roncli.com blog

Just a quick note that I've tendered my resignation at CTG and am going to be closing OSMusic.Net soon. I just can't dedicate myself to music websites anymore due to lack of time and motivation. Some would say it's for the best.

As for OSMusic.Net, I'm mulling over offering refunds to those who did try to keep the site going with credits and stuff. I will keep an archive of the songs on OSMusic.Net similar to the archive I keep of TiS1. I currently do not plan on creating an archive of TiS2.

The Nightstalker is not going away. I am still a musician at heart and that will never change. I just hope that I someday will get the motivation to get back into creating music, but unfortunately I do not see that day coming any time soon.

Labels: Music

Friday, March 14, 2008

More Inspiration?
Posted: 2:46:00 PM 1 comments

I have to say that, despite the cruddy sound quality, I really am liking this Inspiration Edit of Given Up. It's made me think about seriously doing a whole bunch of songs like this. I have a lot of music in me, and it would be wonderful to get them all out, even if it was just in a stripped down performance like this.

The biggest problem has been getting my new X-Fi to work right. Last night, I improvised by putting everything through my J-Station, and using SPDIF-In to record it all. Unfortunately, when I plugged stuff in any of the Line-In jacks, the sound was quiet and there was a ton of line noise. I'd like to get this fixed so I can properly record things as opposed to passing things through a device that wasn't designed to have things passed through it.

It annoys me, because the X-Fi is new, and I paid a good chunk of money for it. That said, I haven't done a whole lot of research on the subject, and I figure a good hour or so of Googling may find a decent resolution for my problem.

But yes, I want to do more. I'm really pleased by this performance, and it's inspired me to go back and lay something else down. Maybe this'll get me to the point where I'm actually release the full versions of these tracks, who knows?

Labels: Music

Given Up (Inspiration Edit)
Posted: 3:38:00 AM 0 comments

Louigi Verona on Trax in Space is holding an interesting "live concert" called Inspiration Live, where participants record their music live and "perform" it virtually. It will happen on April 2nd, 3rd, and 4th.

Well, recently, I have been working on Given Up in Reason, an old song I tried to record and release back in the days of StudioKraft in Houston. I decided why not enter this song?

So I did. It is a Trax in Space exclusive (you'll also find Cent Credits over there as a TiS exclusive as well!), so be sure you have an account over there before checking it out.

Labels: Music

Friday, February 01, 2008

Bye bye Audigy
Posted: 4:31:00 AM 0 comments

I've officially had it with my Sound Blaster Audigy.

First of all, Creative's customer support sucks. Second of all, Vista has been out for about a year now, and Creative has yet to write drivers for many of their sound cards, including the Audigy, that allows the use of all of the features the Audigy is supposed to be used for. The Audigy is what connected my computer to my J-Station, cheap MIDI keyboard, and my Shure mic, and now I don't have those connections anymore.

The problem is, I don't know what to do about it. I don't want to get a whole new sound card, because the ones I'm looking at are expensive. I also don't want to get something just to get rid of it whenever I decide to buy a NeKo. Problem with that is they no longer make the 76-key version, and have replaced their standard model with this absolutely stupid 61-key "Timbaland Special Edition", which apparently was designed with the help of Timbaland himself. THANKS A LOT YOU MUSIC-STEALING RETARD. Grr.

I was actually looking forward to getting a keyboard with more range than what I got now, and a 76-key beast would have been perfect. Now I'll have to find a spare keyboard whose price will probably be jacked up, deal with lesser keys again, or actually get a full-size keyboard that will serve as a control device, which would suck.

But until then, that means no singing, no recording live stuff off my piano, which I loved, and no exploring guitar recording, which I have been itching to do for a while now. Unfortunately, all solutions here will cost me a good amount of money, something I can't really afford until later on in the year, so my hobby seems to be on hold for now.

Labels: Music

Excitement at the Novus Compo
Posted: 4:27:00 AM 0 comments

Sigh of Excitement managed to sneak into the overall compo over at the Novus Compo by way of being closest to the mini-compo winner. The results were announced yesterday, and I'm happy to report that Sigh of Excitement not only managed a respectable 3rd place, it also beat out the song that placed ahead of it in the mini-compo. Further, it received three first place votes, which both songs ahead of it also accomplished. However, since dfast managed to get more 2nd and 3rd place votes than I, he was the overall winner. Which isn't bad, because he's a very talented musician.

This is quite an accomplishment for my music, and hopefully is a step in the right direction in terms of writing music that people like and is of good sound quality. I think it's only a matter of time before I can produce something that will top the compo.

