Embracing the amateur ambition
When I was a teenager, I would spend hours and hours making electronic music with software like eJay or Magix Music Maker.
Recently, I rediscovered some of the old songs I composed with Magix Music Maker. I clearly wanted to make everything as aggressive and noisy as possible. Therefore, most of it is….kind of crappy. There’s too much going on.
Those computer programs included hundreds of readymade samples. They were intuitive and flexible, with lots of ways to organize and manipulate the audio. You could also add your own vocals, samples, and instruments.
In fact, I would love to go back and remaster everything and get a more balanced mix. I would also like to rerecord all my vocals. They’re so monotone, it’s painful 😀
However, some gems played on the radio and even on national television! I’ve also used them in my videos – in my Summer Song 2025 video, for example.
(I’m highlighting that oldie because it was my first summer song video, so it holds a special place in my heart. I used to edit videos with Magix Movie Maker, but ironically, this video is probably the first one to use Adobe Premiere.)
Magix Music Maker allowed me to bring ideas to life effortlessly, and I look back at the experimentation and discovery with fondness. It would be a shame to let that go.
So, what better way to pay tribute to these passion projects than to create music videos for them?
Interstellar
I had so much fun with Magix that I made entire albums that I would distribute to my closest friends. Once again, most of the material was embarrassing, but Interstellar received positive remarks.
It’s a house track that follows the typical A-B-A-B-C-B pop song structure. I flipped and layered a simple string sample to make the main melody. The energetic and lighthearted vibe comes from the house beat and custom sequencers.
I made the song before Christopher Nolan’s movie of the same name. Instead, the title draws inspiration from another piece of science fiction: Daft Punk’s Interstella 5555.
At the same time, the music video draws inspiration from Nolan.
First, the story was about humans launching into space. However, I did the opposite, and have an alien visiting Earth.
Deep Blue Sea
I composed this one for Radio Reaktori’s newscasts.
Radio Reaktori was a local radio station in the Helsinki metropolitan area. The station was completely managed by students. I was the editor-in-chief for the 2008 season.
The song didn’t have a name, so I decided to pay homage to the Renny Harlin cult classic. Let’s keep the film references going.
Still a singer-songwriter
I still compose songs on the piano. Coming up with melodies is quite easy, but telling compelling stories takes more effort. Out of tens of ideas, I usually finish 1–2 songs a year.
I would like to return to the world of sampling. My demos would certainly benefit from better production.
Unfortunately, Magix Music Maker isn’t available for Mac. How do I become the new Skrillex now?
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