In this episode of Lorenzo’s Music Podcast, I meet Jonathan, the person behind the band Negative Players, a self-proclaimed “hypothetical indie rock band” from southwest Michigan.

Jonathan’s initial vision to create music with family evolved into this solo endeavor. He discusses the creative process behind his music, drawing inspiration from iconic bands like The Beatles and 90s indie rock such as Sonic Youth and Pavement. He talks about songwriting, including his recent forays into banjo and ukulele, and how these instruments have influenced his sound.

Jonathan also tells me about recording in the DAW, Ableton Live, and using his methods for programming drums and arranging tracks. We talk about the challenges of being a solo artist in a band-centric world and the online platforms like Mastodon and its community in promoting his work.

Key Takeaways

1. Music production techniques
2. Use of unconventional instruments like banjo and ukulele
3. Recording process and studio setup
4. Music promotion and online community
5. Creative inspiration and songwriting process

Links Mentioned

• Ableton Live https://www.ableton.com
• Becoming Led Zeppelin (Documentary) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10365912

Connect with Negative Players

• Negative Players on Mastodon musician.social/@negativeplayers
• Negative Players Website negativeplayers.com

This episode was recorded on June 7, 2026. Special thanks to Jonathan of Negative Players for sharing his insights and experiences with me.

Listen to the full episode on your favorite podcast platform or watch the video above.

Listen to the song on:

• Spotify
• Apple Music
• YouTube Music
• Amazon Music
• Faircamp
• Bandcamp

“Rain in Purple Frontiers” by Lorenzo’s Music is a heavy art-rock track that transforms a 2022 Twitch live stream we did into a textured, experimental rock song. Fusing a rhythmic breakdown of a Slayer beat and evolving into a dark atmospheric new wave of early 80s Peter Gabriel, the song features dual-layered bass, DADGAD-tuned guitars, and baritone sax. The lyrics follow a “Vagabond” character, trying to reconnect.

All of our music is created using only open-source tools and software!

• Ubuntu Studio (Linux OS for creatives)
• Ardour (open-source DAW)
• Calf, Guitarix, x42 (Plugins)
• Hydrogen (Drum Machine)

This album is released under creative commons, so you are free to:

Share — use, copy, and redistribute the material in any medium or format

Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.

Rain in purple frontiers © 2026 by Lorenzo’s Music is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

In this last episode of the making of our song “Rain in Purple Frontiers”, I go through the last transformation of a Twitch songwriting stream into a heavy art-rock song and find a hidden mistake in one of the song tracks and troubleshoot the recording fix.

Inside the Episode:

• The Full Reveal: Recording the main drums.
• The Transformation: A deep dive into how the song came to be

This series documents the trial-and-error process of creating this song.

Gear & Software used in this session:

• DAW: Ardour
• OS: Ubuntu Studio
• Soundcard: Behringer U-PHORIA UMC1820 Sound Card

This is an exclusive preview for people who have been following along with the progress of this song before we release the song to the public on streaming services!

In this episode of the making of our song “Rain in Purple Frontiers”, we move from the digital programming of the first few videos into the world of live instrumentation. Watch as Cliff adds his dual-layer bass parts and we experiment with DADGAD guitars. Then, Bryan riffing on baritone sax to create a unique atmosphere for the song.

Inside the Episode:

• The Dual-Layer Bass: Cliff built a dual bass track using a finger-style take for sub-frequency and a second using a pick for that aggressive bite.
• DADGAD Tuned Guitar: Cliff also had an idea to try out a guitar part with a non-traditional tuning to create a dream-like tension in the song.
• The Saxophone Space: See how we used room reverb to take Bryan’s baritone sax from dry to something like an alleyway at night.

This series documents the trial-and-error process of creating this song.

Gear & Software used in this session:

• DAW: Ardour
• OS: Ubuntu Studio
• Soundcard: Behringer U-PHORIA UMC1820 Sound Card

In this episode of Lorenzo’s Music Podcast, I meet Dave Mallick, a dedicated volunteer for the Internet Archive, specifically focusing on the Live Music Archive. Dave shares how he started as a music enthusiast and recorder archiving live music from the late 90s to the present day.

We talk about the evolution of the Live Music Archive, its role in preserving high-quality recordings, and the challenges faced in obtaining permissions from artists. Dave discusses the process to standardize and distribute live recordings, highlighting the importance of community contributions in maintaining this extensive collection.

We also mention the various formats available for uploads and lossless audio of live recordings. Dave mentions the cultural preservation aspect of the Internet Archive and encourages musicians and fans alike to contribute their recordings.

Key Takeaways

1. Archiving Live Music Dave has been involved in live music archiving since the late 90s.
2. Live Recordings The Internet Archive hosts a vast collection of live music recordings.
3. Mainstream Acceptance Many bands embraced the idea of sharing their live recordings online.
4. User-Generated Content plays a significant role in music preservation.
5. Auto Formats The Internet Archive converts uploaded audio into various formats automatically.
6. Cultural Preservation is a key goal of the Internet Archive.

