@sidetrackwalker
Synth Pop | Trip-Hop | DnB Hauntingly human gut punches 🎤️ Singer, songwriter & producer 🎹 Synth & audio nerd 🎧 Mixing & mastering engineer ______ 🔊 sidetrackwalker.bandcamp.com 🔊 sidetrackwalker.de 🔊 instagram.com/sidetrack_walker
New single out now!
Sorry for my long silence. A lot has been going on lately and some things are looking quite dark. But life has to go on, and so does music.
This is a tighter cut of a song off my upcoming album, Extinction Events. Enjoy!
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#synthpop #synthwave #retro #80s #bskymusic
Suffice to say the response to my latest releases has been... well, pretty much nonexistent. Same old, same old. Will it never end? Why am I even releasing music? Heck knows. 🤷♂️🙃
I'm amazed at the degree of demonisation of any kind of AI assistance for artworks. While I get the main arguments, people seem to utterly over-simplify and over-generalise this topic while it's, in fact, far less clear-cut. AI is a tool among many, the question (as always) is what we do with it.
Any recommendation for great, melancholic, genuinely heartfelt music based mostly around synths and/or sampling? Both with and without vocals welcome.
🔊 Out now: Waves 2084, the new Sidetrack Walker single
23 years in the making, now finally available on all platforms. Bandcamp purchase includes two older versions as bonus tracks!
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#bskymusic #musicsky #synthpop #synthwave #80sretro #newwave #retro
🔊 Today I am launching an all-new project!
DAS TROSTLOS focuses on a more immediate approach to songwriting and production.
Same darkness, different language: all lyrics are in German.
🕳️ Abgrund mit guter Akustik.
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#musicsky #bskymusic #darkwave #newwave #singersongwriter #newmusicrelease
Call for Songs:
“The Weapon and the Shield”
A Protest Music Compilation
I am curating a compilation titled “The Weapon and the Shield,” celebrating music as a force of resistance and protection...
I've made the same experience, but am doing my best to overcome this equation because it can suck all the life and fun out of things.
So true!
📣 The Waves Diaries #1 | Out Now!
📽️ In this series, I take you behind the music to share the strange and personal story of a song that refused to die.
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#WavesDiaries #MusicSky #SynthSky #SynthPop #SynthWave #RetroWave #80s #Songwriting #IndieMusic
Currently I work 4 hours a day for my regular job and spend at least that amount of time (usually more) afterwards working on cover art, videos, release plans etc. There's no energy & time left for actual music making. This can't be the way forward. One burn-out was enough.
Finally got round to checking this out. The entire album was thoroughly enjoyable, great vibes indeed: pleasant and uplifting without being shallow or even cheesy. Very good production, too. "Hello Goodbye" is quite the earworm! 😎 Big thumbs up, great work.
New TEO-5 synth jam out on YouTube! 🎹🤓
Would love to hear some opinions on this! Sorry for the lighting.
I'm having the arp play percussive FM sounds randomised per step by a S&H LFO. Endless delay feedback later on for an ambient twist.
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#SynthJam #AudioSky #SynthSky #SoundDesign #Ambient
Thanks so much for your input, I'll definitely check those out!
Anyone here with deeper insights into the hardware FX market? 🤔 I need a simple, affordable delay/rvb combo (preferably w/ stereo in and as one device) for my analogue synths, nothing too fancy or overly expensive. Any pointers?
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#gearsky #synthsky #fxpedal #sounddesign #audiosky
That sounds like a process you can trust, then! Personally, for better or worse, I've mostly moved away from recording acoustic instruments and turned to sound design. This means that impostor syndrome can lurk around any corner, really. And it does so most often in connection with drum stuff.
Very sorry to hear that. I've been in your shoes and keep changing my outlook and approach to avoid this sort of situation. If you're anything like me, you'll get back to music eventually. Taking a break can work wonders, but there's so much talent just waiting to come out. Don't give up on it.
It's that time of severe and all-encompassing self doubt again when, working on a new song, I feel like a total amateur and nothing seems to work. Oh well, it comes and goes as it pleases... 😅🤷♂️
Message(s) sent, finally!
But remember this is nitpicking on my part, which is exactly what I'm good at. I pay attention to these details and want music to be at its very best to let the ideas shine to their fullest. There's a lot of quality to unpack in your song, and I genuinely feel the above points would help it along.
All that being said, I did notice some missed potential. Chiefly, I feel that the piano and drums sound too clean and programmed, the overall sound could use more mid-warmth, and the sections could be set apart more clearly/dramatically. Let me know if you'd like me to lay this out in more detail.
Finally hadd a good listen after a surprisingly stressful week… Beautiful, folky tune with great recording quality, good work! Particularly enjoyed the crisp, airy, intimate sound. Doubling the acoustic guitar later in the song is a great call. Also love it when the drums and bass kick in.
Cancel out your low end – on purpose!? 🤯
📽️ First synth tutorial out on YT: a quick Oberheim TEO-5 tip for cleaner pads using phase cancellation.
🎧 Use headphones to hear the difference.
I'd love to hear some opinions! The voice-over isn't ideal yet, I know…
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#synthsky #synthtutorial #sounddesign
This is so true.
Let me know if you'd like a more detailed analysis with concrete suggestions via direct message. Great work at any rate, this already made my evening so much richer and more inspired!
First impressions: Your song has a lot going for it. Catchy without being flashy, hypnotic but never boring, it offers a unique, refreshing blend of elements (LOVE the violin!) and a dreamy, almost naive atmosphere (in a good way!). A few mixing tweaks could bring out even more of its potential.
Starting the fifty-eighth Starter Pack with all the bands, orchestras, independent labels, and musicians I can find on Blue Sky!
Please have a look, follow some or all of them, and share this pack here and in other places!
This is a work in progress and will be updated!
go.bsky.app/Bkp5Xs8
Thank you and congrats for being the first to submit something! Looking forward to checking it out. 😊
Fellow musicians and producers! I want to pay more attention to artists on BSky. So I invite you all to send me your music by the end of this week. I am challenging myself to provide honest, constructive feedback on everything you submit. Please limit yourself to ONE track and choose it wisely. 😎
Yeah, the Momentum 4 are a very solid product all-round, I enjoyed them a lot while I had them. And, indeed, they're not optimised for passive use, the wired sound is horrible.
Headphones are a fun but expensive rabbit hole I immensely enjoy. I've tried loads of models over the years.