I am Ashley Elsdon

someone who's doing some things

Tag: thoughts

Stuff I’m thinking about.

Hello September

Posted by on in ThinkingLeave a comment

So here we are in September already. Where did 2015 go? We’re already in September and the summer feels like it’s over. Not that it was really ever here. I mean, that’s typical really isn’t it, typical of an English summer. So perhaps we’ll get some better weather in September. Who knows.

There’s lots of interesting things happening in September, so it should be a good month, but it always feels like September is a doorway into autumn and then winter. It’s like we’re over the best of the year and it’s downhill now, which feels a bit sad.

Listening to old songs …

Posted by on in MusicLeave a comment

I’ve been listening to a lot of my ‘old’ songs. Stuff I recorded on old analogue gear, like my Fostex X-15. Those old recordings were made my bouncing loads of tracks from one side of the tape to another. So the quality wasn’t brilliant. With some tracks it was pretty bad in fact, but, even then, some of those tracks were great songs.

I been really enjoying listening to these songs, and they remind me about what’s important in music. It’s about making songs that mean something, that are good and that stand the test of time. I think that once in a while it’s important to be reminded about that kind of thing.

I like to think that I can make some more songs that I can feel that good about again. That’s my plan.

How I listen, how I want to listen, how I should listen

Posted by on in ListeningLeave a comment

Back in May I had a rare opportunity to spend some time just listening. Not doing anything else, just listening to an album. It was wonderful. It made me think a lot about how I listen to music on a regular basis, which in turn made me realise just how poor my listening experience is on a regular basis.

So I started thinking about how I listen now, how I want to listen and the gap between those two. It’s a big gap actually, sadly.

For the most part I listen to both music and to audiobooks on the go. Walking, on trains, tubes, buses etc. That makes up the vast majority of my listening experience. It isn’t a great experience at all. Mostly there’s lots of background noise, lots of distraction and it isn’t easy to concentrate particularly, but that’s the way it is. I’m sure it’s the same for a lot of people. What’s missing of course is that deep and focused listening experience. It requires time, it requires space and concentration. The time and space elements are things that I can’t find easily, not these days anyway.

So I need to find a way to bridge that gap, and to have the space to listen creatively. Not easy really. But it will be really worth it if I can. Having that experience, even every now and then is like a little oasis.

Audio Unit Extensions on iOS, yes, that’s coming

Posted by on in Mobile Applications, Music, ThinkingLeave a comment

So it seems that we’re getting audio units on iOS, and more than that we’re getting audio units that go across both iOS and OSX. All in one go. Now that will be interesting, or at least it could be. The down side from my perspective is that I think it makes mobile more and more like desktop computer music. I’m not entirely sure that’s a good thing.

IFTTT’s new Maker channel

Posted by on in Tech, The Internet of Things, Wearable ComputingLeave a comment

I’ve liked IFTTT (or IF as apparently they’re now called) since right back when they started. They’ve gone from strength and delivered some really interesting and useful functionality for connecting the internet in simple ways. They’ve also supported a lot of IoT (internet of things) devices, and now, with the new Maker channel they’re supporting anything you want to use to connect to the internet.

This is a big deal I think. It means all manner of devices can use the IFTTT service with an HTTP post request. I’ve already tried it with my twine device and it works really well. I’m thinking about how to use it with my Pebble Time too. The possibilities are limitless. However, for me, what will be really important is how to make it truly useful. Without that, it is just tinkering for tinkerings sake, and whilst that’s fun, from my perspective it doesn’t get you anywhere.

So, whilst I’ll be trying it out, I’ll mainly be looking for some really useful ways to use the new channel. If I find any that I think are worth sharing, I will.

An afternoon looking at the sea …

Posted by on in Listening, Music, Places, ThinkingLeave a comment

IMG_6634

Staying in a beautiful house boat and spending at least a small part of a Sunday afternoon listening to music and not doing anything else at all.

Bliss, sheer bliss.

Makes me realise how much more intently I should listen. After all, listening is an art. Listening is important, and I should do more of it, a lot more.

Getting sidetracked

Posted by on in Stuff, ThinkingLeave a comment

It is just so easy to get distracted by so many interesting things going on. In fact, I got distracted several times whilst writing this. It’s so difficult to concentrate isn’t it? Or is it just me? I seem to always be getting sidetracked into something interest and curious and then I disappear down that little rabbit hole for an hour or so only to reappear and have forgotten what I was supposed to be doing in the first place.

Does that happen to you to?