Reply to: The Moog Synthesiser is 50 years old

[doodab]

Anyway, this thread has inspired me to put finishing something musical on my bucket list. So I will get started on that later.

[doodab]

That is very cool. Bristol was responsible for some awesome music as I loved what Tricky and Massive were doing as well.

I'd love to learn how to use that kind of hardware. Right now my studio is just a mac with ableton and a pair of senheisers.

I am kind of lucky that when I was a teenager and first got into making music that was what there was. So I learned to program drums on a second hand TR505 (a cheap peace of junk from loot, not a poor mans 808) and used that to sequence drum sounds I programmed myself on an FM synth module. I had a Korg Poly 800 and later the DX100 as well, and I used to mix the lot down to stereo via my DJ mixer. I had no effects or anything so everything sounded fairly crap when done

We had a choice of cubase or notator on the Atari ST for MIDI sequencing but computer based audio was limited to high end DSP based digital multitracking systems and VST hadn't been invented.

I gave up on it from about 95/96 onwards and sold everything except the DX100. I got back into it around 2001 when I bought a new keyboard then I bought an interface and a copy of Cubase on a whim a year or so later. That had VST which I thought was amazing really.

The trouble with Ableton IMO (up till now at least) it that unlike cubase it's never had a proper grid editor view for drum patterns. It's very geared to using loops, so what I tend to do when I use it is record the loops into Ableton as audio clips. The trouble with that is you use the hands-on-ness of the machines, which has made it hard for me to really get into. Although I bought version 8 and have upgraded to 9 I hardly use it. I should look again as with the Max/MSP stuff someone is bound to have produced a decent drum sequencer by now.

I bet those early Full Cycle parties were incredible with Roni, Krust and Die. Because of the connection with Bryan and Frost, you must have got to hear loads of fresh V dubplates as well

It was mostly locals and a few students, mostly the hardcore people who would happily drop pills midweek, so they were pretty mental for a weeknight. I recall after one night I woke up in the middle of a roundabout with my GF after we had decided to stop their for a spliff and a kip on the way home

I have a few of the early V records. Haven't had my vinyl out for years mind. I haven't even owned a turntable since 1998 or so. I suppose I should flog them, some of the early house and detroit techno stuff is worth a bit now.

[Martin@AS Financial]

I grew up in Hertford, so used to go to Rob the guy from Omni Trio's record shop (Parliament, which now has the main branch in Hitchin IIRC) and spend my hard earned 2-3x a week. I was in there the day that it opened and was a regular customer so chatted to him quite a lot over the years. Rob Playford (Moving Shadow) & Shaun O'Keefe (Two Bad Mice) used to come in there a lot as well but I only chatted to him once. I got a load of classic records from there, acid like ecstacy club (I had to persuade him to sell me two copies so I could get one for my best mate), all the hardcore anthems of the 89-02 period (T99, Manix, Zero B, Didgeridoo etc), the first WARP album, first black dog album, first aphex twin album, loads of stuff.

I was at uni in Bristol after that, we used to go see Roni Size and DJ Krust on a tuesday or wednesday on a boat called the Thekla. This was 92-95 so a bit before it all kicked off for him and he won the Mercury prize. I still have my DX100 uber bassline machine from back in those days. Even with all the soft synths and a Virus I can't bring myself to part with it. What I really enjoy is getting that and the virus synced to the machinedrum so I don't need the computer at all apart from setting up the routings on the MIDI interface so it all plays nice.

I have a QY70 the missus gave me that I need to get into as well, I reckon with that I could do a whole track without going near the computer. Her mate who gave it to her composed a whole album on it, but he was actually a proper & talented musician.

That is very cool. Bristol was responsible for some awesome music as I loved what Tricky and Massive were doing as well.

I'd love to learn how to use that kind of hardware. Right now my studio is just a mac with ableton and a pair of senheisers.


I bet those early Full Cycle parties were incredible with Roni, Krust and Die. Because of the connection with Bryan and Frost, you must have got to hear loads of fresh V dubplates as well.

You cant beat those hardcore tunes - one of my all time fave sets is kenny ken b2b with Randall at AWOL 93 which I had on in the gym this morning.


Randall & Kenny Ken AWOL August Bank Holiday 1993 - YouTube

[doodab]

Lots of instruments only play one note at once. A friend of mine spends more than that on Saxophones.

Oh don't get me wrong, they are bloody lovely and I'd buy one if I had the cash lying around, as well as a few other top end synths that cost the same sort of money, but my whole "studio" only cost me about £4k and I have a few decent soft synths already so I'd spend the money elsewhere first. A few decent hardware compressors, a TC D2 delay, another reverb unit would all be on the shopping list before a £3k synth.

Now a DSI Mopho or Dark Energy on the other hand is ~ £300. I can do that. And it's my 40th birthday next Monday too....

[doodab]

Was listening to this by the Aphex Twin at the weekend and it still sounds fresh:

Aphex Twin - Heliosphan - YouTube

That album is a class. It was so different from what went before or since that it's basically timeless. I still play it and the Polygon Window one he did in the car sometimes. Quoth in a car is dangerous, I nearly always end up flooring it involuntarily.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9neHCT16Ll4

[doodab]

Theres stil lots of good music out there but it just takes a bit longer to find it. I personally love the early dnb that was coming out of London and Bristol in the early 90's.

