Episode 23 Running Away

Episode 23 Running Away

This episode comes from the twitch stream on June 22, 2023. I deliberately decided to start things off a bit slower in this stream, trying to get back to the mellow cello namesake. I really like how things start here, with a very laid back vibe. It’s easier to noodle around with the bow when things are more sparse and relaxed like this, as it doesn’t feel like a lot of layers are necessary. When I add in the bass of course a little more laying feels right.

I keep things mellow in the second piece as well, with a nice progression that has a call and answer aspect. I think the simple arco layers work to add some depth to things, and provide a nice bed for some soloing. I kind of tried to imagine this as a more vocal song and use the cello how vocals might sound, as this progression reminded me of some kind of ballad. Things pickup a bit in the third piece, with a bit more of a stomping rhythm, and a more blue grassy progression to go along with it. I like the bowed riff that goes along with things, kind of adds a dramatic action feeling to things, pushing things forward.

As usually at about the half way point it’s time to try something more ethereal, which involves an airy looped bow part over a spacier rhythm. Things start off a bit dreamy and then coalesce into a more coherent piece that has some nice textural twists and turns. I like when I’m able to build up some initial loop textures, take these away and build new ones, and then build up new ones yet again and take away the previous ones.

The next piece is built up with the idea of escaping something or running away from something, which I think the slightly tense sounding initial loop is able to help accomplish. I played the piece after telling the story of when Kathryn and I tried to camp in a very remote site in bear country in Idaho and encountered a mother moose and baby upon entering our site.

I end things with a more laid back piece with arco layers that breathe a bit.

Episode 21 Meta Cello

Things get started off with a fun driving beat that develops into a bowed line that feels like it’s racing ahead to me, on its way to somewhere. I’m starting to feel like I’m almost as comfortable rhythmically with the bow as I am pizzicato, which is a goal I’m striving toward. The bow is always going to be slightly less rhythmic just because of the nature of the attack, but I like feeling like it’s close. Things slow down a bit in the second piece, but still keep a driving forward sensibility. I like the melodic theme I find here, there’s a lyrical aspect to the little bowed figures. The third piece keeps up the quicker pace, and I find a chord progression that I’ve done before, but with a new twist, which seems to often be the case, especially at the end with the layered lyrical arco figures. For the fourth piece I was inspired by Mark Summers, who’s piece Julie-O was one of the earliest pieces that really opened my eyes to alternative possibilities with the cello. I think I’d like to develop this piece a bit more and try to have another section, as it’s hard to keep this fast pace throughout without some sort of break in the action as a bit of a respite to the sound, but I think it sounds cool as a short little jaunt. We return to the driving forward feeling of things, with a cool rhythmic piece. It takes me a little while to find an arco line that works, but I eventually get there more or less. Things get a little darker, but I kind of like when I can slightly transform a darker sounding piece with little spots of brightness here and there. I think the final piece actually has some nice finality to it, so to speak.

Episode 19 Dark Bowings

This episode comes from the Twitch stream on June 8th after I was away on a break, and I can hear myself getting back into the swing of things when I listen back. Things start off with a piece that develops into a bit of a jaunty theme, built around a bouncy pizzicato loop. The second piece is a bit more contemplative and downtempo. I think things started to come together for the fourth piece where I developed a bit of a darker sounding groove. I used my bow a bit more than usual throughout this stream/episode, mostly to try to practice regaining control of it, as that tends to be the first thing that goes after a break away from playing/practicing. I kept things going with the bow through the end, building up a lot of rhythmic arco layers for the final piece. I think the different staccato textures allow this piece to continue driving forward and provides a nice bed for the faster paced melodic runs.

