Recording at home using self-made effect pedals Recording at home using self-made effect pedals

Japanese

Home Recording Song Collection

Switching to Logic Pro 11

My First Funk by ToshiI've been using StudioOne on Windows since 2017, but I wanted to try out the AI-based "Session Players" supported in LogicPro 11, so I bought a Mac mini M2 in July 2024 and am planning to switch to LogicPro.

My first take created using Session Player (Blue Night Glass)

Alternative Jazz/Funk Songs (My own composition)

All songs were produced using Setudio One 5.5 and mastered using iZotope Ozone11. There are various types of songs. I don't really know the genre myself.

My First Funk

I made this song with the theme of "Funky." As the title suggests, this is my first funk song. The brass section, featuring four wind instruments, is prominent throughout, giving it a distinct funk feel. In the middle part, I stopped the rhythm and added a guitar ballad-like melody to showcase my individuality. I created the wah-wah guitar sound using a BOSS wah-wah pedal. (Jan. 2024)

My First Funk (by Toshi)

[Remix]Time Limit

For this song, I decided on the title first and then created the song with that image in mind. One melody is played on guitar, trombone, and piano. In the interlude, I played the guitar riff and bass phrase. I used my Stratocaster and Jazz Bass. To add the feeling of being pressed for time, I added a license-free alarm clock bell sound to the sound effects. (Nov. 2023)

Time Limit (by Toshi)

Balloon Adventure

It's a refreshing song that makes you feel like you're flying away on a balloon. This song has six guitar tracks, including finger-picked rhythm tracks and riffs, for a total of 31 tracks. I use both a Stratocaster and a Les Paul. The only effect pedal I use is a self-made compressor. The background features a lot of delayed synths, similar to EDM sidechains. All instruments except the guitar are software instruments. (Feb. 2024)

Balloon Adventure (by Toshi)

[Remix] Daydream

I use a self-made MAD Profesor auto-wah for the rhythm guitar riff. For the guitar solo in the second half, I created a three-voice harmony using a self-made octaver pedal. BASS is a software instrument "Rowdy". The jacket is a landscape of Karuizawa, Japan, which I photographed myself. This is a remix version of the song I made on Aug 2023. (April 2024)

Daydream (by Toshi)

[Remix] Merry Waltz

This is my first waltz. The Rhodes track uses the Suitcase MK I software instrument included with Studio One. It starts with a gentle waltz melody, but at the end, I changed the key by a minor third to create a jazz-like piano. Only eight bars in the middle include a guitar solo using my self-made octaver pedal. The soprano sax harmonized with the Rhodes is also a software instrument included with Studio One. This is a remix version of the song I made in August 2023. (April 2024)

Merry Waltz(by Toshi)

Flowery Walk

This is a song I made because I wanted the mellow-sounding guitar to be the main focus. The sound is created using only the front pickup of a Les Paul and a self-made compressor with direct mix. I first developed the melody through trial and error using MIDI and then replaced it with the guitar. This is the second song I made this month. In contrast to the tense song "Time Limit" below, I made this one slower. (Nov. 2023)

Flowery Walk (by Toshi)

Morning Glory

This is a song about the morning glory that bloomed beautifully on our balcony. It begins to open in the early morning darkness, faces the sun with its petals wide open, and sways in the wind, depicting a peaceful daily life. Everything except the guitar is a software instrument, but I tried to give it as much of an acoustic feel as possible. The guitar melody is played with a Les Paul front pickup, and the sound is created with a self-made compressor and a self-made octaver. This song, originally made in October 2023, has been remixed. (April 2024)

Morning Glory (by Toshi)

Quiet Sundown

New song release! . I'm using a TR808 drum machine style rhythm box (sound source included with Studio One). It's a song that continues with the same chords all the time, imagining the end of the day and the quiet setting of the sun. I tried to make the trumpet legato phrase memorable.

