Tasman Axeman's Space Rock Blog

Some philosopher from the past made that profound statement, and it sums up my life since retiring from “normal” work.

Composer? Author? Developer?

What it means, and least for me, goes to the very heart of changing your life, choosing your life, and being who you are.

After finishing work, I hated the word “Retired”. I don’t want to ever be retired.  So I looked around for a new purpose, and walking along the beach with my partner, we both discussed learning to code and forming an iOS developer team.

We paid for online courses and made the commitment.  We called ourselves Developers.  From day one.

A few years ago, I started running.  Not very far, not very fit, not very good.  But I committed to the expensive running shoes, the bone-conducting headphones, the smart watch, and a schedule.  I called myself a runner.  From day one.

Creating my Goldilocks music was another turning point.  I wasn’t playing in bands anymore, but creating the whole thing on my own.  Composing and producing it all myself.  So, would it be preposterous to fill in my occupation on my flight landing card and say I’m a “Composer”???

And most recently, in a matter of a couple of months, I’ve found myself scribbling down ideas for a backstory to my Goldilocks musical journey.  I’m a bit surprised at how much I’m enjoying this, and how strangely easy it is to write chapters - coming so thick and fast I’m already considering turning it into a book.

Am I now an Author???

These words… Author, Composer, Developer, are not reserved for special humans, they are reserved for us - ordinary people who decide to create something new.

To wear these badges does not require a Booker Prize, a Gold Album, or a million downloads from the App Store.  It just requires the courage to give it a go and not be afraid of the results.  Just enjoy the creative experience.

So, what are you going to call yourself tomorrow?

Former British Prime Minister Ted Heath (who, amazingly, once won the Sydney to Hobart yacht race) once quoted that yacht racing was “like standing under a cold shower tearing up five-pound notes.”

Well, luckily for him, he was never a music tech fanatic, or offshore yacht racing would have felt like small change.

Throughout my life, I have chased the dream of the “perfect live sound” and the “perfect home studio”—and boy, has it cost me time, money, and sanity. Here are the two biggest offenders:

Studio: TOTAL RECALL

With all the complexities of a studio—instruments, customisations for every track, plugins, levels, pans, and automation—it is no wonder it would be almost impossible to repeat a setup and sound in today's world without "File > Save."

But my early home studios were not so lucky. They were packed with outboard instruments and equipment, and there was no single "GOD" file to save the day.

Example: In 1988, I owned an Atari ST running C-Lab Creator (which eventually went on to become Logic Pro). Later, I moved on to Master Tracks Pro on an early Compaq Windows 3 laptop. I used a digital mixer (a Yamaha ProMix 01), with guitar recordings to an AKAI DR-8 hard drive recorder (revolutionary back then!) alongside a mountain of outboard effects like the Alesis Midiverb 3, keyboards like the Korg M1, and various outboard compressors. I even mastered each track to VHS tape(!) because it actually offered pretty good digital quality, before later upgrading to a professional-level DAT recorder (a Tascam DA-30 MkII).

To get Total Recall, there were a number of hoops to jump through. I had to control all of this outboard gear by embedding SysEx (MIDI System Exclusive) messages directly into my sequencer tracks to load each effect patch and set mixer levels or automation.

What could possibly go wrong?! EVERYTHING!!!!

I once programmed a universal remote for my late father (who was tech-aversive) to tackle the great VCR setup mystery that challenged an entire generation. I bought a programmable remote and mapped a single button to turn on the TV, turn on the VCR, set the TV source to VCR, select his favourite channel, and route the audio through his external speakers. One button did it all. Another button turned it all off.

I came home that night to utter chaos. Many of the commands I had programmed were toggles. Unfortunately, Dad had manually turned one item on beforehand, which destroyed the serial sequencing, blew the whole plan out of the water, and sent the remote sailing straight into the bin.

Which is exactly how my studio went in the early days of trying to achieve Total Recall. If just one thing wasn't quite working—say, a loose cable or a prerequisite device wasn't fully booted up—you got nothing but "silence." I would then spend the entire weekend tracing the fault.

Live: THE GUITAR SYNTHESIZER – Revolutionising Live Music!

As a fairly experienced live guitarist (and live-sound tech), it still amazes me how easily I was seduced like a raw, new bedroom guitarist into believing this stuff was the future. As if that cinematic sound inside your headphones could ever work in a large, roaring rock gig!  Trying to get a stereo guitar synth sound to sit nicely alongside a drummer, bass player, other guitars, keyboards, and a loud crowd in a venue with poor acoustics (and through a mono PA) is a fool's errand. 🙄

Over the years, I have owned the Roland VG-8, VG-88, VG-99, GR-1, GR-55, and the Boss GP-10 guitar synthesizers. I even added GK-3 hex pickups to a number of my best acoustic guitars (including a Maton, a Martin, and a Taylor)—eventually drilling actual holes in them just to secure a stable 13-pin connection.

After many years of heroic endeavour, I managed to play exactly ONE small gig using the full 13-pin cable and the VG-8 setup. After the gig, I realised that one of the strings on the hex pickup hadn't even been responding. The entire powerful, wide stereo experience you enjoy in headphones was completely wasted in a large room, leaving a stereo "sweet spot" that only about 10 people in the middle could actually hear.

MY CURRENT STUDIO

Which brings me fast-track to today: my wonderful current home studio, all based around my MacBook and Logic Pro. My current list of software probably seems excessive, but it all tucks neatly under my arm inside a single laptop. How can that possibly be excessive? 😁

I can take it on holiday. I even wrote a couple of songs on a recent cruise, sitting in a lounge with my noise-cancelling AirPods Pro while supping a coffee. I leave all the heavy mastering until I get home, but writing music, lyrics, and melodies can all easily be done on the move.

