I'm strangely conflicted about this phenomenon, because on one hand, my musician side says it'll suck out any creativity from music. Already, I've stopped buying keyboards because I can program all my synths in Midi, I have an Electric Drum Kit I'm learning to play more for personal entertainment than actual need, and I play guitar and bass because that's always been "home" to me, but now I have a new way to make music without dragging an instrument and required necessities with me - A.I..

But the computer side of me knows what A.I. is fully. An algorithm, or a group of algorithms, focused on carrying out a task normally carried out (with much inconsistancy) by humans. It's basically kust a really really really fancy computer program, and it does not create anything you somewhat ask it to create. I'm here to tell you, making music with A.I. is a totally different experience than me building a track up using Guitars, Bass, Drums, Keyboards, or even a Looper or Sampler. It's half collaboration (with a computer), which my techie side thinks is kind of cool, but it's also half like a slot machine of countless variables - something CArl Sagan would have called "billions and billions" - like the stars in the heavens. But my musician side really questions if this is right. AFter all, music USED to be a SOCIAL activity. I'd feel some emotion about something, write some lyrics, make a demo of the instrumental, hand it over to the band, we'd all interpret it, the vocalist would make their own lyrics or take parts of mine, or collaborate, we'd record some rough demos at our rehearsal space, make tape/cd copies for the car, and then play it live at bars and clubs for money, while going to a studio with someone who actually knows what the heck they are doing to record a full blown recording of it. Or even more social, we'd just start jamming on a riff or something, and a song would come out of that.

But A.I. is not THAT much different either. You write lyrics and a musical style into a prompt somewhere like Suno or Udio and then punch a creation button, and out the A.I. spits a couple tunes using the parameters you input (sometimes more or less) and out pops some stuff that's either surprising, or hilariously bad, depending on your luck of the draw, or how good you are at writing in your parameters.

What Scares us Musicians

It's fun to play guitar, feel the strings under my fingers, mess with a whammy bar, make noises, on command, hit my stompboxes, and make music in MY way, with MY sound, MY tone, and MY style. It's more instant gratification to me, than the A.I. prompt is. That's something no computerized music can ever replace or manage. I understand, this threatens musicians, because to the average listener, these things are not important to them. It's like owning a Ford and listening to one of their engineers tell you all about how fun it is to design the electrical system - you don't give a fuck, you just want to drive the thing. You don't care WHAT they did to get the result, you just like the RESULT of what they did. The practice to you, as a driver, or a listener, is irrelevant. The only people who listen to the process of other musicians with any quantifyable reason, is other musicians. Most people don't give a crap if I play a Jag-STang or a Jackson, they just like the song being played. That's a truth that bothers us musicians about this whole A.I. thing.

Another part that worries us is the opinions of those who don't enjoy the idea of sacrificing a social life, or any other sacrifice of time, money, and expenditure of patience, to learn a actual musical instrument. Being a musician is full of judgement enough. You can't tell people at work because they might think that you're still trying to "make it" and that threatens your co-workers if you're good at your job, makes them wish you'd just go away and play your music elsewhere if you are not. It threatens the people above you because what if you don't make it and they can't wash you out without making you miserable (ie laid-off/fired/leave of absense), or worse for them but good for you, you actually DO make it, you're a great worker, and they need to replace you, then what? It bothers your family because they don't understand and know that this "profession" if you can even call it that now, is a gamble. A gamble possibly as high stakes as a weekend in Vegas played in Mafia money. Your non-musician friends don't get it either. You sacrificed to learn to play an instrument, and now you still do it, even though you're not making money doing it (your day job does that), you're not famous, because apparently, you just HAVE to "hustle your hobbies" to even HAVE a hobby these days.

No bigger way has this ever become more relevant than what inspired me to go down the A.I. Music rabbit-hole. Making funny music...