Labels: Music

Monday, January 07, 2008

Sigh of Excitement at the Novus Compo
Posted: 3:07:00 PM 0 comments

Sigh of Excitement has landed a spot in this month's Novus Compo. Now, I've had some songs entered in this compo before, but Sigh of Excitement is a song that I'm quite more proud of, and would love to see this thing win something.

If you like it too, go vote for it!

Labels: Music

Monday, December 10, 2007

Sigh of Excitement
Posted: 2:01:00 AM 0 comments

Someday, I'm going to run out of One Hour Compo material to use for my new music.

Anyway, check out Sigh of Excitement, my latest offering to TiS, OSM, CTG, TNS, WTF, and BBQ.

Labels: Music

Monday, December 03, 2007

The Nightstalker on Inner Space/KFOS
Posted: 1:41:00 PM 0 comments

An old TiS admin, allen one, has created an online radio station for the musicians of Trax in Space and Second Life. The station is called KFOS Inner Space Radio, and can be listened to in Winamp by visiting http://kfos.fast-serv.com and clicking on the "Listen" link at the top, or simply by clicking here.

Four of my songs, Cent Main Theme, Everytime, the classic Fire In My Heart, and my TiS Exclusive Cent Credits, are part of the playlist, as are dozens of other amazing musicians. Also be sure to check out the Inner Space radio show, playing Saturdays at 3 PM Eastern.

Labels: Music

Monday, October 15, 2007

Windows Activation Woes
Posted: 5:11:00 PM 0 comments

Last night I was up fairly late, and towards the end of the night had a lovely melody in my head. Actually, it was more like a concept song in a new style. I was really excited about getting the song down, I even had my keyboard on to play the melody out a bit.

So I log out of my gamer profile and log into my roncli profile. All of a sudden, I'm hit with "Your activation of Windows has expired!"

WTF?

Turns out that I forgot about the motherboard and video card change, and apparently switching profiles triggered Windows's activation mechanism, thinking it was now a pirated copy. One call to Microsoft's activation center fixed it, as I could not activate online. "Product key already in use!"

So after I'm off the phone with Microsoft, I sit down, ready to load up reason with a melody... Wait a second, I had a melody. Where'd it go? What'd I do with it?

ARGH. I had FORGOTTEN the stupid melody because I focused my attention too much on my computer not working. Talk about frustrating.

Labels: Music

Friday, July 27, 2007

CTG down till at least mid-August
Posted: 12:19:00 PM 0 comments

Ouch.

Redheat over at Trax in Space reports that CTGMusic.com will be offline until at least mid-August. While no data loss is expected, the task of repairing the site is going to take time. No word on where the hosting is going to be, or whether anything is going to change on the site due to the new host.

Labels: Music

Module Sixteen Remade
Posted: 3:13:00 AM 0 comments

I finally completed the Reason & Sonar remake of Module Sixteen. Check it out on OSM, TiS, and of course TNS.

Labels: Music

Thursday, July 26, 2007

Let the Inspiration Flow
Posted: 7:11:00 PM 0 comments

I don't know what it is with my music lately, but there's been no shortage of inspiration. Not only have I been able to start new projects, but I've actually been able to finish some old ones. A quick run down of things I'm working on musically.

New Zepsi Industries - This has been released over at Trax in Space.
TNS Raw Music Disk - This is almost ready. I've gone back and did a small amount of post-production, mainly to up the volume of it. It's just about ready to be released, but I want to transcribe the whole thing, which takes a considerable amount of time.
Module Sixteen - This is a Reason remake of my already completed track by the same name. After some excellent advice from slammy, I'm doing the final run down of the production, and am probably going to release it shortly after this post.
Analyze - A light industrial tune intended for vocals. It remains to be seen if I do the vocals at night, or if I wait on getting gear together and finding a room to rent to do the recording in.
Reject - slammy sent me a rejected bit from his epic, A Bridged Divide, and we've been playing with it since. He's threatened to send it to m0d, which, if he climbs aboard, would make my fourth 3-way co-op. Pretty neat.

I like this inspiration, and I don't want it to end. Best of all is that it hasn't really taken much time away from other things I do, so I'm really getting a lot done in this department. It's been a long time since the inspiration's been flowing like this, and I intend to take full advantage of it.

Labels: Music

Evans Blue at Best Buy
Posted: 2:45:00 PM 0 comments

So Evans Blue came to the Best Buy next door to me on Tuesday to perform a 4 song set. I really like their music, so I stopped by.