Episode 17 Cellohmm

Episode 17 is a throwback episode that comes from the twitch stream on February 24 2023. Episode 16 is a subscriber exclusive which you can find on my bandcamp subscription page. I start things off all arco, which is rare for me. I usually prefer to do things pizzicato to start with to give things a rhythmic base, but I think I should do more of this type of thing. There’s something a bit more cinematic about a driving bowed rhythm, but it’s more difficult to keep the conviction going I think with an all arco loop. Listening back there are times I wish big drums could come in, but I think there’s still something that works about the starkness. I like the shift that happens about 11 minutes in, where things open up a bit. After this I play The Voyage Home from Momotaro. The third piece takes a little while to get going, but I like the vibe when things start to come together. It’s an upbeat piece with some nice moments. The 4th piece at about 33 minutes in is a bit more frenetic and has some nice opportunities for a more brooding feel. Finally I end things with a Reversing from the album Reversal.

Episode 15 Cello GPT

Episode 15 is a throwback episode from the Twitch stream on March 28 2023. Episode 14 is a subscriber exlusive episode available only on my bandcamp subscription page. Things take a little while to coalesce, but I really like the chord progression that develops, simple as it may be. The percussion plays a big part in the feel of this one, with a nice little shuffling drive to keep things moving forward. The second piece takes on a more brooding tone, with a slightly darker sound to things when the bowed layers get going. I change the chord pattern halfway through keeping the same percussion to brighten things up a bit, which is something I haven’t done in a while, but I like hearing it (at least when I can get it to work). The riff I land is something that has come up several times in other jams, and is something that I just like to use now and then. Third is a rendition of Kickin Rocks, which devolves into a bit of a deconstruction of the piece. After this is a sort variation of my song Watersong, and finally Toki Doki.

Episode 13 On the Mend

This 13th episode comes from the youtube stream on May 16 2023. Episodes 11 and 12 are subscriber exclusive episodes over on my bandcamp subscription page. Things start off kind of contemplative, as I build things around a nice delay effect I found. I like the way the delay effect kind of creates a shape for me to explore, almost like a colorful tunnel I’m moving through and I can explore in different directions and decorate the walls as I move through the space. I always feel like it’s nice to explore the higher end first, which feels like the ceiling, and then to find the foundation in the lower notes. I continued this idea in the second piece, building on a delay effect again. This piece feels more like skating on a river though, less 3 dimensional somehow. Maybe it’s the slight iciness of the delayed repeating effect. When things get going halfway through and more color comes in I like to imagine myself skating down a frozen river under the aurora borealis. The third piece is built around the sort of shimmering drone effect and percussion loop. The strumming beat kind of lends itself to an almost reggae sound here. And I think the progression has a light vibe, which I felt suited the high pitched whistling effect. The next piece is more ambient and wandering, eventually filling out. The final piece has some more flow to to it, and I like some of the arco figures here.

Episode 10 One time at Bandcamp

This podcast comes from the Youtube stream from May 2, 2023 and it’s the 10th episode of the podcast! With this episode I’ve launched my bandcamp subscription page, where you can subscribe and support me directly, and get early access to ad free episodes, individual song downloads and more.

Things start off to a nice relaxed pace with a slightly swinging shuffling pace to things, with an almost waltz like feel to things. The second piece expands on some of the themes from the first jam, which I find is often the case with these sessions. I like the bowed figure in the third piece that starts to develop, which I think adds a bit of cinematic drama. After this is an instrumental rendition of Traveling Light. Then it’s New Groove, from the Sushi Tapes EP, which was first composed on an earlier stream. The next piece has a bit of a nice forward drive to it, and I like the legato layers that give it a kind of meandering river feel. Things get a bit dance-y feeling with a nice bouncy pizzicato riff with some fun arco harmonies over top. The final piece takes a little while to develop, but I really like the melody that finally develops. It’s funny to listen back to it how I can hear hints of the final melody start to trickle in and I keep wanting it to land, and thankfully I think it finally does.