There's something funny as hell about making a computer spit out music full of f-bombs, d-bombs, and other assorted potty humor. But the problem is, with both platforms, it's a landmine of censorship. Sometimes the prompt is okay, but sometimes the damn prompt will refuse to create something and say "creation flagged for moderation". I'm sure Suno, and to less an extent, Udios "moderation", if it's even human (most likely not), is wondering what kind of wacko they let use their platform after many people attempting to make comedy music with their platforms. Jerry Seinfeld has been talking about this sort of thing. Woke culture - and I'm not fully against it in the slightest, just it going "extremist" - has really put the kibbosh on being funny. Too many F-bombs - flagged for moderation. Any talk of violence - a cornerstone to a lot of rock and metal music - flagged for moderation. Any talk of blood, or knifes, or guns, flagged for moderation. Hell, you can't even make a YouTube video about suicide un-aliving yourself in a positive light anymore, without needing to make sure you past a call 188-get-me-help type number in the comments or get shadowbanned for it, even if you tell everyone to live.

This fact, in and of itself alone, is the reason why things like having non-internet-connection-required software on your own computer, being able to play a musical instrument on your own, being able to write, record, mix, and master your own shit, is invaluable, no matter what people who refuse to apply themselves to it say. In some ways, being an actual musician in 2024, is like being a doomsday prepper. However, it's not the fear of biological threats, tyranny, or a government gone amok, it's the fear that we will censor society so much that freedom will be destroyed in favor of a Corporate Facist Dictatorship under the guise of a "free country". Yea, I'm getting a bit political on this section - because it's kind of important for the 1st amendment in America. It's kind of hard to be regulated by a personal entity, or even a public entity, when you are creating your own "dogfood" on your own property that you own yourself. But it's really really easy for a Corporation who hosts their SaaS (Software as a Service) product on THEIR servers, funded by THEIR money, with THEIR power bill being paid to keep the lights on by advertising or some kind of benefit to their work, and/or YOUR money.

So what we have, is an example of someone taking an A.I.'s musical style, and developing their own song off of the resultant output using the classic methods of recording a regular multitrack recording with multiple, individual instruments, and then mixing it themselves. This does not remove the creativity, because we can hear I sound a HUGE amount different from Mick Jones (Foreigner's guitar player, and a DIFFERENT guitarist from the Mick Jones from The Clash - another band I love to death). I also took my OWN playing style and developed my own riffs to go with it - which eventually became the same sort of basis of, of all places, BandLab's A.I. Driven "Songstarter".

What BandLab SongStarter is, is a A.I. driven creation tool that kicks off a MIDI programmed set of virtual instruments based off an emotion or vibe you put in, or a limited set of lyrics. I have also used this too, not out of a lack of creativity, but because messing with it, just inspired more music. So I created this kind of wild, almost Cars-y-ish thing using Songstarter, and my guitar work. And this was the result...

So there is two examples of how Artificial Intelligence can be used as a musical tool for music development in a LEGITIMATE matter as a legit artist. The A.I. did little, if any guidance in my decisions other than maybe the BASE decision that inspired me to take it just that much more further. This to me, is acceptable, and honestly, with a good vocalist, and some better (more carefully curated of course) production, and proper P.R., I probably could make some real "bangers" out of these.

And of course, I was totally content to just use these mediums for creation....then in 2024, just a couple weeks ago, while taking a sabbatical from the website and building guitars, THIS happened....

So here we have Obscurest Vinyl, a channel that when I saw the username at first, paired with the AI generated music they were hosting, I thought was a legitimate music channel at first. I felt, actually, a little stupid I did not realize this was the latest generation of A.I. generated music, because the clues were there.....

The first clue of AI generated music, and one that will probably transcend any technological advancement, is the fact the lyrics often host a more popular modern vernacular. First off, if this was TRULY a 1980's recording, most likely the word "Shit" would not be in it anywhere, because of a mixture of Nancy Regan and the Washington Wives PMRC related issues, and in the 1980's, probably nobody, not even Weird Al, would release a song about taking a dump on the company clock. People took their jobs far more seriously in the 1980's from my perspective.

