It was sometime during the summer of 2015 when I went to visit a friend in NYC. I explored the city on my own with nothing to do... which is really a nice feeling if you ever get the chance. Found an underground ping pong gym and everything.

When we got together one night, we spent some time drinking. He showed me some of his tattoos, all of which had apparently been done right across the street (convenient, I know). Since I was romanticizing the city and my current love of the song "New York I Love You But You're Bringing Me Down" - I felt the pull to get a tattoo. Or it was the alcohol... either way, I had to make a quick decision.

"James Murphy from LCD Soundsystem has a tattoo on his wrist, it's a microphone input, I love them and I sing - so it's fitting," I explained to him. "I'll just get that."

Great idea, right? A mic/XLR input on my leg. Neat idea, plug me in! Well... James Murphy DOES have an input tattoo on his wrist, except it's not XLR - it's midi. I only found this out afterwards, and I had never used a midi device in my life at that point. So my tattoo was a lie.

**Fast forward a decade to me rediscovering music and WB**

I had spent a lot of time the last few weeks really working on lyrics and recording vocals. I've been getting into midi lately. First time, actually. I've had a full 88 key Casio midi forever, as well as synthesizers. Well, turns out I've never put a connecting cable between the two. Now I feel like I was missing out. Having the full 88 key range is way more fun, and I am starting to add more gear to the mayhem. Very enjoyable. You may hear less singing, but it's time for me to explore...

At least now when I show someone my tattoo, I can actually say I do synth and midi sequencers. 😎

Tags: arpeggio, chill, explore, funky rhythm, jungle, midi, synth, week 15 2026, View by:endojo