Okay, but if you need help on a future lyrical project about transvestite truck drivers I’m your clownpenis.fart.
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Here is the title and captain’s log date corrections. And Bishop I would add always has an affable disposition and a fair sense of humor. He is a clever problem solver, too.
Script
Planet of Beautiful People
(Episode 2- Tales of the Interstellar Fur Traders)
By The Interstellar Fur Traders
Orchestral Opening - instrumental, no music. Most likely futurized orchestral with a rock element to foreshadow our future elements.
(this evolves into the background music for the first spoken part)
Opening
Captain Bishop:
Captain’s Log 2449.11.17.1538.
This is Captain Axatar Bishop reporting from the bridge of the Starship Aphrodite, currently in spacedock at Space Station Major Tom. We are scheduled to depart in three days to Planet Hollywood. Our passengers this time are the two handlers and 30 winners of this reality show talent contest, the most successful and long running of all time in fact. Yes, that one. Normally we do this every year after the season finale, and it’s a cakewalk. These young men and women are going there to be movie stars and the like, so they’re a pretty fun group to be cramped up with for six months.
But this year, the 100th season, there had been a dramatic rule change where the contestants faces were disguised by nanomasks so that they could not be judged by their looks, just their talent. And tonight, live on television, the winners’ actual faces will be revealed to all. It’s supposed to break all ratings records, I should mention. Not much is known about Planet Hollywood as it is a closed society, with minimal immigration or tourism allowed outside these winners every year. There are actors, directors and producers, but all the supporting infrastructure is automated. However, rumor has it this change was quite a shake up among the powers that be, and the darker rumor is that someone in particular is very unhappy and would not mind if my ship ended up lost in space. I have no proof but am making extra security sweeps and deeper background checks, just in case.
Captain’s Log out.
Song #1- Planet of Beautiful People - done, needs bass, guitar?, background vocals
Planet of Beautiful People (repeat 2)
Only the best of the best
The beautifullest
Who pass every test
Who outdo the rest
Will earn our request
To be our next guest
To be one of ours
And live among our stars
They’re walking down streets
They’re in restaurants and bars
Their parties are glamorous
And since you are one of us
You’re invited of course
On the Planet
On the Planet of
Planet of Beautiful People (repeat 4) (repeat 7)
The celebrity life
Fairy tales come true
Everything you dreamed
Could happen to you
Our paparazzi is nice
Even in the spotlight
You have nothing to fear
At your next premiere
Only the best of the best
The beautifullest
Who pass every test
Who outdo the rest
Will earn our request
To be our next guest
To be one of ours
And live among our stars
On the
Planet of Beautiful People (repeat 7)
Charlton Taylor:
–The opening music of the reality show POBP season finale.
And good evening everyone, I’m Charlton Taylor, your host for the longest running and most popular reality TV show in history. Welcome to the finale for the 100th season of the Planet of Beautiful People!
–Crowd cheers.
Last week the top 50 contestants performed their hearts out, competing for a chance to migrate to Planet Hollywood and all that comes with it. You, the audience, have voted, and tonight your favorite 25 will be revealed as the winners. As you know, this is the first year we’ve used nanomasks to disguise the competitors so that they cannot be judged on their physical beauty. They will win based strictly on their talent.
So tweet your votes in now as voting is about to end, and we’ll be back to announce the first winners right after this message.
Captain Bishop:
Captain’s Log 2450.02.01.1701.
On board the Starship Aphrodite, the winners relax backstage, still being filmed for future outtakes.
Everybody strives to act naturally, but underneath they all are tense, not yet completely believing this could all be real, more likely the ship will hit a chunk of rock and kill them all.
They are unaware of the vague threat we had been warned about, and thankfully there is no indication it is real.
Captain’s Log out.
Song #2 No Turning Back Now - done, needs bass, guitar?, background vocals
Gazing across the vastness of space
My soul almost lost in the blackness, no trace
Unfathomable distances and times I see out there
What am I of all people doing out here?
What am I of all people doing out here?
But there’s no turning back now
I made my choice and here I am
No turning back now
I must stick to the plan
Everyone
Everyone has been so friendly
Some a little anxious like me
Maybe looking cool on the outside
But I know it’s skin deep
We know where we’re going
But do we really know why?
What will we do when we get there?
