Proper Introductions

September 20, 2013

Hello all. It seems fitting to introduce myself before opening up my digital "mouth" and spewing a bunch of opinions within a community that already exists. I really don't want your first thought about me to be "Who let you in here?!?!"

After a break from seriously making electronic music for a few years, I am back in and more excited about it than ever. I have most recently been playing low brass in a regionally gigging, rather bizzarre, 9 piece "art-rock-band". I love it, but just making that one sound *toot* for several years *toot* no matter how crazy the audience goes *toot* or how much I love my bandmates *toot* or how outlandish I get to be onstage *toot* isn't enough anymore.

I need more.

I need to explore the very fringe of what music actually is.

I NEED TO MAKE SOUNDS OTHER THAN "TOOT"!!!!

My live set-up used to primarily be:

Juno-60

ARP Axxe

Ensoniq TS-10

laptop

pedals

a mixer or two

long throw video projectors

DVD players (for original video content, not random visuals)

bass amp

upright bass

homemade electronics

whatever else I decided to use for a show

It was such a pain in the ass to gig even in our own town. My collaborator and I had to take separate vehicles just to get all the gear to a show. (His setup was equally massive.)

We have relaunched our original two-piece as a three-piece and the first order of business was to look very closely at what we had done wrong more than what we had done right. A few years spent relentlessly gigging out of town made one thing very clear to me. We obviously needed to pare down what is required for a live show and make sure we compose, sequence and plan everything using that exact setup. Fortunately, as you all know, a lot has happened in the last four or five years and it is my intent to utilize as much new technology as possible.

My new live setup so far:

iPad3

iPad1

(2) iPod Touch 4's

KP3

home-made VCF

Mini-Kaossilator

bass guitar

Oxygen M-audio 25

Behringer B-Control BCR2000

Mackie VLZ-1202 Pro

pedals

ultra short throw projector

laptop

(I'm also anxiously awaiting the iConnectivity MID4+ and looking at Korg Nano-series controllers)

I love it.

All this stuff breaks down to be so compact, light and portable. It's more powerful and flexible than my old setup ever could have been. I still have all my old synths if I need to create sounds that I can't easily access with my new gear. Having given up analog "purism" so long ago, I am well prepared for haters to give me crap about my new tools. We are focused on results... (Also known as moving a crowd.)

The huge drumkit that used to go to shows has been reduced to little more than a jazz kit with a secondary snare instead of a mid-tom and a few additional pieces of metal. Along with our new member, we will be building some kind of collapsible drums (with triggers, of course) for us to play at times when it will be three of us playing live percussion along with sequences and projections. We are pretty damn excited.

Anyway... This is getting kinda long, so I will call it good and shut up. I'm looking forward to getting feedback as we move forward with our project and would love to compare notes fom other folks involved in similar pursuits. The attached pic is of my setup in progress from about a month ago.

Cheers!

Edited September 20, 2013 by SignOfTheFig