We live in an age where high end polyphonic analog synths and innovative groove boxes are coming out again and are more readily available than ever before! Oberheims! Prophets! Teenage engineers! Tonverks! It's all so exciting.
So instead I bought a beat up pcm rack synth from the 80s that's older than I am and sounds like mall elevator music. What a time to be alive.
Before they eventually become cover arts, a lot of these start out as derpy doodles, like something I'd draw in the corner of a textbook in highschool. I swear, it looked more epic in my head... 😉
Several listeners have requested that I set up a Spotify page. So I did. I'm still in the process of figuring out the minutia, but the bones are all there.
I just realized that Possessor is the 250th track posted. That's 1/4 of the way to 1000, and 1/4th of the way to me saving the world from the apocalypse. And that's significant I guess. So I was told to stop being a grumpy goblin boy and post something nice for my listeners.
So in honor of the 250th track, here's my homemade michelada picante recipe that I stole from the Internet.
1. A few solid drops of maggi, Worcestershire at the very bottom
2. Cholula or in this case Franks Xtra hot if you're out because they never have Cholula at my supermarket. I like 5-10 drops of either, but go less if you like it's spicy
3. One and a half ounces of spicy clamato or in this case V8 spicy tomato
4. 1 half of a squeezed out lime
5. Modelo Especial. Tecate is also acceptable
6. Copious Tajin. But if you want it on the rim all fancy maybe do that as the first step or you'll end up with a mess
6b. Optional: black pepper and a dash of soy sauce and a celery 6c. extra optional, a dash of mezcal for a bit of a wilder night
7. Continue to add Modelo as you drink it down
8. Head over to a local Mexican tequila bar and order yourself a proper michelada from a professional bartender when you realize your drink tastes nothing like it's supposed to, probably cause you missed a step somewhere 🔥🔥👍👍
For anyone curious about the artwork, here's a brief behind the scenes peek at how it's done.
1) I start with a poorly drawn sketch either hand drawn or in Procreate (this one was digital), usually with a screenshot from a movie or game, or some kind of stock photo with a bunch of stuff drawn in. The nice lady in this was based off a stock image model. But there was no creature. This step is mainly to use as a base to trace over.
2) I draw over my own drawing with a new layer in Procreate adding and removing detail until it looks nice enough. Sometimes I add in cut outs from other pictures to paste in to liven things up. Like the lips here were traced over from another photo, but drawn to match the rest of the picture. Then I hit it hard with the POSTERIZE effect in GIMP which drastically reduces the colors and details but smooths out edges and imperfections. I also bump the contrast way up to give it some pop and remove even more details.
3) I paste the various drawings I've made over an old artwork I already had so I can keep a consistent size and layout. Then I add in flourishes like text, images from actual cassettes, random shapes or logos, barcodes, anything small and interesting. Extra touches. I like adding in different languages, random phrases or lyrics, or warnings for electronics and other pretentious things.
4) then I add a "color to gray" filter over everything with the "Radius" value set fairly low. This over estimates the black values and causes black color degradation. Next I put something in the background. In this artwork it was a random texture of marble filtered with the POSTERIZE effect. Then I use "color to alpha" to change the color "white" into a transparent layer. Finally change the hue/chroma and contrast of certain areas of the background to as some color to different segments of the art.
5) I rinse and repeat these methods until I have something I like often fussing over the colors or adding in pieces from other drawings.
I try not to spend too much time on this process, since the art is really just an extra thing added in to help create a mood for the music. Though this time I actually made the art before the track, since I'm doing more manual drawing and editing these days and avoiding the delicious a.i. stuff.
Hope this was interesting or useful in some way. Pics included
I'm no stranger to ai art. I think it's interesting and fun to tinker with, but I'm noticing more and more that people have very strong feelings towards it.
Back in 2021 when stable diffusion was brand new and very messy, I used generations to create very rudimentary abstract artwork and used those images basically as something to look at while listening to tracks I uploaded without much thought. I thought it was cool and novel at the time. Prior to that I was mostly doing photo collages, heavily edited movie stills, and a mix of hand drawn and digital stuff from 2008 up to 2021. The art was never the primary focus, just an afterthought, and dubious in quality 😊. I always just wanted a color or a vibe attached to each track to add a little character, I guess.