Will it make us laugh or cry?
But there’s no turning back now
We made our choice and here we are
No turning back
We’re on our way to the stars
But there’s no turning back now
We made our choice and here we are
So why would we turn back now
We’re going to be stars
We’re gonna be stars
We’re gonna be stars
No matter how wonderful, no matter how good
Despite all the gossip about Planet Hollywood
And all the whispered rumors flying around the town
You can’t be sure that what you heard is going to be found
But I’m sticking to my plan
Made my choice and here I am
No turning back now
Gonna be a star, baby, yes, I am
Gonna be a star, baby, yes, I am
Gonna be a star, baby, yes, I am
Gonna be a star, there’s no turning back
I’m gonna be a star
Captain Bishop:
Captain’s Log 2450.04.26.0800.
As the weeks go by, things settle down. The handlers have enough footage, and in the show friendships develop into post-show friendships.
Talk becomes more serious, and trust deeper, as our destination draws near.
Captain’s Log out.
Arrival
Captain Bishop:
Captain’s Log 2450.05.21.1101.
Despite all the fears of foul play, the six months flight completed with no incidents to report. This morning I have arranged for the winners and their luggage to be transferred to their new residences in New Beverly Hills. I was accompanying Gareth, who was probably the least beautiful male on the entire planet, not that I was a prize catch either, and I was slightly concerned he may not be instantly accepted. To my surprise, it seemed quite the opposite. Everyone, especially the women, seemed to be fawning all over him, even flirting.
That was when I spotted this one statuesque vixen strutting in our direction, and then she turned her head toward me, staring me in the eyes with eyes so lavender blue, and gave me this big smile, this big Alfred E. Neumann toothy smile, and I lost it.
Jax, the handler, whispered to me, “What do you think of Crooked Teeth Hillary?” And I had nothing to say except, “Why?” And that’s when he explained to me what had been going on here, that changed the contest to allow a Gareth to win. And the root of the fear that some sort of trouble could be in the making. Reverse plastic surgery, or in this case, orthodontics. It seemed that where everyone was so perfect, perfection had lost its power of attraction. Indeed, the exact opposite had evolved.
I was still recovering from the shock of the concept, however, when all that trouble we hadn’t experienced exploded around us. Someone caught a story on the news with video of Gareth and me in this room in real time. I saw no cameras, but they use swarm nanocams ubiquitously here. The caption said, “SCANDAL ON DAY ONE?” The video quickly flashed to the ship showing some compromising looking behavior heavily censored.
People started nervously checking their devices, and the warm reception quickly felt a lot colder. I felt bad for him, but more than that it just didn’t pass the smell test. He was being set up for something, I didn’t know what.
But the next story explained it all- “SPECIAL ELECTION CALLED FOR”.
It was political. And Gareth was the football.
And they were dragging my ship into the middle of it.
Captain’s Log out.
Song #3- We Could Not Find It Anymore - done, needs bass, guitar?, background vocals
We sailed unto a distant shore
The farthest reaches to explore
Looked everywhere, cracked every door
We could not find it anymore, anymore, anymore
It used to be right there, you see
Always found so easily
Like Easter eggs in tall grass hidden
For the benefit of smaller children
We could not find it anymore
Anywhere we looked before
No stone unturned, no reason for
We could not find it anymore, anymore, anymore, ooooooh
We looked in all the usual places
We only saw the same old faces
Nothing changed with no exception
Except perhaps our own perception
For years we lived with our confusion
Some claimed conspiracy and collusion
Some fought the facts with stark defiance
Others sought the truth with science
We could not find it anymore
Anywhere we looked before
No stone unturned, no reason for
We could not find it anymore, anymore, aaaaah
And so it was that in the end
We saw the answer was within
Invisible under close inspection
When looking in the wrong direction
We sailed unto a distant shore
The farthest reaches to explore
Looked everywhere, cracked every door
We could not find it anymore, anymore, anymore, anymore
Song #4- Nose Job - done, needs bass, guitar?, background vocals
My baby just got a nose job
Just the other day
She told me she was thinking about it
And it just wouldn’t go away
Whenever she looked in the mirror
She knew what she wanted to see
And she’s gone and done it now
And she sure stands out in a crowd
In a roomful of models
Defining perfection
Every aspect of attractiveness
On walkway exhibition
You see her, my baby, she leaps out
To the forefront in 3D, I suppose
Your focus helplessly riveted
On her marvelously enlarged nose
My baby just got a nose job
On her marvelously enlarged nose
On her marvelously enlarged nose
On her marvelously enlarged nose
It now has a crook
Maybe leans to the left
And at the point I believe
I see a delicate cleft
Although rosy is quite popular
Its coloration is quite normal
Like big ears slightly royal
Almost serious and formal
I couldn’t believe it
But I had to agree
Her nose was a hit
At the party
She was the woman
They all wanted to be
The center of attention
In a sea of beauty
My baby just got a nose job
Just the other day
She told me she was thinking about it
And it just wouldn’t go away
Whenever she looked in the mirror
She knew what she wanted to see
And she’s gone and done it now
And she sure stands out in a crowd
Captain Bishop:
Captain’s Log 2450.05.26.1712.
