New Northcape remake 'Sundowner' now out

The Northcape remake of Mike Allen's track 'Sundowner' is now available for free d/l. You can pick this up plus the other two remakes from the Bandcamp release page here: http://sunseasky.bandcamp.com/album/sounds-from-home-revisited . This track was a challenge as it's not a remix, I wasn't allowed to use any of the original sounds from the track so it had to be remade from scratch, based on the original. The original is part of quite an intense and dark album in a different style to the music I normally listen to, which made it even more of a challenge, but it was a good experience to work on this and I think the final result does capture something of the feel of the original while still being recognisably 'Northcape'. I did this a while ago, so it's not really a clue to the sound of the tracks on the in-progress album (more on that later) but I'm glad it has finally been released. I also recommend the Boc Scadet remake.

http://www.northcapemusic.co.uk/news/

The elusive next album

I am currently going through another difficult period in the creation of my own music (in fact, it rarely seems to be easy!). I have ideas, and some good tracks (at least 5 or 6, probably more) that I think deserve to be released and hopefully will be, one way or another. Unfortunately, somehow this collection of tracks doesn't form the type of coherent whole that is needed to release an album. Some of the ideas come from quite different places from each other, both in terms of sound and inspiration. I know that some people would argue that doesn't matter, particularly in the context of the internet, but as I've written in a previous blog, I am a big fan of the album format. I still listen almost exclusively to full albums or EPs, and don't want to give up on the idea of releasing something that builds connections between the different tracks to form something deeper and more complex. This is the real challenge, and I think giving up on doing this would be a step backward for the Northcape project as a whole and not really worthwhile. I think everything that I have previously completed has achieved a coherence across each release to a greater or lesser extent, if not perfectly, and I don't want to release music just for the sake of getting another entry in the discography. However for any new album to work, I need not only a strong idea or overall concept, but for the idea to inspire an album structure that makes sense to me, and not only contains tracks that I have already but forms the inspiration for new ones and suggests how they can be arranged. This is very hard, and at the moment, it hasn't really happened, despite having something that may well be the concept behind the next album. Trying to write tracks in a style to suit tracks that have already been written isn't really working. Perhaps I need to take a step back from it rather than force the concept too much and potentially put obstacles in the way of producing new music.

http://www.northcapemusic.co.uk/news/

Free download links fixed

Apologies for the broken links - just to let you know they should now be fixed (I have tested all of them in Firefox and they worked). First - join the Northcape mailing list here! . Next, return to the same page, and log in using the password that will be emailed to you, this will give access to a page of exclusive free downloads from 'Captured From Static', 'Detach', 'Letter to Nowhere' and other releases, and also some remixes! You'll also obviously be kept up to date on new Northcape releases and other news, but there is normally less than one mailing a month. Obviously you can also unsuscribe (should you wish) at any time! Cheers, NC

http://www.northcapemusic.co.uk/news/

Why make music?

Sometimes this is important for me to remember! Given the work that goes into producing music, it can be hard to deal with when a track or release either falls unexpectedly flat or gets negative feedback. Ignoring negative feedback definitely isn't the answer - there is always much more to learn. However, I think neither is dwelling on it, which I find easy to do. Music can't be reduced to following a set of rules, and every listener has their own perspective and is approaching any track from a different angle. The important thing is to move on, and focus on moving the music forward. Over the time I've been releasing music on the internet I've found on a number of occasions, with hindsight, that I have decieved myself about aspects of a track, particularly when there is pressure to release something, and this can be true of both technical aspects and also the overall impression that a track gives. Although perfectionism can be painful, I'm constantly learning that it's best not to ignore any doubt, even if it doesn't seem important at the time. Some people can work to deadlines, but I think good quality music can't be rushed. Personally, I need to step back from it before releasing it, and if it's not absolutely 100%, if there is anything that I feel isn't quite right, it shouldn't be released. This can be a difficult lesson to learn- but I think the most important thing is- don't compromise. At the end of the day, (particularly given the state of the music industry!), and whatever it costs to make, this is not a career, and I make music for self-expression above anything else. If people enjoy it, or even better, occasionally buy it*, that is a great thing, and makes me feel that it is more worthwhile, but it's not why I make music. For a long time when I started no-one heard any tracks, I composed music because I enjoyed it and for no other reason. Music can take me somewhere else when I'm making it even more effectively than when I'm listening. I think that what [...]

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New, completely redesigned website now up!

The new website is now up, after a few days hard work! It has been completely redesigned and rewritten as I was never very happy with the previous version, which was a bit hacked together to get it to work. The main improvements made are:

Whole website is now coded in wordpress, which should make it much easier for me to keep up to date. I have put some effort into trying to code and structure it properly!

The website now contains a hopefully fairly comprehensive record of all Northcape releases, credits, tracklistings and other information. I have filled in some gaps from the previous website.

The website should also be easier to navigate around! All of the releases are linked together with streams, mp3 links and credit information. I have put quite a bit of thought into how it might be used and I hope that this comes across in the final result.

Finally, but not least, new design and new colour scheme!

Some features are the same- I have kept the guestbook and the mailing list functionality, and the free download page is still there- but updated (you might find a few more mp3s!) I'd very much appreciate if you can try to navigate around, try to find any broken links, and leave any comments or feedback. If you want to click on the facebook 'like' and google +1 buttons, they are on the bottom left...

Cheers, NC

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In praise of the album

I'm writing this blog in response to a recent blog 'Eclecticism and what makes a good album' by the electronica artist Dementio13 on his website. The blog started me thinking about the reason why the album still exists in an age of digital music; the point is made several times in the blog and subsequent comments that the album isn't as important as it used to be. When its so easy to pick and choose, download only your favourite tracks, and play them in whichever context you want, what is the point of an artist putting out an 'album' rather than just 'a collection of tracks'? I'm going to make the declaration straight away that I don't think I'm ever going to stop listening to albums as albums. I very rarely put my ipod on shuffle, when I decide to listen to an artist, I generally listen to one of their albums or EPs, front to back. This definitely makes me a more demanding listener - an artist can have great tracks, but if they fail to put an album together without a few tracks that need to be skipped, either due to the quality or due to them being completely out of place in the collection, I'm likely to listen to the artist much less than I would otherwise. I'm aware that I may be unusual in listening like this, but I don't think I'm unique, and the important point I want to make here is that I feel I get more out of the music by listening to it this way. This might be one reason why my favourite artists are all good at this. I get frustrated with them when an album is just that bit too long, or contains a few weak tracks that should really have been left out. People can of course listen to music however they want, as a random shuffled collection of tracks or whatever. But as a fan of the album, I think they are losing something fairly significant by doing that if the artist has released the tracks as a coherent whole. The best albums really are a lot more than [...]

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Emerging Organisms 4

I'm pleased to confirm that Northcape has a new and exclusive track '1am Transition' to be released on the forthcoming Emerging Organisms 4 compilation, which will be out on August 9th on Tympanik Audio. This is the 4th volume of a critically acclaimed compilation series focusing on IDM and atmospheric electronica and this release includes tracks by Hecq, Port Royal and Bola as well as Sun Sea Sky's Boy Is Fiction. "29 tracks, over 140 minutes of music on 2 compact discs only (no digital) with stunning artwork by Unshape (Kostas K. / Subheim) and sonic mastering by Mobthrow.". It's now available for pre-order.  The Northcape track appearing on this compilation is something I'm very happy with - deep late-night material - and won't be released anywhere else.

http://www.northcapemusic.co.uk/news/