February 9th, 2008: Vocal sessions. This really should have been included in the "studio diaries" section, but the recording sessions have been so sporadic (usually around 30 minutes to an hour on certain days) that it would be really difficult to manage such a thing. Also, we probably would be up to chapter 5 part 78 if I had kept going with that. The good news, however, is that the vocal recording sessions really have begun! So far, some narration has been completed for "November 23", clean vocals and screams have been recorded for "Her Silvery Vision" but not entirely completed as of yet. Also, all of the clean vocals for "Memories" were completed which makes it the first song to actually be finished.
Of course this college semester is in full swing, and the work takes a lot of focus and effort. It is difficult to find the chance to record the vocals for The Ivory Chapel. Progress continues, however! Slowly but surely. A friend of mine (Melinda Gramnaes) from the college painted a beautiful face for the artwork. I wish I could post that right now, but the cover really hasn't been finished yet. Her work is great, though, and it will make me very happy to post that here one of these days. Shouldn't be too long now, but we'll see.
Peace,
-Brandon
January 6th, 2007: 'The Ivory Chapel' details revealed! Greetings! Well, as previously reported, I am now ready to release the track list for The Ivory Chapel! There are 9 songs and the total length is just a little bit more than the debut. Here are the titles!
'The Ivory Chapel'
1. November 23
2. Her Silvery Vision
3. Memories
4. The Ivory Chapel
5. To Measure One's Worth
6. A Knight's Vengeance
7. The Return (Instrumental)
8. Assault on the Kingdom
9. Spiritual HallucinationsThe rough mixdowns add up to 74 and a half minutes, but after everything is cleaned up and finished, it may be a bit less or more. The only remaining step is to record the vocals, since the lyrics are completely written and all of the instruments are recorded!
Happy 23rd birthday, Amanda!
-Brandon
December 29th, 2007: Lyrics finished! A grand hello to you all!
THE LYRICS ARE DONE! I'm so happy that they're finally finished! I was stuck for the longest time on the fourth song, which seemed to really boggle my mind as for how the lyrics should be implemented... After I finally worked my brain around that song, the writing for the rest of the songs was easier to comprehend. The writing started to get really fun, and I was actually singing the vocal melodies that I will probably use while writing them!
Since the instrumental recordings are done, all that remains to be completed is the recording of the vocals, mixing, and mastering the CD. The vocal sessions are going to be massive! There's going to be a bit more vocal styles on the new CD, yet I will probably stay in a more comfortable range this time around. I can sing the material from the debut much more comfortably at this stage, but back then, doing that was a large strain! I'm pretty confident that it will be sweet!
Last but not least, I will release the details and song titles of the new album on January 6th, 2008! A very special day, indeed. I might also release the concept and lyrics as pdf files like I did for the first CD, but I'm not entirely sure yet. It may be just a tad too early for that. Take care, everyone! :)
-Brandon
December 27th, 2007: Studio Diaries and Updates Greetings, my friends!
I would basically like to let you know that I've added the Studio Diaries page... the link has been here for about a week but I just got around to actually creating the page and adding the content... so if you visited it before and got a 404 Error, sorry about that! :)
I've been posting these studio diary updates as bulletins on MySpace. If you haven't been able to follow along with these updates, they're now available to you! In the last couple weeks or so, the heavy guitars, acoustic, and bass have all been recorded for The Ivory Chapel--the follow-up to Shrouded Destiny. Most of these aspects were replaced, except for the demo acoustic guitars which were actually recorded at a nice quality. They sit nicely amongst the newly recorded acoustic guitars, and the minor differences between the way the riffs are played now and before work well to harmonize each other!
Just a very small update here, like I said. I hope you guys had a great Christmas, and a happy New Year!
I also hope you enjoyed Holy Light... it was a blast making that song! :)
-Brandon
December 16th, 2007: The new song Holy Light is here! Hey there!
