We ran a beta test of our upcoming streaming web show and strangely around 50 people stopped by. Familiar faces like Axiom, James Cigler, Richard Devine, Machinedrum, Trifonic some other friends from our Workspace Series somehow got a hold of our spam and joined in! For those who came, thanks and you can look forward to more. Those who didn't come, we'll announce a date and time for our next broadcast. Until then....
7/08/2008
Workspace and Environment: On Holiday
I just watched the aftermath of someone getting stabbed in the face tonight. There's been a lot of knife action in Chicago as of late.... Anyways! Justin and I are toying around with the idea of doing a bi-weekly streaming web show right here! I'm not sure what to expect or what we will even cover but I'm sure everyone's mothers will come up. We'll set a date/time later and see what happens but for now I got Marianne Williams from On Holiday to spill her guts
Background
I was born into sweet Iowa then moved to awful Kansas when I was in 7th grade. I knew college was my chance to escape, and since my mom was a hippie who lived in LA during the late 60s and early 70s, I grew up hearing stories and seeing photos of California in those days. I really romanticized this city as a child and still do. I love it here, but the people get pretty intense. I find myself subletting my apartment out every once in a while to travel, explore and take a break from LA. We always had a piano in our house growing up. As a child I would sneak into the music room after my sisters piano practice to try to imitate the Chopin and Bach she would endlessly loop. I still can't read music or play by ear, but I always felt elated by my simplified Romantic/Baroque improv approximations. When I was 15, I met an opera singer that adored my voice, and in the following 3 years he taught me all of the mezzo parts in great operas like Carmen, Aida, and Cavalleria Rusticana. I came to LA/USC to continue to study, but learning about jazz, rave and hip hop, conceptual art, performance art and film distracted me from classical training. Now, music is just a personal joy for me. The compulsion to write, play and record seems endless, and the emotional release that comes after completing some new song that has lots of ticking/tocking/interlocking layers is too strong and good to quit all together. Performing is an offshoot of writing and recording at home. When I spend 6 months or 2 years writing one song, eventually I need to play it for someone besides my bunny rabbit.
What are your current favorite pieces of hardware?
I love my upright piano- the tone is incredible. It's 600 pounds and 106 years old, and I found it in a basement in Inglewood. Also, my Ibanez Rock and Play drum machine which I found in Guangzhou, my dead grampas accordion, the autoharp which Tlr gave me for Christmas... I'm very sentimental about instruments and can not pick a "favorite", how unfair! I used to love my Oberheim Matrix 6 because it transports you to a magical place of cheesy 80s horror films, but Qrixs broke a bunch
of the keys and it's been dropped a lot, so now it's starting to program its own not-good sounds. I'm pretty sure none of that is actually "hardware," but ah, well.
What are some softwares or plugins you prefer?
A friend just hooked me up with ProTools 7 and one of those fancy M-Audio firewire sound card things. That is probably pretty basic for most of you all, but it's a huge step for me as I only had garageband before. I still don't understand plugins. When I record, I get all of my sounds with mics or from instruments with line outs. I like to cut and edit on the computer though.
How does your physical space and surroundings influence your workflow?
My "studio" is in one of my living rooms. I can usually only focus on a song or practice for an hour at the most, because of all the other daily crap I have to do which is staring me in the face.
Could you describe what you might think your ideal location would be?
A huge house with huge windows on a cliff outside of Rio, with a white baby grand piano on the balcony overlooking the ocean. The amazing studio and amazing chef would lure all of my amazing music friends there to live with me and record amazing albums together.
What is on your current 'wish list'?
Rhodes, Moog Voyager, Whirly... a really warm tone keyboard. Analog echo and reverb boxes, a (working) portable turntable, and a whole collection of vintage mics, especially an old radio announcer mic. I never buy gear on ebay, it just feels wrong, so I have to wait until I discover it in some dusty thrift store or tiny music shop.
Do you have a setup for live performances?
My tiny size toy grand piano, the Rock N Play handheld drum machine, distortion pedal, toy mic, regular mic, microcube or other small amp, whatever keyboard I can borrow from one of my friends (if there's not a piano at the venue), and the few toys I've wired with outputs. That's the basic stuff, but each show is different. I love to collaborate with all kinds of people- noise artists, performance artists, puppets, and beat makers, and have happily never made the same show twice.