Piano is a sound source that comes with Studio One.I think I can do better melody composition and guitar playing, so I would like to enjoy various trial and error and change it. (June 2023)

Quiet Sundown(by Toshi)

Sweetheart

I made this song with the theme of a "sweet love song." The guitar used is a Les Paul, but I aimed to make it sound like a fully acoustic electric guitar. I changed the key by a minor third in the middle and included an improvisational phrase of 2-5-1 (two-five-one) from a jazz textbook. For the beginning, I used the first three notes of Masayoshi Takanaka's "Crystal Memories," which I used to play on guitar when I was in high school. It's a nostalgic memory. (Feb. 2024)

Sweetheart (by Toshi)

Lasting Memory

This is a song that depicts how unforgettable memories are revived. At the end, memories become one light and continue long and far. The piano sound is played using the software instruments included with Studio One 5. (Jul., 2022)

Lasting Memory(by Toshi)

Blue Night Glass

I made a song with a jazz flavor. To create the feel of a wood bass, I play a fretless bass with the bridge side muted. The second chorus guitar uses a self-made compressor with the Les Paul front pickup to create the sound. (Dec. 2023)

Blue Night Glass (by Toshi)

Snow in Silence

This is a song about snow falling quietly. It has a simple arrangement with only eight tracks. I played the melody using piano and cello software instruments, and for the bass, I played a real fretless bass for the first time. Brush drums are played using BFD3. This is the third song I made this month. (Nov. 2023)

Snow in Silence (by Toshi)

[Remix]Towards Tomorrow

It is a song that heals the tiredness of the day. The song starts with a guitar cut with chorus/flanger effects using a DAW plugin. The sound is created by adjusting the filter frequency of the software synth "MaiTai" using DAW automation. I used my own DirectBlendComp for the cutting guitar compressor and my own Presettable BB-Preamp for the solo distortion. This is a remix version of the song I made in July 2023. (April 2024)

Towards Tomorrow(by Toshi)

Mico's Dance

It's a song that my cat, Mico, dances while shaking her butt. I play the lead part on an octave playing guitar (Gibson Les Paul). It sounds like an octave playing, but I actually play single notes through the self-made octave pedal. (The octave sample sound source is here). The second half is made like a piano jazz live. The sound effect contains the sound of Mico's bell recorded with my iPhone. The piano sound is played using Roland RD-88. (May 2023)

Mico's Dance(by Toshi)

[Remix]Have a wine

This is a song about getting tipsy from wine. This song uses a lot of automation from DAW (StudioOne 5). This is a remix version of the song I made on Sept. 2023. (April 2024)

Have a wine (by Toshi)

Thinking About You

This is my own song that I was influenced by various songs while listening to "The Wave Smooth Jazz Tampa Bay Florida" on the internet radio. It's a song about sitting on a couch thinking about someone. The phrase is a repetition of 16 bars, and it contains the feeling of thinking over and over again. The piano sound is played using the software instruments included with Studio One 5. (April. 2022)

Thinking About You (by Toshi)

Good Mood

This month, I was in a good mood and made the second song. The title is "good mood" as it is. It's a common chord progression, and the piano melody is easy, so I'd like to enjoy changing it in various ways. Piano is a software instrument included with Studio One. I used Impact, a sampler that comes with StudioOne, and put in some claps and an R&B female voice that I don't know what it's saying since I don't speak English. Horn section, B3 organ, wah guitar, etc. are fully included.(June 2023)

Good Mood(by Toshi)

Beyond the Sky

As the title of the song suggests, it makes me want to fly beyond the blue sky. I don't think distorted guitars are used in the Jazz genre, but I tried put it in with a single note backing. The piano sound is played using Roland RD-88. (Sept. 2022)

Beyond the Sky(by Toshi)

Happy Saturday

This song depicts a sunny Saturday, with two children in the lead, going out to play in the city. When we get a little tired, we take a rest in the shade and start walking again. After enjoying the day, everyone ends with a high five. The piano sound is played using Roland RD-88.
(Aug. 2022)

Happy Saturday(by Toshi)

Other genre songs (My own composition)

My Delight

It is based on a song that I made when I was young. At that time, I wanted to make it look like Japanese POP artist Tatsuro Yamashita, but this time I made it a piano song, so it has changed a lot. Minor third modulation is performed in the middle of the song, and it drops one step immediately, so it makes a strange transition. (C -> E.flat -> D.flat) The piano sound is played using the software instruments included with Studio One 5.

