Floating Spirits – Like The Rain [ touched – music for macmillan cancer support ]
Its Pay What You Want, But Please Give What You Can.
If you cannot afford to donate, please download the album and spread the word – share on Facebook, Twitter, your blog, or wherever. – exposure and awareness is also very important!
Its Album Really Is Something Special.
*All Donations Go To Cancer Support.*
https://www.facebook.com/touchedmusic
https://www.facebook.com/FloatingSpirits
2Kutup & Floating Spirits – Split
2Kutup & Floating Spirits – Split
2Kutup and Floating Spirits collaborate on this beatless excursion into drone ambient music. Highly recommended for those quiet moments for maximum absorption. There is also a “Continuous Mix” version of the release included in the download.
Digital Literacy meets the Modern Dj
Digital Literacy is the way of life for the modern DJ. Not only do they have to portray this in a club performances but they must show this in everyday life to have any sort of success. The knowledge they have on modern technology is a key role to their progress. A DJ also knows that it isn’t just the modern technologies that help curve out progress but a blend of old functionality as well.
Let’s take for example the very basis of what a DJ needs equipment wise. It isn’t just 2 turntables, mixer & a microphone anymore. The DJ has had to adapt from various formats of software & equipment gear as well. You will see CDJ’s in force nowadays along side a laptop platform as well. For me it is neither of those but a Laptop & a handful of effects processors to get my sound out. The variation is on the rise as well. Music & Digital Literacy changes along with modern technology. Rolling Stone magazine has been pushing that this modern DJ lifestyle is killing music & it’s roots…but I see it otherwise. This change is good for us all & will help bring music to areas of life that couldn’t other wise create it. Who cares if we sit behind a computer & program sounds into a DAW and never touch an instrument. Is the music we produce that way not music at all? Now they can jump off a bridge for all I care…this format is here to stay for as long as there are people out there who want to be DJ’s. Music is music!
Now it used to be that the DJ would make a mix tape & reproduce it by a few handfuls & take this product to the streets handing it out to anyone who was willing to hear something new. You worked your ass off for a mild turn around! I can see how the old form would want to discredit this modern way of musical living. But if your music isn’t getting heard then why are you doing it? This social storm we are living in is a must for everyone now but don’t shy away from getting that one on one base with people either. I think you really do need a blend of old technology & new.
Making blogs such as this or band pages on other various sites & networking them all together has really been a must for at least me. I don’t have the money to tour the streets or nightclub venues pushing my noise across the globe…I also feel & see that my particular genre doesn’t really have a home in my local area so I am practically forced to have a major online presence. First & foremost is Soundcloud, if it wasn’t for that I would have been stuck in this field without the ability to post mixes or single tracks for people to hear! Secondly, has been various forums that have held open discussions in the genres I love with the ability to broadcast live on their homely internet radio waves….this has been a key for me where I have developed numerous friendships from other DJ’s across the globe that I would probably not have the chance of meeting in person. Which brings me to Facebook & other similar social networks…without these I wouldn’t have had personal one on ones with those DJs & new forming fans. It has truly given me the ability to interact directly & on a global scale with many people. I fail to see how this form of Digital Literacy would not help any modern musician or venturing business person as well!
Floating Spirits – SoundCloud Sessions [November 2013]
So this isn’t a case of Analog versus Digital revolution! Because I see both as very valid & necessary forms of ways to produce music. Change is a variable constant…adapt & grow along with it. Peace, Love & Positive Vibes!
Collaborations & Remix projects [to-date]
“Tw30 [floating spirits remix]”
Altered:Carbon is the alter alias of Tam Ferrans & Andrew Patterson, those of whom are the founders of the Section 27 Netlabel I am a loyal member of. The remix I did for them went down as the first rework I ever tackled. The track named “Tw30” was a real challenge I think more so because of my lack of knowledge on remixing. I went in head first & did what I could to bring out the flavor I wanted with what I was given. No Midi files….just straight stems. Wanted to keep it dark sounding as the original was a bit eerie. My tools were also limited in those days of first distributing my noize. I only had FL-Studio & Adobe Audition for my works. Making my edits with Adobe & placing the cuts into FL accordingly adding my own tones where applicable.