Are you involved in any other projects?
I'm singing in an amazing psychedelic/western band called Crooked Cowboy and the Freshwater Indians. I love it- the sound is so full and intense, and I sing these wordless rhythms and harmonies with a few other singers. Also, I am helping to coordinate the soundtrack for an indie feature film called Trilby. I don't think I'm going to contribute to the soundtrack, just organize other musicians. For me, it's nice and necessary to step out of the role of creator sometimes, and it's easy for me to recognize talent and innovation in the people
around me.
On Holiday can be found here: myspace.com/holidaymusic
BackgroundI was born into sweet Iowa then moved to awful Kansas when I was in 7th grade. I knew college was my chance to escape, and since my mom was a hippie who lived in LA during the late 60s and early 70s, I grew up hearing stories and seeing photos of California in those days. I really romanticized this city as a child and still do. I love it here, but the people get pretty intense. I find myself subletting my apartment out every once in a while to travel, explore and take a break from LA. We always had a piano in our house growing up. As a child I would sneak into the music room after my sisters piano practice to try to imitate the Chopin and Bach she would endlessly loop. I still can't read music or play by ear, but I always felt elated by my simplified Romantic/Baroque improv approximations. When I was 15, I met an opera singer that adored my voice, and in the following 3 years he taught me all of the mezzo parts in great operas like Carmen, Aida, and Cavalleria Rusticana. I came to LA/USC to continue to study, but learning about jazz, rave and hip hop, conceptual art, performance art and film distracted me from classical training. Now, music is just a personal joy for me. The compulsion to write, play and record seems endless, and the emotional release that comes after completing some new song that has lots of ticking/tocking/interlocking layers is too strong and good to quit all together. Performing is an offshoot of writing and recording at home. When I spend 6 months or 2 years writing one song, eventually I need to play it for someone besides my bunny rabbit.
What are your current favorite pieces of hardware?
I love my upright piano- the tone is incredible. It's 600 pounds and 106 years old, and I found it in a basement in Inglewood. Also, my Ibanez Rock and Play drum machine which I found in Guangzhou, my dead grampas accordion, the autoharp which Tlr gave me for Christmas... I'm very sentimental about instruments and can not pick a "favorite", how unfair! I used to love my Oberheim Matrix 6 because it transports you to a magical place of cheesy 80s horror films, but Qrixs broke a bunch
of the keys and it's been dropped a lot, so now it's starting to program its own not-good sounds. I'm pretty sure none of that is actually "hardware," but ah, well.
What are some softwares or plugins you prefer?A friend just hooked me up with ProTools 7 and one of those fancy M-Audio firewire sound card things. That is probably pretty basic for most of you all, but it's a huge step for me as I only had garageband before. I still don't understand plugins. When I record, I get all of my sounds with mics or from instruments with line outs. I like to cut and edit on the computer though.
How does your physical space and surroundings influence your workflow?
My "studio" is in one of my living rooms. I can usually only focus on a song or practice for an hour at the most, because of all the other daily crap I have to do which is staring me in the face.
Could you describe what you might think your ideal location would be?
A huge house with huge windows on a cliff outside of Rio, with a white baby grand piano on the balcony overlooking the ocean. The amazing studio and amazing chef would lure all of my amazing music friends there to live with me and record amazing albums together.
What is on your current 'wish list'?
Rhodes, Moog Voyager, Whirly... a really warm tone keyboard. Analog echo and reverb boxes, a (working) portable turntable, and a whole collection of vintage mics, especially an old radio announcer mic. I never buy gear on ebay, it just feels wrong, so I have to wait until I discover it in some dusty thrift store or tiny music shop.
Do you have a setup for live performances? My tiny size toy grand piano, the Rock N Play handheld drum machine, distortion pedal, toy mic, regular mic, microcube or other small amp, whatever keyboard I can borrow from one of my friends (if there's not a piano at the venue), and the few toys I've wired with outputs. That's the basic stuff, but each show is different. I love to collaborate with all kinds of people- noise artists, performance artists, puppets, and beat makers, and have happily never made the same show twice.
Are you involved in any other projects?
