St. Petersburg Capitalist
Gather 'round me, children, and I'll tell you a story. A story of despair, hope, and love. A story called...
This story begins many years ago when I was a young lad just starting college. It was a difficult time. A time of transition. My favorite band had broken up two years ago and most of the other bands I listen to today had not yet formed or remained, at least to my needy ear, undiscovered. It was a low point in my life, and I longed to find new music to make the semesters seem less long and the nights less cold. My friends were supportive. They tried to set me up with bands they thought I might like. Some were nice, but just didn't produce that spark. Others were really great, but carried with them emotional baggage that I just wasn't ready to deal with. Some of these bands would continue to listen too casually, but I knew we could never have a serious relationship.
Then one day I was watching an animated short on a website called rathergood.com. This video included a clip of one of the most amazing songs I had ever heard. It was love at first listen. Of course, I didn't know the name of the song, or even any lyrics to Google it. I asked my friends, but knew it was futile. You see it was a techno song, and no one I knew was familiar with that scene. Time passed. I would eventually learn that the name of the song was I Can't Stop Raving, but it had been covered by at least three bands, each of which had done multiple mixes, and I had no idea which version included the clip I loved so much. On top of that the song, now approaching a decade since it's initial release had become a rarity, difficult to find even on the massive internet. My search stymied, I gave up for a time.
Still over the years I would occasionally remember the song, and my attempts to locate it would eventually lead my to several versions. Unfortunately, none of these versions contained the coveted part, and I discovered it had tragically bad lyrics. I heard rumors of an "original mix" that was completely instrumental save for repetition of the title, which I was fine with. I secretly believed that this must be the version I sought, but it mattered little, because the original mix was quickly abandoned by it's creator's in favor of a poppier version with the new lyrics. This "Club mix" became quite popular in techno circles, and was certainly the basis of most, if not all, the covers. The original mix was rare even compared to the other versions. My search was again stymied.
In more recent times a fourth band did a cover that was quite good, lyrics aside, and this caused a surge of older versions to return to the internet. I was lucky to discover this while the wave was hot, and I did find a few new versions, though rampant mislabeling lead to a great deal of disappointment. More importantly, I still could not find the version I longed for.
Then, last weekend, during a nostalgic trip to rathergood.com, I had a brilliant idea. I may never be able to find the version I wanted, but I could make one. I dusted off the old adobe audition and downloaded the best of the versions I could find. I recorded the fragment off the website, and set to mixing audio for the first time since I graduated from college. I was worried I would be rusty, but the skill came back immediately, and in just over half an hour I had myself a four minute sixteen second version of I Can't Stop Raving, tentatively titled the Rather Good mix. The ending was tricky, and still not perfect, but I don't have the equipment to do what I want, so it will have to wait.
This project, along with my recent growing interest in electronic music in general, has inspired me to try another mix, this one from scratch. I already have an idea that will make me, and a few other people, one of whom may be reading this right now, very happy. The only hint I'm giving is that research into source material reminded me of the existence of the song I'm listening to as I write this. I hope to be done before the new year.
This story begins many years ago when I was a young lad just starting college. It was a difficult time. A time of transition. My favorite band had broken up two years ago and most of the other bands I listen to today had not yet formed or remained, at least to my needy ear, undiscovered. It was a low point in my life, and I longed to find new music to make the semesters seem less long and the nights less cold. My friends were supportive. They tried to set me up with bands they thought I might like. Some were nice, but just didn't produce that spark. Others were really great, but carried with them emotional baggage that I just wasn't ready to deal with. Some of these bands would continue to listen too casually, but I knew we could never have a serious relationship.
Then one day I was watching an animated short on a website called rathergood.com. This video included a clip of one of the most amazing songs I had ever heard. It was love at first listen. Of course, I didn't know the name of the song, or even any lyrics to Google it. I asked my friends, but knew it was futile. You see it was a techno song, and no one I knew was familiar with that scene. Time passed. I would eventually learn that the name of the song was I Can't Stop Raving, but it had been covered by at least three bands, each of which had done multiple mixes, and I had no idea which version included the clip I loved so much. On top of that the song, now approaching a decade since it's initial release had become a rarity, difficult to find even on the massive internet. My search stymied, I gave up for a time.
Still over the years I would occasionally remember the song, and my attempts to locate it would eventually lead my to several versions. Unfortunately, none of these versions contained the coveted part, and I discovered it had tragically bad lyrics. I heard rumors of an "original mix" that was completely instrumental save for repetition of the title, which I was fine with. I secretly believed that this must be the version I sought, but it mattered little, because the original mix was quickly abandoned by it's creator's in favor of a poppier version with the new lyrics. This "Club mix" became quite popular in techno circles, and was certainly the basis of most, if not all, the covers. The original mix was rare even compared to the other versions. My search was again stymied.
In more recent times a fourth band did a cover that was quite good, lyrics aside, and this caused a surge of older versions to return to the internet. I was lucky to discover this while the wave was hot, and I did find a few new versions, though rampant mislabeling lead to a great deal of disappointment. More importantly, I still could not find the version I longed for.
Then, last weekend, during a nostalgic trip to rathergood.com, I had a brilliant idea. I may never be able to find the version I wanted, but I could make one. I dusted off the old adobe audition and downloaded the best of the versions I could find. I recorded the fragment off the website, and set to mixing audio for the first time since I graduated from college. I was worried I would be rusty, but the skill came back immediately, and in just over half an hour I had myself a four minute sixteen second version of I Can't Stop Raving, tentatively titled the Rather Good mix. The ending was tricky, and still not perfect, but I don't have the equipment to do what I want, so it will have to wait.
This project, along with my recent growing interest in electronic music in general, has inspired me to try another mix, this one from scratch. I already have an idea that will make me, and a few other people, one of whom may be reading this right now, very happy. The only hint I'm giving is that research into source material reminded me of the existence of the song I'm listening to as I write this. I hope to be done before the new year.