Since then stable diffusion has improved like crazy and is very popular now. However many people feel as though it devalues real artists and I get that. I was never gonna pay someone to make artwork, and I'm not really trying to "sell" the artwork generated, but I have been including some of it on the Bandcamp page attached to the tracks. That being said, this is all a hobby and I don't really make much money off of any of this at the moment, except for a few kind folks who picked up some bandcamp releases. Just a reminder, the recent Bandcamp releases are all free with a pay what you want, so y'all *really* don't have to buy any of this music to listen to it, and it all gets uploaded here too.
Anyways, Since a.i. took off, I tried to make a conscious effort to use it minimally and to still make the artwork unique and personalized enough for my own tastes, with fake cassette cover layouts, and collaging and drawing over a.i. generated elements. None of the past, I dunno... 20 something tracks or so we're purely text to image prompts, but for example I would use a generated face or a background or a figure and paste it together before photo editing it or drawing over it. I make a new and different artwork for each track and I try to spend the most time on the music and the least time on the visuals, so I definitely cut corners to make something quick that looks kinda cool.
But... I noticed a lot of people strongly dislike a.i. and I've received some messages telling me to stop using it. My channel isn't very big, but I'm not strongly attached to a.i. art. Some of my recent track arts don't even contain any a.i. art, but they look very similar because I'm trying to keep a somewhat consistent art style.
Anyways, just curious what you guys think. I could ditch the a.i. art altogether, stealthily use it for elements within the track art, or just do whatever, no rules, anything goes. It's still gonna be the same music and same vibe, but if any of you feel strongly about it I'm curious. I'm never gonna try to hide the fact that I've used these kinds of tools. But seeing the backlash Andrew Huang got over his deck of cards and the general vitriol towards a.i. in general, I figured I'd pose the question.
I'm kinda leaning towards using it far less, shifting back to drawing and photo collages, but I'm open to suggestions.
Just to be clear, I have never and never plan to use a.i. generated music in any of the tracks. I do use traditional generative, randomization and sample&hold stuff, but I'm pretty sure that's never been a taboo concept.
Anyways... here's a casual poll.
How do you feel about a.i. art incorporated into individual track art?
I've had this problem for a while. Sometimes I upload a track and realize after uploading that there was a small error in the composition, mixing, or I realize I could've done something different to make the track cooler. It is the bane of my existence.
My first inclination is to nuke the original track and re-up a fixed or improved version. But that deletes everyone's comments and makes finding the track harder, and feels kinda rude.
My second inclination is to leave the original track and just upload the better version to Bandcamp, which allows me to change audio tracks at any time without penalty. That's what I've mostly been doing lately.
My third inclination is to upload a new version of the track, leaving the old version, maybe palette swapping the art and clearly labeling which version is the final mix and which is the demo mix. This means all old comments and playlists don't get broken, but makes the video page a bit more cluttered.
I'm leaning towards the third option for the latest track. I wouldn't expect listeners to comment on both versions, or even listen to both versions, it's just mostly an organizational thing. My view count has never been that high, so I don't care if one version cannibalizes the other, and if I was a ninja I could easily rely on the YouTube algorithm to keep me firmly hidden during stealth missions 🤦♂️.
What do you think? Would it be too annoying if I uploaded a new version of the same track after the fact with improvements while leaving original up? I would keep only the latest mix in the playlists and on Bandcamp.
I was gonna post a cutie pie message with a bunch of free album codes for bandcamp only to discover that I was out of free album codes. So I just made the album free.
George L
https://youtu.be/suvcw22rLF0
1 week ago (edited) |[YT] | 1
View 0 replies
George L
New album!
Listen here:
https://youtu.be/fKkQhdanA-8?si=ma8FT...
Or here:
georgel909.bandcamp.com/album/vol-xxxii
For free!
The album has updated mixes and a lot of recorded vocals compared to the demo tracks. Hope you enjoy.
6 months ago |[YT] | 0
View 0 replies
George L
We live in an age where high end polyphonic analog synths and innovative groove boxes are coming out again and are more readily available than ever before! Oberheims! Prophets! Teenage engineers! Tonverks! It's all so exciting.
So instead I bought a beat up pcm rack synth from the 80s that's older than I am and sounds like mall elevator music. What a time to be alive.
