Here's a newie...this time it's finished already THOUGH I'm more than happy for comments on how it can be improved as I may revisit, but will definitely keeps such ideas in mind for the next song. Misha engineered the vocals by Katya.
BIAB supplied the SKA drums though not, strangely, from a ska style ,(SkaFast Pop Wes), I had to search for this one as the kit in the style was way over the top with splashy cymbals, and an organ from somewhere...I auditioned almost every Hammond sounding one until this jumped at me. No Farfisa to be found. AND the horns which are a blend of a coupe of different funk and RnB styles, (3257 Horn Section Blues Shuffle & 2348 Horn Section Funk 2 part), with added Mel 9 lines for some bottom end. LOTS of cutting and pasting was needed for these.
Bass & guitar are me using a Vantage bass through a Behringer BDI21 - Sansamp clone, (15% of the cost and a remarkably good replica), and an ancient Guyatone LT125 guitar through a Marshall Superbass & Marshall cab double mic'd with a Sennheiser e609. Audio interface is an SSL2. The 4K button was used on bass, guitar and vocals.
Set in A major and moves from 130-140bpms
Tracked & mixed in Reaper...non native plugin was PSP Vintage warmer 2.
Lyrics are in the video.
Thanks Misha and particularly Katya for advice, assistance and THAT VOICE! Excellent.
Oh, YES! So cool. First of all, the music. Right from the idea in the lyrics this is superb. Love the bass in particular, very creative and supportive. Excellent guitar work. The organ sounds fine --Farfisas are tough to find. I like the protest vibe of the song. Katya is the perfect choice, and sounds great in the mix. The video was also superb, supporting the lyrics with visual aides. hehe Loved it, Ray. No suggestions for mix improvement because it too was perfect. Everything sits in the right place and each piece can be heard.
Enjoy whatever happens! marty
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@babumusic51 SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/marty-straub Band in a Box, Reaper, Cakewalk, Ozone 12, EZDrummer
I read your description and was looking forward to hearing female vocals and horns, but could barely hear either. Made me wonder if my headphones were messed up. But otherwise, I totally dug the song and its message. The male vocal was good and there is always a great feeling in your live instruments. Very well done.
Windows 11, Intel Core I5 10400, 16 gig ram, Scarlett 2i2, Sony Acid Music Studio 10, BIAB 2020 UltraPlus Pak
Oh, YES! So cool. First of all, the music. Right from the idea in the lyrics this is superb. Love the bass in particular, very creative and supportive. Excellent guitar work. The organ sounds fine --Farfisas are tough to find. I like the protest vibe of the song. Katya is the perfect choice, and sounds great in the mix. The video was also superb, supporting the lyrics with visual aides. hehe Loved it, Ray. No suggestions for mix improvement because it too was perfect. Everything sits in the right place and each piece can be heard.
Thanks Marty, I was going to retrack the bass to be more frenetic like it often was in ska but the loping lines seemed to be a nice contrast to the guitars so I resisted. The guitar was difficult I have to own up to A LOT of slicing & dicing to get the rhythm consistent. Thanks again.
Cheers rayc "What's so funny about peace, love & understanding?" - N.Lowe
Cool! Rather edgy, the video fits the music. I'd like to hear the vocals a tad more forward though. Those images of the "American Nazi Party" are a stark reminder of how easy it is to warp minds. well done! moto
Thanks Cpt., I've commented on the vocals above...I didn't want to be cruel. Yes, Maddison Square Gardens with 20 or 40 thousand neo Nazis in 1939 does suggest the media had a little to do with it. I wonder how George's family felt about his image being used? Things change but some things don't.
Cheers rayc "What's so funny about peace, love & understanding?" - N.Lowe
Wow, that's ambitious, really edgy-cool, where's Trump? That was entertaining, good job all.
Phanks Frank, Thanks. DT is in there but not a key figure as the song is about media minions. My Prime Minister & his deputy are in there though. The former having been a Marketing man. A few North Americans and a few Australians flicker in n out for contrast and demographics.
Cheers rayc "What's so funny about peace, love & understanding?" - N.Lowe
I read your description and was looking forward to hearing female vocals and horns, but could barely hear either. Made me wonder if my headphones were messed up. But otherwise, I totally dug the song and its message. The male vocal was good and there is always a great feeling in your live instruments. Very well done.
Thanks Tunemonger, The female vocals top n tail the song as well as reinforce the verse n are more present in the chorus. The horns are in the intro, choruses and outro. I can hear them, I just checked the vid and I can hear them in it as well...they are at a level that's about right for 2nd wave ska. I'm sorry to disappoint...I struggled with Katya's vocal level for a few days- clearly I didn't quite win that part.
Thanks for the listen and I'm glad that, over all, you liked the thing.
Cheers rayc "What's so funny about peace, love & understanding?" - N.Lowe
Ray, Cool tune! Dark, but listens easy, thanks to genre and your ability to fluidly convey message. Strong and unusual progression. Solid lyrics / phrasing. Speeding and slowing parts kind of gets you out of "listening" square. Good work on spooky video. Katya thanks you for the invite. I was only a bystander pressing button Thank you for sharing.
G'day Ray Bought and paid for politicians - Surely not! I thought they were all pure as the driven snow! "It's their living it's their job Like accountants for the mob" ghsrttyryrtsrgrgccf (laughing too hard to form words) There is a lot to unpack here, music and lyrics. I am going to have to listen and digest this more closely when I have some time and comment further. Sounds and looks good on first spin. regards Gary.
