lennie 8

@lennie 

Brest FR   Jan 2017


Artist Bio

Influences:   Some of my favorites are Joni Mitchell, Elvis Costello, Pulp, Jorane, Kathryn Locke and Kate Bush. Post FAWM ETA: While I like them, I don't mean I am like them. I don't know what I am like.

I mainly play cello these days and write and arrange instrumental and experimental music but I'm a songwriter at heart. This year I'm trying a really simple recording setup: Garageband, midi keyboard, and a USB mic for everything else. I'm looking forward to the time challenge: I think I'll be cutting corners but hope something interesting will come of it.

Soundboard

    Leave a message. Log in to FAWM or sign up first!
  • @dzdandcunfsd  5 weeks

    Thanks! yeah best is never most expensive in my book 😉 I'll figure it out I'm fine making any after adjustments I'll have to later, I'm usually pretty handy with those things, the "luthiers" I do know are people I borrow any specialty tools from if I need them real quick 😉

  • @lennie  5 weeks

    Hi, so you're 'thinking about getting a super cheap cello'.
    By all means buy cheap, but avoid the cheapest as they can be unreliable (not stay in tune, have an ugly sound, age badly...).

    Also, get the right size so you can sit comfortably with it. And if you want to play standing, make sure the spike is long enough.

    Sometimes luthiers import cheap factory-built instruments and improve them (adding a tailpiece with tuners, changing the bridge, etc.), which can be a good option.

    If you choose to do this yourself, there's something to watch for: inside the cello there is a 'soundpost' between the front and back of the instrument. It's not attached in any way (which lets it freely transfer vibrations) and is partly kept in place by the pressure from the strings pushing down on the bridge. So, if you change the bridge or remove all the strings at the same time for any reason, tread very carefully. If the soundpost falls, the only way to get at it to put it back is through the sound holes, which are really small. If this happens, it's best to take it to a luthier.

  • @dzdandcunfsd  5 weeks

    Yeah I had been doing things the hard way for years, especially edit-wise. I've never used garageband, but some people do get good results with it. I don't do much with MIDI personally either, though I need to start and is the main reason I even went farther with a DAW other than Audacity or the freebie StudioOne as I do have an e-kit, but have just been using the onboard sounds which are good enough for demo purposes, but not quite there if I wanted to get a really nice drum sound which can be done with MIDI anymore.

    As with anything it just comes down to finding one you're comfortabe with that works, for the money and the ease of use I've had no problems with Studioone. I did the free trial of a bunch of them last year and finally decided on that one. Good luck!

    Actually thinking about getting a super cheap cello as well I'm not super picky about quality as I can do most luthier work that may need done, but something I've always wanted to play just never went ahead and did it........sorry sidetracked just was listening to some of your tunes again 😉 Think I'll just get a cheapo one and upgrade bow/strings and adjust the bridge if I need to.......... any recommendations?

  • @dzdandcunfsd  5 weeks

    I had never used a DAW until about this time last year, when I saw live music going away as well. I found StudioOne to be the easiest to hop into as its interface is friendly and its easy to track stuff and mix with. Even the free "prime" copy. The only difference is you can't use 3rd party VST's unless you pay for the artist, which I don't use plug-ins or virtual instruments anyway. It would work fine with even your zoom mic to track multiple layers of stuff and mix later, but for that matter so would Audacity or any of the other freebies out there. I just found StudioOne to not have much of a learning curve if you're familiar with a 4-track and a mixing board at all.

  • @stephenwordsmith  6 weeks

    If there's one thing I'm good for, it's finding meaning where none exists. Salut!

  • @scottlake 6 weeks

    Do you have a chord chart and bpm for the song,

  • @mariekevinkmusic  7 weeks

    Thank you for your very kind and considered feedback on Catastrophe! Quite touching you'd take so much time to think about one of my songs... Let's work together again next year.

