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GMC Forum _ Uploads _ Space Travel, Dementia, Insanity, And Antimatter

Posted by: The Uncreator Mar 1 2010, 08:46 PM

Just a few things this song explores!

If any of you were here about 2 years ago, I uploaded this song which was originally 21 minutes in a very primitive form. Since then I have made many changes. A lot of material was chopped and I ended up turning into a entirely different 9 minute song. Which left me with the final length of 12:45 or so. This is a bit different song though. All my other songs that exceed the 10 minute length are usually because of longer solo sections and more instrumental parts. This one however, is mainly due to a large lyrical content and a star wars marathon.

Please let me know what you think, This is one of the songs that will end up on my album, So id like some feedback on the mix and overall sound, Enjoy! Also, the ending of the song has a rather heavy vocal onslaught, just be warned because the volume increases suddenly and I know some people might not like it

PS

To try and explain the story of the song, I have included the lyrics along with the titles of the various sections of the song, I wrote this song with the idea of a movie playing out in my head. To me lyrics are just as important as the music so I will try to keep it understandable

The song is about a traveler/ journeyman in the future who has spent most of his life uncovering Earth's secret's. But one day he happens to enjoy a night sky more than usual, and decides he will conquer the final frontier. It becomes a deadly obsession, that leads to a unfortunate ending.

______________

Pair Annihilation
______________

00:00 - 01:36
As If Suspended In Water: Instrumental/ Ambient section of what I hear when I think of the deep sea. Its supposed to start off the song with the main character exploring the ocean.

01:37 - 04:41
Seductive Points Of Light: The Protagonist exploring the earth in a transcendent like state, Ending with that fateful glimpse of the night sky

A lifetime, Waiting, Just waiting for the time to come
When all is before me, I shall behold
The beauty of everything, The beauty of old
A lust to wander the earth, Traverse the mind

Floating through the river of consciousness
Above the mountains of the cities of earth
Wandering, Endlessly
Dissecting what lies beneath,
Dreaming, in a heightened state of awareness
Hanging there in sleep

I live, I laugh
I love, I cry
Yet still I'm empty
Inside

I look to the night sky
And know where I must go

04:42 - 06:27
Night Sky: Instrumental/ Ambient section of the protagonist staring up at the star filled night sky

06:28 - 08:50
As You Look Into It, So It Looks Into You: The beginning and development of the protagonist's obsession with discovering the truth of the cosmos. His obsessions eventually starts to take him down a path separate than that of sanity.

Reaching further than the boundaries of earth
No longer is her love, Enough to quell the thirst
I leave her trailing behind in the stardust
Mind racing carelessly, Into the unknown

Decades, Traversing the emptiness of space
The knowledge of what lies out here
Slowly acting upon the mind
Bringing it down

Chorus
Pioneer of the final frontier, Setting the standard high
Sol but a distant past, Pluto but a dot in the sky
All these too, Shall come and pass
But my journey shall be forever

I lived, I laughed,
I loved, I cried,
No longer do I feel those in me, Gone forever
I peer into the blackness to know the truth
But the price of knowledge

As you look into it so it looks into you

08:51 - 12:43
Absent Galaxies: The protagonist eventually finds what he truly believes to be the end of space, or at least his universe. He sees nothing and can't cope with it, he goes insane. In his insanity, he breaches a gap between our universe and an antimatter universe through a black hole. Bringing about a cosmic destruction of unseen proportions.

On the brink of extinction, Standing at the edge of space
The madness of infinity
Bears it burden upon me
Cannot comprehend, Never ending nothingness
The blackness of the void
Sucks me in deeper and deeper

Stare into the heart of a star, Let the light burn my eyes
Absorb the knowledge of the universe
All systems set to collide
With the fabric of time and space
Black hole destiny
Take me in

For every man that gazes upon the vast emptiness
Empires of absent galaxies, Destroy the senses

Chorus
Pioneer of the final frontier, Setting the standard high
Sol but a distant past, Pluto but a dot in the sky
All these too, Shall come and pass
But my dreams, I will never see
What have I done?
What have I become?
Matter meets anti-matter
Pair Annihilation

© Brett Windnagle, 2007-2010

Pair_Annihilation__ASOS_.mp3 ( 11.65MB ) : 214

Posted by: Gitarrero Mar 1 2010, 09:49 PM

Hey, that's an awesome song, I really like it!
One question: On the lower left side of my windows media player it says: "Lascaille's shroud". Have you somehow been inspired by Alastair Reynolds?

