

Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 04:56:00 +0000

So I've had a few very productive days. I've made some headway music wise. We're getting close to finishing the 58 Steps CD. Hopefully we'll be into mixing in a couple weeks. I'm excited. It's sounding good!

We've been video taping along the way. We'll be sharing some of that soon too.

I'm hoping that the CD will out before summer. I don't know how fast things take these days, but I would hope the process has sped up since I released Moments In Silence. We'll see.

My eye lids are getting heavy so I'm going before I pass out. Monday's coming...time to make the donuts.....

Ying and Yang, Ebb and Flow...Karma. Thank you God, Thank you Jesus!

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 14:25:00 +0000

That's how I'm feeling today.

I don't want to get into the afternoon I had yesterday, which lead "to the bottle" to soothe the nerves, but before touching down sometime after midnight things were calm and this morning's been awesome.

After some training this afternoon I'm looking forward to getting in the studio with J Vaughn for some music time. I haven't resolved my "issue" with I Believe, but I'm not going to worry about it. I sent JV a note last night saying, "Here's the scratch track...Hopefully it's in the same key by the time you hit the studio tomorrow...." LOL I think I'm just going to leave it as is and see what he does with guitar. He has a way of making stuff sound good. Spinning straw into gold like Rumpelstiltskin...

Hey, J Vaughn, I'm gonna start calling you Rumpelstilskin...Rumpels for short! LOL

When Your Studio Session Takes a Different Turn

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 16:30:00 +0000

So I was in the studio yesterday afternoon. I PLANNED on laying down vocal tracks for a song I'm working on. I get set up, get in the booth, and do my thing. After a few takes I wasn't liking the chorus of the song too well. Something wasn't sitting right for me. Was it the way I was singing it? Nah, that was ok, but I still didn't like the way it sounded. This song is a remake, so I went back to the original....

At first listen, the chorus was in a different key, so I guess my ears picked up on that. It was enough to be annoying so I transposed the chorus. After getting it where I needed it I was VERY happy with it, then listened to it relative to the rest of the song. As you would have it, now it's just not right with the rest!

You know what my dilema is, right?

I think the art of doing a remake is bringing something different to the table with the song. I like keeping some of the elements the same, the hook for example, as that is most likely what the catchiest part of the song was...Or lyrics, although sometimes a lyric rewrite is needed to update with the time period, or maybe if I want to convey a different emotion than in the first version. I guess it would depend on why I wanted to rewrite in the first place.

I Believe is a pretty good song, but I've never really produced it like I did others. This song lay by the wayside with countless other songs that have yet to reach anyone's ears. I think when I pulled this trick out of the bag I felt the need to revamp something that didn't need revamping. I think that's what my ears were telling me yesterday. So, after a few hours I decided to stop recording. I wanted to step back and listen and try to figure out what I was thinking. Do I really need to do a remake? Or is this going to work as is? I need to dig up the original recording files to figure that out.

Wish me luck. This was done back in tb productions back in the 90's. I think I was still using cassette tapes back then, if those of you reading even know what those are!

With a Little Bit of Motivation...

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 16:52:00 +0000

This morning, as I waited for footage at work, I decided to sit down and make a To Do list for DLF. I HATE that combo of words..."To DO" Whatever. I'll get to it when I feel like it. But in all seriousness I took the advise of my Brother, Stan, and started thinking. "Write down the things you want to do and accomplish" where his words echoing through my head as I began jotting things down. At first it was a slow process, then three pages later I had a rough outline of what I wanted to do over the next few month.

Some things had to do with one of the Libraries I'm writing for. I set up a plan of action to be able to provide what I needed to do my part, and be ready. I plan to write on a more consistant basis, until I feel my arsenal is full enough to send music to a lot of different sources. I'm trying to increase my productivity with the same amount of time I have now. If anyone has a magic button, please share! LOL

As my skills increase, I hope to provide the entertainment that people want to hear and see. Right now I'm focused and motivated....And it's only Tuesday!

The Busy Weekend

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 17:47:00 +0000

Can I get a stop button to catch my breath? LOL

I'm not going to get into the details of my weekend, only to say it was interesting. It ended with a nice relaxing time with my buds watching The Walking Dead. Awesome show if you haven't seen it.

Yesterday afternoon found me in the studio with J Vaughn Davis working on our 58 Steps Project. It's coming along well. I have to give J Vaughn extra kudos for showing up with serious back problems. He took on the session like a trooper and laid down some seriously lovely tracks. We have a few more songs to finish up before hitting the mixing/mastering stage. I'm excited!

Happy Monday everyone! Hopefully it'll be a great week. February ends this week. Where is this month going? Or I should have said where has this month gone?