I am incredibly happy to introduce the new song, Holy Light! This song was recorded using all of the new gear that is going to be used on the follow-up to Shrouded Destiny as well. What is that follow-up called? The title is The Ivory Chapel! So there you go... Not only do you get the new song and video, but also the title of the upcoming album! Merry Christmas to you! Check out this making-of video, which actually came out pretty funny. If I would have included all of the times when I messed up or was trying to fix something, the movie would have been incredibly long.
Looking for the song? Download Holy Light now!
I really hope you all like it. This is my Christmas present to you! As for the second Rainwound album, The Ivory Chapel, I will probably start using my new knowledge I gained from this song to start recording for it over Christmas break. I've got a lot of projects scheduled for this break, but Rainwound is definitely taking the top priority spot! Keep an eye out for Rainwound in 2008, and I hope you will all love the new music!Have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, God bless!
-Brandon
October 24th, 2007: www.rainwound.com - Site updates, including additional MP3 downloads! Greetings, folks! I've got some fantastic news to report first--I've grabbed www.rainwound.com for the official Rainwound website. This is a good accomplishment, I suppose, and further proof of my commitment towards Rainwound. It's like the song that never ends; except it's a band.
I've taken some time to make updates to the site by making it xhtml compatible, and also fixed the messy meta-tag nonsense that I had in there before. It was truly a horrible mess. Hopefully it will be better now. Along with the .COM url is a new server for hosting the site! This new server has a lot of capabilities for bandwidth and storage capacity, so I will be able to upload many MP3s, videos, and other stuff that should be on here, I guess. Of course I'm not going to run and upload the whole CDs, because I'm really hoping that people will help me out and pick up a copy, but I will add a couple songs to the list--songs that currently are not rotating on MySpace. So basically, you do hear most of the CD from the two sources, so if you like what you hear, please pick it up. I've got all new paypal buttons as well, and buying is easy on the Releases page!
News concerning the second album: The new equipment is beginning to arrive. I know this is going to sound insane, but I've already re-recorded the heavy guitars on the album about two times. This last time should hopefully blow those other 2 times out of the water. So far, the speaker cabinet has arrived today on the UPS truck. After that, there'll be a head, some monster cables, a firewire interface, new strings, two Shure SM57s and a PG48, and some other goodies. I'm going to try to mic that cab and get a great sound for the second album! It's going to be awesome, and loud in this small town!
Lastly, I'd like to announce that I've made an archives page for the last 10 entries, rather than delete them. I'll make archive pages whenever there are 10 entries on a page. This should help lower the loading time for some people. It may also be funny in the future to go back and read about the times when I "finished this!" and then "redid this!" and then "did this again!" I haven't written any more lyrics, mostly because I've hit a stump with the fourth song. It's very epic and the instrumentals take such a charge that it is hard to wrap my head around how the lyrics should fit in there. It's a very awesome, but complicated, song! I can't wait for you guys to hear it, so I'll keep you updated on happenings, and perhaps even release a tidbit sooner or later. The time just isn't right yet.
Peace, and God bless!
-Brandon
| October 5th, 2007: Lyric news; lyrics and storyboard available for downloading! |
| There hasn't really been a ton of stuff going on. There's been a few good reviews coming in that have had good things to say about the debut, and so far, most reviews have seemed very well put together and positive. I could tell that the reviewers have actually listened to the album, which is very cool; I appreciate it (if you happen to be reading). I've also made a very minor change to the website. Now the navigation, which used to be an HTML page held in its own iFrame, has been merged into the main index.html - no big deal, really... but it should make certain aspects of the site much more smooth. Apart from that, some fantastic progress has been made with the lyric writing for the second album. I'm still not prepared to release the information of the story and the lyrics to the entire populous, yet a select 30+ people who are my myspace friends have had the privelidge of reading the lyrics for the first three songs from the new album! And they also know the title of it, and the listed songs! I'm not the kind of person who adds just anyone; they're all very dedicated friends and family. However, I assure you, the lyrics and storyboard will be added to the website... just not yet. If you're wondering, "When, oh when, will I see said storyboards and lyrics?" then I've got the answer for you. It's