Selling my music

Yeah,

I seem to be too lazy to write a lot lately. (I have actually felt very quiet this past year.) But I did want to tell you about a site I have for myself now where I sell my music. My band "Analyzed Within" will soon have its own as well, but for now I want somewhere I can put my own music I have done all by myself - instrumental so far.

https://brandonburch.bandcamp.com/

Hoodman - League Of Extraordinary Axemen GMC Collab

Piano Improv Duet

I wanted to share this video of my brother and someone from our youth at church. My brother is the one with the longer hair. These guys are improvising with each other on the pianos after a church fellowship. Pretty isn't it?

Update! New Stuff!

New Alienware Laptop

I have been trying out my new 14 inch Alienware laptop this morning before work. I am about to leave for the evening. I get home so late, and I need to get to bed at a better time tonight. I stayed up last night a little to turn on this new laptop. I am slowly setting it up. I installed a few things including Civ 5 and I see the speed difference as well as performance. I am also glad to see I can type on a keyboard that lights up and works. My old laptop's keyboard was broken last year while I was installing a new display screen or something. I had to use an external keyboard. Still trying to set up the laptop but just about to leave so I will have to do this one day at a time. When I ordered the laptop I got the upgraded hard drive and video card.

Psalm 13

Hey it's me, Brandon, again. I am the founder of Analyzed Within, a Christian Metal band being born. We are still recording vocals for our EP, Living in the Last Days.

This track was written for my band's (Analyzed Within) future worship album.

This will be an interlude with either Josh (my vocalist and cousin) or me speaking Psalm 13 over it. I want to start out soft and build the intensity to match the track's flow. I showed this track to Josh last night during our recording of Testing of Christians. Actually we were re-recording some parts we didn't like before.

Psalm 13 

O Lord, how long will you forget me? Forever?
    How long will you look the other way?
  How long must I struggle with anguish in my soul,
    with sorrow in my heart every day?
    How long will my enemy have the upper hand?
  Turn and answer me, O Lord my God!
    Restore the sparkle to my eyes, or I will die.
  Don’t let my enemies gloat, saying, “We have defeated him!”
    Don’t let them rejoice at my downfall.
  But I trust in your unfailing love.
    I will rejoice because you have rescued me.
  I will sing to the Lord
    because he is good to me.

This Psalm speaks so much to what I am going through. Sometimes it feels like God has abandoned you, but really he is right there all the way. I have a lot of things on my heart I can't wait to get out on the new worship album. But we have an EP to finish first. The reason I am still working on new stuff is because me and my vocalist obviously can't work continuously on tracking vocals. So I just keep my mind fresh by pumping out new stuff. It will actually make the launch of the album faster this way anyway.

I quad tracked the guitars using POD Farm. The bass is my 8 string, the same I used to track the guitar parts, just over accented the bass frequencies with a simulated bass amp and cab. The drums are of course EZDrummer DFH, but in the end they will be re-amped by our studio guy. He is going to either use Superior Drummer or Steven Slate, or a combo of both. The synthesizers are a cool plugin called Serenity - and it's FREE! There are two synths going on that I blended, and then the ambient guitar part is my signature preset from POD Farm.

Seamless Cover - Weight of the World

Check out Seamless!

http://seamless.bandcamp.com/
http://www.facebook.com/seamlessmetal
http://www.reverbnation.com/seamlessmetal


This cover was fun to make. It's a challenging song if you are not used to odd picking patterns. I learned all of this by ear, so it was quite a challenge. Seamless is an awesome band, and I personally know two of the members since they are in my local area.

The guitar I used is my Ibanez RG8 - everything stock for now. It's running through my Line 6 UX2 interface in POD Farm. Download my tone here: http://bit.ly/L6RG8

I would encourage you to check out my band page. We are nearing completion of the long awaited EP "Living in the Last Days."

https://www.facebook.com/analyzedwithin
http://www.reverbnation.com/analyzedwithin
https://twitter.com/analyzedwithin
http://www.youtube.com/analyzedwithin

New ideas to share

Headbanging Monks

It's been a while since I have regularly posted. This track is cool because it's different. I have two main themes going. It's kinda like two choruses - each with their own melody.



I am tuned to standard 8-string tuning: F# B E A D G B E. This song contains some 7/4 time signature.

I used POD Farm to record, as always, and my DAW is still Reaper. I have learned more about mixing and mastering, so it sounds better than what I used to put out.

You will hear multiple parts in this track. There is the ambient guitar, dual-tracked rhythm guitars (I didn't feel like quad-tracking), and occasionally lead guitars. You also can hear the guitar solos when the choruses (themes) play. The bass is my Ibanez RG8 guitar EQ'd and brought an octave down. It sounded better than using Trilogy plugin because I can easily slide around, giving it a more realistic sound. There's gotta be a way otherwise, but I always hated programming MIDI anyway. The drums are still EZdrummer DFH, but they are now compressed and EQ'd so they should sound way better like in Mt. Kilimanjaro.