Technology Does Have It's Advantages

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 22:29:00 +0000

So, I was working in the studio yesterday. Before I went in I said to myself, "There's got to be a remote for my iPad that I can use to work in Logic...." I was laying down some vocals for a song on the 58 Steps project. IF you know my studio setup, I have a sound booth which is not too close to the workstation, but I always have to figure out how to control the Digital Audio Workstation(DAW) while recording on my own. I use to press record and then run into the booth. The beginnings of all my tracks had this THUNK at the beginning of me closing the door! Then I started bringing in my bluetooth keyboard and mouse. That was fine, but lugging the keyboard and mouse in every time and then back to the workstation....I know it's only a few steps, but it wasn't sexy enough for me. I needed something that was cool.

So, I went to the App store searching for something to appease my lazy butt, and I found it!

IpTouch for Logic Pro solved my needs yesterday. I was elated that I found something that I could easily control Logic with while in the booth. I saved time from running in and out of the booth. The program works well with Logic. The only problem is I don't have a save button. There may very well be one, but I literally downloaded the app and started using it. No reading of the directions! I'll use it more this weekend while I'm working. It did get me pumped up to do a bit more work on vocals!

I would be in there now, but it's Friday. I just ordered pizza and I'm going to get me a beer. The boys and I are watching Skyfall tonight. If I'm in the mood, maybe I'll get into some recording tonight!

Just a side note....

There's a lot of music coming out soon. The 58 Steps Project is slated to be completed by the end of March, and then we hope to have it up for digital download a month or so afterwards. We may make limited hard copies for those that want them.

Coming To Terms is slated for the end of the year. I'm fine tuning some songs on that CD as well. It's my best work yet!

Both of the above projects are contingent upon me getting some music done and in some libraries. I want to step up my game a bit. I'm getting myself ready to go to Hawaii next year for a music conference I've been hearing a lot about. It would be nice to be INVITED because of my success, so I have to get my butt in gear! I also want to do LA again. It's been too long.

Anyone know how to get a few more hours our of the day?

That's it for now. My beer's getting warm!

DLF

Slipping! Do People Still Blog?

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 13:19:00 +0000

I mean, am I doing this right? Is there some other new-fangled medium I should be using? WordPress? I dunno. I'll keep talking. Someone tell me what's the latest and greatest.

I took off last week in prep for Valentine's Day. My gift to my sigo is a cooked meal. I do most of cooking anyway, but what sets this meal from the regular is the complex menu. This year's meal was Braised Short Ribs, Lobster Cakes, Roasted Veggies, and for dessert, a Milano Cookie Cake. I thought I had posted pictures on Facebook as I normally do, but for some reason the pics that I uploaded from my phone never made it. Might have been the wine I had while cooking! LOL Happy Belated Valentine's Day everyone!

So I was looking at that update video last night and I thought the production sucked, so I have to redo it. Blame it on Fandalism. I've seen so many good productions that I want mine to be as good if not better. SO...back to the drawing board.....

I'm starting to line up more interviews for DLFTv. I also will have some fun snippets from time to time, and hopefully something will evolve into more of a talk show. Time will tell. I am looking for time to lock myself into the studio and go on a music writing spree. Pray for me.

I'm still sleepy from having yesterday off. I'm going to go get some coffee. You all enjoy you day, and the rest of the week!

So Far, so Good

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 17:41:00 +0000

I realize that I have a challenge in front of me. Why I didn't start doing all this stuff while being a Stay At Home Dad for the last two years, I dunno....Perhaps because THAT was like having THREE jobs....Anywho, a lot to think about and YOU should check out....

Last week I started uploading to Fandalism. It's an app from Facebook and it's pretty cool. The gist of it is I upload stuff, music and video, and you go listen and give me props for it. That starts a chain of events. Your friends on FB will see it and check it out, and maybe give me props, then their friends, then their friends, etc. CHAIN REACTION!!!! Soon, hundreds, and thousands, and millions will be seeing/listening to DLF. AWESOME

And it was something I had all along, just never used it. Met some great new artists already...

Last week I taped an update video. Should have that done in a couple days. Won't say anything else about it....

Started finalizing the 58 Steps Project. Jeff and I are getting together weekly to finish what we started. Hoping to have all of what we need in the can by the end of the month so I can start Mastering the CD. I'm hoping for a May release...

Coming To Terms is being moved to the front shelf. Good stuff AND Videos with this project.

I need to write write write music over the next few months. I've been working on my dubstep chops, and some other things so I hope it will open the doors for some music licensing.

I could probably talk for a few more paragraphs, but that's all I'm gonna say for now!