Posted by: The Uncreator Mar 1 2010, 10:25 PM

Wow, someone else knows him!

Yes, to say I have been inspired by him is an understatement, I have all his books and have read them 2 or 3 times, and my band name Lascailles Shroud does come from Revelation Space. I have several songs inspired by his works: Diamond Dog (by the novel of the same name), Nostalgia For Infinity (Inspired by the end of Revelation Space), Silver Rain (Inspired by Century Rain), Revelation Space - A Persona Projection (Inspired by the beta level simulations in The Prefect and Revelation Space), Chasm (Inspired by Chasm City), and Crush The Seas (Inspired by the end of Absolution Gap, the death of a certain main character).

I have a lot more, but about 40% of my songs strain from his writing

Posted by: Gitarrero Mar 1 2010, 10:58 PM

Yeah, I just finished Revelation Space two weeks ago and started reading Revelation Arc (I think that's the english title, I'm reading it in german), cause I was so blown away by RS. I'm planning on reading his other books as well, he's a great writer.
It's always good for a songwriter to read fantasy and science fiction novels...just ask Marcus Siepen!
Just checked your myspace, can't wait to download the album. To be true, I would even pay for it, your music is great!

Posted by: The Uncreator Mar 2 2010, 12:13 AM

Wait till you hear the new drums, they sound wicked. But im waiting on some activation for the product

Posted by: zen Mar 2 2010, 04:01 AM

Brett, you're a machine .. Another brilliant track. The drums and riffs/rhythm work sounds so tight and professional.
The track captures the concept very well. i wouldnt say it was a vocal onslaught in the end at all .. it did end in a bit of different direction though .. good variation.

Here's my views from a listener's perspective:

For me (and this is only my opinion, feel free to disregard) Trance-like onslaught begins at 9:20 but it stops at 9:57 and breaks the momentum that has been built up. If it flowed into the riff at 10:17 without the pause, it wouldve been so cool, coz at this point in the track , all hell should break loose towards the cresendo. Also the part at 9:30 when the beat picks up till 9:55, how can you resist not singing on it , hahhaa .. it's just pure aggression .. I got a bit confused in the ending (chorus) as the melody repeated itself and the sound suddenly turned a bit 'happier' for me.

Loved the overall track. Sounds like a lot of hard work has gone into it. How many months did it really take to compose/record etc?

Please dont mind my views.. I cant play or record like that at all. But can play the role of the audience.. Big fan of your work.

Posted by: The Uncreator Mar 4 2010, 04:28 AM

No I don't mind your view at all! In fact thats the view I expected, and in a way, wanted. My point was in breaking momentums up, to try and give an impression of anxiety, or tenseness. Shifting momentums is how I like to do that, and thats something I learned from a lot of Prog bands, Dream Theater, Spheric Universe Experience, Opeth etc. The sudden shift creates a moment where you almost feel your muscles react to it, Or at least thats what It did for me.

Its a hard point to get across, But im happy the way it came out. Im sure this song will continue to develop for about another year or so. I originally wrote it (Or began writing it) when I was 15-16 (5 years ago!) and it has changed very much since then. This is the 4th evolution of it since then, and the one that has stuck with me. Its a fictional story, but although I write in stories, It always has a strong reflection of myself in it.

I experimented with shooting straight into the riff around 10 minutes as you mentioned, but it didn't give me that feeling that I was looking for. I wanted a break, short one, that lead into some more chaos. Its hard to explain sometimes. But this is particular song is my baby if you will, Its jam packed with more personal stuff about me musically and lyrically than any other song, yet without actually being specifically about myself, So the strange mix ups and momentums, for me are a necessity.

PS

Ill never mind your views, so dont worry about it. I look for that kind of criticism to help me make the song better. About a year and a half ago I think Ivan suggested the Phaser effect on the stand alone riff after the first chorus, and I never thought of it, but now, I love it!