Amiga Music Preservation -

Interview

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TLb. ,dMP' all rite, now you get the chance to read

TML.dMMP some facts about some of the major amiga

,nmm`XXMPX musicians. read about their history in

,#MP'~~XNXYNXTb. the scene and their plans in future.yes,

,d~' dNNP `YNTb. that's meant to be read while listening to

,~ ,NN' `YNb their modules. read 'em over and over and over..

dNP `Yb.

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l___/=l___|====l____/===\______|==l______|\ /l___/===\______l____/

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Handle:

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Group:

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Date of birth:

1-How did your interest for computers start? Which year was that?

My uncle had an old Texas Instruments computer (TI99-4A or something??). I was engrossed
in typing in programs from the manual and seeing things happen. It took ages but it was fun!
Then at Xmas 1980, I received a Vic-20 which I adored. I learned to program that..

2-What machines did you previously have? What did you do with them?

I traded my Vic-20 against a C64.. Sold the C64, bought an Amiga 500.. sold the Amiga 500,
bought an A1200.. Sold that, bought an A4000 when I first arrived in NZ. Little did I know
that NZ had little interest in the Amiga compared to the UK & Europe. Sadly I was forced
to buy a PC - Windows 95 had to replace AmigaOS but no free PC music app. allowed me to be
creative anymore. I just found the whole PC environment a big barrier to being creative.

3-For what specific reason did you end up making music rather than gfx, coding?

Well.. I ultimately became a coder - I always was and have been doing so for 21 years now. :)
I tried to do everything - I was satisfied that I could do graphics if I wanted to (from a
'Pacman' perspective! :) ) and I always wanted to know how to get those sounds out of a
C64. I never did find out how to make those awesome SID noises but I had a go at re-arranging
a few mods on the Amiga when I received a copy of OctaMED with the CU Amiga mag. Then I began
to write stupid mods for a bit of a laugh (boredom perhaps?).. and.. well.. some of my mates
found little bits and pieces quite good so I gave it a go!

4-Which composing programs have you been using? Which one in particular?

I always used OctaMED v4. I tried v5 but hated the OS resembling interface. Same goes for the
new PC Soundstudio version. I tried using it but either I never had a fast enough PC or the
software just didn't feel right. The Amiga always felt responsive.. Windows always felt clunky.
Recently I purchased a copy of Renoise.. I still haven't done anything with it except experiment
with using it to drive my Midi keyboard and effects controllers but I live in hope that one day
I will release another Mod that I will be proud of!

5-With which module did you feel you had reached your goal?

My Mod of achievement, for me, would have to be "Another Tomorrow". Unfortunately that tune does
reflect my mood of the time so it does sound rather miserable. :-) Technically speaking, I felt
as though I had mastered the use of my favourite samples. Ironically this tune doesn't play
properly on most PC players! ;-)

6-Is there a tune you would like not to remember? For what reason?

Hahaha. Am I only allowed one? It would have to be "Come On In". Its such a heap of crap! :-)

7-In your opinion, what's the value of a music in a demo, game?

Music in a demo, as in movies, creates atmosphere and an eerie feeling. I loved the Complex demos
Real, Space, Motion etc because Clawz is good at doing that spookie stuff within his techno tunes.
Without music in demos, demos are lifeless - its the icing on the cake.

8-At present, are you still composing? For professional or leisure purposes?

Not really. There's not a day goes by when I wish I was but I always feel "computered out" after
work. The desire is there, the equipment is there and all the resources I need - just need to
find the old magic and patience.

9-What do you think of today's pieces of music such as mpeg,wave,midi,etc...?

Crap! :-) The problem with today's music is that I'm not aware of any resources or websites that
promote today's Mods. I used to download heaps of demos (and sometimes Mods) from Aminet. Now
whereabouts can you do that today? Maybe its different elsewhere in the world but in NZ, there are
no PC magazines that review demos or sell PD freeware.. No, in the PC world "demo" means "game
demo".. gone are those days. :-(

10-Could you tell us some of your all times favourite tunes?

Jogeir Liljedahl's "Face Another Day" (and all his other tunes), Clawz "Hibushka", Lizardking's
mods.. and that awesome "Stardust Memories" tune (Jester I think). Oh yeah! Those Desert Dream demo
tunes where fantasic! Of course, I'm only talking about Mods here. Outside the Mod world I listen
to a huge range of heavy metal..
..wouldn't know where to start in naming my favourite tunes there!

11-Are you planning to make an audio cd with some of your music remastered?

Probably not. I'd like to move forward rather than revamping the past.

12-What bands are you currently listenning to?

(Non-Mods!) Ayreon, Nightwish, Dream Theater, Therion, Pain of Salvation, Within Temptation,
Iron Maiden, Stratovarious, Sonata Arctica.. and heaps of others!

13-What does/did the amiga/c64 scene give you?

Definitely the career I have today. I learned to program well and solve problems when I had no
money to buy games. The Amiga taught me heaps about C, different operating systems, assembler
code.. It taught me heaps!

14-Are you still active in the scene these days?

No. In NZ, there is no such thing as "the scene". Nearly all Kiwis do nothing but play rugby,
cricket and netball. There is little creative use of the brain in this country.

15-Anyone to greet? Anything left to say? Feel free...

I'd like to say hello to my old friend Ssilk and say thank you to everyone who took an interest
in my music when I was active. I hope that all others in "the scene" continue to make it live and
try your best to make it grow into other parts of the world that have no idea of what it is!
Music is the key happiness in my life and always will be - whether somebody else creates it or I
do myself!

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please note: this interview is ©opyrighted in 2005 by crown of cryptoburners
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