It's a weird title, I know, but I wanted something that would catch people's interest and click on it. I also wanted to try the silly track name like Wide Eyes does. I couldn't find the perfect picture for this track because you just don't see many headbanging monks do you? I figured it was a great title - after I posted my starting to compose such a track on my personal facebook - because one of my "friends" on facebook liked the status, and I never hear from him.

The file is pretty big, that I uploaded, and so I hope the quality is nice.

I tried to follow my heart once again on this one.

Brandon of Analyzed Within
Follow us on Twitter!

No live show

I don't think that show is happening for us. After being dropped once and then put back on, and rescheduled twice, I'm sick of the whole thing. We kinda all are, and so we are not planning on doing the show after all. I've lost my enthusiasm and energy, so forget it.

However, on a good note, I was able to get with my cousin Josh for vocals on Analyzed Within. We are wanting to work hard and get this out to you guys. Been saying that for a while, and the reason we couldn't release a single was because of technical issues. We had problems with the MIDI, and so we are going to wait until the end to figure it out.

I'm starting a new job tomorrow, so that's pretty exciting and nerve-racking at the same time.

New 8-string

Nobody reads this anyway - especially since I haven't posted in a while.
So I will post about my April Fools' joke for this year. This is my new 8-string you see in this video screenshot. I bought this Ibanez RG8 from Guitar Center a few weeks ago and I love it! I had to do some adjustments so the strings wouldn't buzz so much. I am tuned to EAEADGBE.

So this joke is basically a ridiculous 30 second death metal song about April Fools'. Really, the video is a joke itself because it has blastbeat drums all the way through and is played so fast and just crazy all together. I did the vocals (inhale screams) and you can see it on April 1 on my first YouTube channel. The lyrics are as follows:

THE SUN IS RISING
PREPARE FOR TODAY
YOUR FRIENDS ARE YOUR FOES
BUT NO MORE TO PLAY

YOU STAND THERE CONFUSED
SO WHAT DO YOU SAY?
BUT THEN YOU REMEMBER
TODAY IS APRIL FOOLS'! 

You can watch a more serious 8-string video below. I still need to shoot a video for my "low end" showcase. I called the song "Mount Kilimanjaro." I am not anywhere near the mountain, so I guess I will have to get creative for my background. (no green screen available.) This is "Living in the Last Days" below.



Our show didn't take place yesterday, but has been moved to April 20. I do have a new job coming on April 15 at Verizon Wireless. Thankfully, the day of the show doesn't conflict with the new job.

Eric M. writing solo

Writing my guest solo for my good friend @analyzedwithin in between study breaks. This track is going to be awesome! :) I am excited :D
— Eric Maldonado (@Eric_Maldonado) March 17, 2013

He is referring to my band's track, "The Lion Has Come To Defeat The Dragon."

EP track listing

Okay, this is the official track listing for my band's upcoming EP, Living in the Last Days. Officially, it's only me and my cousin, Josh, in the band Analyzed Within. I will be working on placing bonus material in a digital package for all those who download the entire album from Bandcamp.

Remember, the EP is going to be free. Just name your price - type in $0 if you want it for free; however, any contribution helps. Okay, enough talking! Here's your list. Coming soon! Nearly all of the songs are tracked! Josh is working his lyrical magic just down the road from me.



ANALYZED WITHIN
Living in the Last Days EP


1. Beginning of Sorrows
2. Living in the Last Days
3. The Testing of Christians
4. The Lion Has Come to Defeat the Dragon
5. The Mount of Olives
6. Our Hope is Here

First time playing with drummer

My friend is wanting to play a show on March 30. The event being organized has 10 bands playing, including us. What was originally going to be me and my friend Dakota playing an acoustic set, turned into a metal project with his friend Brandon (like my name  ) as the drummer. So then I invited my cousin Josh (part of Analyzed Within - my forming band). So now it's two guitarists, me and Dakota; and a drummer, Brandon; and Josh the main vocalist. We have no bassist! I hope we find one, but if we don't we will have to turn up the bass on our amps.  

We had a practice session last night. It was my first time playing with a real drummer. So much better than playing with a machine like EZdrummer! Man, Brandon keeps time very well (as you would hope from a drummer.) He picked up on everything we played quickly. His fills and beats rocked! My little 70 W amp was running wide open and was still having a hard time competing with the drums in that small garage.  We might just mic the amps for the show. And yes, I kept the gain low so it would cut through.  Or I might find a new amp (if I can find the $$$), as Dakota is getting himself a new guitar and amp.

