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SurfGuitar101 Forums » Surf Music General Discussion »

Permalink The Madeira: Ancient Winds - launched and sailing into adventure!

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Well that's done. I threw in Boss Fink's RPM for good measure. Don't want to be too high brow.

Da Vinci Flinglestein,
The quest for the Tone, the tone of the Quest

The Syndicate of Surf on YouTube

http://www.syndicateofsurf.com/

http://sharawaji.com/

http://surfrockradio.com/

Last edited: Sep 01, 2015 07:33:54

IvanP wrote:

I hope not. Apparently, artists and labels don't get paid anything for sales of their product for the first three months of Apple Music. Because obviously Apple is the party that's really struggling in this equation... No

by the way, Ivan, it's already on Apple Music.

image

Waikiki Makaki surf-rock band from Ukraine

New Single is out!

https://waikikimakaki.bandcamp.com/album/rhino-blues-full-contact-surf-single

Waikiki Makaki

https://linktr.ee/waikikimakaki

Lost Diver

https://lostdiver.bandcamp.com
https://soundcloud.com/vitaly-yakushin

You can thank Taylor Swift for Apple changing that 3 month policy.

Site dude - S3 Agent #202
Need help with the site? SG101 FAQ - Send me a private message - Email me

"It starts... when it begins" -- Ralf Kilauea

Brian wrote:

You can thank Taylor Swift for Apple changing that 3 month policy.

donno who is this - but thank you!!! listening!!!! happy!!!)

Waikiki Makaki surf-rock band from Ukraine

New Single is out!

https://waikikimakaki.bandcamp.com/album/rhino-blues-full-contact-surf-single

Waikiki Makaki

https://linktr.ee/waikikimakaki

Lost Diver

https://lostdiver.bandcamp.com
https://soundcloud.com/vitaly-yakushin

Taylor Swift is a young woman who is one of the biggest pop stars in the USA today, and has a LOT of influence in the industry, which she used to force Apple to change their ridiculous policy. So, now it's all good!

Ivan
Lords of Atlantis on Facebook
The Madeira Official Website
The Madeira on Facebook
The Blair-Pongracic Band on Facebook
The Space Cossacks on Facebook
The Madeira Channel on YouTube

IvanP wrote:

Taylor Swift is a young woman who is one of the biggest pop stars in the USA today, and has a LOT of influence in the industry, which she used to force Apple to change their ridiculous policy. So, now it's all good!

great) cause this is the case I don't want to be a pirate)
amazing work, Ivan!!!!!

Waikiki Makaki surf-rock band from Ukraine

New Single is out!

https://waikikimakaki.bandcamp.com/album/rhino-blues-full-contact-surf-single

Waikiki Makaki

https://linktr.ee/waikikimakaki

Lost Diver

https://lostdiver.bandcamp.com
https://soundcloud.com/vitaly-yakushin

Thank you very much, Samurai, very glad you like it!!!

Ivan
Lords of Atlantis on Facebook
The Madeira Official Website
The Madeira on Facebook
The Blair-Pongracic Band on Facebook
The Space Cossacks on Facebook
The Madeira Channel on YouTube

IvanP wrote:

Taylor Swift is a young woman who is one of the biggest pop stars in the USA today, and has a LOT of influence in the industry, which she used to force Apple to change their ridiculous policy. So, now it's all good!

Well, alrighty then. She gets an attaboy from me.
Another example of a company who will, when given the opportunity, talk the talk all day long - but usually only walks it after they get caught exhibiting egregiously poor behavior. Ultimately those choices are made by individual humans; it's about character, or lack thereof.

Wes
SoCal ex-pat with a snow shovel

DISCLAIMER: The above is opinion/suggestion only & should not be used for mission planning/navigation, tweaking of instruments, beverage selection, or wardrobe choices.