I'm singing in an amazing psychedelic/western band called Crooked Cowboy and the Freshwater Indians. I love it- the sound is so full and intense, and I sing these wordless rhythms and harmonies with a few other singers. Also, I am helping to coordinate the soundtrack for an indie feature film called Trilby. I don't think I'm going to contribute to the soundtrack, just organize other musicians. For me, it's nice and necessary to step out of the role of creator sometimes, and it's easy for me to recognize talent and innovation in the people
around me.
On Holiday can be found here: myspace.com/holidaymusic
7/07/2008
ThingmamaKIT
Being into noise and all things inspiring I've wanted a thingamagoop for a while. I have always loved the playful design and level of customization offered and it has always reminded me of some friends who create designer toys. Even though I realized it was primarily supposed to be fun, I always wanted a few more controls. BEHOLD! the thingmamaKIT! Assuming that you build it correctly it adds a few more features over the thingamagoop like a second photocell arm and square and Triangle wave outputs. Er, I should've reported this earlier cause now you suckers have to pay 65 bucks instead of 55 from the sale this weekend. At least now you have a neat video to convince you to buy one which the impulsive buyers didn't have.
Live audio_Output: The Great Mundane and POLYFUSE
An interesting Wednesday night show is happening this week, Surachai and I (as POLYFUSE) are playing at The Butterfly Social in Chicago. The show is free, if you can make it out there, come give us a high five or a punch in the gut, whichever you feel is most appropriate. The show is being put on by a local group known as Psymbolic who brings out an interesting mix of not only musicians and DJs but video, visual and spoken word artists. It should be an interesting mix. All details here.
Flight Of Harmony: Parasite (Limited Edition VCRBPF)
The Parasite is a brand new limited edition (only 10!!!) Single Voltage-Controlled Resonant Bandpass filter (VCRBPF) with dual Low-Frequency Oscillators (LFOs) and is being made and sold by a new company called Flight Of Harmony. They also just recently released The Plague Bearer, which was only limited to FOUR units, they sold out fast. The Parasite is for sale now, and at the time of this post, there are only EIGHT left for $230. Get your hands on one before this is posted to matrixsynth! Because when that happens, they'll be gone!7/03/2008
video_Output: Four Analog Delays
Happy America Fuck Yeah Day....
I got my Electro-Harmonix Deluxe Memory Man pedal today and decided to break it in with my other delays. I'm not sure why I don't see more feedback in delay demos as that's one of the primary reasons I buy analog delays. Can I get another economic stimulus check? Fanx.
The signal flow is as follows: Cwejman VM-1 (source) into Doepfer A-188-2 Tapped BBD Module into Ibanez AD9 into Moog MF104z into Electro-Harmonix Deluxe Memory Man into your brain.
I got my Electro-Harmonix Deluxe Memory Man pedal today and decided to break it in with my other delays. I'm not sure why I don't see more feedback in delay demos as that's one of the primary reasons I buy analog delays. Can I get another economic stimulus check? Fanx.
The signal flow is as follows: Cwejman VM-1 (source) into Doepfer A-188-2 Tapped BBD Module into Ibanez AD9 into Moog MF104z into Electro-Harmonix Deluxe Memory Man into your brain.
7/01/2008
6/30/2008
Update: Africa Hates Trash_Audio
I'm not sure if this qualifies as Africa or the Indian Ocean but we'll take it!! There has been sole visitor from Mauritius for a while and if it weren't for this blog, I would have no idea where/what it is. Go ahead, click on that link and pretend you knew all about Mauritius since grade school. Don't forget to be condescending towards everyone who didn't know which has to be 99% of the population. If you are this person, drop an e-mail to the right. If you are not this person, feel free to drop and e-mail and say hello!Oh right... we're an audio blog or something. So this is Justin's Cwejman acting as a pillow for my Doepfer.
Workspace and Environment: Pony Pants
HELLO MONDAY, DIE! Er... Hey readers..... Emily J.K, Ryan and Steve from Pony Pants were kind enough to let me poke them with the questions. Enjoy!
How long have you been involved with making music?
