Marqui Adora

Well Loved EP

marquiadora@gmail.com (John Tooker) — Thu, 13 Feb 2014 21:46:00 -0500

Hello!

So this week we finished mixing six of our songs that we started in "the long long ago. In the before time." We like them and we hope you do as well. The Well Loved EP should be in all the usual places within the next few days. I'll post more links when they go live.

iTunes (We like money!)
Bandcamp (Pay what you like, including free.)
SoundCloud (Why not?)
YouTube (An easy way to give them a listen.)
Archive.org
BitTorrent Bundle (For those technically adept.)

Here's the YouTube versions for your listening pleasure:

Still flyin'

Adaptive Strategies for Survival.

marquiadora@gmail.com (John Tooker) — Thu, 12 Sep 2013 10:51:00 -0400

Old business:

The six songs we've finished during the last few months will be gathered together as an EP later in the year/early next year and released in all the usual places. We had two other songs that we felt didn't reach the standard we wanted, so they are going to be taken out back behind the shed and won't be coming back.

New business:

That means it's time for the next thing...

Walk Away almost finished walking!

marquiadora@gmail.com (Marqui Adora) — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 22:46:00 -0400

Worked on tracking the last few parts for Walk Away today. I feel it's much better for the extra care I gave it. Should be ready to mix it this week/next week when the time presents itself.

-JT

(235)

Might have to move the podcast feed somewhere else.

marquiadora@gmail.com (Marqui Adora) — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 12:25:00 -0400

I can't get feedburner to realize that I posted another "episode" several days ago. Thinking I'll return to Libsyn and start moving away from google's stuff. They don't feel very interested in anything that's not google+, chrome, or android at the moment. Sad to see that happen.

-JT

338 Adaption is the key to survival.

marquiadora@gmail.com (John Tooker) — Tue, 5 Mar 2013 17:16:00 -0500

Had a planning phone call with Mr. Shockley today. We've got a a mission now we just need to execute the plan.

360 About that Marqui Adora album from a couple years ago...

marquiadora@gmail.com (Marqui Adora) — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 15:34:00 -0500

I just went through the almost ready songs that I recorded with Danny about three years ago and found a lot of the problems are mix problems. No need to re-track or program parts just simply zeroing out the board and starting the mix again will get most of the songs where I want them to be. The few parts that aren't mix related will need to be played again, mostly for tuning/groove reasons.

I've created a project in Things and listed all the stages needed to take the songs from where they stand now to them being on iTunes and other places. I've got the first few steps already checked off as completed. It is a long list, but it is all just simple actions I need to take to complete each song. While I'm not going to state any date for them to be finished I will say that it's nice to have a plan of action. They've been sitting in the pile of unfinished music for far to long. (That pile needs to go away!)

My goal is to get these 8 songs done so that others can be moved down the line. As one example, I started a remix of Broken Walls for Cygne Noir that I feel like I am close to the finish line on. I'd really like to have that one in Danny's hands.

Here's the eight songs that are on that list:

An Entire Nation
Body and Mind
Cracks in the Mirror
In Motion
Reaching Out
Simple Lies
The Fall
Walk Away

Baby Steps

-John T

362 Three suggestion/reviews for musicians.

marquiadora@gmail.com (Marqui Adora) — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 23:40:00 -0500

A new computer monitor

I decided that using a small laptop screen was becoming something of a slow down to productive music work. I realized I was more productive when I used a desktop for music work in spite of the obvious benefits of being mobile. So I dug out my old Apple display and the ADC to DVI adapter I bought for it 10 years ago. Either the display or the adapter stopped working because I got nothing when I turned it on. So either a new display or new adapter was in order. The cost of another adapter was rather high so I checked out new displays and was shocked to find them so reasonable in price. I didn't get a giant monitor, I got one about the same size as what I had before, but the benefits have already born fruit in having a larger digital workspace.

A pair of Vox Amphones

Amphones are for guitar players and bass players and I think these might be as useful as adding a really cool new pedal. They're a simple pair of Audio Technica headphones with a Vox amp modeler builtin. They sound surprisingly good and make practicing quietly a lot more fun.

David Allen's Getting Things Done books/audiobooks/podcasts

After trying to read this book several times and giving up (I was put off by it's executive/California double speak language before I could finish it) I listened to these excellent Back to Work series of Podcasts and decided to give it a try once again. This time I went all in, I bought the iBooks version, the AudioBook version, and erm ah found an out of print audiobook version called Getting Things Done... Fast.