Everything was topsy turvy here. No wonder they always imported so many self help tapes and videos. Gareth should have become a superstar, the life of the party, but it was not meant to be. But there he was caught wanking off to his fellow male and female passengers in the shower on a hidden nanocam. He was the scum of the planet. We knew it was fake but had yet to find any proof. However, no matter how unsophisticated we looked, we constantly ran some pretty high tech security aboard, even if it included tracking down some errant nanocam to its source, and further, to its code source. It would be close, we were down in every poll, and though we were outwardly optimistic, inside we were sweating it out with the the election tomorrow.
Captain’s Log out.
Song #5- The Golden Age of the Silver Screen - has lyrics, no music. Musical style hard rock Children of the Sun.
It all began so innocently
In the early twentieth century
In Hollywood, California
Moving images thrown on a silver screen
Inspired imaginations in ways never before seen
And beautiful faces of movie stars
Uncontrollably, irrevocably captured our hearts
It was the Golden Age of the Silver Screen
Made us laugh and cry and everything in between
With Lauren Bacall and Lucille Ball
Sofia Loren and Errol Flynn
And later Scarlett Johansson and even Ted Danson
In Three Men and a Baby or even the X-Men
It was the Golden Age of the Silver Screen
Made us laugh and cry and everything in between
And so it evolved in the first century
To thrive and transform to a new economy
Where fortune came from fame as the new currency
And the world was never to be the same again
Moving images thrown on a silver screen
Inspired imaginations in ways never before seen
And beautiful faces of movie stars
Uncontrollably, irrevocably captured our hearts
For a time after that as technology raged
Virtual actors everywhere dominated the stage
New classics with Bogart, Heston and Gable
A miracle of science and quite indistinguishable
And it seemed like the end of an era unequalled
And as often is the case for the fate of the sequel
There was a rebellion in the hearts of the masses of people
Saving salaries for actors as ticket sales dwindled
You can never completely turn back the clock
The digital recreations became AI star stock
Starring alongside new faces, fresh talents discovered
It was enough for the fans, and the industry recovered
It continued, it inculcated, its stars gained nobility
It surpassed celebrity, now bloodlines brought pedigree
And after hundreds of years of Hollywood royalty
Before the big one would come from the San Andreas Fault finally
The studios all merged and moved for good
Became a global operation called Planet Hollywood
It was the Golden Age of the Silver Screen
Made us laugh and cry and everything in between
With Doris Day and Danny Kaye
Jimmy Stewart and Marilyn
With superheroes and aliens
In Grapes of Wrath and Of Mice and Men
It was the Golden Age of the Silver Screen
Made us laugh and cry and everything in between
Captain’s Log Supplemental.
Their world has been so closed off for so long, so it caught me off guard. There is a sordid underbelly to their society in general which on the surface looks so idyllic. Apparently there is such competition for the top roles that it has created a pecking order of stars from the very top to the bottom of the barrel, and it manifests myriad problems. This of course exacerbates the political situation as well, adding an additional element of uncertainty.
Captain’s Log out.
Song #6- So Polarized - has lyrics, some music, needs bass, lead guitar. Musical style semi prog rock. Maybe alternating Roxy/Billy polarized style.