We were all born in delaware and moved to Philadelphia in 2004 after two of us finished school and and all of were seeking change. We started playing together as Pony Pants in early 2005. Ryan and Steve (both who program beats & play guitars) are brothers and had been playing music together for most of their teenage/adult lives, but it was the long, cold winter that brought pony pants together. At the time, the three of us were living in a cheap bi-level apartment with a spare room that we used as a studio and music space. We hadn't lived in Philly for too long and still weren't really integrated in our neighborhood or scene. Lots of forced time indoor and general boredom found us in the studio room drinking copious beers, messing around, and eventually writing funny little songs together.
What is your current favorite piece of hardware?
Our favorite thing right now is our Akai MPC 2000XL. We used to use a Boss Dr. Rhythm Section to program and sequence the backing beats and synths for all of our songs. After quickly maxing out the DR's potential (Ryan had owned it since high school), we began to covet an MPC and when we found a used one last year at a music store in Philly, we jumped right on it. The high quality sampling of the Akai was a revelation, and has really pushed and improved the way we write our beats. The warm, analog feel of the Akai is as vast improvement, too, and makes us horny.
What is your current favorite software or plugin?
No.
How does your physical space and surroundings influence your workflow?
Well now we live in a big house that has a huge space on the third floor that is our practice space and Steve's bedroom and art studio space. While the room at first seemed impossibly massive, it gets more cramped every day as we progressively cram more and more gear into it. The space is cozy and comfortable and it's in our house! So we can practice pretty much any time the mood strikes. (Except when Steve is napping). Our housemates are really nice about how loud we are, and our neighbors are, too.
Are you involved with any additional projects?
Steve's been playing guitar sometimes with another project called Soltero myspace.com/soltero. That's mostly it for now.
What was the first piece of hardware you remember obtaining?
Ryan says, "The Thor - my first drum set. It was candy apple red and dilapidated even before I got to it! The last thing I got was a Peavey JVM60, which is a badass all tube 60 watt head with 8 mod switches. Perfect for perching myself on my tone throne." (snickers).
Steve says, "A Yamaha Cruise." (everyone starts laughing). "And a Peavey Classic. Practice Amp. Hoopty. The last thing I got was a Boss RCXL120 Loopstation."
What is on your current 'wish list'?
More stacks.
Have you ever heard your music being played at a random place?
Yes! once at a vintage store in Richmond, VA. we were getting bagels next door and heard it piped in through the speakers outside.
You can find Pony Pants at: myspace.com/ponypants and badmasterrecords.com.
How long have you been involved with making music?We were all born in delaware and moved to Philadelphia in 2004 after two of us finished school and and all of were seeking change. We started playing together as Pony Pants in early 2005. Ryan and Steve (both who program beats & play guitars) are brothers and had been playing music together for most of their teenage/adult lives, but it was the long, cold winter that brought pony pants together. At the time, the three of us were living in a cheap bi-level apartment with a spare room that we used as a studio and music space. We hadn't lived in Philly for too long and still weren't really integrated in our neighborhood or scene. Lots of forced time indoor and general boredom found us in the studio room drinking copious beers, messing around, and eventually writing funny little songs together.
What is your current favorite piece of hardware?
Our favorite thing right now is our Akai MPC 2000XL. We used to use a Boss Dr. Rhythm Section to program and sequence the backing beats and synths for all of our songs. After quickly maxing out the DR's potential (Ryan had owned it since high school), we began to covet an MPC and when we found a used one last year at a music store in Philly, we jumped right on it. The high quality sampling of the Akai was a revelation, and has really pushed and improved the way we write our beats. The warm, analog feel of the Akai is as vast improvement, too, and makes us horny.
What is your current favorite software or plugin?
No.
How does your physical space and surroundings influence your workflow?
Well now we live in a big house that has a huge space on the third floor that is our practice space and Steve's bedroom and art studio space. While the room at first seemed impossibly massive, it gets more cramped every day as we progressively cram more and more gear into it. The space is cozy and comfortable and it's in our house! So we can practice pretty much any time the mood strikes. (Except when Steve is napping). Our housemates are really nice about how loud we are, and our neighbors are, too.
Are you involved with any additional projects?Steve's been playing guitar sometimes with another project called Soltero myspace.com/soltero. That's mostly it for now.
What was the first piece of hardware you remember obtaining?
