Noise Music Tools

hi people. are there any noise music freaks in here? im currently obsessed with writing noise, and how wouldnt i when i watch this guy named Jerome Noetinger doing all this freaky beautiful music. and i just wonder what kind of tools do you like to use (apart from contact mic which is favorite i guess)? any suggestions and tips would be invaluable. thanx in advance

OTO Biscuit

Sherman Filterbank 2

Glamour Box

Jomox T Resonator

Frostwave Alienator

and anything from Metasonix

Look into building a Lunetta synthesizer. It's based on logic IC's and very cheap to build. I'm just getting into them myself, and I'm enjoying the accessibility. Geared toward drone and noise. Electro-music.com has a very good forum on it.

The biggest problem with a lot of noise is that it's so static, so as far as I'm concerned it doesn't really matter what you use so long as you can sculpt whatever noise you produce to get a dynamic in the texture. If you want to go down a more academic route then experiment with computer programs. As Jonas hinted at, you can do a lot of interesting things with file formats and piecing together the audio afterwards. If you want to go more hands on, then almost any synthesiser can work for you or indeed anything that will take an audio signal. See what you can dig up at a local charity shop or WEEE recycling facility.

Delay units and feedback loops are fantastically powerful tools in this idiom because of their ability to generate sound from very minute or no resources. They generate noise as opposed to simply subtracting or modulating audio as is often the case with most effects units. Feedback in particular is a incredibly powerful and economical because by it's very nature even the most minute changes can be amplified, with dramatic results. If I were you the first thing that I would do is take the audio output from any device and plug it back into it's related audio input and try to make the device self-oscillate. If you have a mixer you have everything you need.

I kinda like this guys vids on youtube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CP4FAt1oedE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AoiJ3tpCo0k

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1ClKk0-Zao

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JI540Rp9jJU

The hipsters here in Chicago spend about $15k-$20k on modulars to make 'noise'. You might consider going that route.

I use supercollider and all my awesome talent

  On 3/28/2011 at 10:22 PM, acidphakist said:

The hipsters here in Chicago spend about $15k-$20k on modulars to make 'noise'. You might consider going that route.

or spend $2k on a soundcard to make acid?

LOL

I'd check out Reaktor or Max/msp

reaktor has the cool noise making things. those have been essential at times, totally cool.

that could be an embarrassingly obvious response though. at least to others in the thread.

skrewell.

  On 3/28/2011 at 10:22 PM, acidphakist said:

The hipsters here in Chicago spend about $15k-$20k on modulars to make 'noise'. You might consider going that route.

Oh god, yeah. I've experienced a few shows where some dope has a Eurorack full of Doepfer units and after fifteen minutes I am still unsure that they have the slightest idea what they are doing with the damn thing.

Also; be on the lookout for people who admit to doing sound art installations, own more than one looping pedal, perform drone, utilize a cassette deck in their performance or possess any of the tools I mentioned in my earlier post.

Come to think of it; 95% of the stuff you will find billed under descriptor of noise music is going to be total shit. People tend to take the idea of noise music for granted and assume that if they can improvise a fifteen minute set of aimless knob turning then people will consider them competent musicians, even though their "compositions" rarely include remotely musical qualities such as dynamics, repeatable figures, deliberate and controlled gestures, or rests.

Lots of people do not understand noise music and assume that it is somehow easy and does not require discipline, unlike any other form of music.

  On 3/29/2011 at 2:10 AM, Wall Bird said:

  On 3/28/2011 at 10:22 PM, acidphakist said:

The hipsters here in Chicago spend about $15k-$20k on modulars to make 'noise'. You might consider going that route.

Come to think of it; 95% of the stuff you will find billed under descriptor of noise music is going to be total shit. People tend to take the idea of noise music for granted and assume that if they can improvise a fifteen minute set of aimless knob turning then people will consider them competent musicians, even though their "compositions" rarely include remotely musical qualities such as dynamics, repeatable figures, deliberate and controlled gestures, or rests.

Why would a noise composition require any "musical qualities"?

And now to properly address the original question in this thread. Use whatever materials/instruments you feel comfortable with/can find. There are no rules as to what use in noise, just make whatever you want to make however you want to make it etc etc

Just try to make something interesting and post your results on here, I would love to hear it.