Once a upon a time
As all fairy tales begin
There was a handsome prince
And a fair maiden
When they met in the forest
They discovered love and laughter
And much of consequence
Had followed thereafter
Trials and tribulations
Evil queens and stepmothers
But always in the end
They lived happily ever after
But that was in their movie lives
Made for you and me to see
And often they would find themselves
Wishing to believe
But in a world of princes and maidens all
It was not reality
There was jealousy
And attraction
Personality
Lots of boredom
Superficiality
There was action
Sometimes brutality
No satisfaction
There was anger
There was sorrow
And you felt like
There’s no tomorrow
Sometimes you feel
Interchangeable
And the magic spark of movies
Was rarely there to see
And many turned to prescriptions
And seeking help professionally
They were all such talented actors
Selling fake authenticity
And they often fooled each other
Falling in love too easily
For some it was all of the bat of an eye
And the spell irreversibly spun
But it became less effective
On some and on others not at all
As the years went on and on
But the people in charge were all movie stars
They were the creme de la creme de la creme
Elected and promoted to positions of power
Older and brought up on the traditional order
Who accepted the affairs and divorces as just this
Natural unavoidable occupational risk
But time is a harsh teacher and director
Started more and more people looking much deeper
Pirates of love searching for buried treasure
Ignoring the trinkets shining in the sand
Listening for the metal detector to beep again
To find beneath the surface what can’t be explained
And in their Great Society
Which championed causes historically
Standing for peace and love so nobly
Defending the underdogs, the weak and the meek
Off camera oft motivated by insider greed
Corrupting their system and every other politician
Its fairy tale stripped of its morality
So polarized
Like film solarized
Reduced to black and white
Or red and blue
How do you pick a side
How do they pick you
Do you even want to play
When you’re feeling inside
Yellow or gray
Song #7- Flying High - has some music and lyrics. Current musical style Roxy Music Rock
Planet Hollywood isn’t what it seems
It’s not like how the children dream
There is no pie up in the sky
Every day another man dies
There was an actor upon the screen
In the pictures his eyes always gleam
But underneath that fragile illusion
Lies a heart with many contusions
Shoved a needle in his veins
To alleviate his pain
Drove him crazy, he went insane
If only he could find his way
Maybe on some fateful day
We’ll meet him again and we’ll say
“Why couldn’t you stay?”
There was a lady who had the power
To make the noblest of the men cower
Commanded the respect of the masses
Behind the screen her life was tragic
Father had left her ripped and torn
With endless ridicule and scorn
An actress he said, was a death wish
She left in ignorance, in bliss
So she stuck the powder in her nose
Every day the loneliness grows
The isolation takes its toll
She always plays the starring role
In the film about the fool that didn’t know
Stardom has a cost that doesn’t show
Behind the lights that always glow
Maybe someday we’ll be flying free
Erase the tragedy from our minds
Happiness is following us, you see?
Time shines brighter from behind
We’ll sail across the galaxy
Among the stars for which we lust
But we’ll never get out, you and me
Planet Hollywood owns us
All the fame and fortune in the world
Pursuit of happiness, not fulfillment
But when the next contract unfurls
We sign ourselves right back into it
The studios buy our lives over lunch
Take advantage of our crutch
We’ll escape, I know that much
With passion and a bit of luck
One day we’ll dance together
For no one but the two of us
That day we’ll fly free forever
Sever the ties we need to cut
Maybe someday we’ll be flying free
Erase the tragedy from our minds
Happiness is following us, you see?
Time shines brighter from behind
We’ll sail across the galaxy
Among the stars for which we lust
But we’ll never get out, you and me
Planet Hollywood owns us
Captain Bishop:
Captain’s Log 2450.05.27.0700.
The margin was razor thin, and the salacious clip had been shown in heavy rotation for three days on all channels. However, as the second sun rose in the west, breaking news flashed across the screen- “VIDEO DEBUNKED! GUILTY PARTY EXPOSED!”
There was no early voting. All voting was handled by Twitter in realtime, the results to be announced live at 7pm. And with movie budget production both sides released poignant melodramatic political ads, and then began the ultimate showdown- beauty vs ugly, so well made they played on the heartstrings of the people trying to make the case, and done so well many minds would be swayed.
Captain’s Log out.
Song #8- We’ll Turn Back the Clock - has lyrics, no music. Musical style most likely hard rock or Roxy/Billy blend.