Ryan says, "The Thor - my first drum set. It was candy apple red and dilapidated even before I got to it! The last thing I got was a Peavey JVM60, which is a badass all tube 60 watt head with 8 mod switches. Perfect for perching myself on my tone throne." (snickers).
Steve says, "A Yamaha Cruise." (everyone starts laughing). "And a Peavey Classic. Practice Amp. Hoopty. The last thing I got was a Boss RCXL120 Loopstation."
What is on your current 'wish list'?
More stacks.
Have you ever heard your music being played at a random place?
Yes! once at a vintage store in Richmond, VA. we were getting bagels next door and heard it piped in through the speakers outside.
You can find Pony Pants at: myspace.com/ponypants and badmasterrecords.com.
6/28/2008
Africa Hates Trash_Audio
'Hate' is not an appropriate word more like, 'indifferent'. Although these are the most recent 500 and Surely we've had Africans before, something makes me miss them now. And Surely, other countries are 'indifferent' at us but a whole continent? And don't call me Surely.
*Update: Those google ads on the right are the worst pieces of shit. They're not even deceiving or annoying and that's why they're annoying.
*Update: Those google ads on the right are the worst pieces of shit. They're not even deceiving or annoying and that's why they're annoying.
6/26/2008
Arturia: Recession Fun Times!
As a manufacturer, what do you do when we're in a recession? One idea might be to think of some crazy deal that is bound to draw attention(I'm writing about it aren't I?) and potential sales. Thankfully they didn't disguise it as NUCLEAR SUMMER BLOWOUT!! While these synths are great recreations of their analog sources and I was actually considering one, I found out something that makes me want to go on a killing spree. FUCKING dongles. Here is a fun read of some trouble shooting associated with them: yay!That was a trick! There is nothing fun about dongles!
I still have my Logic 6 dongle and it STILL owns me. Some sessions are on my box in D.C. and since I was already planning a visit there, I thought I'd bounce everything and bring it back to Chicago. When I arrived I loaded everything up and NOPE! You forgot your dongle in Chicago you tool! GAGGGH.
Find this deal: Here
Live: Trifonic + Mr. Projectile in San Francisco June 26th
Our buddies Trifonic are having their debut gig in San Francisco tonight at the Red Devil Lounge. While this may be their debut performance as Trifonic, they've been playing been playing around this blue dot for some time. If I lived remotely close to SF, I'd drag Justin with me to see this. They're even bringing out Mr. Projectile to make the night the most brutal show in San Francisco. EVER. Ok so maybe these guys don't specialize in brutality but rather in elegance and technicality. What else are you going to do on a thursday night? You can download their album, here and be that person who yells out songs they want the band to play.
*Update* Here's Trifonic's album embedded for listening, buy it from their site if you like it!
Plan B ELF Series
Plan B has announced pricing for its ELF Series a couple weeks back and since we're not an up to date news source, here it is. I travel with my modular regularly and I'm always scratching my eyes out trying to figure which modules to leave home due to space constraints. Enter the ELF Series. I'm looking forward to throwing a bunch of ADSR's in my box! And the price are small as well! No word yet on prices of the planned summer/fall release. Model - Description - Retail
23 - Analog Shift Register -$165
36 - Leveler - $60
37 - LFO - $160
38 - ADSR - $130
38A - ADSR Expander - $55
39 - Wave Splicer - $100
40 - Headphone Preamp - $75
You can find Plan B Products at Noisebug.
6/25/2008
video_Output: Nine Inch Nails, Live From Rehearsals...
Here is NIN performaing 1,000,000 (From The Slip) live at recent rehearsals for their upcoming tour. Go ahead, spot some gear...
Another video was just released, this is 'Letting You'
And finally, 'Echoplex' featuring more gear...
Another video was just released, this is 'Letting You'
And finally, 'Echoplex' featuring more gear...
6/23/2008
video_Output - Passing Storm
A timelapse of a storm system passing through my window in Chicago. The audio is from a release called Form using only modular synth action. Enjoy the week!
Video_ Passing Storm
Audio_ Surachai_ Form Twenty-Six
Downloadable: here
Video_ Passing Storm
Audio_ Surachai_ Form Twenty-Six
Downloadable: here
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