We are concerned about getting a few songs ready for the show. Last night was more of talking and jamming. We need material to practice. We have a 20 minute window to play our part. We are expecting 200 or more people in this park that the show is taking place. The drummer has played shows before, as has my vocalist Josh, but this would be the first time for me and Dakota. After coming up with a few things last night, we agreed I would make some playthroughs for us. Dakota said he needed to practice. Brandon would need a playthrough without drums so he could do his own thing. I might even share them here if people wanna see. We gotta stick with simple stuff right now since we are so pressed for time.

I don't know where this will take us, but I hope we could all become Analyzed Within one day, and it would no longer be just me and Josh. Right now we are just having fun in preparing for this show. If we did become Analyzed Within, we would only need a bassist. I really hope we find one for the show. haha

I just wanted to share this joy! I had a blast last night!

As far as Analyzed Within releasing music, I am working on some songs, and I nearly have the whole EP composed. Josh is writing nearly all of the lyrics now. It's easier that way. The single, the title track "Living in the Last Days," has not been released because our studio guy is so dang busy that he cannot get to it as much as he would like.

And if you know me and my low-tuned guitars OCD, you might be surprised to hear we are playing Drop C for our show. I'm pulling one of the songs from the EP - at least that's the plan. Transposing is no big deal, but will be fun!


Brandon

New Guitar!!

I got a new guitar!! And I did something I said I would never do. I traded in my first guitar, my cheap Ibanez IJX 121. I didn't use it anymore anyway. My buddy, Dakota, talked me into it. Actually, I was originally wanting to buy a used Ibanez 7321 7-string. But there was too much work that needed to be performed, plus it was scratched up and stuff. I randomly picked up this guitar because of the color and exotic body design. I was really impressed with the way it played and it felt good in my hands. The price tag was 259.99. For the price, it is an awesome guitar and sounds amazing. When you split the coils with the pickup selector, you can get a tasty blues tone, and of course the neck pickup just juices it up some more. The bridge pickup is nice and reminds me of the EMG 81. Here's the specs, yo:

ESP LTD F-50

Bolt-On Construction
25.5" Scale
Basswood Body
Maple Neck
Rosewood Fingerboard
42mm Standard Nut
Thin U Neck Contour
24 XJ Frets
Chrome Hardware
LTD Tuners
TOM Bridge
ESP Designed LH-150 (B & N) p.u.
Finish: BCH (Black Cherry), BLK
3-Way Toggle

I will find some time to do a playthrough of this guitar soon. :) For more pics, check out my public picture album. Dakota took a video of me talking about giving up my first guitar. Check back later and I will try to remember to place it here, or it might be in a new blog post.

2012

In 2012 a lot of things happened, as I would expect most people could claim.

However, I won't bore you with details. Besides, I can't remember all of them anyway. I will just note a few of the highlights, good and bad.

At the beginning of 2012, I had my new speakers from the previous 2011 Christmas. I received my Alesis M1 Active MK2 monitors as a present from my parents. You can see them in the picture to the left. I had no where to put them at first, so I just used the top of this dresser for a platform. I started learning how to use them from the community at www.guitarmasterclass.net.

I would soon change my setup with the purchase of a desk. I actually changed it twice. First, I was just trying to be compact. Then I learned from a pro that the brick wall would cause the bass frequencies to sound different on one side. (I was in the added in part of the house.)

My second choice of the setup was much classier, and better for the frequencies - right there facing the corner. You can see the HD video of the room as it looked in the photo the right here.

In February, I conceived the idea for a solo project called Analyzed Within. It would later become a collaboration, a band in the making, with my cousin as the vocalist. You can watch the story in this cool video.

Analyzed Within is basically a Christian Progressive Metal project. I come from different approaches in the metal and hard rock spotlight. I like bands such as, RED, Demon Hunter, Hope For The Dying, Becoming The Archetype, As I Lay Dying, and Days Of Confusion. So you could expect a mixture. We are still waiting to release the single, "Living in the Last Days."

In April, I purchased my first DSLR - a Canon T3i with an 18-55 mm lens. I had problems with it so I had to send it back and get a replacement. Later that year, I would also learn I had purchased too slow of a memory card. So, I would later purchase a $70 card at Bedford's Camera and Video.

In May, my life changed forever and I moved. I started a new chapter in my life.

In July, I went to see Tim Hawkins with my brother. Tim is a Christian comedian and is very funny! You should check him out at www.timhawkins.net.

I have all his DVDs and CDs. "If you can't laugh at yourself, laugh at other people."


For Halloween, I dressed myself in toilet paper and played an original song.


And lastly, for Christmas I covered "Mary, Did You Know?" in my own hard rock style.



And you can find many more details of my 2012 in this blog, and my two YouTube channels, TheFireball100 and Analyzed Within.

Thanks for reading this entry.
-Brandon Burch