As it was my turn again in our 'Extinct' series, I started to work on some patterns for a new track in summer 2022. Cat had sent me some draft lyrics and the basic theme - it would be a track about the Saint Helena earwig (or St.Helena giant earwig)
Labidura herculanea (Foto by Roger S. Key)
After the techno trance style first one (Ghost Of The Sea) and the slow breaks of the Dodo track (Years Of Wisdom) I was up for a more speedy breakbeat, kind of a Drum and Bass style. Cat and I did that before on an early one (The Faceless Men on the 10284 Miles album), and I love how her vocals combine with that style.
In my library I had this very classic drum pattern that has been used probably thousands of times, but I didn't just wanted to use it as such, so I cut it and rearranged it. It would be rather a background, combining with another pattern with thick bassdrum that would be on top. You can hear said pattern coming in after the first part of the final track, at 2:12. I added a bassline, that would serve as a kind of a melodic backbone to give the whole thing some structure. Then I had to play around a lot until I stumbled upon a e-piano pattern that I liked, but it wasn't until I changed the sound character when I was pleased with it. It would follow through more or less as kind of a backbone too, just with some added distortion now and then; it starts early at 0:12. With this basic frame of the track, I got kind of stuck and put it to the side. Then late autumn 2022, I had the inspiration to add another high piano-line similar in character to that i used in the Birdman track, and that fueled me and I completed the track with a glassy synth line and arranged the whole lot.
I had sent it to Cat. She didn't feel like singing at the time, but that is no problem as we are not in the music business anyway and do our stuff just for fun. Plus it took me so long to come up with my ping that it was only fair she had any time she needed for her pong. She told me she recorded a first take of the vocals but wasn't pleased with them. Finally in July 2023 she sent me the vocals and I completed the track. I had already started to work on videoscenes for our track video, so at least that important part of our work would not lag behind too much. And Cat provided me with some of her unique animation scenes too. You know, THE WEB & CXXXVI is not just music - it's an audiovisual experience. I'd say it's art :-)
Click to listen to THE WEB & CXXXVI - Tales Of St.Helena on SC
Watch and listen
