Friday, May 2, 2008 Necromantic Progress

This week, Paeter finished work on a lengthy, tense and dark scene that pushes "Dark Ritual" into the third and final act with the song "Necromancy" and the scene following it.

We've made this song available for download in the past, but Paeter has enjoyed adding a few layers and putting the final touches on it. It will likely be one of the most memorable sequences in "Dark Ritual" and it represents a landmark for us in the mixing process.

Paeter will now begin work on scene 21 and by early next week, he'll be plugging away at the third and final Act.

As Paeter increases the amount of continuous time spent on mixing, we'd very much value your prayers. As many of you artists know, creative burnout is always a danger best avoided through careful budgeting of time. Paeter is optomistic and excited, but will be the first to tell you that if God isn't a part of the creative process, this will be a waste of everyone's time.

As always, thanks for your continued prayer support, readership (and listenership for you fans of the podcast) and encouraging words.

Have a great weekend!

Wednesday, April 30, 2008 Wednesday

Well, it's Wednesday. That means the garbage gets picked up, new comics come out and I have to find something to say in this post. The first two happen automatically. It's number three I've got nothing for today.

I've been so driven to mix Dark Ritual that I haven't spent much time being philosophical. Maybe that's a bad thing. My wife would probably say it's okay. (She's not into philosophy much.) My son would probably just say, "Uuurrp!" and then make a mess.

Oooh! Maybe I should do a review of Blueletterbible.org ! It's this great website I've been using for awhile, mainly for it's handy search engine, but I haven't mentioned it here yet.

Well what do you know? This makes my fourth paragraph. Guess I've written enough to constitute a "post" for now, and that website review will have to wait for another day.

Back to mixing!

-Paeter Frandsen

Monday, April 28, 2008 The Dark Ritual Trailer Is Here!!

At long last, the exciting trailer for "Spirit Blade: Dark Ritual" has arrived!

Help us spread the word! The darkness is coming, and "no one is safe..."

Friday, April 25, 2008 Two Songs, Twenty-three Pages

That's all that's left! It may seem like a lot (sometimes it does to us, too!) but with April passing, Paeter will soon be giving every hour of labor to the completion of "Dark Ritual". We haven't done the math and don't like to give premature release dates (been there, done that), but here are the numbers in case you'd like to make your own guesses:

"Dark Ritual" has 64 pages and seven songs. Paeter started mixing in September 2007. He had already finished primary mixing for one song. From September through April, Paeter has spent roughly 10-12 days per month on mixing. Completing scenes in chronological order, Paeter has finished primary mixing on pages 1-41. Paeter has two songs left to mix.

Beginning the first of May, Paeter will spend 18-20 days per month mixing for "Dark Ritual". After Primary Mixing is complete, Paeter will take about two weeks to master the project, after which it will be available for download purchase, and soon after for CD purchase.

We're still projecting a summer release, but we'll keep you posted on our progress.

Have a great weekend!

Wednesday, April 23, 2008 Recovery

I'm enjoying recovery on two different levels right now.

First, I got slammed with another nasty cold bug this week. That makes two in three months for me, which is unheard of! But I'm doped up with good stuff and making a quick comeback.

Second, I've been busy with other work for a few weeks that has kept me from "Dark Ritual". Not completely, but enough to make it hard to build momentum. However, once April has passed I anticipate a completely free calendar until "Dark Ritual" is finished and in your hands, ears and minds!

I also got an e-mail from Ryan today saying that the CD cover is nearing completion and he'll have something to me soon!

That's all for now!

- Paeter Frandsen

Friday, April 18, 2008 Torture Revisited

This week, after finishing work on the "Dark Ritual" trailer, Paeter finally made time to re-record some lines. The recording was for an intense scene involving Merikk and the chief antagonist of our upcoming sequel to "Spirit Blade".

Also this week, we added another actor to the project. Preston Hancock, the Executive Pastor of Red Mountain Community Church, came and recorded some supporting character lines for "Dark Ritual" that will help diversify the ethnicity of our character line-up. Thanks, Preston!

As always, we hope you join us on the weekends for "The Spirit Blade Underground Podcast"!

Have a great weekend!

Wednesday, April 16, 2008 Trailer Done... but wait...

Hey Guys,

I just finished the trailer for Dark Ritual yesterday. Only three people in the world other than myself have heard it.

I know you're gonna hate me for this, but I'm gonna hang onto it until the end of the month, when Ryan should have the CD graphic finished. Then we can launch this marketing campaign shooting from both barrels!

The monumental burden of launching the trailer rests on the shoulders of my graphic designer. So in the meantime, everybody join the chant... "Go Ryan, go! Go Ryan, go!"

Yep. I'll bet Ryan hates me now.

-Paeter Frandsen

Wednesday, April 9, 2008 Trailer and Turning 30!

Hey folks!

