No more freebies!

OK, we decided that it's time for a change. Since we re-started X-Amount last year we have been giving all of our stuff away free. The thinking behind this was that we were unlikely to make much out of our efforts anyway, our music can be difficult, and also we thought that giving it away free would widen our audience.

Well, it does not seem to have worked out that way. Maybe because neither of us are very good at promotion and publicity. Plus, when we do e-mail people about what we do, record labels and others, we just get ignored. We have had hardly any responses to all of our efforts. We do not know people in useful places.

Most of the work we have been doing has been in the hope that things will grow and also that some of our friends and family will appreciate and maybe enjoy what we do (which they often do, despite what we put them through!). 

There have been one or two people that really do enjoy it, and there has been some positive feedback, and for that we are extremely grateful. So, thank you if you are one of those rare people. We really do appreciate it.

However..Our latest album, although free, has been downloaded just twice (according to the stats on BandCamp).

So, it seems giving it away free doesn't even work anymore. It is very difficult to work out where, or if, we have gone wrong because we don't get any feedback, but something somewhere isn't working.

We actually need to raise some money now, for essential software in order to keep going. Plus it would be nice to put some money into future projects if at all possible. So far all CDs pressed and publicity has come out of our own pockets. This is why there were no CD copies of "Six Months.." made this time. I did mention that we could make some up to order but there was no interest. The thing is, we believe our music to be good and worthy of interest.

I have recently been accepted onto an MA course, and for this the University in question want to see me develop the ideas that we have been using for X-Amount. This could potentially widen our tiny audience, and will definitely expand our art.

With all this in mind we have decided to start charging small amounts for our music. I see it as the equivalent of buying the two of us a beer in return for an album of music (that probably contains months of work). Seems reasonable to me.

If you look closely, there will still be the odd freebie, but they won't last forever. Prices will appear on BandCamp in a week's time, so if you want to grab "Six Months Of Community Service" or "Degraded" for free, now is the time!

http://x-amount.bandcamp.com

We have plenty of material to come in the near future. I plan on re-mastering the "Leakage" and "Fat Bankers" albums from the 1990s, with extra tracks and expanded artwork. I also discovered a whole load of unreleased stuff from years back that still sounds fresh and dangerous, so that will appear at some point, but best of all is that we have an entire album's worth of new material to come out that just needs mixing and mastering.

We will of course keep you informed, and we will stay busy.

Love and peace

Simon and Andi.

Flight: Long Delay Mix

X-Amount - Flight (Long Delay Mix) by X-Amt

Another remix from "Degraded". This one took a couple of days before I was happy with it. Often I will get the whole thing done in a day, I like to work fast on a remix, as it is easy to lose sight of what you are doing when you become over-familiar with something. I have spent hours on these tracks. It's the same as when an artist creates a painting. You get so involved in all the tiny details and technicalities that you can easily lose sight of what the thing looks like to your audience, or you can forget what it was that you set out to do in the first place.


I had intended to produce an extended version of "Flight" (or "Short Flight" as it is known on the album version), firstly because it is one of my personal favourites and secondly, because I wanted a version that I could DJ with.


As I began re-arranging the track and stripping away the sounds, I had ideas for additional parts, so I created a short reference mix and imported it into Logic. Then I dusted off my guitar and recorded the rhythm guitar part. It did not sound quite as tight as I wanted (partly because I had lost my box of plectrums and had played it in using a home-made one cut out from a business card), but it seemed to work ok.


The synth part I had in mind I thought would suit the Pulse, so I set about programming. This can be a very difficult process. It feels like walking along a tightrope to me. The Pulse sounds so lush, and each time you try something like adjusting the filters, you get inspired to go with what occurs, so its easy to get distracted and seduced by its versatility. You can lose what was in your head in the first place.


All the same, I managed to stay focussed and created a new loop. Once I heard it against the track though, it was not quite working, so I dumped it and, after some experimentation, created it using Logic's ES1 synth.


After that, it was back to Ableton and into the remix. I got the arrangement in place and added some dub effects, which reminded me of days when I did a lot of live dub with bands like Back To The Planet. I added the dubs live just like I would have done in analogue days by throwing echos and reverb smashes at the drums mostly. Doing it live keeps an organic nature to the track.


Eventually, after re-organising some parts and balancing levels until I felt they were correct I decided that it was finished.


Being "finished" is another area of mixing and production which is the same as painting (or writing, or other arts) which is crucial and tricky to get exactly right. You can easily over-work something, or miss something vital, or lose sight of the big picture.


I reckon its ok. I often get a bit of a buzz when I am working that tells me "this could be a good one" and I got one this time round.