I used to make a lot of noise before I really knew a lot about music, and I even organized a big noise music compilation with a bunch of friends. I used a ton of different methods, like mic+amp+delay feedback, complex command line based programs, hand drawing sound in audacity, and so on and so forth, but my favorite method was always the simplest. Audacity's Noise Removal. You just take a piece of audio, import it into Audacity, select all, use the noise removal tool to get the noise profile, and then use the noise removal tool again to remove noise. It'll just leave a little bit of the audio left, and then you overdrive the fuck out of it, and you get beautiful noise.

My favorite piece from when I made noise (took like 1 minute lol):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYwhAGKGxZQ

  On 3/29/2011 at 2:10 AM, Wall Bird said:

  On 3/28/2011 at 10:22 PM, acidphakist said:

The hipsters here in Chicago spend about $15k-$20k on modulars to make 'noise'. You might consider going that route.

 

Oh god, yeah. I've experienced a few shows where some dope has a Eurorack full of Doepfer units and after fifteen minutes I am still unsure that they have the slightest idea what they are doing with the damn thing.

 

Also; be on the lookout for people who admit to doing sound art installations, own more than one looping pedal, perform drone, utilize a cassette deck in their performance or possess any of the tools I mentioned in my earlier post.

 

Come to think of it; 95% of the stuff you will find billed under descriptor of noise music is going to be total shit. People tend to take the idea of noise music for granted and assume that if they can improvise a fifteen minute set of aimless knob turning then people will consider them competent musicians, even though their "compositions" rarely include remotely musical qualities such as dynamics, repeatable figures, deliberate and controlled gestures, or rests.

 

Lots of people do not understand noise music and assume that it is somehow easy and does not require discipline, unlike any other form of music.

Would it be bad if someone made sound art installations? I've seen a few good ones in the last few years, and one of my studio mates makes sound installations that are pretty rock solid. I guess it does depend on the amount of knowledge they have about their gear though, because he would never take one of his projects to a live setting before knowing exactly what he's doing and what sound he wants to get...

In terms of noise music though I guess for me at least there has to be some sort of musical quality, even if it's just a rhythm, or some tones. Just this Friday I saw a show and the first band was a drummer (who was actually quite decent) and this guy using what seemed like contact mics... He made some interesting sounds, but the whole thing was slapped together in a way that seemed like he came upon the sounds by chance; it would've been much nicer if it had more of a structure.

It'd be good to get analog gear to do this, as much of a cliche as that is, analog clipping (in my opinion) sounds way better than digital clipping so if you want to get really noisy I'd put it through non-digital mixers and tape (for recordings at least). But I think in general most people who look into doing noise music should do it in passing, it's a nice way to explore certain aspects of music while still having the freedom of not needing too much melody, though in the end I think most should go further. Exceptions do exist, but yeah, if you get any gear you should think about how it would transfer into future projects that you'd want to work on as well!

Just a quick acknowledgement of Tamas' question: I don't wish to imply anything inherently wrong with sound installations. That would be silly. There's some great stuff out there. I'm just alluding to the large amount of crossover between those artists and those that I am about to refer to.

  On 3/29/2011 at 2:40 AM, Dan C said:

Why would a noise composition require any "musical qualities"?

I think that we're in agreement that noise compositions don't require anything.

Composition is the process of organizing elements to achieve a desired effect in whatever you medium(s) you are using; in this case vibrations in the range of human hearing. I consider the act of arranging these vibrations to be music, whether they be in a more traditional idiom or in the one which we're discussing in this thread. The use of contrast, repetition, juxtaposition, or rhythm, among others, are all techniques that give a composition it's definition and identity.

My gripe is that in the great number of noise shows I have experienced there is a frustratingly large contingent who ignore or have a naive understanding of how compositional elements can be applied to generate interest. This makes for supremely boring music. Being blasted by a wall of near-white noise for fifteen minutes might be exciting at first, but it quickly loses it's potency when it is repeatedly evoked by what seem to be lazy individuals making no effort to develop the idea.