I've finished selecting the dialogue and FX cues that will go in the Dark Ritual Trailer. I've also determined what "snippets" of songs you'll get to hear (for the first time!!) near the beginning of the trailer.

Now I'll need to edit the cuts together, add some cool production music, and give you all a taste of what's coming! I can't wait!

Also, just FYI, I'll be shutting things down over the next few days to celebrate my 30th birthday! (I turn 30 on the 11th. Can anyone count how many times I snuck my birth date into "Spirit Blade" in one form or another? It's in there, go listen!) It's gonna be an awesome marathon weekend of gaming and geekiness. Visit "Paeter's Brain" next week for the details!

Regular posting will resume again on Monday with "In Search Of Truth" and the next chapter of Galatians.

Have a great weekend!

-Paeter Frandsen

Friday, April 4, 2008 Song-a-thon!

This week has been a music week for Paeter. He's wrapped up work on Raan's song entitled "Death Come Quickly" (hmm, I wonder why Raan would be singing those words...) and is now finishing a song between Vincent and Merikk called "Used".

In general, the songs of "Dark Ritual" have an added "Epic" flavor that wasn't present in "Spirit Blade". It's a blend of electronic, orchestral and rock stylings that we think is representative of the story and its primary backdrop.

Next week Paeter will begin systematically looking through the script and determining which lines and moments are vital for our trailer.

See you on Monday!

Wednesday, April 2, 2008 Dark Ritual Trailer Coming!!

Since I've hit a scene that I want to re-record some lines for, but don't feel super energized about doing that yet, I'm alternating back to work on some songs for Dark Ritual. I've got a duet with Randy (Vincent) that I'm adding his vocals to it now. The process is an exciting one. I'm using some effects to bring a darkness and hardness to his sound that will add to the tone of the song, contrasting epic orchestral/choral material with electronic production values.

And yes, you read that post title right, there is a trailer for Dark Ritual coming. Expect to see it around the end of April. I'll start deciding what clips and lines I want to use in it next week and then begin the mixing process the week after. Part of me is bummed that I'll have to stop work on Dark Ritual to get the trailer done, but it will be a fun little project to work on and a valuable marketing tool as we approach the release of Dark Ritual. Naturally you'll be the first to know when the trailer is completed and available for download!

That's all for now!

-Paeter Frandsen

Friday, March 28, 2008 One Song Killed, A New One Born

This week Paeter tossed one song concept for "Dark Ritual" into the trash and found a new one to start over with. The original song was a re-work of a little-known ancient hymn. The idea had been on the back-burner for awhile, but as Paeter began to unwrap it for use in "Dark Ritual", it seemed to be out of place in the context of the greater story.

Thankfully, another idea quickly presented itself and Paeter is already fleshing out the new song.

Have a great weekend!

Wednesday, March 26, 2008 What Are You Doing?

I've been asking God this question for awhile. Those peaks and valleys we experience in our journey with God can make for a wild ride. We can go from depression to a state of re-energized purpose.

My pastor once said that although God can really use those dramatic moments in life to speak to us, one skill vital to the Christian walk is "learning to plod along". Staying focused on the work without counting on those miraculous "pep talks" from God.

God has certainly done his share of miraculous things in my life, but right now I think he's teaching me to plod along. To be content with the direction he gives only in his word, instead of hoping for a miraculous sign. I'll admit, it's pretty tough on me. Nothing like some valleys I've been in before. In fact, I wouldn't really call this a valley at all. But there's a real challenge for me as I encounter God's "silence".

It's nothing new. The psalmists often ask God, "why are you silent", or "why are you hiding"? God's not afraid of our doubt or confusion. He just doesn't want us to stay there. In Psalm 13, David expresses his feelings to God. He feels forgotten and abandonded. But his feelings don't change the way he thinks. By the end of this short prayer, David commits himself to trusting in God because of who God is. He focuses on the truth to keep himself anchored.

The theme of God's silence has become so significant to me recently that I scrapped one song for "Dark Ritual" that I had ideas for, but wasn't working, and am now developing a song with the theme of God's silence. I think it will be a great addition that will aid the story in Dark Ritual and I'm looking forward to praying my way through the creative process on it as well.

So there's my "deep thought" for the day. Hope you're doing great and living life on purpose!

-Paeter Frandsen

Friday, March 7, 2008 Back In The Game

After a week of fighting "the crud", Paeter is nearly back to 100% and has jumped into mixing again. Our goal is to have one more song and one more scene completed before the end of next week.

We're also planning to have a trailer completed for "Dark Ritual" before the end of April. As always, we'll keep you posted on that as it develops.

That's it for now! Have a great weekend!

Wednesday, March 5, 2008 Emerging From The Pit

This morning I can feel myself slowly emerging from "The Pit Of Creeping Crud". Last Saturday, right after finishing the podcast, I noticed the first symptoms of a cold coming on.