Acoustical performances can be hit or miss. The acoustical instrumentation was really nice, especially for Cold, although it was difficult to hear the lead singer at times because the setting was not ideal for a performance like that. However, it was very enjoyable. The purpose was for their CD release. Of course they were trying to get you to buy it, but it wasn't like it was pushed down your throat. There were no annoying salesmen or radio personalities there to try to get you to do silly things for prizes. I literally walked across the street, into Best Buy, listened to the performance, and walked out happy.

Never had a band do something like that in my area before, it was really nice to be able to get out and enjoy music so close to home, and for such an affordable (free!) price. Can't beat that.

Labels: Music

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

Evans Blue
Posted: 4:20:00 PM 0 comments

I normally don't get interested in things like this, but when Evans Blue decides not only to come to Houston, but to put on a live acoustic performance at the Best Buy that's literally right next door to me, I admit to being curious. So, if all goes well this evening, I'm probably going to stop by and give them a listen. I really like a lot of their stuff, and given this is a rather unique opportunity, why not?

Labels: Music

MadTracker, CTGMusic down
Posted: 4:17:00 PM 0 comments

It looks like Yannick's hosting got skewered, resulting in major scene sites MadTracker and Cute Trance Girls being offline for at least a day now. Latest word is that Yannick is trying to find a hosting provider.

Labels: Music

Friday, July 20, 2007

New Zepsi Industries
Posted: 12:13:00 PM 0 comments

For those familiar with #modarchive Story, you will remember the original music in module format that was featured in the game. Well, a while back I had taken Zepsi's "Zepsi Industries" and remade it in Reason. Today, I finally got around to getting his permission to release it, and there you have it, my 60th release!

So, be sure to check out New Zepsi Industries.

Labels: Music

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Music
Posted: 3:37:00 AM 0 comments

I've been talking a lot about sites that contain music. It's high time that I did something about my music!

As an experiment, I'm working on a production for Outpost Music called "TNS Raw". The idea is simple. I've setup my guitar and microphone, and I perform, talking about my music as I go. One take is the goal, although I don't necessarily achieve that all the time. You can hear how bad my guitar playing is, how my voice warps when I try to go to the high end of my range without waking up the neighbors, but most of all you can hear the raw emotion that goes into each and every composition, which is the main point of this production. It was originally supposed to be a set of three songs, narrated with the inspiration and some additional information related to each song. I ended up doing 4 and a half, covering over an hour of listen time with me babbling on in between.

As I said, this is an experiment. Not only is the music emotional, the commentary is as well. It is something that's either going to be widely popular, or just shrugged off. Either way, it's something I am enjoying putting together, and will most likely have ready within the next day or two.

As a teaser, here's a track list:

The Nightstalker

The Editor, Introduction

The Editor

The Editor, Thoughts

Everytime, Introduction

Everytime

Everytime, Thoughts

Eternally, Introduction

Eternally

Eternally, Thoughts

Decade, Introduction

Decade

Decade, Thoughts

Babbling

Links

Greetz

You (Preview), Introduction

You (Preview)

Labels: Music

Friday, June 22, 2007

#10*
Posted: 12:48:00 PM 0 comments

I don't know why, but this guy's attitude amuses me greatly. If I were more cynical, I'd suggest contacing him on a regular basis, ask for his opinion, and wait for the fallout. And if I were even more cynical, I'd probably do it myself.

I decided to drop by today to re-read an old interview of his with Saurin about Trax in Space, a site I'm positive Novus will now hate and will post about extensively in the coming weeks, and found a new post from last month about how he brushed off a, quote, "n00b", unquote, and then cleaned out his web space because of it. Many web sites would just post a "my files are now hosted elsewhere" deal. Novus? No, it has to be a full-length news post, complete with... well, I don't know what you'd call what he writes, but it's definitely unique.

Maybe it's because he's not afraid to fly off the handle at the drop of a hat, or maybe it's because of how he writes when that happens. Either way, for those of you interested in reading the ramblings of a man who had a clue, lost it quite some time ago, and can still manage to keep the cynical reader entertained every six months or so, check it out.

* "#10" is a reference to the football player who shares the same name. Vince Young plays for the NFL's Tennessee Titans, and wears jersey #10.

Labels: Music

Thursday, March 01, 2007

Saving the Best for Last
Posted: 5:01:00 PM 0 comments

While I haven't done much in the music department in the last months, I have done a lot over the course of the last year to try to improve myself as a musician. My song-writing process has changed for the better, where I try to put something complete in my head before working on it. I have tried to whip out the guitar a lot more to not only help with that process, but to help me with song writing.