Last edited: Sep 15, 2015 14:33:29

The description of Ancient Winds at Elderly Instruments, the world-renown independent musical instrument store in Lansing, MI: "More cowabunga mysticism from this prolific neo-surf outfit"! 'Cowabunga mysticism' - YES!! How awesome is that??? From now on we're putting that on all our websites and promo stuff!! THANK YOU, ELDERLY!! Smile

Ivan
Lords of Atlantis on Facebook
The Madeira Official Website
The Madeira on Facebook
The Blair-Pongracic Band on Facebook
The Space Cossacks on Facebook
The Madeira Channel on YouTube

I've honestly been meaning to write something regarding this amazing album since it was first released not too long ago, but the demands of daily life, and a new term in college (one of the joys of being 30 and in college pursuing a career as a teacher) have necessitated a bit of a delay. First off I'd like to state that The Madeira were one of the first bands I instantly became a fan of nearly 10 years ago when I (finally) first started getting into surf music. Since then I have been in awe of every release, and every piece of video featuring the band. I was blown away by Tribal Fires, and when it was announced that a new Madeira album would be coming out this year I was really wondering how it would be possible to top such an amazing album, it just seemed like it would be next to impossible to do. But Ancient Winds truly does just that. It is an amazing (I just can't think of a better word right now) album that I am beyond grateful to have the pleasure of listening to. In fact, I spent the first few days after the albums release listening to it over and over again, so many times that I truly couldn't list an exact number. From the opening of Journey to the Center of the Surf, to the close of Into the Deep I had to hear every note multiple times over due to the sheer awesomeness of each piece of each song.

As one guitarist to another, I must say I truly admire you Ivan, and once more you and the rest of the band have crafted some of the most amazing music I've ever heard (and that would be a lot of music). As one guitarist to another I must also admit that this is both an inspiring, and frustrating album as well. Inspiring in the sense that yours and Patrick's guitar work is absolutely phenomenal, creating a sound that could only be achieved by not just guitar players who compliment each other so well, but an entire band that crafts such a perfectly tuned machine of musical mayhem. Frustrating in the sense that as I've only been focusing heavily on guitar playing for the last 5 years (despite having played off and on for well over 10), I can only keep working hard for some time to get to a level even near that of the guitar work on this album, despite an inner desire to be able to mimic such playing without the traversing of such a substantial amount of time and effort.

Once again you and the band have raised the bar- in my opinion not just for instrumental surf, but for really any guitar based music- and crafted an amazing (there I go again, you'd think an English major would be able to find some other word to use, but alas none quite fit) album.

If I may add an extra bit of praise on the end of this, one of the reasons I continue to play a Stratocaster is due you Ivan, and your work in the Madeira and the Space Cossacks. The other reason is of course due to Dick Dale, but I don't have the luxury of being on an internet forum in which he is an active participant to send such words. So if I may end this after what may seem like a massive "butt kissing", I am truly glad to have had the opportunity to hear this album, and hope to hear it played live at some point. Although I must confess the likelihood of that is rather low, as I live in the southern portion of Oregon (less than an hour from the border between Oregon and California), and the nearest any surf band, since The Verb played here in Medford (my hometown and current locale) in 2007, has been either D.D. himself playing about 30 or so minutes north of me (sadly I didn't know this until just before the start of his performance, otherwise this story would be quite different) some years ago, or many miles and hours north in Eugene or Portland (one would think Satan's Pilgrims would love their home state enough to get to the southernmost area's, but alas we are a small market between the S.F. Bay Area through Eugene, and on up to Portland, and thus attract little attention), or the aforementioned Satan's Pilgrims, or any other's, playing far north or south of my city.

Nonetheless, all complaints from a small city boy aside, I can extend nothing but praise to Ancient Winds. It is truly one of the first albums in a very long time that I enjoy listening to from start to finish. Most every album I've bought, or listened to over the last 17 or so years-at least since I started really enjoying music beyond that of just the few singles played on the local mainstream radio stations- that I've actually hated to skip any song, even after repeated listening's.