gonna be a while, man. However, I have added the storyboards and lyrics for the debut, Shrouded Destiny. Now you can know what is being sung, and also the entire story that is taking place in the music. It's a grand tale of love and adventure set in a unique world. The main difference between the debut and the upcoming album is that whereas the debut took place in a "fantasy world", the new album will take place in medieval times in our own world, though elements of the fantastic and unbelievable are still featured, of course. I'm still available for interviews, whether they be by phone or email, and the debut is available for review but will only be shipped to legitimate, reputable zines. Please contact me by email if your zine is interested and include your information. Peace, and God bless! -Brandon |
| August 20th, 2007: CD2 Updates, Progcast, and Forum! |
| Greetings! There's some great news to be told, and a couple other exciting things to witness as well. Firstly, all of the instrumentation for the second Rainwound album is completed! All that is left to finish for the album is the story, lyrics, and finishing it off with the vocals... Not to mention the mixing and mastering that will take place after that. I guess if you think about it, there's still a ton that needs completed. I really hope to have it done within a month though, even though I will be very busy with college... The fifth song from Shrouded Destiny, "Oppressing The Past", was featured as the first song on a recent Progressive Rock podcast from Eclectic Moonlight. You can find information on the podcast at this location. The complete track listing for the progcast follows:
Thank you all, and God bless! -Brandon |
| August 03th, 2007: Second CD Announcement |
| Hey, friends! First of all, I would like to thank you all for sticking with the band after all these years and tragic events. It's hard to believe it's almost been 3 years already since the band was started! Time really flies... and not in an attempt to sound ridiculous, I'd like to quote In Flames from the Colony era: "Species come and go, but the earth stands forever fast." It seems like death is all around us these days. Secondly, the new CD is going to be finished this year. The heavy guitars and solos are going to be re-recorded, and the conceptual lyrics are in the works. After it is completed, promotional copies will be printed up and sent out to zines and labels for review. Two songs a month will be released for streaming until the release date - for you guys - of the second album! The interval between song releases should be about 15 days. The release date of the album will be announced at a later time. I'm currently pondering whether to buy a new keyboard and re-record the key parts, or leave them alone. They're perfectly fine, but could be much more dynamic with a Korg or something. If you guys would like to donate some dollars, please click the button and donate via Paypal! You can also visit the merch store and pick up a copy of the first album! Lastly... If there are any females out there with nice voices who would like to record a line or two of dialogue, please message back for details! The dialogue will go at the end of the new CD and the voice must sound very ethereal, but don't apply effects to your recordings! The effects will be applied in the studio in the mixing stages. The person who sends the best recordings will get a free autographed copy of the album as soon as it is completed, whereas the other folks will have to wait until next year sometime to get their copies! Oh yeah, and your name in the credits saying you recorded the lines. :D The new drums were handled by Tomas Haake of Meshuggah, err, I mean... Drumkit from Hell 2. So it should be nice. Other guest performances aren't planned... Peace! -Brandon |
| June 25th, 2007: The Winds of Change... |
| Greetings! There are still plenty of albums ready for shipment, so grab a copy! As you may have noticed, the website has moved to a new server - it's now on the same system as the Satanic Dirge website, and also the shop had to be moved onto the new server as well. Despite updating all this info and such being pretty lame, I now have the ability to upload higher quality MP3s for you to enjoy! Seek the MEDIA page and download the full demo, plus 2 tracks from the first album (The Task, Oppressing The Past) for free! Good deal there. If you like what you hear, however, please pick up a copy of the album, Shrouded Destiny! I'm trying to get the materials I need to record the next album with better drums, guitar tones, and more.... the storyline still isn't written, but that can be done further along into the process. It's unknown how long it will take before I can actually begin... sorry. The excitement for the next album continues to grow more and more, it's really going to be fantastic when it finally comes to be! -Brandon |
| May 25th, 2007: Release date for Shrouded Destiny set, ordering NOW possible! |