Hi Ray, Really interesting song and lyrics. Yes I agree with others - if you were to revisit this song then I would love to hear more Katya and Horns. Well done and thanks for the listen. Best Regards Nigel
Thanks Nigel, Druther noted.
Cheers rayc "What's so funny about peace, love & understanding?" - N.Lowe
Ray, Cool tune! Dark, but listens easy, thanks to genre and your ability to fluidly convey message. Strong and unusual progression. Solid lyrics / phrasing. Speeding and slowing parts kind of gets you out of "listening" square. Good work on spooky video. Katya thanks you for the invite. I was only a bystander pressing button Thank you for sharing.
Misha.
Thanks Misha, you are, as always, generous and kind. Thanks to you & Katya for our valuable assistance with & without the button pressing.
Cheers rayc "What's so funny about peace, love & understanding?" - N.Lowe
G'day Ray Bought and paid for politicians - Surely not! I thought they were all pure as the driven snow! "It's their living it's their job Like accountants for the mob" ghsrttyryrtsrgrgccf (laughing too hard to form words) There is a lot to unpack here, music and lyrics. I am going to have to listen and digest this more closely when I have some time and comment further. Sounds and looks good on first spin. regards Gary.
Thanks Gary, We've a right pickle at present with the Fox n Republican nexus in the USA plus the LNP Shy/Murdoch one in Australia...the Torys with Sky n Murdoch as well. Seems there's a thread somewhere in there to be pulled.
I like your sound canvas word.
Cheers rayc "What's so funny about peace, love & understanding?" - N.Lowe
The Pygmy Beat Extended sound. The Pygmy Beat Extended subject matter. The Pygmy Beat Extended video styling. You have developed a truly original identity. The Pygmy Beat Extended.
Might be your best video yet. Mix is good. I agree that Katya's vocal and the horns could be brought up some. Nice job on the vocals, the guitar and bass...
That Pygmy Beat Extended thing is really catchy. It sticks in my head for a LONG time after hearing the song. Cool.
With the release of Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac, we’re rolling out a collection of brand-new videos on our YouTube channel. We’ll keep this forum post updated so you can easily find all the latest videos in one convenient spot.
Whether you're exploring new features, checking out the latest RealTracks or Style PAKs, this is your go-to guide for Band-in-a-Box® 2026.
Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac is here and it is packed with major new features! There’s a new modern look, a GUI redesign to all areas of the program including toolbars, windows, workflow and more. There’s a Multi-view layout for organizing multiple windows. A standout addition is the powerful AI-Notes feature, which uses AI neural-net technology to transcribe polyphonic audio into MIDI—entire mixes or individual instruments—making it easy to study, view, and play parts from any song. And that’s just the beginning—there are over 100 new features in this exciting release.
Along with version 2026, we've released an incredible lineup of new content! There's 202 new RealTracks, brand-new RealStyles, MIDI SuperTracks, Instrumental Studies, “Songs with Vocals” Artist Performance Sets, Playable RealTracks Set 5, two new RealDrums Stems sets, XPro Styles PAK 10, Xtra Styles PAK 21, and much more!
Special Offers
Upgrade to Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac and save up to 50% on most upgrade packages during our special offer—available until May 15, 2026. Visit our Band-in-a-Box® packages page to explore all available upgrade options.
2026 Free Bonus PAK & 49-PAK Add-ons
Our Free Bonus PAK and 49-PAK are loaded with amazing add-ons! The Free Bonus PAK is included with most Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac packages, but you can unlock even more—including 20 unreleased RealTracks—by upgrading to the 2026 49-PAK for just $49.
Band-in-a-Box® 2025 for Mac® users: Build 904 now available!
If you're already using Band-in-a-Box® 2025 for Mac®, make sure to grab the latest update! Build 904 is now available for download and includes the newest additions and enhancements from our team.
PowerTracks 2026 is here—bringing powerful new enhancements designed to make your production workflow faster, smoother, and more intuitive than ever.
The enhanced Mixer now shows Track Type and Instrument icons for instant track recognition, while a new grid option simplifies editing views. Non-floating windows adopt a modern title bar style, replacing the legacy blue bar.
The Master Volume is now applied at the end of the audio chain for consistent levels and full-signal master effects.
Tablature now includes a “Save bends when saving XML” option for improved compatibility with PG Music tools. Plus, you can instantly match all track heights with a simple Ctrl-release after resizing, and Add2 chords from MGU/SGU files are now fully supported... and more!
Get started today—first-time packages start at just $49.
Already using PowerTracks Pro Audio? Upgrade for as little as $29 and enjoy the latest improvements!
One of our representatives will be happy to help you over the phone. Our hours of operation are from
6:00AM to 6:00PM PST (GMT -8) Monday thru Friday, and 8:00AM to 4:00PM PST Saturday. We are closed Sunday. You can also send us your questions via email.
One of our representatives will be happy to help you on our Live Chat or by email. Our hours of operation are from
6:00AM to 6:00PM PST (GMT -8) Monday thru Friday; 8:00AM to 4:00PM PST (GMT -8) Saturday; Closed Sunday.
Thank you for sharing.
Dansk
Deutsch - Windows
Español
Français - Windows
Italiano - Windows
Nederlands
Polski
Português
Svenskt
русский
Japanese
Simplified Chinese
Traditional Chinese
Korean