1 year ago |[YT] | 9
View 2 replies
George L
Before they eventually become cover arts, a lot of these start out as derpy doodles, like something I'd draw in the corner of a textbook in highschool. I swear, it looked more epic in my head... 😉
Edit: new track: https://youtu.be/gw6ww0j0_YI?si=xyRw3...
1 year ago (edited) |[YT] | 3
View 1 reply
George L
Hello!
Several listeners have requested that I set up a Spotify page. So I did. I'm still in the process of figuring out the minutia, but the bones are all there.
open.spotify.com/artist/5B35mO2QpbBWp5spxjjAnv?si=…
I'll flesh out the profile page a bit more once I'm granted artist access.
2 years ago |[YT] | 3
View 3 replies
George L
https://youtu.be/KIH-0F5twlk?si=spWuU...
I just realized that Possessor is the 250th track posted. That's 1/4 of the way to 1000, and 1/4th of the way to me saving the world from the apocalypse. And that's significant I guess. So I was told to stop being a grumpy goblin boy and post something nice for my listeners.
So in honor of the 250th track, here's my homemade michelada picante recipe that I stole from the Internet.
1. A few solid drops of maggi, Worcestershire at the very bottom
2. Cholula or in this case Franks Xtra hot if you're out because they never have Cholula at my supermarket. I like 5-10 drops of either, but go less if you like it's spicy
3. One and a half ounces of spicy clamato or in this case V8 spicy tomato
4. 1 half of a squeezed out lime
5. Modelo Especial.
Tecate is also acceptable
6. Copious Tajin. But if you want it on the rim all fancy maybe do that as the first step or you'll end up with a mess
6b. Optional: black pepper and a dash of soy sauce and a celery
6c. extra optional, a dash of mezcal for a bit of a wilder night
7. Continue to add Modelo as you drink it down
8. Head over to a local Mexican tequila bar and order yourself a proper michelada from a professional bartender when you realize your drink tastes nothing like it's supposed to, probably cause you missed a step somewhere 🔥🔥👍👍
¡Buen Provecho!🍻
See you at the next track.
2 years ago |[YT] | 2
View 3 replies
George L
For anyone curious about the artwork, here's a brief behind the scenes peek at how it's done.
1) I start with a poorly drawn sketch either hand drawn or in Procreate (this one was digital), usually with a screenshot from a movie or game, or some kind of stock photo with a bunch of stuff drawn in. The nice lady in this was based off a stock image model. But there was no creature. This step is mainly to use as a base to trace over.
2) I draw over my own drawing with a new layer in Procreate adding and removing detail until it looks nice enough. Sometimes I add in cut outs from other pictures to paste in to liven things up. Like the lips here were traced over from another photo, but drawn to match the rest of the picture. Then I hit it hard with the POSTERIZE effect in GIMP which drastically reduces the colors and details but smooths out edges and imperfections. I also bump the contrast way up to give it some pop and remove even more details.
3) I paste the various drawings I've made over an old artwork I already had so I can keep a consistent size and layout. Then I add in flourishes like text, images from actual cassettes, random shapes or logos, barcodes, anything small and interesting. Extra touches. I like adding in different languages, random phrases or lyrics, or warnings for electronics and other pretentious things.
4) then I add a "color to gray" filter over everything with the "Radius" value set fairly low. This over estimates the black values and causes black color degradation. Next I put something in the background. In this artwork it was a random texture of marble filtered with the POSTERIZE effect. Then I use "color to alpha" to change the color "white" into a transparent layer. Finally change the hue/chroma and contrast of certain areas of the background to as some color to different segments of the art.
5) I rinse and repeat these methods until I have something I like often fussing over the colors or adding in pieces from other drawings.
I try not to spend too much time on this process, since the art is really just an extra thing added in to help create a mood for the music. Though this time I actually made the art before the track, since I'm doing more manual drawing and editing these days and avoiding the delicious a.i. stuff.
Hope this was interesting or useful in some way. Pics included
2 years ago (edited) |[YT] | 5
View 3 replies
George L
About art and a.i.
I'm no stranger to ai art. I think it's interesting and fun to tinker with, but I'm noticing more and more that people have very strong feelings towards it.
