Riffster Media
Music Archive

I’ve been composing music most of my adult life. Some of these songs are… well… not so good, but… it shows where and how I started. Everyone starts somewhere, right?

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Sony Acid and Acid Planet – What a time to be alive!

Many moons ago, Sony released a DAW, Song Acid. Honestly, it felt like cheating. Sony also launch a music forum of sorts, Acid Planet. I wrote close to 100 songs in the early 2000’s. The Sony Acid platform taught me a ton about composition, mixing, mastering and publishing. I eventually switched to Reaper, but most of the songs on this play list where created in Sony Acid. Here are a few songs I published on Acid Planet. Some of these songs made it to #1 on the Acid Planet charts.

The Sony loop collection allowed musicians the ability to arrange complex compositions. This is where my fondness for techno textures and beats came to life. I’ve always been able to play guitar fast, but my phrasing was subpar. Learning to solo over different genres of music helped me hone my phrasing and gave me an ear for melodic composition. It was a wild and fun time to be a musician.

Before Song Acid, I recorded everything on a Tascam 4-track recorder. The difference between an analog recorder and a DAW was astounding. Anyone who had to bounce tracks to get a decent recording understands my pain, haha…

Reaper & Native Instruments – Powerful Tools

Sony stopped supporting both Acid and Acid Planet. I eventually moved to Reaper. Reaper is still my favorite DAW and the only one I use. Most of these songs are a bit janky, but I learned a ton and eventually found Jam Origin, the plugin that help me write the music I’ve always wanted to write. There was a steep learning curve, but I started composing music without guitar. Later, I learned to incorporate guitar into all of my songs. These songs were written around 2010.

I was starting to master Reaper, but my compositions were not great. Native Instruments was powerful, but overwhelming. Eventually, I started to understand how everything was supposed to fit together, but man… the hours of frustration. Toontrack’s approach to VST instruments made sense and fit seamlessly into my workflow. I lacked the music-theory knowledge required to create symphonic compositions; still do. After years of experimentation, I realized guitar was the key. The advent of iZotope and similar tools made it a bit easier to mix and master, but it was another steep learning curve. I was slowly learning the skills required to create the music I’d been hearing in my head for decades.

I stopped writing music around 2014. My day job required most of my attention and effort. I started again around 2024, and everything I learned over the decades finally solidified, and the songs were flowing again. I found the perfect balance between guitar and VST instruments (IMO). I feel I am composing the best music I have ever created. I understand music is subjective, but I like the songs I am making now, and that’s all that matters, right? haha…

I will always write music, and maybe, just maybe, I’ll keep improving. Thanks for listening!

Follow me on Spotify, Apple Music and Amazon Music! You can also find my music on iTunes!

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