Esquimales (Eskimos)

[na_th_an]

We are talking about small keyboards, and I mentioned that I recorded a whole album on a toy Casio SA-10 keyboard. I got this keyboard off eBay for like $20 a bit ago. It comes with 100 sounds and 4 note polyphony, but samples are very low quality (most likely made using algorithms, envelopes and filtering on short looped samples) and some have a big deal of zipper noise.

Zipper noise can be easily removed using post-processing on your computer. For bass sounds, you just filter the sample using a low pass filter. For bright sounds, you can use a de-hisser, like that found in Adobe Audition.

This song uses four tracks for the music: first, a rythm track I built using the drum samples built in the keyboard. I sampled each drum sound and then built the groove in ACID. Second, a bass track using the "bassoon" register on the keyboard. Then, the main melody track is played on a music box sample with a simple delay. Then, this track is doubled and filtered, then offset a dotted quarter note forward to make it sound like a controlled echo.

On top of that, a simple vocal track I recorded using a cheap computer microphone. To round up the tune, I added some free samples from freesound.org (the radio sounds and the inverted metallic sound at the beginning).

The song is in Spanish (sorry). All the rhymes are made using "ales", which is a pretty hard word ending to rhyme in Spanish.

Hope you like it. I may upload the whole album to Soundcloud very soon.

[Hook]

This is so menacing, I so love it. Do you have a problem with Eskimos? I only ask cause you sing that word with such a sinister inflection...& I love it brother!!!(no hate intended to my eskimo brother & sisters!!!)
This is a great example of not needing "Flash Harry's New Toothbrush" to make an excellent tune!
Rock On!

[na_th_an]

Thanks Of course I have nothing against Innuits. Indeed it sounds sinister - it was somewhat "dedicated" to this kind of people who treat you like a disposable object. But no offence to Skimos It was a metaphor. Glad you like it It was fun trying to make a song out of such a humble piece of hardware.

[Hilary]

Crikey you've done so much with so little - I've a casio SA-65 so I know just how crap it really is! This is wonderful and please don't ever apologise for singing in Spanish. You do menacing so well

[bruno]

I have no idea what the song is about - but I enjoyed the ride.
B.

[Greeny]

Very stylish, and a great listen. Enjoyed it a lot without understanding a word!

[launched]

The coolest!   I love what you did with that toy keyboard and the vocal sycopation struck well with me!

Nice!

[Geir]

I love it !!

Cool to be able to create so good music with so low-end equipment !!

Great work !

[chunk]

I can't get it to play

[na_th_an]

I'm glad you all like it I really enjoy making littel songs (even albums) using very low-end equipment. It's fun to overcome the limitations.

@chunk: I'm sorry, maybe there was a temporary problem? It plays fine for me.