(the song has two voices- the beauty side and the ugly side arguing their case. It seems to blend together after a while)
We’ll let these few in this one season
Then set them up for failure
The rumor mills will spread the dirt
Turn their own fan clubs against them
No one will hire them
No need to blackball them, they won’t get work
No one will want them
They’ll be pariahs
And in the heat of the outrage
We’ll hold a special election
And with good ol’ democracy
We’ll turn back the clock, you see
And everything will be OK
Just like the good old days
Now everyone probably knows
The sordid details all exposed
Wish they weren’t, I suppose
But I’m afraid it’s a little too late
U- You can try to turn back the clock
U- With all your dirty tricks
U- But we will give it our best shot
U- We’ll give it all we’ve got
U- For it’s our only hope
U- To get our side out to vote
B- We’ll turn back the clock
B- We’ll give it all we’ve got
U- Some things you can’t stop
B&U- But we’ll give it our best shot
U- To lose won’t be the end
B&U- But it won’t be OK
B&U- And we’ll be back again
B&U- To fight another day
Captain Bishop:
Captain’s Log 2450.05.27.1900.
The time was up. The di cast. The winner by a slim margin was the Anti-Superficiality Movement. This was not going to make everything wonderful, but it was a step in the right direction, and I wish them well.
Captain’s Log out.
Song #9- Freedom is Ugly - has lyrics, no music. Musical style open.
(the tone of the song should be anticlimactic and mostly optimistic befitting the happy ending)
So on with the show
The show must go on
Sentiments widely said
Though some felt the name of the show for so long
No longer properly fit
But they failed to think it all the way through
They failed to realize
We must learn how to see with our hearts and our minds
As much as we see with our eyes
For beauty is never skin deep
And ugliness a secret some keep
And whatever it is that you find
It’s better to see than be blind
Better to see than be blind
Freedom is ugly but it’s free
To be who you are, who you want to be
And we may never agree
But we are free to disagree
And when push comes to fashion
As it does on occasion
We’ll settle it with civility
With democracy
The cancellation was cancelled
The name remained the same
The ratings went through the roof
The losers were silent that day
Because one thing rules above all
Ratings are absolute proof
This train had arrived, its whistle blowing loud
By the time it left the station
Everybody was on board
Song#10- Planet Hollywood - has lyrics, no music. Musical Style Disco Fusion Space Rock.
(this song is gratuitous fun dance music)
Everything is new on Planet Hollywood
New California, New New York
New Beverly Hills, even New Hollywood
It’s a global studio and everything is good
On Planet Hollywood
On Planet Hollywood
They are filming everywhere
On Planet Hollywood
Everyone’s a player
On Planet Hollywood
The parties never stop
On Planet Hollywood
You party til you drop
On Planet Hollywood
Everybody gets a part
On Planet Hollywood
Everybody gets a start
On Planet Hollywood
Don’t be late for that rehearsal
On Planet Hollywood
It could be your first commercial
On Planet Hollywood
You’ll be busy night and day
On Planet Hollywood
You know what they say
On Planet Hollywood
Work as hard as you can play
On Planet Hollywood
There’s nothing in your way
There’s a train to New New Dehli
Which is no more than a set
Like all the cities, towns and places
You see labelled on a map
Whose crowds of native people
Are entirely digital
But it looks so believable
When you finally get to see it in a show
I swear you’d never know
On Planet Hollywood
They are shooting every day
On Planet Hollywood
Even in the rain
On Planet Hollywood
Everybody’s looking good
But you never need to say it
Because it’s understood
On Planet Hollywood
Looking good on Planet Hollywood
You can’t help it
Try your best for that audition
No matter how big or small
Every opportunity leads to a bigger one
It’s Planet Hollywood, after all
Make a melodrama
Or documentary
Take a chance
On a Romance
A little Comedy
Be my superhero
And come and rescue me
Put on your fancy pants
Do the Hollywood dance with me
Axatar Bishop:
Well I was in my tenth year of deep space time
I’d saved enough to retire, and due to the newly opened up immigration policy
And happening to be there, I was in the first group able to apply
I’d met a young starlet who was a dead ringer for Melanie Griffith
Who kind of dug my naturally rugged good looks as much as I did hers
But there was a lot more to us than that
I truly believe we are soul partners, lucky, lucky and lucky
And believe it or not, they offered me a role on a remake of an old TV series
As a starship captain galavanting around the galaxy
And kissing a different woman on every episode
It’s a five year mission, sounds right up my alley
And I won’t even have to leave home
Yeah, the Planet of Beautiful People is gonna be alright
I guess I’d say I’m settling down for my happy ending
But I never will forget the Interstellar Fur Traders trademark call
Freedom, fair dealing and fun for all
Background music flows into the final song.
