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[pfrields]

Social media game weak.

Lately I’ve become dissatisfied with the way my social media is organized. Back in the day I made a point of separating my music making persona — at least the one that I use for most of my current creations — from my “conventional” life. At the time I thought this made sense. Who would want to listen to tracks made by someone named “Paul Frields”? Ugggh. My old nom de plume Stickster wasn’t great…

[pfrields]

Adventures with in-ear monitors.

With our recent move to a Soundcraft Ui24R digital mixer, we also expanded our ability for monitor mixes. Previously we had four mixes available. Now we have eight available monitor mixes, so everyone can enjoy their own. This opened the door for us to start using in-ear monitors. Most modern acts have been using in-ear monitors (IEMs) for years, but I had yet to take the step as a local act.…

[pfrields]

New album finished.

Back in March of 2022, I started to mull over making an album of music. Continue reading Untitled

[pfrields]

Adventures in recording, part 8.

A talented young songwriter and singer from the Fredericksburg area, Sarah Perrotto, recently performed her first original solo show downtown. I’d met her months earlier at a late pub night hang with a mutual friend who introduced us. Sarah has a warm, vivacious personality, which made opening a conversation so much easier for me as a natural introvert. I’d seen internet clips of her performing…

[pfrields]

Soundcraft Ui24R.

Since just before New Year 2013, I’ve owned and loved the (now discontinued) Line 6 StageScape M20d digital mixer. It has provided me over ten years of solid performance, and rave reviews for my bands’ sound at gigs. But over the past few months I’ve struggled with a sudden onset of malfunctions in my M20d. (Sadly, it’s been reminiscent of my beloved dog Dixie’s recent decline and passing.) I…

[pfrields]

The best girl.

Today we said goodbye to our beloved Dixie. She was my dog, and she was the best girl of all. There will never be another dog like her.

I’m warning you in advance: this story doesn’t have a happy ending. If you stick around, it’s on you. In September 2010, I set out in search of a new family dog, after our previous dog Abby had died. As a child, my family had always had a dog or two — they add more life to the house. I visited PetSmart on a Saturday because they often have local Humane Society and other shelters rotate through…

[pfrields]

Unsit Treadmill.

There are precious few reviews of the Unsit Treadmill on the web that are truly independent. Most are on consumer review sites (and you have no idea whether they’re genuine). The reviews that turn up highest in searches are by a firm that you can’t really call independent — they’re owned by a parent of a company that distributes the Unsit Treadmill. So I figured I should provide one, seeing as…

[pfrields]

Band LLC taxes

Our band formed an LLC last year. Now, in January of the following year, it’s time to put it to use. The point of the LLC was to fairly distribute taxes on earnings to all band members. The tradeoff for that is maintaining the books, and filing the right paperwork with the IRS for the band LLC taxes. Note: I’m not a tax advisor, an accounting expert, or an attorney; nor do I know the specific…

[pfrields]

Mentoring: a parable.

There’s a player on a sports team who wants to become a team captain in the offensive team that she’s on. But she’s never been a team captain before. The team’s offensive coach suggests mentoring, and gives her a name and a number to call. After the usual introductions and pleasantries, the first serious thing she asks the mentor is “How do I become team captain?” She was lucky to find a good…

[pfrields]

Upgrading done.

This weekend I decided in a foolhardy moment to upgrade the server that runs this blog and other domains I maintain. I moved the system from CentOS 7 to the new CentOS Stream 9. Everything is apparently in good working order now, at least as far as I can tell. During the process, I also discovered the Ansible playbooks I thought I’d been keeping up weren’t even remotely up to the task. I suspect…

[pfrields]

Could an album be in the works?

Can I commit to the next level of work on my own music? You have to set a goal to find out. #dontwaitcreate #diy

Asked precisely no one, at least if the album comes from me. But nevertheless I think this might be the year when I’m going to put together enough new, original music to complete an entire album. Since the beginning of 2020, I’ve spent a lot of time learning about synthesizers and sound design. I try to apply what I learn to new music I’m writing or composing in the studio. The result over the…

[pfrields]

Getting serious as a band with an LLC.

Getting serious as a band with an LLC.

It’s been nice to be in a band again. I missed having a couple nights a week of music that don’t require me to do all the creating. And having somewhere to go on a Friday or Saturday night is good too. As a bonus, all the band members are very strong at what they do. We have a mix of personalities, but in general there’s little friction, other than expected from any self-organizing unit. As a…

[pfrields]

Dusting this blog off in 2022

Dusting this blog off in 2022

I haven’t put anything on this blog in forever. It seemed like just pointless spewing with no sign anyone was reading. Like in that song Monster when Jay-Z observes about all those other rappers, “millin’ about, spillin’ their feelings in the air.” Facebook is a crappy place to write stuff. Too many people concerned about scoring points in one way or another. I don’t like being one of them. I…

[pfrields]

@arturia_official nailed it with their V Collection 8. I've been playing with these #vintage #synthesizer models and they're amazing. The #Juno106 is frightening -- completely indistinguishable from the one I used to play. The #Mellotron almost made me cry, it's so good. A half million dollars worth of warm, beautiful sounding #synth goodness! Can't wait to make some new music with these. #homestudio #Arturia #KeyLab88mkII #KeyStepPro #ProTools #dontwaitcreate #Avid #vcollection #vcollection8 #synthwave #vintagekeys #diy #makemusicnotwar #makeart https://www.instagram.com/p/CS2v0npgin0/?utm_medium=tumblr

[pfrields]

So very sleeping. #dogsofinstagram #studiomutt #weekendvibes (at Fredericksburg, Virginia) https://www.instagram.com/p/CSf70lvAZJ3/?utm_medium=tumblr

[pfrields]

Juice by Harry, juice by Harry, juice by Harry, ohhhh Harry! Harry's got juice, Harry's got juice, ohhhhhh Harry. @theanswerva #sunday #drinklocal #rva #vacation (at The Answer Brewpub) https://www.instagram.com/p/CPgRwD3gv5H/?utm_medium=tumblr

[pfrields]

Breakfast is a trainwreck. @lunchorsupper #omgfoodz #brunchheaven #rva #eatlocal #vacationmode (at Lunch and Supper) https://www.instagram.com/p/CPgHXmGg3aW/?utm_medium=tumblr