As was the case before, reading the book almost stopped me in my tracks, but I switched back and forth with the audiobook version and thanks to a very long daily commute was able to finish the book in a short period of time. I then switched to the Getting Things Done... Fast version and found it much easier to listen to and get more insight then the rather stiff presentation of the book and audiobook official versions. I also went over the Back to Work Podcasts again and got more out of them this time.

I think this is really good stuff for musicians and other artistic kinds of people in particular. I've found the methodology, combined with the Mac and iOS App Things, to have created a renewed sense of purpose to most of my days and activities. (Yes nerds I know that Omni-Focus is a more super powered GTDish App but I'm using the tool I've already got to great effect.) I've been at it for about around a month and so far so good.

A simple example of GTD:
Instead of a to do list of nebulous actions like-move old podcast files to new blogger page, GTD wants you to break things down into smaller steps that have a very visible task for each. In this case it meant these steps; install iWeb from old iLife disk into Mac, Run Updates on Mac, Copy the files out of the Domain file into Dropbox, research on computer how to publish with blogger and dropbox, update feedburner info, copy the podcast information into new draft posts on blogger, etc...)

Rather then having to make something magically happened, I made it so that when I was at even my dumbest brain drained moment I could move this project forward. Within five days of initial planning the project was finished. No big pile of energy was used I did little tasks that helped make the whole project creep closer to finished. This is something that sat on an old to do list for about 3 years. It feels great not to have it floating any longer.

-John

MA-035 We Know

marquiadora@gmail.com (Marqui Adora) — Fri, 8 Feb 2013 14:33:00 -0500

After a very long break here's a new episode of The Marqui Adora Podcast. This one is a preview of a new song called We Know.

MA-035 We Know

↵ Use original player

MA-035 We Know

By Marqui Adora

YouTube

← Replay

Let's see what 365 days might bring.

marquiadora@gmail.com (Marqui Adora) — Thu, 7 Feb 2013 22:49:00 -0500

Danny's been busy releasing simple stripped down versions of songs he's written throughout the years on YouTube. (Including a few Marqui Adora tunes.)

Click here to see them all and get more info.

I've got a rewired studio room and a slightly rewired head. I'll post some irregular reports here and we'll see what the year will bring.

-John T

Long time no post.

marquiadora@gmail.com (John Tooker) — Wed, 12 Sep 2012 22:46:00 -0400

Not dead yet.

Just distracted.

Music you should hear: Cygne Noir

marquiadora@gmail.com (John Tooker) — Thu, 5 Jan 2012 20:41:00 -0500

If this voice sounds familiar that's because it's the sound of Marqui Adora singer Danny Ashe.

Find out more here: http://cygnenoirmusic.blogspot.com/
Latest tracks by Cygne Noir

Music you should hear: Kitchen Fork - Jack Conte

marquiadora@gmail.com (John Tooker) — Fri, 2 Sep 2011 21:45:00 -0400

Kitchen Fork - VideoSong - Jack Conte

Music you should hear: Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Maps acoustic

marquiadora@gmail.com (John Tooker) — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 10:46:00 -0400

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Maps acoustic

Music you should hear: From the Basement version of Gnarls Barkley - Crazy

marquiadora@gmail.com (John Tooker) — Wed, 1 Jun 2011 00:11:00 -0400

Music you should hear: Weezer - Paranoid Android

marquiadora@gmail.com (John Tooker) — Sun, 29 May 2011 16:20:00 -0400

Weezer - Paranoid Android

The new Marqui Adora single - And It Begins

marquiadora@gmail.com (John Tooker) — Thu, 26 May 2011 10:09:00 -0400

Here's something new for your earholes from Marqui Adora.

Marqui Adora - And It Begins by Danny Ashe

And It Begins on iTunes!

More to come...

Music you should hear: Dub FX & Stamina MC 'Only Human'

marquiadora@gmail.com (John Tooker) — Thu, 26 May 2011 10:04:00 -0400

Dub FX & Stamina MC 'Only Human'

I start mixing a Marqui Adora record tomorrow.

marquiadora@gmail.com (John Tooker) — Sun, 6 Mar 2011 22:22:00 -0500

Hey folks,

At about this time last year I had decided which songs to record for a Marqui Adora album. I did this because I knew that world traveling chef Danny would be in our neighborhood and was itching to track some vocals.

Almost a year has past, but the finish line is in sight. No more music needs to be played so I'm putting down the instruments and firing up the mixer.

Stay tuned.

-Tooker
Marqui Adora