Song#11- Planet of Beautiful People Orchestral Refrain - No or minimal lyrics, orchestral based on POBP Theme Song.
(imagine what might pop up on the show as background music from time to time)
(length not limited as this is where the credits are rolling and it depends on how much thematic development is developed)
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Yes, great point. I really like your lyrics, and had been feeling hesitant to edit or rewrite anything, but I had also been thinking it might be necessary for things to flow for me in singing and with the music. Good idea on maybe repeating some lines too, for a chorus effect perhaps. These lyrics are very strong on storytelling, and the typical song is more repetitive to hammer on themes.
Great backstory info, as well as some of the other things you mentioned. I have a character voice in mind, which I will try out on the opening narration. I’ll do that very first one and post it here for review, feedback etc. I like to make sure I’m on track with what I come up with before sinking loads of time in doing the whole thing.
I can’t hardly wait!
PS: You do have your coonskin cap, right?
Hey Steban, I’ve been working on the ‘POBP Orchestral Refrain’, doing some sketches, I’d like to try to add some vocal FX, can you send me an mp3 of just your lead vocals, 320kbps?
Here you go, Ingo. This lines up from the beginning. Anything else you want, please let me know.
I hope everyone has been doing fine in general and possibly on the project. I am not trying to rush anyone. At all. You all have actual real lives that come way before this, including me, but me, being rather emotionally attached to this, allocate more free time to fiddling with it. So, I’m uploading two more shell songs on the list, and I’m not set in stone on them, so your opinions matter a lot! I’m somewhat pleased with the way they are heading and can hear bass/vocal tracks at the minimum added as I’m intentionally leaving that out and leaving space in for them.
Song #8 - We’ll Try to Turn Back the Clock
Song #9 - Freedom Is Ugly
For me, the good news is we are on a good track to finish by my birthday! Granted, there is a lot of i’s to dot and t’s to cross, but I am already vibing on Children of the Sun anthemic rocker from Stan in my imagination and Ingo’s POBP refrain, and I can totally feel the spoken parts with their cool soundtrack music gluing it all together. I’m thinking this is going to be like 22 tracks, 11 songs, 11 spoken parts, give or take. This, my fellow Interstellar Fur Traders, is going to be a massive work.
And you might know Hurricane Harvey is coming my way tomorrow night, which I hope will not be a direct hit- lost power for 2 weeks after Ike. Fried my motherboard when the power was turned back on, so my free advice is unplug all that stuff if the power is going to be down for days as they have serious surges. Anyway, I may lose my internet for days in the near future…
And FYI, as you know, this is part two of a series, Tales of the Interstellar Fur Traders, and I’ve been already very busy recently on part three, Oasis. I already have five songs and the plot. There will be a lot to do on this one, and I am finding it quite fun so far. It is musically and lyrically largely styled like Beach Boys classic surfing music with all the sci-fi touches. Planet Oasis is a beach planet without an ocean, super rich in precious metals like gold and silver and platinum, but with water similar to oil here, very scarce, and thus their most precious resource. They build these incredible indoor water and surf parks with water they’ve traded gold for, and the people adopt this surfer lifestyle/mentality, and it goes on. Suffice it to say it concludes with an interstellar surfing competition. Too bad I can’t hit an A7 or 6-4 probably! Songs (semi rough) thus far are-
Raining in the Ocean (very pretty)
Wish They All Could Be Little Surfer Girls (parody)
The Heart of the Oasis (reggae)
The Endless Ride (Ventures akin to Wipeout)
Give Me a Break (slow dance romance)
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I can add some vocals or guitarto something if u send me some files? Be glad to help out
I liked the sound of So Polarized, and I like Freedom Is Ugly too. I guess it’s the Rock and Prog elements that appeal to me. I had actually imagined a lead guitar solo in So Polarized, but when I listened in detail it didn’t seem like there was room for it except a few quick fills. Freedom is Ugly also sounds fairly complete already.