So.. there are now 4 remixed tracks from the "Degraded" sessions. That might be it. Andi and I will begin work on new material soon. Also, sadly I think, there has been a rather apathetic reaction to my requests for others to remix us (and to the album to be honest - a few loved it, mind), so we may move on.


We still want to put the live show together, but it could well take time as the practical aspects of the project are proving difficult to sort out.


You can hear all 4 remixes here:



X-Amount: "Degraded" Remixes by X-Amt

Please let us know what you think..


Simon x

Rowing: Gimp Seat Remix

X-Amount - Rowing (Gimp Seat mix) by X-Amt

Squeaking metal gates, petrol station fuel pumps, rowers on the river Thames, 1950's-style robot beeping noises.. What more could you want?

This is the bonus track that you get (along with other extras) when you download the "Degraded" album from:http://x-amount.bandcamp.com

The idea was to create a more DJ-friendly version, so it is a little minimal in comparison with the original album mix.

It also appears on the X-Amount: Degraded Mixtape, which you can stream here:

http://www.mixcloud.com/XAmt/x-amount-mixtape-01-degraded

Jump Starter Crankshaft Remix

X-Amount- Jump Starter (Crankshaft Mix) by X-Amt

Another remix for your downloady and listening pleasures.


I did this one slightly differently. As I wanted to add more synths, I moved the whole track's parts into Logic Express, and remixed it there. I created some new versions of Andi's building site loops, and added some madness using Logic's ring modulator and spectral filters. Again, it was intended to be more DJ friendly.. I am considering abusing people's ears with an X-Amount DJ set somewhere soon. Offers?


Simon x

Ian Boddy

In turning us down for his DiN label, Ian Boddy said of our "Degraded" album: "Enjoyed the music, some nice feel to the grooves and cool atmospheres over the top". Thanks Mr.Boddy, we like that.


Here is a link to DiN: DiN

"Morodo" Bananas remix

X-Amount - Morodo (Bananas mix) by X-Amt

Here is a remix of "Morodo" for your downloady and listening pleasure.. well I say pleasure.. I wanted to do a DJ-friendly mix of Morodo, but ended up going a bit mental in the middle. It's ended up sounding more scary than I intended, but in this case, dark is good, I reckon. As a friend of mine often says "give me some filth!".

Incidentally, its called the "Bananas mix", because Andi's daughter sings on Morodo "I like bananas". She does, too.

New album "Degraded" out now on BandCamp

The new album "Degraded" is out now on BandCamp.

You can download in a variety of formats, full quality, lossless or mp3. You can choose to download for free or make a donation, its entirely up to you.

When you download the album, you get the full artwork plus a bonus track.

We hope you like it. Please let us know what you think..

X-Amount Mixtape 01: Degraded on MixCloud

X-Amount Mixtape 01: Degraded by X-Amt on Mixcloud

Here is the first X-Amount mixtape. Its got mostly tracks from the new album, but a few exclusives too.. Let us know what you think..

The album should be available next week..

Jump Starter

Our first video. This new track "Jump Starter" is from the new album "Degraded".

2 new tracks: "Brian" & "Gaspipe"

Brian by X-Amt


Here are two new tracks. These will not be appearing on the new album. We have entered them into the "Bleep-Filtered" competition, so they are (for now at least) unavailable for download.


Gaspipe by X-Amt

If we were to win, one of them would end up on a Bleep compilation, if we lose, we will release them ourselves.


You may be wondering where the new album is (as it was promised for the 20th of August.. well it is finished and will appear on my SoundCloud page any day now. We are just awaiting approval for some lyrics to appear on one track.


Of course we will let you know as soon as its all done.


In the mean while there are these two to listen to. "Brian" was completed only in the last few days after another session last week. It features a (mostly inaudible) conversation recorded in a canteen about self-combustion as well as the voice of Brian from the Dispossessed.


"Gaspipe" is a dubby instrumental that features the sound of a gas cooker and a rather fabulous recording of rainwater passing through a drainpipe.


We hope you enjoy them.

Morodo: sneak peak from the new album

X-Amount - Morodo by X-Amt

Here is a the first track from our new album "Degraded", due to be out and about around August 20th if all goes to plan. We still have a little tweaking to do, but its basically there.


"Morodo" is named after the Giorgio Moroder inspired keyboard loop driving this piece. It also features Andi's 8 year old daughter singing. The acoustic guitar harmonics and repeating simple sub bass-line  combine with noises recorded inside a piano to create an uplifting yet ghostly atmosphere. Background sounds are morphed from field recordings of building sites, Asda and a canteen. Its free to download.


The album is called "Degraded" and will have about 12 tracks on it. Here is the artwork:

Followers of the blog (is there anyone out there?) will notice that we have used one of Andi's "Nice Block" photos, that he took whilst out on site. The blurry effect was caused because it was raining and Andi shot it through the window of his van.