So to conclude this long rambling post, kudos to you and the rest of the band for creating such an awe inspiring piece of music. An especial hat's off to Patrick for his incredible song writing skills, and to the also amazing and inspiring Danny Snyder, Alex Faide, Jeremy DeHart, and the legendary Jim Skiathitis for their, for lack of a better word, amazing contributions to this album.

Thus far, the 21st century see,s like a grand time to be a surf guitarist, and a lover of surf music, as our idols are either recording new music themselves, or helping to write songs that should (in my opinion) be destined to become surf classics. Of course the fact that many also happen to post upon this forum adds to that grand nature as well.

-Damon.

Wow, Damon, thank you very, very much! I'm not really sure what to say in response to all that. I'm so glad that you love the CD this much, and that it's exceeded your expectations! I'm also quite blown away by much of what you write above. The very best thing that can happen to a musician, I think, is to actually have some sort of an emotional impact on the people listening, to bring joy to them, so it is very rewarding to hear all this. Also to hear that we've not let you down with the new release! We worked HARD to make sure the album was as good as we could possibly make it, and I'm really glad that it's paid off! Thank you deeply, Damon, and especially for taking the time out of your seemingly very busy life to write up the above and let us know, we do truly appreciate that! Thumbs Up

Ivan
Lords of Atlantis on Facebook
The Madeira Official Website
The Madeira on Facebook
The Blair-Pongracic Band on Facebook
The Space Cossacks on Facebook
The Madeira Channel on YouTube

Last edited: Oct 01, 2015 10:06:37

Damon, we used to play all around southern OR and northern CA (great shows in Yreka)all the time in the 90s. Unfortunately, we play a limited amount now, and don't have a van anymore!

http://www.satanspilgrims.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Satans-Pilgrims/8210228553
https://satanspilgrims.bandcamp.com/
http://www.surfyindustries.com

Ivan, I was wondering if you could tell us how the collaboration with Jim Skiathitis went? How did it come about, who wrote what, how did you trade parts, etc?

Like Danny said I think it sounds like a long lost 60's Atlantics track; quite a feat! It's one of my favorite tracks on the album.

Site dude - S3 Agent #202
Need help with the site? SG101 FAQ - Send me a private message - Email me

"It starts... when it begins" -- Ralf Kilauea

Thanks, Brian! What happened is that as the result of the Continental interview I did with the Atlantics, Jim and I became fairly friendly, often exchanging emails. He loved our recording of Giant on "Tribal Fires" in particular, and he knew I really loved the Atlantics' music. At some point he suggested we collaborate on a song, which blew my mind! I was not expecting that and never would have dared to ask. There was a song I started working on around "Tribal Fires" in the Atlantics style that I was just stuck with, and couldn't make headway on. I put it aside back in '11, but hadn't forgotten about it. When Jim asked, it occurred to me that maybe I could suggest to him to see what he could do with it, and he was game. That's the song that became The Argonaut.

I had the full introduction - the chord progression and the melody, and then the chord progression for the verse, cycling back to the intro. I had a few melodies for the verse, but thought they were all weak, so I didn't send them to Jim. After a few months Jim sent me back demos of two versions. He programmed a basic drum machine and had rhythm and lead guitar over them. Both versions had the same verse melody, the melody that's on the final song - and which just blew me away! I couldn't even believe how great it was. But then he added a completely new bridge to the song, with a new chord progression and melody - in fact, TWO completely new bridges, a different one on each demo! He asked me to pick one, so I did. (I think he used the other bridge for another song he wrote around that same time, which he sent to Dirty Fuse and which appears on their most recent album - Jim wrote two songs for them on that album, both really fantastic songs.)

