Comments on: Numbers Station

Numbers Station

Hoopo — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 18:36:31 -0800

My entry for July's monthly music challenge, a spy-themed beat featuring samples taken from numbers stations.

Also, previously on MetaFilter

By: flapjax at midnite

flapjax at midnite — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 19:30:21 -0800

Nice. Glad more spies are infiltrating. Coming in from the cold, as it were.

Just a guess: is that Mitch Mitchell on the drums?

By: Hoopo

Hoopo — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 19:59:57 -0800

Just a guess: is that Mitch Mitchell on the drums?

No, but that's quite an ear you've got: it's a live recording from the same era, same genre and everything.

By: baltimoretim

baltimoretim — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 04:39:08 -0800

What a cool idea--those numbers stations are so robotically menacing. It's my favorite spy entry so far.

By: uncleozzy

uncleozzy — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 05:39:13 -0800

That's a great groove.

By: spiderskull

spiderskull — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 01:04:22 -0800

I was just listening to Amon Tobin's Supermodified, then played this... they integrated seemlessly. Good work, I like it a lot!

By: chimaera

chimaera — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 10:30:55 -0800

I dig it. I'd like to see it elaborated a bit, though. 1:25 doesn't really give the innate creepiness time to breathe.

By: Hoopo

Hoopo — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 10:58:40 -0800

I'd like to see it elaborated a bit, though

I know what you mean, and totally agree. I'd been off sick a couple of days when I was working on this, and I tried so many different directions for continuing the song beyond the 1:25 mark. Problem is, I'm finding it next to impossible to do an extended spy-themed beat without sounding like a second-rate Portishead knock-off. I think I'm going to have to consult with my partner-in-crime to see if he can come up with a "second movement" or something.

By: boo_radley

boo_radley — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 15:17:58 -0800

This is awesome.

By: edlundart

edlundart — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 20:45:34 -0800

Great groove, and thanks for linking to that blue post, I had missed it. I'm going to have to look into that myself for use in some future composition. Very cool.

By: danb

danb — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 07:19:29 -0800

Man, what a great idea. I hope this is just a proof of concept and there's more to come, because I think the numbers station samples have a lot of potential.

By: snsranch

snsranch — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 08:09:23 -0800

Ha! Very cool!

By: not_on_display

not_on_display — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 12:26:36 -0800

Oh. I love the numbers stations; hearing them on shortwave bands as a kid spooked me out. Nice and subtle use of them.