I really like the song. The music and vocals are good too. My only suggestion might be for the Rock songs to be a little slicker and tighter in terms of performance and production. I’m still trying to get a sense of where the overall project will work with all elements though.
I have been marinating on the GAOTSS song, and have lots of ideas. I hope to sketch it out in the next few days. I didn’t want to go too “over the top” in Rock and production, but now that Freedom is Ugly came out I feel there’s some good areas to merge with.
I realized today that when I cut my narration tracks (again, first one in the next few days) I will probably just post dry tracks since I don’t know what effects or music will be behind them. I assume that’s something that you (steban) and Ingo will be able to support and integrate. I can do effects if needed, just need to know some context.
Are you in Houston too? (Chordwainer posted about this) I hope all is well. Evacuate if you need to, I read this is the biggest mistake people make if authorities try to make it mandatory.
Whew! I’m just trying to get through this one right now. It’s cool that you keep writing and creating though. You’ve tapped some kind of ethereal fountain, it seems.
That would be great, LazyE! Depending on the weather, I’ll send you something. If you listen to any of the songs and imagine a cool guitar part, by all means record it if not too much trouble or let Stan know what you have in mind as you are both the guitarists. And vocals, same deal on POBP. If you have a harmony line or a lead vocal you maybe can replace, that would be swell. I can imagine them but am avoiding doing them myself!
And if nothing for POBP, then I can send you Oasis songs, but as Stan says, best not to get ahead of ourselves!
That helps me get a better grip on what to do next. Once a new song is somewhat organized, there are a lot of things I can do that can vary it and tighten it up without having to change any of the timing or chords. That way Ailwyn can confidently add bass, and same for anybody else.
If you want to go over the top, Stan, it’s encouraged in the Interstellar Fur Traders band! But seriously, I’m speculating that as you hear more of all the songs played in order, with or without dry narration in between, you will better discover thematic elements you can integrate into GAOTSS.
And once I hear GAOTSS, I probably will hear better where your guitar will fit in other tracks. I’m not saying every song must have more guitar, but in my vision this song should be the big rock track, a major theme that is echoed in other parts, including some background music possibly.
I am hoping Ingo wants the lead on soundtrack. The good news is we should soon have all the song music done, so we will know how it flows. If he needs help, we’ll see what we can do. Don’t have Kim’s oooohaaaahs this time, most likely, which did contribute to the overall vibe on Mink Stolen.
I’m about 50 miles north of downtown Houston, Stan. We stayed during Ike, and it was not fun, no power for 2 weeks, but no tree fell on my house, and we never flood. It is very calm right now, but the wind is picking up. I hope it inspires a song, and not too sad a one…
I’m happy to work on soundtrack stuff, and I’m willing to share duties or mix whatever works, right now I don’t have any idea of what we need for the soundtracks so any suggestions would be helpful (do we want ambient, spacey, orchestral, rock/pop, a mixture?)
And right now I’m deep into the orchestral POBP refrain using elements that are new to me so it’s taking a lot of time and I will definitely need help, possibly from the BTR section where we hopefully can get some good feedback once I cobble this thing together!
Sorry, I have been down for the count recently.
Well, I hope you are on upward track again soon, dude!
Hurricane update: missed me. There will be more rain, but the wind has been light. No song yet.
Sorry gents… I’ll have to pull out of this project. I have personal issues going on at home at the moment, and I simply don’t have the time to even start to explore Reaper, etc. Sometimes music has to take a back seat, and you have to prioritise family first…
Great news!
Glad you’re OK Steban, such a tragedy for Houston.
That’s completely understandable, Ailwyn. When I first switched to Reaper from Cubase, I had all kinds of problems getting anything at all to work. It was so frustrating at first I was afraid I would never get it going. I also had to change my soundcard, which didn’t help. But fortunately for me Reaper turned out to be very stable and not so difficult after a few months of stumbling around blindly. You are accustomed to recording with the band, and somebody else surely had it all under control. I hope those other issues can be worked out for you and family, my friend. We will miss your kick ass bass, dude, but we’ll plod onward. FYI, I have not heard back from cj yet, but I did hear from Kim that she, too, was not able to devote time to the project right now, and that’s OK.