Episode 9 Nineties Feel

This twitch stream from Thursday April 27th 2023 started off with a nice mellow vibe, reminiscent of some of the jammier bands I used to listen to in the 90’s. I’m not sure what it is that gives things a 90’s sound to me, maybe it’s a feeling of optimism I associate with the time, or the lighter sort of dancey sound to the notes, but maybe it could just be the emergence of Spring that’s putting me in that mood. Things get a little more contemplative and moody with the second piece, which takes a little bit longer to coalesce, but I think there were some nice melodic moments here and there. About halfway in I start to develop a simple descending theme that I try to develop over different progressions. I think I almost get there with it, kind of creating a 50’s dreamy bop sound like a Chad and Jeremy song or something along those lines, or hints of it anyway. I ended things with a song that I’ve developed over the course of streaming and will eventually release as a standalone song that’s called “Regular Sick.” Thank you so much for listening!

Episode 8 Quicksteppin’

Things started off to a quicker pace in this Youtube stream from Tuesday April 25, 2023, with a couple of fun little uptempo pieces. So much of the feeling of a piece is dictated by the percussion loop, and I just like to wing it and see what comes from trying out the first thing that comes to mind. The second piece is much jazzier, partially inspired by what I was listening to earlier in the day - my recent discovery of incredible jazz harpist Dorothy Ashby and her album Afro-Harping. For the third jam I kind of brought it back to a 90’s kind of feel, ending with more of a roots rock type of all hands riff. A couple of meandering pieces half way through, I think I almost got where I was trying to go with the 5th piece, sometimes It’s hard to truly arrive when you’re searching in the dark for a resolution to things. At 44 minutes is Midnight Bloom from Conclusion, followed by the Voyage Home. I finished things up with a piece that was originally written for a soundtrack, but has evolved over the course of streaming to a newer version that I will eventually release as a standalone song called Bamboo 2.

Episode 7 Cello Godzilla

This episode comes from the twitch stream on Thursday April 20, 2023. I had just been messing around making some AI art, specifically images of Godzilla playing cello over his most recent destruction of a city in Japan. This imagery, as silly as it may seem was the inspiration for the first couple of pieces, which have a bit of a sad destructive tone to them. Things lighten up quite a bit for the third jam at around 18 minutes in, with a nice little riff that grows out of a strange delay effect I found and ending up with a fun whistle effect I also have, and am always careful to use sparingly. After that was a little Toki Doki. Around 45 minutes in I kind of hit on an interesting darker and heavier theme, more in the vein of the destruction of a city by a giant monster. I land on some cool ideas I think, not without some occasional wrong notes, but they kind of add to the ambience of doom in a strange way. Then a more mellow meandering piece followed finally by Dreams.

A little AI art I created of Cello Godzilla using the second piece from the stream

Episode 6 Throwback Tuesday

Lots of older pieces from the Youtube stream on Tuesday April 18, 2023. Sometimes I’m not feeling as creative and so it’s nice to just jam out some of my older pieces. Sometimes I’ll think I’m writing something new, but it’ll just be an iteration of an older piece. That’s kind of what happened at about 10 minutes in when I realized I was just playing Fight to Make it Up. After that is a piece originally conceived in a stream a while ago that I’ve been working on over time called “Kicking Rocks” which is yet to be released. Then some Light the Flame, followed by a little creative burst, and then Nobody Said and to finish things off Reversing.

Episode 5 Rainy Day Tango

This episode comes from the live twitch stream on Thursday, April 13 2023. Once again things got a bit ambient about halfway through, turning a bit dark even at about the 30 minute mark. I’d just been joking with the live viewers about how Spotify wouldn’t allow my all music podcast on their platform, as they require any music in a podcast to be channeled through their music tool so they can extract all its monetary value, and more efficiently crush independent artistic spirit. I suppose that some of my misgivings about the ever-presence of algorithms and the control they exert in our daily lives can be felt around this moment. About 39 minutes in after some meandering I played Exposition from the album of the same name. This is followed by the piece that the episode get its name from, which viewers commented had a “rainy day tango” kind of feel to it. I finished things up with Toki Doki from the album Conclusion. Thank you to all who have listened and subscribed thus far, I truly appreciate your 5 star ratings!!

