Quaristice, the new album from Autechre, is now available for download in flac and mp3 formats. A physical release (CD, ltd. ed. 2CD & vinyl) will arrive in stores on March 3.
Saul Williams has released a video for his cover of U2's "Sunday Bloody Sunday." The track was produced by Trent Reznor. The video was directed by Jordan M. Albert and James Mathers.
The Tar Spangled Banner Tour kicks of at SXSW on March 12. Here are the announced dates:
there are things you can't control
there are things you just can't do
these are fears that hide your soul (if you let them)
and dreams that won't come true
there are those who'll take what you give them
and then those who'll take even more
don't give in to these dirty little bitches
those filthy little whores
everybody has a dream
everyone wants a piece
who wouldn't want to have it all
but how many make it real?
decide what you really want
figure out what you want to do
then get up and do it
don't talk, just do
you won't
i will
Tools: Logic, Virus TI, Thingamagoop, Kaoss KP3, Nord Lead 2, Shure KSM32.
It rarely rains in LA. This week has been the exception. Despite the mudslide on my street and the general wetness, I've been diggin' the rain. There's something soothing about the sound of rain. After the rain, the color green stands out, and the cloudy skies become so clear you can see for miles and miles.
I put together a liquid collage with my Zoom H4, Logic Pro 8 and the Virus TI.
To the bouncer at the random downtown LA bar who was cool enough to let us in at closing time last night when I really needed to go to the bathroom, this one's for you: "When It Rains, It Pours."
when it rains, it pours : mp3 download
Moog Music showed the new Voyager OS (Old School) at NAMM. It's all the analog goodness of the Voyager without any of the digital control. Even MIDI has been removed to make the Voyager sound more affordable and more like the classic Minimoog Model D.
Atomizer is a new realtime performance beat slicer, stutterer and mangler which will be part of the upcoming free Virus 2.7 OS update from Access for all Virus TI synths, including the new TI Snow. I got to play with Atomizer at NAMM, and I was blown away.
Run a vocal, song or any audio through the Virus in Atomizer mode, and it comes out sounding like a glitchy Aphex Twin remix. Start by tapping in the tempo. Then use the white keys for straight repeating and other various warping effects at different time intervals. The black keys do triplets. The mod wheel acts as a low-pass or high-pass filter. The pitch wheel is wild too. Atomizer allows you to "play" and automate bitcrushing, sample rate reduction and stuttering effects along with the familiar Virus distortion, reverb and delays.
Check out the video of Richard Devine demoing Atomizer at sonicstate.com. Here are some other glitch tools.
Update 4/29/08: Download the Atomizer OS 2.7 beta now.
I got to spend a little time on a Nord Wave the other day. Not enough time, that is. At the end of my brief first encounter with the Wave, I left with the feeling that I wanted more. Not so much more out the instrument, but more time to play with this synth.
The preset sounds weren't all that impressive, but they give a good starting point. Tweaking the sampled waveforms, I was able to come up with all kinds of crazy sounds very quickly. The morphing feature is really cool. Hearing an overdriven sawtooth lead morphing over time into an acoustic guitar sample was beautiful.
I like the string sounds although they are far from realistic. That's not really the point of this keyboard, for me at least. It's cool to shape a sound that has the characteristics of a string section but somehow sounds other-worldly.
The quality of the effects section in general is good. I found myself turning up the tube amp overdrive emulation a lot. I like the new vocal setting in the filter section also. The filter also offers comb and multi options. The on board bass and treble EQ seemed more useful than I would have guessed. I missed having an arpeggiator though.
On the whole, I thought the sound set was clean -- almost too clean at times. The Wave sounds very Nord-like, but it doesn't have the same "edge" or "bite" as the Nord Lead 2. Before checking it out, I thought the Nord Wave might make a good replacement for my Nord Lead 2. There's no way I can let go of my Nord Lead 2. No other synth, including the Wave, has that sound.
That's a good thing. The Nord Wave has a sound all its own too. I really enjoyed my time on the Nord Wave, and I'm looking forward to checking it out in combination with the Nord Wave Manager software to find out what it can do with my own samples.
Roger Linn has announced the digital version of the LinnDrum II on Roger Linn Design:
In January 2007, Dave Smith and I (Roger Linn) pre-annouced BoomChik, a new drum machine product that we are creating together. Since that time, we received many enthusiastic comments and suggestions from musicians around the world that caused us to rethink and enhance the product's design. The bad news is that this design change (along with Dave's release of Prophet '08 and my release of AdrenaLinn III) has delayed our development. The good news is that the product has grown into a far more capable instrument. Also, we've decided to change the name to LinnDrum II, recalling an innovative drum machine from a bygone era. Please read on for more details.It looks like the digital drum machine will officially be named the "LinnDrum II," not "LinnDrum II Digital." Here is Dave Smith's announcement of the LinnDrum II Analog. I was hoping these would be released sooner than late 2008. Can't wait!
There will be two models: the all-digital “LinnDrum II”, available from Roger Linn Design and the “LinnDrum II Analog”, which adds four voice analog synth voices and 27 dual-function voicing knobs, available from Dave Smith Instruments. We're currently estimating street prices of around $1000 for LinnDrum II and around $1500 for LinnDrum II Analog. Here's a brief summary of the product features:
Features common to both products:
* Operating system is optimized for realtime live performance, with the ability to switch between beats, drop in and out of record on different beats, switch in and out of song mode and much more, all without stopping play.