| Hello there, friends! The release date for Shrouded Destiny is set at May 28th, just a few days from now, but the ability to purchase the album is actually prepared today so you can get a head start! Just click on the Merchandise link on the nav bar to be taken to the new Shrouded Studios merchandise page where you can pick up some of my various works. More to be added in the future, of course. The album you can purchase, for $7 individually, has new front and back artwork in a slim case with light-scribe printed discs that look pretty nice. They're also hand-numbered, but the highest numbers are already taken. I guess sorry to announce, there are no more sales for the original demo. Those of you who ordered a copy, hang on to it as it may be worth something in the future! As for the second album, there's still no titles on anything except for the first song - "November" - and only the beginning of the story is written for the first couple of songs. The recordings are being shipped to the other end of the US to beef up my instrumental recordings, and also to have a real drum performance recorded for the album! It's going to be pretty great I hope. Thank you all for the support and make sure to pick up a copy of Shrouded Destiny! -Brandon |
| January 7th, 2007: Shrouded Destiny to be mixed / mastered, next album guitars completed! |
| Ahoy there! First of all, I've got to apologize for not having a song ready in time for Christmas. Unlike the demo that you've heard so much by now, the new material is taking a lot longer to record. Acoustic recordings for both Shrouded Destiny and the new album have been done through a microphone, which requires absolute silence, and a lot of re-takes to get the timing right on each track. Same thing goes for the heavy guitars, except silence isn't required. Shrouded Destiny will be mixed and mastered soon enough! All of the little flaws have been worked out for the most part in the vocal performances, and the instrumentals and solos all sound fine. It'll just take a while to get the mixing and mastering done well. The acoustic and heavy guitars have been laid down for the next album which is still unnamed, as well as some solos and leads. It sounds much more progressive and a lot more technical, and I even got the chance to use the wah pedal and steel slide a couple times on the album! The bass guitar is next to be recorded, and it will probably be knocked out in the next couple days after which the especially difficult part begins: keyboards. And of course the concept is still in production, no lyrics yet. There's still a lot of work left to be done, but it is sounding pretty incredible already! Fortunately for me (unfortunately for you) I have finished orientation and officially became a college student: the first class is tomorrow. Hopefully the college experience will assist in becoming more disciplined, as there are a lot of things that will need to stick to a schedule. The new album, excersizing, homework and studying, journalistic work, and more... Keep an eye on the site for more news, yet keep a closer eye on the MySpace page, as any [new] songs released will most-likely appear there for streaming. -Brandon |
| November 21st, 2006: Vocals recorded! New album details, and more... |
| The vocals for the entire 'Shrouded Destiny' album have been completed! All of the vocals are now comfortably situated inside each song except for the instrumentals (Task Completed, Christmas). The latter songs that have not yet been reported, like Final Battle and The Glory, have produced astounding results! Truly better than anything I could have imagined, and that is said prior to mixing, adding effects, and mastering - so you almost know it's going to be fantastic! It's like a weight has been lifted now that the vocals are finally done, and the demo truly shows its real face. It has not yet been reported, but all of the songs for the NEXT album have been written! It will be another massive epic with a lot more riffs and more active songwriting, less doomy - though there are still awesome doom parts in there. The concept is under production now, and after that, lyrics will surface. The concept so far is something along the lines of this: 'A Knight is haunted by the events of the worst day of his life. He was an honored knight, yet would soon become the hunted instead of the hunter. After the Kingdom initiated a full-scale abduction of all females within their vicinity, the Knight was faced with the possible death of his own wife... He became overly stressed and lost conciousness...' To be continued. All that remains to be finished on the first album before releasing are some acoustic guitar re-recordings, and then mix and master of the songs. It is hoped that all of this will be completed in time for release before, or at least near, Christmas. Stay tuned for more info as it becomes clear.... -Brandon |
| November 5th, 2006: Studio Vocal Update! |