  • @nuitarie 7 weeks

    Je rejoins apolez3, merci pour tes commentaires sur love the moment, je suis super contente de l'accueil qu'à reçu cette chanson, quelle que soit sa langue. Et si jamais une collaboration hors FAWM te tente entre Frenchies, I'm only one email away ^^

  • @apolez3 7 weeks

    Hi, thanks for your comment on' Love The Moment' yeah it was even said to be a spoken word piece, and the genre was up in the air, which she partly did by speaking words a bit...but I am so amazed of the outcome, super happy 😀 I didn' t take the picture down, the site must have. It's on my facebook... I took it long ago but can't get to it my internet too slow atm, I have a feeling it was clothes or something. Not exactly sure myself. I always pondered on the moment reading about it in a few books though so heh,

  • @saxylizbeth 7 weeks

    Hi - thank you for listening and commenting on Boris. Not easy on the ears I know, but I guess you appreciate where it all comes from! Amplified Flatulence is a great description of our so called prime minister....

  • @torosintheatmosphere 7 weeks

    Hi, thanks for the comments. I appreciate the feedback, and I'm glad it made you smile.

  • @nightwing521  7 weeks

    @lennie you said that "Perhaps indeed this isn't an innocent human couple about to be devoured, but a were-couple who are happy to go frolicking under the full moon together in their wolf forms"
    The feeling I had gotten from "the Full Moon in your eyes" and the narrator wondering about "The smile on your face" and wondering "if this is unwise" made me think of a mixed couple: the narrator is human and the other is were ... but I really don't know.

    I have been known to howl to the full moon on occasion and I'm definitely not were ... at least, not the last time I checked 😁

    Thanks for your comment and support!

  • @mikeb 7 weeks

    Thanks for the comment on my lyricloud skirmish song!

  • @dzdandcunfsd  7 weeks

    It's like not noticing everyone has the same colored car until you buy that color 🤣 I've always preferred things with their own onboard noises. Keyboards/etc, but I've also always had a lot of guitar pedals around and would rather manipulate the sound that way instead of fine tuning stuff digitally. It's just what people are most comfortable with. I just hate being tied to a computer musically and otherwise.

  • @nadine 7 weeks

    Thanks for your comment! Now I can't get that Eurovision diva with tons of glitter and layers of clothing out of my head! In my mind this sounds rather upbeat dance pop ... whatever. Let me sleep over it 😁

  • @wazylizard  7 weeks

    Thanks for your comment! The BassVI is actually an extra-baritone guitar, one octave lower, so it reaches the frequencies of a bass. And interesting instrument for sure!
    Happy that this can give you different ideas on using a looper 😀

  • @nadine 7 weeks

    Hey Lennie, thanks for you comment on my Cohen interpretation. I only know how to play a bit of piano so everything on my profile is made with virtual instruments, either completely programmed or played with my MIDI keyboard. I usually remove my VSTs after real instruments were recorded.

    I am unsure whether I should finish this song or not. The lyrics were planned to be more spoken than sung. That's completely new to me. Of course I don't record vocals on my own. If someone feels inspired he or see may give a try but it's not a prio one choice. What do you think?

  • @darkmantle  8 weeks

    Thanks for your comment on that ambient song. 😀

    It's really just meant to be there so silences between people talking aren't completely silent. It's not noticeable until it's gone. I have the music extremely low.

    Sort of like the music at a restaurant, turned down so that it's just noticeable when no one is talking.

  • @alanonymous  Feb 19

    Thanks Lennie for listening to and commenting on Never Let Me Go and surfacing it in the books thread 🙏

  • @mariekevinkmusic  Feb 19

    Hi. Thank you SO MUCH for your very considered comment on Carried on the Wind. You are spot on: it is not the same person. The idea was to take quotes that were taken from conversations that people had on the Wind Telephone in a documentary I once watched. I'm very glad you got that, as I was worried it would not be clear enough. Chris has done an amazing job in bringing out exactly what I had in mind. I had the melody and most of the words, but he found the right chords and played his guitar beautifully. For me, I have learned that when you thinking who is the songwriter, it is not just the melody and words. The chord choices you make play a massive part in in what the song sounds like, before any production is added. So for me, this song is totally a 50/50 collab because without Chris, I would have put the song in a drawer because it just did not feel like a song until he came on board. Thanks again for taking the time. It means a lot when people really, really listen.