you guys are awesome! thanx for all of your answers, im taking all of them into consideration. both digital software and analog ways sound very interesting, i guess it all depends on the artist and what he wants to do with his sounds and noises. concerning the musical qualities one needs to write noise, my opinion is that the artist needs to have passion and his music (noise or not) should be the result of his emotional state, just like in any kind of music. take for example iannis xenakis, he wrote noise in 60s and 70s. listen to his music, sooo beautiful. there is absolutely nothing static about it, all the emotions flow and keep changing all the time. so maybe musical qualities are not essential (like for playing bach) but like a jazz legend Greg Osby says, the most important thing in any composition is that "it must tell a story". just look at these guys, i love what they are doing. i guess its all about imagination...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HxEijLupDww

the comments in this thread are absolutley correct

i've endured some pretty shitty noise performances that mainly get away with because of the academic nature if 'the art' but you do get many good performers that exibit a form of control and really take you somewhere or show you something original (normally these artists are also good at regular music too) which goes for any other form of creative music really

i'll neve forget being off my trolly flat out on the carpet at ATP last year feeling the rumble and thick textures Tim Hecker was throwing out

  On 3/29/2011 at 7:12 AM, Wall Bird said:

  On 3/29/2011 at 2:40 AM, Dan C said:

Why would a noise composition require any "musical qualities"?

 

I think that we're in agreement that noise compositions don't require anything.

 

Composition is the process of organizing elements to achieve a desired effect in whatever you medium(s) you are using; in this case vibrations in the range of human hearing. I consider the act of arranging these vibrations to be music, whether they be in a more traditional idiom or in the one which we're discussing in this thread. The use of contrast, repetition, juxtaposition, or rhythm, among others, are all techniques that give a composition it's definition and identity.

 

My gripe is that in the great number of noise shows I have experienced there is a frustratingly large contingent who ignore or have a naive understanding of how compositional elements can be applied to generate interest. This makes for supremely boring music. Being blasted by a wall of near-white noise for fifteen minutes might be exciting at first, but it quickly loses it's potency when it is repeatedly evoked by what seem to be lazy individuals making no effort to develop the idea.

I was just being an arse, I have always had an objection to people trying to apply traditional musical ideologies and rules to noise.

In all seriousness though, I'd much rather take someone who knows nothing about music trying to make a horrible noise than someone with a half-arsed knowledge of music trying to make something emotional and touching blah blah etc etc.

  On 3/29/2011 at 12:46 AM, soundwave said:

  On 3/28/2011 at 10:22 PM, acidphakist said:

The hipsters here in Chicago spend about $15k-$20k on modulars to make 'noise'. You might consider going that route.

 

or spend $2k on a soundcard to make acid?

Your attempt at flame bating is noted. I readily acknowledge that recording fidelity isn't at the top of everyone's list.

You can do a lot with a cheap mixer, some effects pedals and a load of patch cables.

  On 3/29/2011 at 2:29 PM, acidphakist said:

  On 3/29/2011 at 12:46 AM, soundwave said:

  On 3/28/2011 at 10:22 PM, acidphakist said:

The hipsters here in Chicago spend about $15k-$20k on modulars to make 'noise'. You might consider going that route.

 

or spend $2k on a soundcard to make acid?

 

Your attempt at flame bating is noted. I readily acknowledge that recording fidelity isn't at the top of everyone's list.

hey am just bustin ya balls a liddle bit tommy forgedabaatit

  On 3/29/2011 at 3:31 PM, futureimage said:

You can do a lot with a cheap mixer, some effects pedals and a load of patch cables.

indeed, feedback loops and mid sweep eq's go a long way in the right hands

Dismisses everyone else's advice

Says do whatever you want

Walks out of thread

:sup:

  On 3/29/2011 at 3:41 PM, soundwave said:

  On 3/29/2011 at 2:29 PM, acidphakist said:

  On 3/29/2011 at 12:46 AM, soundwave said:

  On 3/28/2011 at 10:22 PM, acidphakist said:

The hipsters here in Chicago spend about $15k-$20k on modulars to make 'noise'. You might consider going that route.

 

or spend $2k on a soundcard to make acid?

 

Your attempt at flame bating is noted. I readily acknowledge that recording fidelity isn't at the top of everyone's list.

 

hey am just bustin ya balls a liddle bit tommy forgedabaatit

 

You do raise a good point, however. Seeing as the LPF on the Roland tb-303 is three-pole 18db instead of four-pole 24db, the sound quality is already degraded (consider recording at 16 vs 24 bits, same general idea). Your assertion that pristine AD/DA being used solely for recording the Roland tb-303 has weight behind it.

There is a little-known modification that never gained much attention whereby a Moog four-pole LPF would be fitted inside the tb-303, thus increasing its fidelity. This modification is unfortunately beyond my financial means.