| Hello there, friends! It's been a while since studio activity has actually been reported... I just wanted to let you know things are still being organized, vocal lines are being figured out and layers are being figured out as well. So far, the first three and half of song 4 has vocals recorded; that is, "The Task", "Companionship", "Rainwound", and the first clean part of "Oppressing The Past". The vocals are really coming out amazing! A vocal range higher than expected has been discovered through many months of practice, and will be put to use on the album. The most impressive vocal lines are those on "Rainwound" that span nearly the entire vocal range from the highest note, down to the bottom, and it really takes a lot of effort to pull that off, and there is no auto-tuning for the vocals, so I've got to stay on key constantly! Auto-tuning is horrible for music, natural voice is much better... just turn on the radio... you'll see how terrible auto-tuned vocals can be. So this means recording a part, and if necessary, recording it several more times until it is done with the best possible performance! Another of the most impressive vocal parts is during the clean section of "Oppressing The Past" where there is a full 3-part vocal harmony all fit together perfectly, and it really sounds big! It was very surprising and unexpected to hear the vocals, and how much they have evolved after all this time into sounding like a real pro vocalist almost! The screams slay, as well. The heavy mid-section of "Rainwound" is proof of that, as the screams are nearly equally as strong as the guitar tones with no distortion on them or anything, just a strong voice! I was hoping to get a "Dio" sounding voice for the heavy section of "Oppressing The Past" but such a voice is very hard to come by... unless you've got Ronnie James Dio on hand... which is very unlikely. I am hoping to have all the vocals done, and the music mixed and mastered in time for Christmas so that some songs can be uploaded onto the MySpace page here for you fellows to enjoy. Soon after, I will have to decide how to distribute the album (and how to get the money for such things)... Thank you all for your support, and happy Guy Fawkes day! -Brandon |
| October 15th, 2006: Second album is written! |
| Taking some spare time now and then, the second album has been written. It took an extremely long time, and the process was laced with a lot of difficulty. The songs are a lot more technical and a lot more progressive, yet there are also the heavy sections and whole heavy songs so the tradition continues! The concept has not quite been thought up yet, though I am toying with a lot of ideas. There is no album title, or song titles yet because that will come after the concept - and lyrics - have been written. All I can really share at the moment is predicted length of the final version. It should be aroun 72 minutes with 9 songs. There are a lot more riffs, a ton more hooks and progressions, and the songwriting is a lot more vocal-friendly which will hopefully make it much easier to do than the previous album.... The vocals on Shrouded Destiny are extremely difficult to perform. I've been singing along with CDs once in a while, and I seem to be strengthening my voice, yet when I get behind the microphone I turn all weakly and it seems like everything is more difficult. Perhaps the motivation of the new album will get me working harder on the previous one. A label hasn't yet been found to release the albums, so they will most-likely be independently released with the assistance of PayPal. I really don't know how far I will be going with the packaging for the upcoming albums yet but I am planning to do it myself. Take care everyone, and have a good Halloween! -Brandon |
| August 24th, 2006: Vocal recordings have begun! |
| Hello! As you may have noticed, I've expanded the news section by including it on this main page. Hope you all enjoy this. So far, vocals have been recorded for the first two songs ("The Task" , "Companionship") and although the material is very difficult and requires a highly developed vocal range, I've... well... been able to get the job done! Trust me, I wouldn't allow it to be completely horrible. I will do my best and continue to try to expand my vocal range. I've been singing along with some of my favorite progressive rock bands, and that seems to be helping a lot. I'm exploring areas of my voice I didn't even know I had! You will all hear an example of this in December when "The Task" is released as a Christmas gift to you guys! Yes, I'm doing the Christmas thing again this year. I'm going to make a Christmas instrumental on every CD, I've decided. The first CD, Shrouded Destiny, will have the Christmas bonus track from 2005. Each new song will have to have an original name, obviously. The future of Rainwound at this time seems very bright, and I have a lot of hopes and expectations for the final product. Sorry it's taken so many years to get done, but this isn't exactly the Paris Hilton project that seems to get done over night, though people might, like, cry it's that good! Also playing into the band's fortune, a small vintage organ was recently acquired yet too late for the first album's recordings! It might be used on the second album, which already has 3 songs written clocking in at 21 minutes! No songs named yet, and the new CD is not named either, and no album concept is currently being dreamed up, unfortunately. Enjoy the new design and thanks for the support! -Brandon |
The Ivory Chapel
To Be Announced
Shrouded Destiny
May 25th, 2007
Demo for Shrouded Destiny
November 13th, 2005