I grew up in Hertford, so used to go to Rob the guy from Omni Trio's record shop (Parliament, which now has the main branch in Hitchin IIRC) and spend my hard earned 2-3x a week. I was in there the day that it opened and was a regular customer so chatted to him quite a lot over the years. Rob Playford (Moving Shadow) & Shaun O'Keefe (Two Bad Mice) used to come in there a lot as well but I only chatted to him once. I got a load of classic records from there, acid like ecstacy club (I had to persuade him to sell me two copies so I could get one for my best mate), all the hardcore anthems of the 89-02 period (T99, Manix, Zero B, Didgeridoo etc), the first WARP album, first black dog album, first aphex twin album, loads of stuff.

I was at uni in Bristol after that, we used to go see Roni Size and DJ Krust on a tuesday or wednesday on a boat called the Thekla. This was 92-95 so a bit before it all kicked off for him and he won the Mercury prize. I still have my DX100 uber bassline machine from back in those days. Even with all the soft synths and a Virus I can't bring myself to part with it. What I really enjoy is getting that and the virus synced to the machinedrum so I don't need the computer at all apart from setting up the routings on the MIDI interface so it all plays nice.

I have a QY70 the missus gave me that I need to get into as well, I reckon with that I could do a whole track without going near the computer. Her mate who gave it to her composed a whole album on it, but he was actually a proper & talented musician.

[Martin@AS Financial]

They were happy days alright. We had dance music going through a period of rapid innovation as well, a lot of classic tracks were made in and around that period. Post the early 90s boom in cartoon hardcore rave music we had the resurgence of the 303, Progressive House, Trance, Trip Hop, D&B all coming along around that time, not to mention stuff like Aphex Twin, Black Dog etc.

It seems much more samey now. Perhaps I just got old.

Oh yes - good times indeed. I used to love going to Blackmarket and Uptown Records in Soho for my vinyl and then race home as quickly as possible to mix it.

Theres stil lots of good music out there but it just takes a bit longer to find it. I personally love the early dnb that was coming out of London and Bristol in the early 90's.

Was listening to this by the Aphex Twin at the weekend and it still sounds fresh:

Aphex Twin - Heliosphan - YouTube

[doodab]

20 years ago was a good time for music with lots of very cool record shops that have since shut down.

They were happy days alright. We had dance music going through a period of rapid innovation as well, a lot of classic tracks were made in and around that period. Post the early 90s boom in cartoon hardcore rave music we had the resurgence of the 303, Progressive House, Trance, Trip Hop, D&B all coming along around that time, not to mention stuff like Aphex Twin, Black Dog etc.

It seems much more samey now. Perhaps I just got old.

[Martin@AS Financial]

Nah. I used to when I was at uni 20 years ago but I can't be bothered to keep up with music anymore. I mostly buy old music these days (like Mozart and Joni Mitchell sort of old)

20 years ago was a good time for music with lots of very cool record shops that have since shut down.

[doodab]

Do you dj as well?

Nah. I used to when I was at uni 20 years ago but I can't be bothered to keep up with music anymore. I mostly buy old music these days (like Mozart and Joni Mitchell sort of old)

[Martin@AS Financial]

I don't really produce anything, or at least finish anything. I generally just lose myself in knob twiddling acid techno jamming for a few hours at a stretch, but I rarely bother to record it or build any sort of recognisable structure. I should make more of an effort really. I need to figure out song mode on the drum machine properly.

Haha - I know what you mean. I'm working on 2 tunes at the mo and can't seem to finish them - luckily my brother works for Loopmasters so is always on hand with advice and sample recomendations.

Do you dj as well?

[doodab]

What sort of music do you produce - would be really keen to have a listen.

I don't really produce anything, or at least finish anything. I generally just lose myself in knob twiddling acid techno jamming for a few hours at a stretch, but I rarely bother to record it or build any sort of recognisable structure. I should make more of an effort really. I need to figure out song mode on the drum machine properly.

[Martin@AS Financial]

I have various soft modulars (scope DSP powered one, NI reaktor, Karma FX) and when I can be bothered to use them these days I usually patch a fairly standard 2 or 3 oscillators into a filter with envelopes, LFO and step sequencers for modulation. NI Massive or my Virus can do pretty much the same thing (I use the step sequencer in my drum machine to sequence it) and they are a lot easier to use.

Having said that I've had a go on / demo of a Cwejman S1 and some Doepfer gear in a shop and they both sounded pretty amazing. It's a lot of money for something that only plays one note at a time though, I doubt the rest of my studio is worth that much in total.

What sort of music do you produce - would be really keen to have a listen.

[VectraMan]

Nearly £3k for something that only plays one note at once though.

Lots of instruments only play one note at once. A friend of mine spends more than that on Saxophones.

Anyone have the Moog album from the 70s (maybe there was more than one?). I can remember Proud Mary, Raindrops keep falling on my Head, but a bit hazy on the other tracks.

[doodab]

I would love to have that in my studio especially now that I'm starting to get my head around Ableton.

I have various soft modulars (scope DSP powered one, NI reaktor, Karma FX) and when I can be bothered to use them these days I usually patch a fairly standard 2 or 3 oscillators into a filter with envelopes, LFO and step sequencers for modulation. NI Massive or my Virus can do pretty much the same thing (I use the step sequencer in my drum machine to sequence it) and they are a lot easier to use.

Having said that I've had a go on / demo of a Cwejman S1 and some Doepfer gear in a shop and they both sounded pretty amazing. It's a lot of money for something that only plays one note at a time though, I doubt the rest of my studio is worth that much in total.