Unfortunately, I haven't touched digital music in forever, but I feel that I'm saving it all up for when I put together Ox's studio rack, hopefully later this year. I am really anxious to get all this music out, and I feel that I'm going to be embarking on a new era in my music once I get things put together.

Labels: Music

Tuesday, June 13, 2006

As Promised
Posted: 9:32:00 PM 0 comments

I've finally MP3'ed all 59 of my releases. You can find them at http://tns.roncli.com. Enjoy!

Labels: Music

Wednesday, June 07, 2006

The Nightstalker
Posted: 11:34:00 PM 0 comments

Now playing: roncli, The Nightstalker - Awakening (5:01)

That's me!

I've finally put together the new home of The Nightstalker together with enough music to be viable. In the coming days, I expect to add some more (as they are part of my projects list), although what's up there now is my very best. Check it out.

Labels: Music

Sunday, May 01, 2005

Music is Moving
Posted: 9:05:00 AM 0 comments

Now playing: roncli, The Nightstalker - Everytime (5:24)

My music is moving... I'm taking it off the main www.roncli.com page and sending it over to tns.roncli.com. I'm working on a database-driven site with the intention of using it as a base for my music-related activities. Right now it's only got the oldest and the newest listed, as that is all I have modernized.

Eventually, everything that was musical on roncli.com (with the exception of my music biography) will show up on this new site. I also want to record acoustical versions of works in progress and past pieces and upload them in a kind of "lounge" section. It'll be a while before everything is up and running, though.

Kathy's been nagging me to put all my old stuff online... Pfft, some of the old stuff doesn't deserve to be online anymore without some major work. I can't even compose much new stuff lately, let alone get the motivation to work on the old stuff. We'll see.

Labels: Music

Saturday, April 23, 2005

Everytime Update
Posted: 1:51:00 PM 0 comments

Now playing: roncli, The Nightstalker - Everytime (Preview) (7:41)

Updated Everytime in the music directory. I thought it was going to be a pretty big change from the previous version, but really all that I did was add some nice reverb to the vocals, adjusted the volume level up on the bass, and played with the expression of the oboe during the solo. This song is quite close to release, if I can get a few people to listen to it I might put it out this weekend.

And maybe at some point I'll update the music section on my website... I know, I know, a far fetched possibility, but still.

Labels: Music

Tuesday, March 15, 2005

Music Clean Up
Posted: 8:11:00 PM 0 comments

Now playing: roncli, The Nightstalker - Cent Main Theme (2:28)

I cleaned up the Cent Music a bit. centMain.ogg is of higher quality, and has a new guitar solo to boot. I am still not entirely pleased with it yet, especially the fake-sounding guitar, but it's getting there. centCredits.ogg is also new, I replaced the piano with a better sounding one. Horray for Reason 3.0!

Labels: Music

Friday, March 11, 2005

Cent files moved
Posted: 6:05:00 PM 0 comments

Now playing: roncli, The Nightstalker - roncli Productions Intro (0:13)

I moved the cent stuff out of the music directory. You can now see it all at http://www.roncli.com/music/cent, and peruse the directory yourself.

Labels: Music

Thursday, March 10, 2005

Cent Main Theme
Posted: 10:48:00 PM 0 comments

More Cent music, this time the Main Theme.

Cent's just about all I've been working on in my spare time, hence the lack of updates. When I get some more exciting screenshots, I'll start posting. In the meantime, enjoy the soundtrack.

Labels: Music

Tuesday, March 08, 2005

Cent Credits
Posted: 7:47:00 PM 0 comments

Now playing: roncli, The Nightstalker - Cent Credits (2:37)

I finished up the credits tune today, had a bit of fun on my keyboard making it too. It took me back about 12 years when I used to write tunes solely for the piano all the time. Anyway, check out Cent Credits. If you've listened to the intro tune I posted earlier, the beginning and end of this one follow the same theme.

Labels: Music

New Music
Posted: 11:09:00 AM 0 comments

Now playing: roncli, The Nightstalker - roncli Productions Intro (0:13)

Just a note that I have a new piece up, roncli Productions Intro. It's a 13s OGG file that will serve as the intro for Cent.

I'm working on the credits version, which is basically just a piano version of this combined with the main theme. The upside is that I will be recording it all into reason with my MIDI keyboard, so it should sound pretty sweet.

Labels: Music