Floating Spirits & Silent Strangers – Devoured By Saturn
Not long after my first remix project came my first split EP project. Devoured By Saturn was a mythical themed EP honed in by Silent Strangers…alias of Christopher Lombardo. This started by simple communication via Facebook. Back n forth we went trying to plan how many tracks we wanted in this set & what the cover art was going to look like. Christopher did the majority of this project & hand drew via his digital paint program. It was a real black n white side of things. Silent Strangers was the darker side whilst I was the light of things. It was also a real break-through for me production wise…I was learning all sorts of things from my Section 27 mates by communicating & just listening to each artists sounds. This was also a turning point because I suffered a major computer crash sortly after this project was finished.
Floating Spirits – Blu Patterns
After my computer issues were sorted I struggled mightily trying to bring forth the right sounds I wanted. So I started to reform the way I did productions & everything. Basically re-inventing my flow. I pressed new time signatures & slowed the BPM’s to minimums. “Blu Patterns” was a personal theme targeting the initial feeling of being completely lost as to how I was going to go about this “new” me. I wanted vocals, I wanted to re-do some of my first tracks, & I wanted a separate piece where my new music family members could remix my own tracks. The track “R.E.M.” was a perfect representation of where I wanted to start going. It was my first track using any sort of vocals. And it was a process indeed. The track was about a 2 month process of back n forth communication with Pini from the turkish band Adviruz. It was the first true collaboration. I gave her the green light to sing in just about any way she wanted, the only stipulation I gave was to keep it on key with the title REM. We both decided to keep the track in her native tongue of Turkey. The result was just what I was looking for…a track that sounded like a dream state. Part 2 to the release was a collective of reworks done by my closest music family members.
Floating Spirits & Min-Y-Llan – Split Ep
After taking a little bit of time off from producing tracks I found myself admiring many other peoples works. Listening rather than skimming. I wanted my next feature to be with someone I was truly admiring where he was going in his own path. It was going to be someone I had been gaining the most advantage tips wise by simply listening to his music. Min-Y-Llan alias of Martin Boulton was this guy. We were & still are very similar in the way we go about things. The very standard name was in no way representing how we were going about this project. We kept in very close contact when we did this split as to not stray too far away from the style we pressed in the project. It was also the first project I was tackling since starting my music production schooling. So this project was very very special to me. We had outside help on the cover a gal named Jessie Broster. She was a visual artist friend of Martin Boulton looking for something fresh to put her work on. So this project was an all around collab of staying in contact with the co-producer Min-Y-Llan & the visual artist Jessie Broster. Though we were putting this project out for free it was well founded across the pond gaining some airplay on the local radio out there. The release in now also represented on Min-Y-Llan’s bandcamp page for a small fee.
I was so happy with pairing up with Martin Boulton. It is the first of many collaborations with the guy. He will be reforming himself soon but together we have many similar ideas on where we want to go. Maybe a whole new artist project will be in order with him…who knows…time will tell on that.
I do have another collaboration coming real soon with Pini (Adviruz) again that is true to the collaboration form. In the project I used vocal stems created by her through simple conversations we had. The project is again a unique new way I have been learning in school. It is going to feel real solid when it comes out. The project uses compression & limiter techniques along with time signature techniques that were shown in my music theory class. So really looking forward to the response from the underground netlabel community on this upcoming project. Look for it on the Section 27 Netlabel soon (www.section27netlabel.blogspot.com).
The History of Beatport
History
The first version of Beatport’s web store, Beatport 1.0, was released on January 7, 2004 and consisted of 79 Electronic Music Record Labels in its catalog.[3] Half a year later, Beatport was beginning to become recognized after a few collaborations with well known DJs and partnerships with the technology company Native Instruments.[3] In January 2005, a revised Beatport 2.0 was released, with a catalog of over 100,000 tracks supplied by 2,700 signed labels. Beatport was also made accessible through a scaled-down GUI embedded within DJ software: Traktor DJ Studio by Native Instruments. On August 7, 2006 Beatport released Beatport 3.0 Fully Loaded, the third version of its original store, which featured improvements to navigation, customized content subscription via My Beatport, and new payment options.
In February 2007, Beatport launched the Beatport Player, a viral marketing web widget to play back relevant Artist, Label, Genre, and Chart content. Built using Adobe Flash and HTML, the player gives users the ability to create custom, dynamic playlists from Beatport’s entire catalog of song previews to be embedded into nearly any HTML website.
