Oh Sh*t, It’s Jamuary: Commit to Tape
Went to rehearsal last night. Didn’t set the MPC back up. Grabbed the OP-1 and committed.
Doing a song a day for January 2026 is an exercise in oh shit, I gotta get this done—but it’s also an exercise in staying in the mindset. You do have to think a little bit, though. Like: what am I gonna do tomorrow? At night, maybe spend some time thinking about what you’re gonna do in the morning.
I didn’t do that. Today's track here
Last night I had a rehearsal with Daphne Falls. While it didn’t run late, I was up later than usual. It was great, just later. I took the MPC, that worked, but that’s another post.
This morning I wasn’t sure what I was gonna do, because my MPC wasn’t set up, RTG. It hadn’t been unloaded from rehearsal last night. So I just… for me… thoughtlessly grabbed the OP-1 after coming up with a little chord sequence.
The tape machine flow is a different one, and I gotta say: if the four-track had continued to evolve without computers, I think we would’ve arrived at the OP-1.
The battery life cannot be overstated. It’s amazing. I bet I could get through half of January on one charge. And especially for something like Jamuary—getting it down, moving on, committing—it matters.
I didn’t sequence the bass line, just played it. Guitar is freehand obviously. The lead synth is also free, just “what am I feeling?” I knew I was in C# minor (or E) and I went with it. We’ll see in a couple days if I’m happy with it. The feel’s right. The bass may have been rushed a little bit. So what. There are probably one or two lead notes I’d want back.
But that’s it--done and dusted.
There’s no grid to stare at. There’s only tape sections—eight measures at a time—and using that good old LoFi Girl song section template, I cranked it out. I’ll have something for two minutes that’s at least reasonable. I also did the mixdown in the OP-1. I’ve gotta figure out the memory buttons again (I’ve kind of forgotten), but other than that, the commitment is the thing.
In the tape workflow, I don’t know where else you get it. Maybe something like a Zoom L-series mixer, but it’s not the same. This is all-in-one.
And I did use the guitar amp and phaser—both of those are amazing additions. Same with the tape count-in. Those three things… had they not happened in December, I would not be using this thing as much.
I think the whole idea of commitment and “fix it later” has been totally lost. I don’t know if that’s good or bad, but committing to tape is 100% a great thing for me. And again, I just don’t know where else you get it.