Back in 2021 when stable diffusion was brand new and very messy, I used generations to create very rudimentary abstract artwork and used those images basically as something to look at while listening to tracks I uploaded without much thought. I thought it was cool and novel at the time. Prior to that I was mostly doing photo collages, heavily edited movie stills, and a mix of hand drawn and digital stuff from 2008 up to 2021. The art was never the primary focus, just an afterthought, and dubious in quality 😊. I always just wanted a color or a vibe attached to each track to add a little character, I guess.
Since then stable diffusion has improved like crazy and is very popular now. However many people feel as though it devalues real artists and I get that. I was never gonna pay someone to make artwork, and I'm not really trying to "sell" the artwork generated, but I have been including some of it on the Bandcamp page attached to the tracks. That being said, this is all a hobby and I don't really make much money off of any of this at the moment, except for a few kind folks who picked up some bandcamp releases. Just a reminder, the recent Bandcamp releases are all free with a pay what you want, so y'all *really* don't have to buy any of this music to listen to it, and it all gets uploaded here too.
Anyways,
Since a.i. took off, I tried to make a conscious effort to use it minimally and to still make the artwork unique and personalized enough for my own tastes, with fake cassette cover layouts, and collaging and drawing over a.i. generated elements. None of the past, I dunno... 20 something tracks or so we're purely text to image prompts, but for example I would use a generated face or a background or a figure and paste it together before photo editing it or drawing over it. I make a new and different artwork for each track and I try to spend the most time on the music and the least time on the visuals, so I definitely cut corners to make something quick that looks kinda cool.
But... I noticed a lot of people strongly dislike a.i. and I've received some messages telling me to stop using it. My channel isn't very big, but I'm not strongly attached to a.i. art. Some of my recent track arts don't even contain any a.i. art, but they look very similar because I'm trying to keep a somewhat consistent art style.
Anyways, just curious what you guys think. I could ditch the a.i. art altogether, stealthily use it for elements within the track art, or just do whatever, no rules, anything goes. It's still gonna be the same music and same vibe, but if any of you feel strongly about it I'm curious. I'm never gonna try to hide the fact that I've used these kinds of tools. But seeing the backlash Andrew Huang got over his deck of cards and the general vitriol towards a.i. in general, I figured I'd pose the question.
I'm kinda leaning towards using it far less, shifting back to drawing and photo collages, but I'm open to suggestions.
Just to be clear, I have never and never plan to use a.i. generated music in any of the tracks. I do use traditional generative, randomization and sample&hold stuff, but I'm pretty sure that's never been a taboo concept.
Anyways... here's a casual poll.
How do you feel about a.i. art incorporated into individual track art?
2 years ago |[YT] | 2
View 2 replies
George L
Friends.
I've had this problem for a while. Sometimes I upload a track and realize after uploading that there was a small error in the composition, mixing, or I realize I could've done something different to make the track cooler. It is the bane of my existence.
My first inclination is to nuke the original track and re-up a fixed or improved version. But that deletes everyone's comments and makes finding the track harder, and feels kinda rude.
My second inclination is to leave the original track and just upload the better version to Bandcamp, which allows me to change audio tracks at any time without penalty. That's what I've mostly been doing lately.
My third inclination is to upload a new version of the track, leaving the old version, maybe palette swapping the art and clearly labeling which version is the final mix and which is the demo mix. This means all old comments and playlists don't get broken, but makes the video page a bit more cluttered.
I'm leaning towards the third option for the latest track. I wouldn't expect listeners to comment on both versions, or even listen to both versions, it's just mostly an organizational thing. My view count has never been that high, so I don't care if one version cannibalizes the other, and if I was a ninja I could easily rely on the YouTube algorithm to keep me firmly hidden during stealth missions 🤦♂️.
What do you think? Would it be too annoying if I uploaded a new version of the same track after the fact with improvements while leaving original up? I would keep only the latest mix in the playlists and on Bandcamp.
Ty kindly.
3 years ago |[YT] | 4
View 9 replies
George L
I was gonna post a cutie pie message with a bunch of free album codes for bandcamp only to discover that I was out of free album codes. So I just made the album free.
georgel909.bandcamp.com/album/vol-xx-i-cannot-exis…
Just the past few tracks with improved mixes (since youtube doesn't let me re-upload audio after the fact).
Grab it if you want, but just don't feed it after midnight or let it get wet.
3 years ago |[YT] | 3
View 5 replies
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