If you ever are ready for some online help with Reaper, I’ll be happy to give you a hand. Meanwhile, hope to see you around here.
Thanks, guys. Houston has not kept up with flood control for many decades. Worse still, they have allowed a lot of home and other building in the flood zones on the wrong side of the dams. It is greed of developers and not enough public will to spend the bucks to prevent another manmade disaster. We’ve had 500 year floods for the past three years, which means they are not 500 year floods anymore. I’m all for major infrastructure spending to prevent this in the future, but Trump is all about a wall, not real infrastructure improvement, which, to quote him, is “sad”.
I’ve been distracted by all of it, for sure, but that is gratefully over. We are close to having all the parts to a state where we can slap them all together and assess what is left to complete and how. I think Ingo, regarding the soundtrack parts, we can probably do it like Mink Stolen, each part different but retaining some continuity. It ought not clash with the music but tangentially be connected. You were able to add the drama and appropriate emotion last time, and this time I hope we can do the same. Do you have the Fab Four sounds? Seems there were some tasty orchestra sounds there for some character.
I have to say this out loud, even though I know I’m dreaming, I do see a potential for some commercial success as each tale is completed as it gives a bigger picture of the unique angle we are bringing to sci-fi with the musical motif, which is something no one else has done. We need a Jack Black as a captain or Seth Rogen or someone like that to get excited by the story and the format and want to adapt it to film. It could happen!
So I don’t think we have to be perfect, we just have to rock and try to be compelling enough for people to want to hear the entire story, then maybe the next story, and the next. We all share a lot of a taste for classic rock that wants to be classically influenced, and that is our huge advantage.
And that is why I have already started Oasis, a surfer themed episode (5 songs so far), and On the Way to Gallifrey (3 songs so far), about a trip of a thousand costumed passengers to the colony created for cosplay that gets lost in space via a wormhole and ends up stranded in the Sombrero Galaxy for ten years. I want each to be intriguing and thematically different but all within our musical IFT universe. Because, even a single album length project is epic, and four connected concept albums of any genre is almost historically epic. And no matter how many of these any of you are able to be a part of, and even if Tenacious D never joins the IFT, it will be a very cool personal accomplishment for all of us. It’s a simple 5 way split right now as my criteria for being an IFT is having actual contributions to any of the projects and wanting to be associated with it, but I’m absolutely not recommending anybody giving up their full time jobs 
.
A last note, on POBP, I am going over the newer rock songs to try to improve any parts I can. And anybody want to play bass? I’m a midi bass person, not a real bassist.
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I may be able to contribute some bass parts. I really need to get the song (GAOTSS) and narration going, trying to set aside time for this. I like to tell myself I’m ‘marinating’ on the ideas. 
But if some bass parts are needed on some songs, I think I’m a fair bass player. Guitar is my main instrument, but I have been doing bass parts for many years.
That’s good news, Stan. You are taking on a lot, so please don’t let the bass lines worry you while you have GAOTSS and narration to do. In fact, if there is anything I can help you with, let me know. Any vocal parts, any synth or midi drums. Marinating is good, dude. You can’t tell, but on several of the songs I’ve completely abandoned initial musical ideas I’d sketched out when I realized they were missing something essential. Usually it was the melody, too technical, not enough accessible heart. That’s what gives COTS its longevity. Strong melody, complex but equally compellingly simple. Do not shy away from borrowing some super familiar trope Hollywood stuff to help convey the song story, like the lion roaring or half a snippet of the studio theme for 20th Century Fox. For this particular song, you can get away with it. I have this intuitive feeling you are going to nail it.
OK, thanks! That may help. I’m feeling the need to do a sketch of the song ideas and put it up for commentary before going deep into it. I like having feedback so I feel more strongly about the direction to go in.
OMG! Either you have read my mind or great minds think alike. 
Those are what I had come up with for some kind of intro. Literally a lion’s roar (but not the verbatim MGM one) and a melodic takeoff from the 20th Century Fox jingle, but again something similar but not exactly that. I wanted to infer those things without necessarily sampling them or using verbatim SFX from the web. Though maybe that would be fine. I was trying to think how a futuristic society would view, hear, or interpret them. Your lyrics are quite specific though, so perhaps being cliche is just what is needed.