The second clue is the cover, which looks more like something that was released in 1964. I am very familiar with the 80's derivative of this art style, after all, one of my favorite bands, The Cars, were all about such a thing. BUT, the difference between this and one of David Robinson's (yes, the Drummer's) artistic masterpieces in album cover design, is that this literally looks more like a circa 1964 record album you would have found among a pile of Neil Diamond, Simon and Garfunkel, forgotten pop-soul duos, and various underdog hippie bands, not a 1980's contemporary AOR group as this particular piece is emulating.

Another bit of it is the subject matter in general. First off, making songs about taking shits is not something particularly popular in comedy music. I've listened to a lot of Dr. Demento type stuff: Ray Stevens, Weird Al Yankovich, Julie Brown...just to name a few. And not a single one of them really dives head first into potty humor as much as this new trend in making comedy music using A.I. does. So one great rule of thumb is, if it's a song about someone shitting their pants.....then it's probably a comedy A.I. song. Which is where the fun of making complete songs in A.I. does come into practice....

See, I'm a SERIOUS musician, I play guitar, bass, learning drums, keyboard, I can write in MIDI Piano Roll notation off the top of my head, I've written lyrics, I've done some vocals in my time. BUT....the truth is, sometimes it's fun to just come up with some crazy stuff for your own entertainment....and even sometimes, share it with the world....so let's talk about the difference between COMPOSING with A.I. as an "accessory" vs. composing full time with A.I.

The things I did before were meant to be actual serious music. Likely the subject matter would have been about whatever I was thinking about at the time. But this stuff is meant to be comedic entertainment, not so much a more serious form of artistry. In a way, it could be kinda' "trolling" in a way, but I'm not harming anyone except maybe fictional characters made up in my head....soooo...make of that what you will. Let's talk about some of the creations.

So this is sort of a "Behind the (AI) Music" of sorts. I was kind of inspired to make this due to the sheer number of "Crooner" AI tunes being created. This one really walked the fine line into being too violent, but I managed to avoid it by not mentioning WHAT he does with the Sack of Oranges. Yes, the name is intentional, it's a reference to another famous crooner, altered by mixing in a gameshow host's last name and the name of a popular retro-style record player brand. He is NOT the guy you think he would be though, he's his own identity. I basically made up a backstory - which is half of the fun of this - of a "kid" who started his career in 1948, got hooked on Cocaine by 1956 (as sung about in "Snow"), and then became an abusive husband and father in 1958.

So this song was really some hand-written lyrics inspired by a old classmate from school named "Marcus" who used to go on rather emotive freakouts when people farted in class - "OOOOOOOOOHHHHH YOU POOOOTEEEEDDD!" So of course I kicked that song off with that famous yell that made you feel like you were about to get detention for a regular bodily function. This was actually the first actual "hit" I had on my channel. I don't know what hit me but I was suddenly chock full of doo doo and fart references of my own making and went off on a crazy (but disgusting) tirade in Suno that begot this classic track...lines like "you got the Bean Bazooka" "you got the Log Process" or the whole line about bleaching underwear. Honestly, it feels funny to me, but I'm kind of proud how this one turned out. And there's a sequel in the future BTW. Roofus Mooner is becoming like my own character up there with Obscurest Vinyls ball-glue guy and another guy's work that involves a man who met his wife at a donkey show and sang for a guy who shit his pants at Taco Bell.

TreeMan was the result of a few things I'd been carrying around for awhile. First off, the band "Super Fudgebucket" was really a short-form version of a band name I made up in the 1990's making fun of bands like Chawumba, or songs like Batwitiba by Kid Rock (rolls eyes), and the ridiculously long names of local bar bands like "The Super Fudgebucket Shubby Monkeys" or some shit like that. The lyrics though, were inspired by the famous 2016 incident where a man climbed a tree in downtown Seattle, except this version was made up to take place in an alternate timeline in 1996, and the guy was taking a SHIT from the tree as well. THis was also one of the first tunes made in Udio instead of SUno (the last two were done in Suno), and the lyrics came together pretty easily, but the amazing part was how much Udio NAILED IT on what I was going for, some kind of obnoxious, downtown Seattle, grungefest with a singer that had to sound NOT like Nirvana or Soundgarden, but rather, something more like Eminem or Beck. Cobain and Cornell have cool voices, I don't want to waste anything rendered that sounds similiar to be a song about a man sitting in a tree taking a dump to the consternation of the whole population.