Episode 4 Youtubesdays

This episode comes from my Youtube livestream on April 11, 2023. I think things started off pretty nicely here with a lively jam. There’s a nice meandering ambient piece that happens at about 23 minutes in. I achieve some of these sounds by effectively sampling myself, and only recording snippets of the bowed note, which results in an almost synth like sound. This combined with the sort of echoey arrhythmic layered pizzicato and low sub bass creates a cool experimental soundscape. I end things with my piece Fishin’ from my first album Introduction. Please let me know what you think in the comment section below, hopefully these are enjoyable!

Episode 3 Mello Cellotron

This instrumental jam comes from the Twitch stream on Thursday April 6, 2023. I was feeling in a bit of a funk to start things off, but I found my groove at around the 50 minute mark with a fun harmonic progression that allowed for a nice build. Listening back I think there were some other nice improvs in here too, with a dark and mysterious one at 43 minutes in. I also threw in some older songs of mine, including Bamboo 2 at 26:30, an instrumental version of Traveling Light at 34:30 and to finish everything off Voyage Home from Momotaro at 57 minutes.

It’s funny how at the time of doing these I sometimes feel like I’ve missed the mark, but when I listen back I’m able to hear more things that I like than I expected to. It’s kind of a nice musical journal in that way for me, since I can reflect on things in a new light and find something more positive about it all than at the time of the compositional experience. It reinforces something I’ve long felt about the whole artistic process too, which is that it’s most important to just consistently show up rather than sitting around waiting for inspiration to strike. In other words if you’re already in place chipping away at something, you’ll be perfectly poised to take advantage when inspiration does strike, as opposed to only then picking up the tools to begin the process.

Episode 1 For Relaxing Times April 3, 2023

I have been livestreaming my music for about a year now on Twitch, and have more or less gotten the hang of making things up on the fly for an hour or so. I haven’t been quite sure what to do with the content, since only a limited number of people are available to watch the livestreams, and not all of the content is suitable to be released as trimmed down standalone songs.

Thus I have arrived at making the audio available as a podcast that anyone who is interested can listen to at their leisure. Most of the music is improvised and what you’re hearing is being made up on the spot. As a result there are parts that are more interesting than others, but almost every piece eventually coalesces into something that works and has its special moments. Things take time to build though, and I invite you to give the music a chance to unfold and come along for the journey with me.

I have edited out the talking that often comes between the songs, in which I respond to viewers who are commenting live. I’m going to be experimenting with this format, and if it turns out some talking is actually enjoyable for people I may opt to keep it in at times. If the consensus is that music alone is preferable for relaxation or study/concentration purposes, I totally get that too.

If there are any pieces that stand out in particular I’d love to hear your feedback below! Just please try to include the timestamp of the audio for my reference. The final song is “Dreams” from my album “Reversal,” everything else is improvised live and has no title as of yet. Enjoy!

Mellow Cello Podcast Trailer

Hello! This is Nick, aka Takénobu, and for the past year I’ve been livestreaming, and getting the hang of making up songs as I go along using my cello and loop effects pedals. Sometimes I get a percussive groove going, and sometimes it's more of a dreamy soundscape. I just really enjoy the free-form live compositional environment of a livestream. Not everyone can tune in live of course, so I’ve decided to start posting the recorded audio from my livestreams as a podcast. The most frequent comment I get from livestream viewers is about the “chill vibe” of the music, and so in keeping with that I’ve decided to call this the Mellow Cello Podcast. The music you’re hearing behind my voice is from the last livestream I did, and as you can tell things eventually get fairly full, although it can take a little while to build and develop. Somehow things always seem to work out though, more or less. I invite you to take a listen and come along for the journey with me as I build things up and add and take away parts, all the while experimenting and finding the music in my own little well of the ether. I’d love to hear feedback, and each new episode will be posted with a comment section on my website takenobumusic.com. For now this trailer will be the only time I talk over the music, and in the full episodes to come you’ll get about an hour of just straight up instrumental cello grooves and soundscapes. That may eventually change of course, as I do interact with the live audience and may leave some of that in, but for now just music is what you can expect. Hope you enjoy!