I have started on Sony Music Studio 8 - they put the word Acid in smaller letters now. Loading was a bit of an undertaking given the state of the laptop. I have started by looking at the sample tunes - I have found some which lean in a minimalist techno direction. Despite this its surprising how many tracks are used to create the effect. There are a set of softsynths but I have yet to discover if you can mess with their parameters. I have also discovered some effects which apply to WAVs - these can be quite brutal but its better than nothing and it includes a notch resonance device. I have not yet worked out if the software will sequence the inbuilt softsynth on the laptop which I think could be a Roland GS. My first goal is to record MIDI from the Dhorn using the cheap USB/MDI interface. Considering its only about �20 discount there s a lot of capability for the money. I am less than 100% sympathetic to softsynths - one of the reasons I went for mid 90s solidstate technology in the Pianobox - and the thing won't go.

Bear went back to Come See About Me which hasnt been heard for a few weeks. I ought to own up that I think I was the oldest person in Cafe Oto - given that I was 18 in 1967 it would have been hard not to bring the point up in the discussion - one of the reasons I skipped it. Young put up the Unhalfbricking cover foto of Wimbledon - and talked quite a long time about how it came to be shot - how it had to be England - how it was an accident that through the fence you could see each one of the Fairports' faces. I like the cover too - also the album - much more than its famous successor. The bear has gone back to the live circa 1974 version of Miss M doing Big Yellow Taxi with the LA Express which is really rather sophisticated. One of things Young didnt talk about was the links between UK folk and the USA altho he did make a passing reference to Jackson C Frank and more than that to Peggy Seeger. He did pose the question - when in Manchester Dylan was accused of being Judas what exactly did they think was being betrayed? And what did they want him to go back to? Nothing traditional about an acoustic gtr and harmonica harness.

James has mailed about meeting up before he goes to New Haven at the end of the month. Gilbert is about to go to Marseilles for a week and is wondering whether to take the lute. The bear pulled some Merzbow - very Wire but not visionary folk. Actually Fear of Music has a good word for Cabaret Voltaire in this neck of the woods. Then the exsquisite It Never Entered My Mind from MD circa 1956. This is more than showing off, its simplistic. Rob mailed with some encouraging things to say about GI/IC offerings. He is off to France next week but is up for Boat-Ting in Sept. I arranged for a brieding by the risk management service next Tuesday morning . I went out and bought a CD tower from Argos.

There was a knock at the door and Electric Eden was delivered. To get the measure I started with the familiar bits such as the influence and impact of D Graham. The learning from S Benbow was covered, also the use of DADGAD for busking with musicians in North Africa - really quite impressive. The follow through to Jansch and Renbourn and the rise of Cousins is nicely told including the importance of Ann Briggs - if the movement had a signature tune Y says it would be Blues Run the Game by JCF - which is quite true in my estimation. ND is given a substantial chapter - at first reading I would say Y wades into waters where previously only IMAC had ventured - and the overall impression is positive. He dwells on ATOTCC and River Man so much so that I went back reread what I had to say on these subjects in the 90s. Y has a clear view of what he thinks RM is about. I also think Y has a macrothesis and I need to get my head round before I cherry pick much more.