Morphosis: The "New" ELP Album That Never Came Out

Morphosis:
The "New" ELP Album That Never Came Out

From:
the luckiest
keith emerson fan
on this earth
dialup03104.intersatx.net 03-09-12 02:45

"No."

There, I've answered your inevitable question, no matter what it was going to be.

The answer is
"No, of course not."

Let me elaborate on that negative,
all is not lost, it just isn't found... yet.

I'm sitting in my studio, listening to audio extracted into Wavelab 3 from a CD given to me by Will Alexander a few years back, it was created December 31, 1994, (amazed) that far back, eh?

(In case someone doesn't know, Will Alexander has been Keith's favorite keyboard tech for almost 2 decades.)

This Keith Emerson music reaches down into my soul and fills me up with glorious emer-sonic power, but this is stronger and more simple than its ever been before, the massive keyboard sound is remarkable, it makes my brain project an image of ELP onstage, playing this song, and I'm getting off like a motherfucker because its so... KEITH.

MORPHOSIS

That's the Keith Emerson album no one has ever heard of, because it never came out. I wonder if the "L" or the "P" of ELP have ever heard any of this? I'm so lucky, I swear I can't believe its really true, but I know damn well it HAS to be true. Why am I so sure about that? The MUSIC proves it all, in spades, and then some. I just played this for Chuck and Veronica, veteran ELP fans, they were astounded. It sounds so freakin' good on my monitors, I got it slightly jacked up, leaning into the weight of the keyboards, the attitude is heroic, in the classic style of KE symbolism, the way he hits the tonic chord at the end of the main lick says it all. THAT'S the Keith Emerson I know, its the " massively fleshed out by Will Alexander" Keith Emerson, the best Keith Emerson that has ever been, it fulfills everything I've ever thought Emerson's music should be, actually it goes further, its BETTER than I ever thought it even could be, a new level. Its meticulously thickened into massive, simple, broad strokes, this is power organ symphonic rock, and Keith Emerson is the undispited master of what this all MEANS. Greg Lake doesn't get it, so Popeye-X gets it instead. And I'm keeping it.

That's why I said "NO" from the start. I couldn't let anyone have a copy, even if I wanted to, but I don't even want to. I like it better knowing I have it all to myself, given to me personally by the guy who put it together, Will Alexander, The Greatest Of Them All, he's in his element here, layering massive quanities of Keith Emerson tone, helping Keith attain his rightful destiny as The Ultra Keith, using every tool Will has got at his disposal, especially his unparalleled KNOWLEDGE of what the name "Keith Emerson" means in the realm of music on this planet.

And I have the CD, you don't, and I can't let you have it, or even hear it, sorry, I hope you understand, its not MNE to share, unless you happen to be here when I'm listening to it. Then you are in for a Keith Emerson treat.

[also to you
ULTRA-CHUGOLOGISTS,
or perhaps you are 1 of the 4 or 5 known downloaders of obtuse popeye-x mp3's?]

"Is this 1994 CD telling me (at this very 2003 moment), back when Doktor Beaker was touring the world as head keyboard technician for ELP, and creating this glorious Keith Emerson music, I was here in Texas, thinking I had a real job, writing midifiles for Bob Cox's PSYCHOTRON and PHOTO FACTORY software?"

Man, that's what I call ULTRACHUG!! That is a truly SCARY and DREADFUL thought, if anyone reading this doubts it, check this FRAIDY TICK mix I just made here two days ago. (see download links) It started from one of those 1994 midi files, so it wasn't a complete waste of my time. 2003 is a much scarier time, and you can hear it.

This mix was made with 2 synth tracks. I ran midi track #1 from FRAIDY.MID thru Reaktor, tweaking knobs while Reaktor fucked it up, recording in real time. As I listened back I thought, "I should play some lead against that", I hit STOP, hooked up the QS7, recorded from the beginning, one pass. Then I mixed on the next pass. Tweaked that mix into a -3db stereo digital master, rendered and uploaded this mp3 (192kbs), I call it FRAIDY TICK. I like it, the CD is much better, of course. I have also uploaded the original midi file for anyone who wants to hear it, or fuck with it themselves.

popeye-x is shuddering

a tip for aspiring
lead synth players

Unfortunately I didn't record the midi from the live lead, only the audio. It would have been interesting because I used 2 pitch controllers. One was the standard 2 semitones pitch wheel, the other was a 'down only' slider, a whammy bar down to the depths of Hell. There's a studio tip for you aspiring lead synth players:

alternate between 2 pitch benders,
one normal, one very abnormal
like THIS

For completeness, I gotta mention drummer
Phil Dalmolin ::: www.phildalmolin.com
Even though FRAIDY.MID was my tune, I had forgotten about it until Phil sent me a recent mix he had done playing drums along with synthesizers he programmed. I love it when a musician takes my notes up to a higher level, Phil Dalmolin released a solo CD in the 90's called THERAPY, 3 of the songs were made from midi files from the same 1994 batch I wrote for a program called Photo Factory. Dalmolin, who toured with the Dixie Chicks for over a year, is a supurb skin beater and the whole concept of recording real drums played against synthesizers patterned after my midi sequences was HIS idea. Thanks, Phil, you showed me I how to get a lot more mileage out of music I've already written.