My Delight (by Toshi)

Midnight Rain

This is the first song I made for a band over 30 years ago when I was in my twenties. It's a song about the rain falling quietly in the middle of the night.

Binaural processing (using Oculus Spatializer) is applied to the rain effect sound. When you listen with headphones, the sound image spreads outside your head. The piano sound is played using the software instruments included with Studio One 5.

Midnight Rain (by Toshi)

Effect pedal sound samples

This is a sound sample of the effect pedal used in the above two songs.

Creamy distortion of self-made BB-Preamp

I think BB-Preamp's own work is easy to use for solos because of the clear distortion.

Recording environment: Gibson Les Paul (front / rear mix) -> Self-made EP Booster -> Self-made ISP noise reduction -> Self-made BB-Preamp -> MOOER MicroPreamp 006 (Fender amp cabinet simulator) -> UR22mkII -> DAW (Studio One 5)

Thinking About You outro solo, guitar tone 10 (MP3)

Midnight Rain outro solo, guitar tone 5 (MP3)

My Delight Outro Solo, Stratocaster, Mid PU, Tone 10 (MP3)

Mild Tone of self-made VEMURAM Jan Ray

The mild tone of the Les Paul front pickup is lightly distorted using the self-made surface-mounted mini size Jan Ray.

Recording environment: Gibson Les Paul (front, tone 5) -> Self-made EP Booster -> Self-made ISP noise reduction -> Mini size Jan Ray -> MOOER MicroPreamp 006 (Fender amplifier cabinet simulator) -> UR22mkII -> DAW (Studio One)

Thinking About You Interlude Solo, Guitar Tone 8 (MP3)

My Delight Unison Melody, Guitar Tone 4(MP3)

Fast wah followability of self-made MXR Envelop Filter

The self-made MXR Envelop Filter can follow fast rhythm phrases that you can't do with an actual wah pedal.

Recording environment: Gibson Les Paul (front / rear mix, tone 10) -> Self-made EP Booster -> Self-made ISP noise reduction -> Mini size Jan Ray -> self-made MXR Envelop Filter -> MOOER MicroPreamp 006 (Fender amplifier cabinet simulator) -> UR22mkII -> DAW (Studio) One 5)

Thinking About You Wah Rhythm (MP3)

Natural Compression of self-made Keeley Compressor Direct Mix

The self-made Keeley Compressor Direct Mix has almost no feeling of compression even when I strumming a rhythm guitar.

Recording environment: Gibson Les Paul (front / rear mix, tone 10) -> Self-made EP Booster -> Self-made ISP noise reduction -> Self-made Keeley Compressor Direct Mix -> MOOER MicroPreamp 006 (Fender amplifier cabinet simulator) -> UR22mkII -> DAW (Studio) One 5)

My Delight Intro Rhythm Guitar (MP3)


Equipment used

DAW: Studio One 5.5 Professional
PC: DELL Inspiron 3910 desktop, Core-i5, 32GB/1TB
Audio i / o: PreSonus Studio 24c
MIDI Keyboard: Roland RD-88, M-AUDIO Key Station MINI 32
Headphone: SONY MDR-M1ST
Monitor speakers: YAMAHA MSP3
Software drums: BFD3
Software bass: Rowdy
Other Software Instruments( Piano, Rhodes, Synth etc) : Included with Studio One

Effect plug-ins: RELAB Development LX480 Essentials, iZotope Ozone 11 Standard

Guitar1: Gibson Les Paul Standard '20
Guitar2: Fender American Professional II '20
Bass: Fender Jazz Bass '85 (direct input to Audio I/O)
Effect Pedals: Self-made ones shown below