Things pretty much snowballed from there and I got some drugs yesterday. (A "Z-pack", I think. Which my pharmacist wife said is really cool.) I don't get sick very often, but when I do it can sometimes be pretty rough. The most frustrating part has been being at home all day but with NO energy to work on "Dark Ritual"!

I'm feeling a little better today, and so hope to get a few things accomplished. "In Search Of Truth" has been bumped until next week, but we'll still have something valuable and thought-provoking for you on the podcast this weekend, so don't miss out!

Hope you all are having a good week and for those of you in school, Spring Break is just around the corner! Push through those mid-terms, you can make it!

-Paeter Frandsen

Friday, February 29, 2008 A Week For Songs!

It's been a great week for songwriting! Paeter has fleshed out the chorus track for a key song in "Dark Ritual". The song uses an Electronic/Epic sound that incorporates strings, orchestra samples and choral voices to create a sweeping, haunting backdrop for Mike Tully's singing.


There's still the verses to complete and then alot of polishing, but it's exciting to see this song come together after only thinking about it for the better part of a year.


That's all for now. Time to crack the whip and get Paeter back to work!


Have a great weekend!

Wednesday, February 27, 2008 Stuck In A Loop

I found a cool website recently that any aspiring songwriter should check out. It's called "looperman.com" and basically acts as a hub for people to share sound/music loops that they have created. Registration on the site is free and so are all the loops. They can be used privately or commercially, with only a credit required.


Of course, since virtually anyone can upload loops, you'll find some things that are useful and some that are not, but as I've skimmed the surface I've so far found most loops to be of good quality, if not always what I'm looking for.


Currently, I'm looking a for a little electric guitar material. I've got a friend who did some great guitar work on one song in "Dark Ritual" already, but when I need something short, simple and repetitive just to "fill-in" the sound some, loops are a quicker and easier way to go.


Currently I'm working on a song for Dark Ritual called "Death Come Quickly". Like one or two other songs in Dark Ritual, it has an Epic feel, so I'm looking for authentic sounding strings and will also add choral voices using a mix of samples, synth and my own voice to create the final sound.


Anyway, that's all for now. Back to work!


-Paeter Frandsen 

Friday, February 22, 2008 Past The Halfway Point!

We're thrilled to announce that we are officially more than halfway finished with the primary mixing of "Dark Ritual"!


Paeter's schedule will begin to free up after a couple more months and we expect progress to come more quickly when that happens.


We also don't anticipate the mastering process to take as long for "Dark Ritual" as it did for "Spirit Blade"(which took around 4-6 weeks). So once the primary mixing is complete it will be a sprint to the finish!


We've learned alot from our experience making "Spirit Blade" and believe that the production quality of "Dark Ritual" will be a significant improvement and refining of what we accomplished in our first project. We hope you'll agree!


Thanks for your support and stay tuned for more updates as we continue to move forward! 

Thursday, February 14, 2008 Freak Out!

We had a little adventure this week when Paeter thought he had forgotten to record three very crucial lines with Mike Tully when the actor was here last summer.


Although prepared to "get creative" and find a solution that could be written around the missing lines, we felt very lucky to have found the original lines tucked away on a mislabeled sound file. (Whew!)


Paeter is currently mixing an action scene that leads into a MAJOR cliffhanger around the middle of "Dark Ritual". It's a big moment because of its intensity and because of the length of time we make the audience wait before the cliffhanger is resolved. Should be fun!

Tuesday, February 12, 2008 Mixing Mike Tully

I've finally finished work on a scene with a lot of dialogue that required several layers of "mood-enhancing" sound effects in order to be interesting. Although I've had other things competing for my attention the last couple weeks, that scene was easily one of the longest to mix.


Yesterday, I started work on a "Mike Tully scene". Mike does the voice of Raan and it's always a ton of fun mixing his stuff. When he came into town for a marathon recording weekend last summer, we had so much fun and alot of our screwing around was captured in the recording sessions. So as I'm listening to his takes, deciding which ones to use, I'm often exploding into laughter as I listen to Tully and me just messing around and having fun. (Rest assured, I will be putting together a special feature centered on Tully and his behind the scenes gags.)


With Dark Ritual, I've experimented with using actors who can record their lines and send them to me from across the country or even across the world. It's been a cool way to expand my casting options, but I can't imagine casting long-distance actors in the really hefty lead roles. As a director, I think I value too much the time I spend with my actors one-on-one in a room together. Artistically and socially, there's just too much I think I'd miss.


Anyway, back to work. I wonder what Tully's gonna say today...


-Paeter Frandsen

Friday, February 8, 2008 Slow Week

Unfortunately it's been something of a slow week.

Paeter has had some other work to do that's kept him from working much on "Dark Ritual", although he was able to finish work on a "dialogue-heavy" scene that he's been editing for over two weeks now.

We're hoping to have the next part of Paeter's "Spirit Blade" Commentary finished this weekend or next, so keep an eye out for that on the "Media" page of our website.

Have a great weekend and as always, thanks for your support!