In August 2007, Beatport launched a community-oriented music site, Beatportal, whose stated mission is “…to provide music lovers with up-to-date information about the world of electronic music”. Following up on the idea of the community-oriented site, Beatport introduced the Beatport Music Awards on March 18, 2008. Each year Beatport users can vote for the best electronic music artists in an effort to trace the progress of these artists over the years or determine which has the largest growing fan base. The BMAs are broken down into 19 categories, including Best Artist categories from each genre, Best Remix, and Best Single. The nominees for the BMAs are based solely on unit sales at Beatport.
A version called “The New Beatport” was released on January 21, 2009 and integrated the use of a Flex 3 web application provided by RealEyes Media. On July 14, 2011, Beatport launched their HTML5 website with new features, designs and a new platform.
In February 2013, Beatport was acquired by SFX Entertainment.[4] Additionally, Beatport announced a partnership with Shazam, which would allow the service to index Beatport’s catalog, which in turn allows them to be recognized by Shazam’s app.
“Beatport.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 28 Oct. 2013. Web. 28 Oct. 2013. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beatport>.
My Electronic Music Obsession
My Electronic Music Obsession
There is so much music out there i truly appreciate but few sounds really have that “complete package” factor. Tracks that you can play time & time again no matter how many times you’ve heard it before, few tracks that can really give you the chills in a given situation.
I have found that EDM has carried the wow factor for me for many years. Since i first heard it in ’95-’96 it was something that gave me the welcome feeling i was looking for. EDM is truly a whole other world of music. It separates itself from your everyday musician bands & compliments your emotions in a more complete sensory perceptive way. It may not be for everyone, this much is true, but it is increasing in popularity for a reason…it welcomes in all walks of life. Old, new….it doesn’t matter who you are. Electronic music is truly a universal language.
To cater to my obsessive nature i would like to share a top 5 artist-wise list. The list has stayed fairly prominent & unchanged after I have learned a few things about the artist/group & their genre.
#1
BT. (http://www.btmusic.com)
This was the first electronic artist I truly fell in love with. He has an unmarked creative style that I think is really pushing boundaries. He even holds a Guinness world record for the most edits used in a single song @ 6,178 edits. His track that really put me into pure fanaticism was “Flaming June”…circa 1997, a track that is nearly 20 years old & still bumping.
#2
Booka Shade. (www.bookashade.com)
These guys are a unique blend of dub & house…delving into the sub-genre called Tech-House. They have been around since the 80’s & have really continued to push ever since. They really have two sides to their performances. A dj style set for those intimate club culture scenes & a live drum/synth set for those open air events. This portion is what really set them apart for me against all others.
#3
James Holden. (www.bordercommunity.com)
Another man who is not afraid to push the boundaries on both scales & time signatures.
#4
Kaskade. (www.kaskademusic.com)
He is to blame for my love of deep house music. Though he has taken that turn into the main-stream he is still a worth while artist that shovels out performance better than most these days. He is well loved for everything he does. His track that has moved me the most is “Stepping Out”.
#5
Tiesto. (www.tiesto.com)
A bit cliche but let’s face the facts, this man has helped put the EDM culture on the map & not some stinky underground layer. He has collaborated with so many artist in many different genres. He is a guaranteed “Jock” hit generator. Love him or hate him he won’t be going anywhere & will remain a go-to guy until he decides to stop. One of his many tracks that has moved me is “Break My Fall” where he collaborated with my main man BT.
Who Am I?
Who Am I?
I am Nathan Story, known as Floating Spirits in the music realm. I was born & raised most of my life in Salt Lake City, Utah…spent a few years of my youth living in Great Falls, Montana but moved back. I am 30 years of age as of March 8th 2013.
I was a big fan of Ska & Punk music growing up until i heard electronic music for the first time in ’95-’96. From then on I was an addict of the noises coming out of EDM. Though i have great respect for music from the past too…my first album I ever owned was “Moody Blues – Live @ Red Rocks”. So as long as the music moves me, no matter the genre, I feel like i want to learn from it & adapt what i like from it into my own sounds.
This is what brings me to school here at B.E.A.U. . I want to learn all aspects of the music biz & learn a more creative roll in the EDM side of things. There are so many options being shown to me. Scoring films is a key goal I look forward to doing as well as grasping that production value to electronic vibes. In time I would love to run an independent label that caters to the experimental/ambient sounds that move me so much in my everyday life.
Floating Spirits 
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