I have listed most of my software below, leaving out the ones I rarely use (like Jam Origin MIDI Guitar 3, Gig Performer, and, of course, the standard Apple stock plugins). I've assigned a personal star rating to each.

SOFTWARE PLUGINS

Do you know the difference?

There is an alarming, growing trend of text-to-video and text-to-audio creation. AI-generated music can be generated with nothing more than a description of what you want.   What's more, it can sound great.  But it is lazy, profit-driven, and rides on the backs of real musicians.

My music is NOT AI generated.

If you played golf, would you hire a humanoid robot to swing the clubs for you?  Music is my hobby, my enjoyment, my soul. Why would I want a machine to create it for me?

I write all lyrics and compose all musical material, including detailed melodic and harmonic arrangements for multiple vocal parts. All instrumentation is performed and programmed by me in my home studio—including drums, guitars, bass, and layered synth and orchestral elements using Logic Pro and a range of software and hardware instruments. Final mastering is also completed entirely in-house.

But it is AI assisted.

The truth is, we are all assisted by AI today—whether we are mapping a route, checking weather forecasts, filtering email, or processing photos.  It's already woven into daily life.  Music production is no different.  The tools have simply grown smarter: 

• Logic Pro pitch and time-stretching tools

• iZotope mastering, restoration, and audio repair tools

• Smart drum replacement and amp modeling

• Advanced noise reduction software

• Digital session singers

The Bottom Line

There is a massive difference between a tool that helps fix a pitch or master a track, and a machine that creates from scratch. One is a helper; the other is a thief. My tools help shape the sound, but I make the music.  The most profound AI assistance tool I use is the wonderful Dreamtonics Synthesizor V Studio to give my music a voice on my Logic Pro DAW .  For me, this was a life changer, and project enabler.

It was also my start in writing lyrics, which in the past as a lead guitarist I never paid much attention to, but is now shockingly enjoyable and full-filling!

🚀

Hi there, and welcome to my (first ever) blog, for my (first ever) blog site for my (first ever) music project.

As you can tell, I don’t have much experience in this kinda thing!  But hopefully, I can come up with a few experiences and perspectives that will keep you entertained.

This (website and blog) is just a fun hobby.  I’m not an “expert”.  Just someone “doing it” and maybe by being honest about my experiences it will help you on your journey.

Future topics

In future blogs I want to describe some of my experiences in getting the Goldilocks project off the ground, and show you all the ways you can do it wrong!  So you can safely cross tasks off your To-Do list, without suffering the pain I endured!

I want to share 

• my studio equipment

• software plugins; synths, mixing & mastering tools

• guitars

• mixing and mastering for streaming

• streaming distribution choices

• my (failed) marketing strategy

• where I use AI,  where AI is banned.

Some of these items I’m pretty good at.  Some I will never be good at.

My background 

I’m George Cook, born in London, now living in Taupo, New Zealand.  I won’t say how old I am, but think of a big number, and double it.

I am very fit from regular running, and pretty tech-savvy - most of my friends describe me as the “Toy King” be it the latest music tech, computers, drones, smart homes etc., and I could probably open a store with all my old music and tech gear.  I keep up to date with tech trends, but don't ever ask me to try explain Bitcoin, AI, or Quantum Physics.

I played in many rock bands in my early years, most notable was the NWOHM band Brunel.

I have a background as a computer engineer - wasting a very large part of my life keeping up to date with Novell and Microsoft certifications, and have spent nearly a decade coding in iOS.  I have a few Apps in the Apple Appstore, including Music apps.

I had a 5 year career as a Second Mate (Navigation Deck Officer) in the British merchant navy travelling multiple times around the globe whilst still in my teens (before containerisation - when you had time to get ashore!) then 20 years of contracting as an IT specialist in companies such as the BBC, Reuters, and many government departments in the UK, Australia, and New Zealand.  I call these the “lost years”, as I wasn't chasing the dream, just the money.

What I can (hopefully) bring to the party in my future blogs is perspective from all those years.

For example, today’s crazy instant social messaging vs being on a ship before the Internet and getting a real letter once every 2 months - dropped by a helicopter off of Capetown (I preferred it back then).

Or, watching today’s Rock superstars in a packed stadium, vs. seeing them for free in your local pub (I preferred it back then).

Tasman Axeman

Choosing a unique artist name is fairly impossible .  Remember the days when you and your newly formed band were trying to come up with a unique name?

Well, try it now - think of a new name for band - go on!, then do a search.  You will find 100 other bands already have that name, 2 superstars have registered it, a domain already exists, and there is even a corporation with a trademark for it.

Tasman Axeman is pretty unique and came about because my partner lives in Australia, I live in New Zealand, and we are both forever crossing the Tasman Sea to be together.  I always carry my guitar (Axe).

I found out later that there is a world champion wood-chopper based in Tasmania who is part of a Tasman Axemen Facebook group!

Ah well, not totally unique then.  I may have to buy him a beer next time I visit Tasmania.

Goldilocks Project.

Nowadays music is marketed in short video burst - "shorts" - if your listeners are not captivated in the first 3 seconds you are swiped away - discarded like a Tinder left-swipe for the next video that usually has an instant loud thumping bass beat accompanied by gyrating sexy dancers.

I decided not to compete!

I wanted my music to be long-form, slowly evolving, with lyrics that held meaning.  I wanted a story that may take me years to build.

I realised that the time it will take the heroine in my story to discover the Goldilocks Zone would (using today’s rocket technology) take around 75,000 years - which is about how much time it would take for my project to be discovered!

But I’m in no hurry - I’m enjoying the journey, not the destination

🚀