I just loved the parts Jim came up with, I thought he had just outdone himself! It was extremely exciting to hear it all! And it was quite a challenge to learn those parts correctly, they're not the most normal melodies, they're played in weird positions and use weird notes! Which I thought was just perfect to capture that Atlantics vibe! Smile I knew I wanted to make the song 1) really fast and energetic to the max, which is not necessarily how Jim heard it when he added his parts, but it had to be done Smile ; and 2) make it at least somewhat epic, with a breakdown in the middle, which was also not in his original demo. So, I took what he sent me, sped it up quite a bit and arranged it all to give it a vibe along the lines of War of the Worlds or Rumble and Run, with the lengthy pick scratches section in the middle. Dane had intensely studied the Atlantics drum parts for our tribute at the 2014 SG101 convention, so he knew instinctively what had to be played, as did Patrick (and boy, he plays his behind off, holy cow that is some fast rhythm guitar!!! It's a real challenge for him to do that live.) - and Todd came up with all the super-cool bass parts that provided the final piece of the puzzle, capturing the Atlantics vibe to the full. I recorded the track using two echo pedals together, as the Atlantics did with two Klemt Echolettes on songs like War of the Worlds, SOS, etc. I used a Strymon El Capistan for the shorter, staggered multihead tape echo effect, and the Line 6 Echo Park on the tape echo setting for the single-repeat lengthier repeat on top, making sure the timing of the two effects was aligned. I also used my '62 Bandmaster - the same amp that the Atlantics used for lead guitar from their start in '62 until early '64 - together with my AC-30 - the amp they used for lead guitar from the early '64 until they broke up in the late '60s. I really tried to use everything I have learned about them to capture their sound on my lead guitar. I am extremely pleased with how it turned out!

Having Jim co-wrote a song with me has been one of the biggest thrills of my musical life! Jim at the age of 72 is still a highly creatively vibrant musician, but also humble to a fault and just a truly nice and supremely generous human being. It's always a pleasure to be able to just talk to him, and hear his stories. And I will be forever grateful to him for getting this ball rolling, and contributing such amazing stuff to my skeleton of a song!

Ivan
Lords of Atlantis on Facebook
The Madeira Official Website
The Madeira on Facebook
The Blair-Pongracic Band on Facebook
The Space Cossacks on Facebook
The Madeira Channel on YouTube

Ivan, that's a great story. 72 years old. Impressive!

Ivan, thanks for sharing that with us; truly a wonderful piece of lore.
And Brian, thanks so much for asking that question.

As to Patrick's rhythm playing... I remember seeing him with the guitar hanging from him, arms down at his sides, shakin' his wrists, limbering, and thinking 'maybe he's mortal after all'. Laughing

A worthy effort by all.

Wes
SoCal ex-pat with a snow shovel

DISCLAIMER: The above is opinion/suggestion only & should not be used for mission planning/navigation, tweaking of instruments, beverage selection, or wardrobe choices.

Ivan, Patrick, Dane and Todd- what an absolutely incredible album you've put together with Ancient Winds. I have to admit that it took a while to grow on me, but at this point it's sucked me in whole. There's some subtle change to the overall vibe of this album from the previous ones. The band feels slightly less rehearsed, and playing with a manic energy that pushes so very close to edge of the world. Is there a song on here about about piloting the ship over the horizon? Ivan, you are just cooking on lead, and I love that your tone is getting heavier, and more overdriven. This CD really is an epic adventure, and an epic album. A brilliant and varied collection of songs, lots of mood changes. This is easily the album of the year, and "Journey to the Center of the Surf" is hands down the best song of the year.
Congratulations again!!! How will you top this? I can't wait to hear the next album.

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Ferenc, thank you VERY much for your interesting and very nice comments, I greatly, greatly appreciate them, coming as they are from a musician - and person - that I respect so deeply! As far as the 'album of the year' bit, well, I can think of at least one album that may give us quite a run for our money, made by a certain band from the future... ;)

Thanks again!

Ivan
Lords of Atlantis on Facebook
The Madeira Official Website
The Madeira on Facebook
The Blair-Pongracic Band on Facebook
The Space Cossacks on Facebook
The Madeira Channel on YouTube

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