An Akai On The Train

I wake up on a Thursday Spring day. Normally I’m not too excited to wake up early. I love myself and I’ve always been “lay in my bed and work until I get out of bed, get ready and then work,” kind of person if I’m being honest lol. However, this weekend I was juiced, why? Why you say? Because I was gonna see my older sister and eldest niece :D! My niece and I were going to see Colorful Stage! The Movie: A Miku Who Can’t Sing. It was showing in Emeryville and considering the long standing fanbase, this was a monumental moment to say the least. My niece and I also turned 12 and 30, respectively, in the prior month so it was kind of our dual b-day present.

Obviously, making music in the movie theatre was a no-go, but considering I don’t drive like that, I was going to be in Oakland from Thursday-Sat/Sunday, and I really wanted to keep up my regular Akai MPC One+ usage, I brought my lil baby with me. Yes, My Akai is my baby, obviously I recognize that it is not a human child lmao. Anyways, packing as much as I could into multiple bags, I rushed to the train. One could say I “booked it” in a manic fashion to the train (mostly because, despite my best efforts, I still managed to be behind in time, relative to the train’s departure schedule.

Finally, after putting my long awaited former competitive runner skills to use, I enter the train, sweaty—but triumphant! Here comes the tricky part, finding a seat where I will be able to play without being stressed about whether the person near me will have an issue. Mind you, most on the Capitol Corridor are pretty chill people in my years of riding the train, however, you never know, and while I am never loud, I don’t want to be rude in the slightest.

I find a spot, but eh, not quite. So I make my way to one of my favorite cars on the train, the Cafe car. The window views are the best and can provide inspiration; the food is nearby, and people are typically in and out. Meaning I can do my thing and mind my own. In general, I love riding trains. I hope to one day to ride to Seattle, L.A., and Flagstaff.

I wonder, should I connect my Focusrite and all? Pictured, I hadn’t connected it all yet but considering the earphone jack in the Akai MPC One+ is not the best, I eventually address that.

We (the train passengers) find ourselves flowing from Sacramento, to Davis—then Suisun-Fairfield.

I worked on “A.T.M. (At This Moment),” on the same route and train as when I first wrote the song two years ago. As I hear the incoming lyric “I take another sip, I’ve what I’ve had to drink, thinking about you, oh you…” I come to accept the fact that I really need an intro. I have some songs that just jump right into things, but considering that this song is a bit contemplative, I figure a little intro with just some melodic keys, electric guitar, and kick drum would be perfect.

I look up and we’re crossing the bridge to Martinez, just keeping it real, this is the only time I get anxiety on the train. I try to push through.

I make small talk with a couple of others on the train, as they listen to my beat, I realize that I need to make a tremendous more amount of changes, make it easier on the ears but keep the core type situation.

We’re getting close.

My brain is swimming with ideas and inspiration. My sister says it’s best I get off at the Emeryville Station versus Jack London in order to meet them faster. So I do. It’s kinda cold, just how I remember the Bay.

Thump Thump Thump Thump… the beat still in the back of my mind, I tuck it away, excited to continue the process of exploring this song.

It’s niece-auntie time!

Until next time! X Marks The Spot!

-ebonixesra