CME XKey Touch Sensitiviy Test

CME XKey Touch Sensitiviy Test

Jan 19, 2021 | Reviews

Been wanting to get a few more kit videos on my YouTube channel so here we go, starting 2021 off as I mean to go on! I was fascinated by the CME Xkey when I first saw it and it’s been a really fun part of my setup since getting one. Great for taking out on the road, it’s touch sensitive, transmits aftertouch and lets you add sustain and expression pedals – not bad for such a tiny piece of kit! It takes some getting used to but has been really valuable for quickly getting ideas down when I’m not in the studio. The video above is a quick test on the level of the expressiveness using one of my favourite piano sounds and I think it performed pretty well.

Xkey is available at:
Juno | Thomann | Amazon
(aff links)

Living Your Best Life

Living Your Best Life

Oct 9, 2020 | Music News

Ain't Nobody Playin'

(with Gary Barnacle & Gaz Rackham)

Living Your Best Life

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Back in the days when we used to go and watch Level 42 in concert, I was in awe of the whole band and never dreamed that one day Saxophonist Gary Barnacle would be playing on one of my tracks.

Well here we are and Gary has done an absolutely awesome Alto Sax lead break for my new single, Living Your Best Life. It’s been a joy working with him – despite his awesome discography he is so down to earth and really is one of the good guys from the industry!

I was trying to capture an old school jazz-funk vibe with this one, complete with retro synth lead break.

As always Gaz Rackham has done an awesome job on the bassline, with some classic ‘Gazzy moments’ thrown in there to delight your ears.

This has been so much fun to work on and I really hope you enjoy strutting your funky stuff to it! x

Track Credits

Written and Produced by Atheen. Special thanks to East West, Yamaha and Dom Morley.
Alto Saxophone arranged, played and recorded by Gary Barnacle @ 241 Studios, London. Gary Barnacle uses Rico Royal saxophone reeds.
Bass by Gaz Rackham. Gaz uses Rotosound strings – https://www.rotosound.com/gary-rackham/
Mastered at Abbey Road Studios.
Video background by http://www.videezy.com

 

Release Date: 23/10/20

Ain’t Nobody Playin’

Ain’t Nobody Playin’

Aug 28, 2020 | Music News

Ain't Nobody Playin'

(with Nick Van Gelder & Gaz Rackham)

Atheen - Ain't Nobody Playin'

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It’s release day at last! Ain’t Nobody Playin’ is back on the stores with a new mix.

Want to say a huge thanks to Nick Van Gelder and Gaz Rackham for contributing their amazing skills to the track.

Also huge thanks to Dave Lockwood for his sonically superior DL Mix. Not only is Dave a great engineer but he’s also an awesome guitarist – check out his tutorials.

Really looking forward to seeing you all on the road as soon as it’s possible.

Track Credits

Written and Produced by Atheen.
Bass by Gaz Rackham.
Drums by Nick Van Gelder
Guitars and outro Strings by Franco Barroso
Violin by Ayran Nicodemo
Artwork by Blue Poulette
Video background by Storyblocks.

Release Date: 28/8/20

Ain’t Nobody Playin’ Release Date

Ain’t Nobody Playin’ Release Date

Jul 22, 2020 | Music News

Atheen - Ain't Nobody Playin'

Back when I first started playing music, it was my dream to have a jazz-funk-fusion album that I could be proud of. Along with a bunch of funk-loving friends, I spent hours studying the work of The Brecker Brothers, George Duke, Level 42, Stanley Clarke, Weather Report and many more.

So imagine my delight that some of my funk heroes have agreed to contribute parts to a few of the tracks! First up is a track featuring the amazing talent of Nick Van Gelder on drums, then on the next release we have a fantastic sax break from the legend himself, Mr Gary Barnacle.

I also want to feature some of those wonderful friends from back in the day. As always, Gaz Rackham (bass) is making his presence felt on these first two singles and I hope on many more.

This project had a false start a couple of years ago –  a few distractions came along, including a job with Yamaha that was great but took up a huge chunk of time. So now, Modal Records is officially relaunching with a new distribution deal in place and a new mix of the first single out on Friday 28th August.

Really hope that we can meet you on the road in the not too distant future but in the meantime we’re going to chuck some more YouTube videos together just for fun x

Forget Me Nots Cover

Forget Me Nots Cover

Oct 10, 2018 | Music News

Worked on a little project in the studio just for fun, one of my favourite tracks by an all-time favourite performer, Miss Patrice Rushen. Again this features the most awesome Gaz Rackham on bass.