Links Mentioned

• Creative Commons https://creativecommons.org
• Internet Archive https://archive.org
• ETree Community https://etree.org

Connect with The Live Music Archive

• Live Music Archive https://archive.org/details/etree

This episode was recorded on June 2, 2026. Special thanks to David Mallick of The Live Music Archive for sharing his insights and experiences with me.

Listen to the full episode on your favorite podcast platform or watch the video above.

In this episode of the making of our song “Rain in Purple Frontiers”, I share the unpolished vocal takes, frustration of hitting a creative wall, and the “random riffing” session that led to a lyrical breakthrough.

Inside the Episode:

• The Songwriting Pivot: Transitioning from the instrumental loops of Episode 2 into a structured Verse-Chorus-Bridge song.
• The Breakpoint: How a frustrating vocal take revealed the song’s narrative theme: an “old flame trying to reconnect.”
• The “Vagabond” Character: Defining the vocal character and finding the lyrics that finally locked the track together.

This series documents the trial-and-error process of creating this song.

Gear & Software used in this session:

• DAW: Ardour
• Drums: Hydrogen Drum Machine
• OS: Ubuntu Studio
• Soundcard: Behringer U-PHORIA UMC1820 Sound Card

In this episode, we move from the digital skeleton I made in the last video of “Rain in Purple Frontiers” in the studio to test different track instrumentation. This wasn’t about finding an immediate “hook” or a finished melody, it was a day of experimentation and seeing where different textures could take the song.

Inside the Episode:

• Testing Instrumentation: Rob joins the session to help explore guitar lines on the bass ukulele while I hunt for the right keyboard sound.
• The Creative Pivot: Discovering an atmospheric keyboard sound that steered us toward a Peter Gabriel “Games Without Frontiers” vibe.
• The Uncertainty of Songwriting: Reviewing the session tracks during our process, I decided I liked the Ukelele parts more as their own song. So exported them for a future session.

This series documents the actual process of creating this song, highlighting the technical choices and the trial-and-error that defined its final sound.

Gear & Software used in this session:

• DAW: Ardour
• Drums: Hydrogen Drum Machine
• Instrumentation: Bass Ukulele & Keyboards
• OS: Ubuntu Studio
• Soundcard: Behringer U-PHORIA UMC1820 Sound Card

In this first episode of our “Rain in Purple Frontiers” making-of series, I’m showing how I got the idea to try and build a song based on an organ riff from an old Twitch live stream jam, and try to transform it into a track.

Our band creates music only using open-source tools. I’ll walk you through how I used Ubuntu Studio, the Hydrogen drum machine, and Ardour DAW to build the skeleton of the song, mixing unexpected influences like Slayer’s “Raining Blood” breakdown beat into something entirely new and make it more Art Rock. 🙂

Join me as I show the unpolished beginnings of this track, and the live stream version that started it all.

Featured Tools:

• OS: Ubuntu Studio
• DAW: Ardour
• Drums: Hydrogen

In this episode of Lorenzo’s Music Podcast, I have a fascinating conversation with Jean-Baptiste Kempf, the lead of the VLC open source project, which has been a staple in multimedia for nearly two decades. Jean shares the origins of VLC, tracing back to a student project in Paris, and how it evolved from a niche solution for streaming video on local networks to a widely used media player that supports an extensive range of codecs and formats.

We talk about the challenges of maintaining this project, community contributions, and how VLC has managed to remain relevant even today. Jean discusses the project’s commitment to accessibility and quality, emphasizing the need for open-source alternatives in a world increasingly reliant on corporate platforms for media consumption.

We also talk about its ongoing efforts to ensure that users can play any media format, new & old, preserving access to all kinds of media.

Key Takeaways

1. Project origins VLC started as a student project in Paris.
2. Codecs VLC’s ability to play various formats is a key feature.
3. Supporting old media The importance of maintaining access to media formats for the future.
4. Streaming options VLC integrates with streaming services and radio stations.
5. Open Source VLC aims to remain a free and accessible media player with open source community engagement and contributions.
6. Moving forward The future of VLC includes advancements in audio and video formats.

Links Mentioned

• Creative Commons https://creativecommons.org
• Ubuntu Linux https://ubuntu.com
• Icecast https://icecast.org
• Jamendo https://www.jamendo.com
• FFmpeg https://ffmpeg.org/
• Shotcut https://shotcut.org/
• KDENlive https://kdenlive.org/

Connect with VLC

• VLC/VideoLAN Website https://www.videolan.org

This episode was recorded on May 21, 2026. Special thanks to Jean-Baptiste Kempf of VLC for sharing his insights and experiences with me.

Listen to the full episode on your favorite podcast platform or watch the video above.