* Digital voices have nearly the same signal and modulation path--including modulated filters and resonators--as shown on the LinnDrum 2 Analog panel. Total number of voices is not yet determined.
* 16 standard 1.1 inch square velocity and pressure-sensitive drum pads, assignable to sounds, tunings, beats, track mutes, pad mutes or sequence steps.
* Both MPC-style real time and 808-style step recording are provided, and the 16 pads are backlit for visual animation.
* Real-time stereo digital effects on output mix--modulated multi-mode filtering, guitar amp model and bit/sample rate reduction distortion, modulated resonator, compressor, deley, reverb and EQ--with 6 dedicated on/off keys to switch them individually in or out in real time.
* Compact flash slot for data save/load/backup, or for expansion of internal sound storage.
* Internal RAM and flash size is yet to be decided; at least 16 mbytes for each.
* 128 x 64 dot graphic LCD.
* USB port for transferring samples and other files, MIDI messages and audio I/O to and from computer.
* 4 pushbutton soft knobs below the LCD, acting either as soft knobs or soft keys.
* 52 lit buttons for extensive real-time performance control.
* 2 sliders assignable to a large variety of real-time functions.
* HELP key gives descriptive text for any screen, data field, function key or knob.
* Pressing DETAILS key followed by any panel key presents a screen of settings related to the key pressed.
* 2 pairs of stereo outputs, with phones output fed from either pair.
* Stereo inputs for sampling, audio processing or triggering sounds.
* MIDI in and out.
* 2 inputs for either foot switches or expression pedals, assignable to a wide variety of functions.
Additional features on Dave's LinnDrum II Analog:
* Four complex analog voices based on the same Curtis-chip synth voices used in the highly-aclaimed Prophet '08 and Evolver keyboards.
* Four direct ouputs for the four analog voices.
* 27 dedicated dual-function rotary encoders for voicing the analog and digital voices.
There's still a lot of work to do so late 2008 is our best estimate of when the products will be ready. If you'd like to be updated on the progress and informed when we're ready to ship, or if you have any comments or suggestions, please send us an email. And to all those whose comments and suggestions helped refine our design (special thanks to Noaka for help on the visual design), please accept our sincere thanks.
Thanks,
Roger Linn
The Stribe is a prototype controller with 8 touch-sensitive strips that communicates with software like Max/MSP and Reaktor over USB. There are no moving parts. Animated visual feedback is provided by LED bar-graph dipslays which resemble a meter bridge. Conceived as a companion to the monome 40h which does not offer continuous controller-type input, the Sribe offers endless possibilies for controlling music, video and more.
For more info, visit the Stribe page at soundwidgets.com, the soundwidgets YouTube and the Stribe Project Forum.
Moaning Lisa is a unique controller that works with software written in Max/MSP and a Mac mini.
According to its creator, Matt Ganucheau, Moaning Lisa strives to "mimic the discovery of a female orgasm but reduce it to a game-like state. So like the female orgasm, there is no instructions. You have to discover it yourself."
Lisa’s sensors include:
•2 piezo touch sensors are located on the posterior for grabbing, one on each cheek
•1 piezo touch sensors is located on the back of her neck for grabbing
•2 potentiometer knobs located on each nipple for tweaking
•1 ribbon controller located on her clitoris, measuring friction speed for rubbing
Interacting with her sensors escalates her light moans to a full scream and also applies audio effects such as delays, slicers and reverbs.
Musical instrument, game, art project, sex education tool, perverted sex toy? You decide.
Previously offered in VST format, TimeFreezer is now available as an Audio Units plug-in running in beta state and free to all registered Mac OS X TimeFreezer users.
The new Kurzweil PC3X 88-note workstation features a new Dynamic V.A.S.T. synth architecture, the Triple Strike Piano, an unlimited-track sequencer and more effects processing power than the KSP8. USB and a flash xD card port are also on board. Through Feb. 15, 2008, Kurzweil is including a free upgrade of the VA-1 synth engine.
Arturia will soon be shipping their first hardware synth. Origin is a modular synth based on some of the best classic analog synths: Moog Modular, ARP 2600, CS-80, Minimoog and Prophet VS. You can layer up to four of them or go nuts and route them into each other.
The hardware desktop unit (with wooden sides) comes with Mac/Win software that opens as an AU or VST plug-in like the Virus TI. The hardware does the processing instead of your computer's CPU, but you can program it like a soft synth in your DAW -- great for recording. Then disconnect the box from your computer and take it with you on stage. All the sounds are completely editable by either the hardware or the Origin software app.
Imagine taking an oscillator from the Minimoog and another from the Arp and adding a filter from the CS-80 and the Bode shifter from the Moog Modular V with the joystick mapped to control cutoff and resonance. What would that sound like?
It's been a long year since Arturia announced Origin at last year's NAMM Show. Can't wait to check out the final version. Origin will also be released as a keyboard. Till then you can dream of the possibilities like I am while watching Arturia's Origin video tour.