While Udio and SUno offer the same features, Udio I used a lot more because it's a bit more leniant about lyrics censorship wise. Also, it was the first one I started expanding tracks from 32sec-1:24 to more like 2:00-2:43, making them feel like full-on compositions. It also taught me more about using brackets to setup the cadence.

So now I could build full lyrics sheets. One tune that rides oddly between the lines of funny and cool is this......and it's inspiration......

So when I Created Mr A.S.D., I must admit, I was inspired by teh track next to it - Mr. ADHD. However, what ensued was less funny and a little more kinda' cool. What's hilarious though, was during it's creation, I added an introduction, and the one I kept it screws up a part where it says "I'll school you at chess, word for word" - a line created by Udio's A.I., not me - in the lyrics, but actually says "I'll Screw You, Word For Word" when you listen to it, LOL! Totally perfect. Now, before you cancel me, I consider myself a self-diagnosed A.S.D. - I am quite high on the spectrum I'm sure. Think about it - all you have to do is look at this whole friggin website, and there it is. Except I tried to keep the lyrics "time era apropriate" in that instead of referencing NEC Laptop model numbers and reviews on the Summitt Racing catalog - I changed it to the Ford Parts Catalog, and reviews on Piston Rings. After all, this guy is a "Greaser" - and Greasers were famous for their "gearhead" thing. I'm not a big rockabilly fan, but THIS, hell, I'd cover and play this as myself.....I mean, even AI nailed that Jazzmaster humming along in the background, which in a way is a bit scary.

One of my personal favorites, being as I grew up with boomer single mom who listened to a LOT fo Neil Diamond, that's the obvious INITIAL inspiration, but the A.I. took it 600 miles more further, bringing us into some Simon and Garfunkel territory as well. One thing I remember was the constant talk about the importance of fiber in 1970's and 1980's dietary articles, and the stereotype from the 70's for these kinds of musicians, was what some called the "Granola Nut Coffee Shop Crooner" type. I love how this carries over from that into that "forgotten AM Radio Tune circa 1975" feel. It's actually one of the better ones that involves the (somewhat new) time-honored-tradition of A.I. music creation of songs about bowel movements because it does not focus on that. What's funny is I slipped some B-52's in there too (a band I really really love) with a list of high fiber breakfast foods....and the results were awesome. But then the A.I. decides to take it a step further......and goes off on a surprising Neil Diamond style tirade at the end, topping it off with the cherry "Next time I leave the house I'm packing Imodium", complete with fitting 7th chord.....seriously, THIS is what harmonious music collaboration with A.I. sounds like.

Okay, so one last one from this early batch and I'm done talking about the benefits of A.I. Creation of full comedy pieces (though admittedly some of these are beginning to REALLY wear on me a little bit now as my wit gets sharpened from "Dull Butter Knife used to Chop Rocks" into "Hatori Hanzo Sword" the more I do this). So this piece of music was me sort of wandering into Udio with a blank slate, not sure what to do, but enjoying playing with the technology so much, I kept on going, and decided to write about a subject that should already be quite obvious.....that's right, Five Nights at Freddy's! But that's not the **special** part of this creation, what is, is what the A.I. did as my first "Extend" was an "intro"! Apparently, the people doing the "Training MOdels" for the algorithms must have, at some point, fed it some FNaF! Because all of a sudden I have this killer intro about "Check the Door Lights, BLock eM' Out" - so oddly specific, Udio obviously knew this was a FNaF tune, and one BADASS FNaF tune at that. IT sounds like a cross between 1970's Bowie, T-Rex, and The Sweet....might be the one thing with FNaF my WIFE might actually like. While I'm sure Cawthon would not be too enthralled with me using the f-bomb during the choruses (no truer sentiment though about working at a haunted Chuck E. Cheese clone), it sounds powerful and awesome.