  • @mariekevinkmusic  Feb 18

    Hi Lennie.
    I just wanted to remind you to check out the comments on the song you so kindly played 'cello on. As you can see, people LOVE it (as do we).

    https://fawm.org/songs/113003/

  • @hizuvi Feb 16

    Thank you for the comment! I just recorded everything into FL. Drums are a vst, but all guitar is played by yours truly 😁

  • @ayehahmur  Feb 16

    I think the effects from those days have aged pretty well because they were all physical (no computer) effects. The ones that dated *really* badly were the early years of CGI. Even now bad moments of CGi can really ruin a movie. Bad physical effects are kinda endearing. 😀

  • @lennie  Feb 16

    Hey @ayehahmur. I was wrong ! I saw 'They Live' with my housemates. It was quite divisive 😀 I liked the idea. I wonder how the special effects have aged. Alien has stood up very well though and its a lot older.

  • @ayehahmur  Feb 16

    Hey - on Carpenter. He made some of the best science fiction/horror movies of the 80s. Utterly iconic, and the music is a big part of their unique appeal. I'd recommend Halloween, The Thing, The Fog, Escape From New York, but if you're not a fan of super creepy films (with horror effects etc), They Live is a bit easier on the eye.

  • @celineellis  Feb 15

    Hey Lennie - absolutely either me or Marieke will send you an MP3 of the demo. i'm sure we have your email address somewhere so will send as soon as we can!

  • @berni1954  Feb 11

    Glad you liked my "Working on it" response to the skirmish prompt.
    I like the challenge of a single rhyme in the verses contrasting with the ABBA of the Chorus. I think I have been far too influenced by spending the entire month of January reading Byron's longer poems. I ended up speaking to my wife in rhyming couplets. 😜😁

  • @dulcimeric Feb 11

    thanks for the comment on 'Multitudes'! I don't actually have a drum machine, it's just me whacking the dulcimer and looping the thuds. very low-tech over here.

  • @mariekevinkmusic  Feb 8

    Hi @lennie. Big thanks from me as well!

  • @celineellis  Feb 8

    Hey Lennie - first of all thank you so much for sending a cello part to the song @Mariekevinkmusic and I wrote! it fits so perfectly even on the rough demo we put together! We will be re-uploading the demo for that song when Marieke is available to do it but i wanted to stop by and say a huge thank you!

  • @nationalcat Feb 6

    Thank you for your comments! You’re totally spot on about June, ‘water under the bridge’ is definitely a good characterization of the way I view the situation now.

  • @trolls2 Feb 6

    thank you for your kind words on my skirmish song 'playground' glad you like the 'asides' i am working on a theater piece/musical monologue on keyboard and this might become part of it...

  • @mariekevinkmusic  Feb 6

    Hi. That would be awesome. My email address is in my profile so send me an email and I will get the file to you?

  • @mariekevinkmusic  Feb 6

    Oh, hey..... would you be interested in adding a cello part to one of my songs? It is the one called Catastrophe. It has an instrumental section where @celineellis and I had hoped a cello would fit?

  • @mariekevinkmusic  Feb 6

    Thanks for listening to my skirmish tune! I think I will take the story and turn it into a proper song, with chords and everything 😀

  • @gm7  Feb 5

    I never thought about tapes deteriorating. I'm glad you said that. I have 5 or 6 more to salvage. Thx for listening to 'It All Right' and the heads up.
    Many thanks.

  • @emkaydeebee  Feb 4

    Hi Lennie, thanks so much for your comment on the 14x14 - I'm so glad you enjoyed the fun of it, and that you think it works!

  • @atam94  Feb 4

    thanks for listening to my recent song and sharing your thoughts! I see that you have one posted now, too. I'll be checking it out soon 😀

  • @shintai  Feb 3

    Thank you for listening and your kind response! 😁 Looking forward to listen to your stuff. Have an nice FAWM!

  • @rickachu Feb 3

    Thank you for the listen and the feedback on my track ❤

  • @pifie Feb 2

    Thanks a lot for the kind words!

    Let me know when future Lennie will drop @lennie 's first FAWM offering. With your skills, I would try a cello-and-vocals song... but I'm talking without knowing at all... maybe it's super hard, but everybody loves cellos!

    See ya!

  • @atam94  Feb 1

    Hi, thanks for checking out my song that I linked on YouTube! Happy FAWM!

  • @apolez3 Feb 1

    Hello, Happy FAWMing! 😀