Stay tuned, keep listening!

~D

p.s. Just realized I have a new song I mixed down TWO WEEKS ago. I have to get that up...I'll post it on Reverbnation so it'll show up on the player to your right!

A New Year for New Music, Hopes and Dreams!

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 13:40:00 +0000

Yup, first post in almost a year. I'm REALLY bad at social media, but when trying to figure out why no one's listening, I figured it's because I'm not "feeding" my fans! LOL Ok, you've heard this before, BUT now it's time to bring it to the table....

I started last year with DLFTv. I've REALLY enjoyed doing that show, and I'm going to continue with it. People reading this and watching DLFTv, please be patient. I did loose about 3 interviews in a hard drive crash last year. I was unemployed and couldn't afford the hundreds of dollars for a hard drive restore, but DLF's got a day job now, so I'll be getting that footage back soon! In the interrum there are a few video shorts coming your way.

I'm also going to blog more. I think as I get going with music this year I'm going to be a twittering fool. Should I have capitalized "twitter"? LOL I was very creative the last half of last year and I plan on keeping it rolling. I've got tons of great ideas and I want to share them. This year is going to be a fun one!

I'm being a little redundant with information, but I will be talking about the progress of two, possibly three CDs, more videos, a book?

If you want to see something on DLFTv, let me know. I love doing the interviews, and the show is evolving in my head, so it will be a lot of things. I'm in the process of creating a workflow to getting videos out twice a month. Just remember, I'm the Producer, Director, Editor, Sound Guy, Key Grip, etc. so it is a process. I recruited Elijah yesterday to be my video assistant, so he may help me more. He had fun(even though when we had some technical difficulties I was having mini temper tantrums).

Right now, I ask that you all make sure you're fans on Reverbnation. You can sign up on the right of this blog. Listen to DLF from their player as much as you can. That'll keep me on the Top charts. Post and comment when you can. I will keep you informed and be in your face!

I'm already having fun, and I want to share the wealth!

I'll be talking to you soon!

DLF

God, Karma...It all works out

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Sat, 03 Dec 2011 04:23:00 +0000

So a few days ago I was bummed because my song failed to make it to the next level for a commercial, but this morning another song was accepted into a library for a major day time television show, SO....

Quick payout or long term residual income....I guess I made out after all!

Down in the Dumps

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 00:26:00 +0000

So. I got an emergency email about an agency needing a piece of music for a commercial last night. Normally I wouldn't get too excited because they want something guitar driven, and I only know 3 chords! I listened to the sample they gave and my heart started beating fast. It sounded like a song I had written last year, Confused Mind. I listened to it a few times, getting emotional as I listened. "This is a perfect fit" I told myself, beaming ear to ear as tears streamed down my face. This one was going to get some serious air time.

I called my brother. I called my mother. I was excited at the possibility of my song being picked. Although the song was ready, I did some EQ tweaking, just to be sure. I got the song in with 20 minutes to spare.

I felt good. I felt charged. There was no way this song wasn't getting picked. Earlier this afternoon I got the rejection letter. I was crushed. I had to lay down. This wasn't my first rejection letter. It won't be my last. But why was I so confident about this listing? I don't know. I don't know why I got emotional listening to the song. I don't know why I was emotional when I was rejected. I don't know.

Back to the studio I guess. I'm not discouraged, just curious as to why I thought, "This is it!"

New Music

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 01:04:00 +0000

Over the past couple of weeks I've posted some new music. I hope who ever's listening is enjoying it! If you haven't had a chance to listen yet, go to my website, www.darrinfrison.com, my music page on Facebook, DLF's MUSIC PAGE, or if you'd like, you can go to www.revernation.com/dleonf and use the playlist there.

I hope you enjoy it! Drop me a line and tell me what you think!

Peace and Blessings!

~DLF

What's to come

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 15:45:00 +0000

I've been thinking a lot lately about my next steps for music. I want to do something that keeps folks interested. I'm thinking podcast. I'm thinking DLFTV. I'm thinking I need to get off my duff and get busy!

It's hard getting things done in the summer. Since becoming a stay at home dad it's challenging getting the schedules of my boys in order in conjunction with my own. I'm working on it though, and I will get it together. Believe it or not, my iPhone helps me do a lot. Like this blog right now. I'm doing it from my phone. I now have recording software on my phone so I can do in depth interviews on the street!

I live technology. I LOVE technology.

We'll see what I can come up with over the next few weeks.

Stay tuned!

Motorcycle ride

noreply@blogger.com (DLF) — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 17:58:00 +0000

Taking a long ride today to clear my head. Hopefully some music will come out of it.

Or something.