Oracles by black channels is Q Magazine's track of the day.
Plastic Infinite animated picture disc
This is stunning. Animated picture disc by Sculpture. Order yours here.
black channels
I'm really excited to start sharing bits of this new project I've been working on for quite some time now. We (me and singer Becky) have an albums worth of music and are currently busy preparing a live show. There is a video coming soon but for now here is 'Oracles' by black channels.
a still from the forthcoming Oracles video
Buchla and Samplr
Here is a little electronic collage I created using the Samplr iPad app to manipulate Buchla 200e sounds. If I'm traveling I always make sure I have some Buchla sounds loaded onto my iPad. This piece was created en route to Brussels to visit the Atomium.
Now that's a music workstation
Happy Christmas!
Korg Little Bits exploration
My brother received his Korg Little Bits kit today and I got to have a quick play with it. It's great fun to connect the different 'modules' together and create your own synthesizer circuits. I suspect there will be more experimentation with this over Christmas.
Forms 3 - Controls, Sources and Treatments
The third installment of Benge's 'Forms' series focuses on the EMS Polysynthi.
"One of the interesting things about creating an album using just one synthesiser is that it puts you in the 'sonic era' of the machine that you are working with. So for this reason I decided to create these tracks with this idea in mind, resulting hopefully in a sound reminiscent of the musical cues found on certain late 1970s soundtrack or library albums. Therefore when listening to this record it would not be inappropriate to try and imagine yourself immersed in a progressive Television Play such as would have been broadcast on on a sunday evening in 1978
This record was made using the EMS Polysynthi electronic polyphonic synthesiser. All sounds were created and played on this single machine, and then recorded directly to multi-track tape in overlaying passes. The only exception to this was the minor addition of monophonic spring reverberation via the EMS VCS3 and some occasional band-pass filtering courtesy of the EMS 8-octave filter bank
Download it here.
Cliff Martinez interview
Brief but enlightening interview with Drive and Solaris sound track composer, Cliff Martinez. As I turn my attention to getting involved in music for picture, its very interesting to hear how other musicians, especially those whose work I admire, broke into it (Martinez was previously a drummer for The Red Hot Chilli Peppers).
Ken Reid's World Wide Weirdies
Love the Awful Atomium and Scareo System! More of these here.
Road Runner on The Forbidden Planet
This is what the classic Warner Bros. 'Road Runner' cartoon would have sounded like if Louis and Bebe Barron had scored it. Fantastic.
Best Artwork/Packaging 2013
Very pleased that 'The Beam' limited edition 'Pilot Pack' made it in at No.2 in The 405's best artwork/packaging of 2013. Of course most praise should go to Emily at Stanley James Press for creating such a stunning package. It's also very nice to be featured alongside artists whose work I respect and admire such as Luke Insect and Julian House.
Sadly the Pilot Pack sold out within 24hrs of going on sale, but the standard (its far from standard!) issue on 10" clear vinyl with full colour printed map, is still available here.
Voices of Science
VOICES OF SCIENCE tells the stories of some of the most remarkable scientific and engineering discoveries of the past century using oral history interviews with prominent British scientists and engineers.
Listen and watch short audio and video clips of scientists and engineers talking candidly about their motivations, frustrations, triumphs, colleagues, families and childhoods.
Click the image to go to the site.
Inside the Moog factory 1977
Some fantastic photos of the Moog synthesizer factory taken by William Beith in 1977.
The original R. A. Moog factory was in Trumansburg New York. It was at this location the modulars were built and the Minimoog invented. In 1971, this enterprise was purchased by a venture capitalist, Bill Waytena who had formed the electronics company Musonics. Waytena moved the Moog factory from Trumansburg to Williamsville, near Buffalo New York. In 1973 Moog Music was taken over by the musical instrument giant Norlin, which also owned (among other brands) Pearl drums, Gibson guitars, and Armstrong flutes. (Details sourced from Analog Days, Trevor Pinch and Frank Trocco, Harvard University Press, 2002)
At the time of this visit, I worked for Gibson guitars and when traveling to the east coast, a tour of the Moog factory was arranged for me. There were no restrictions placed on my ability to photograph, which resulted in pictures that include the R&D process.
The Polymoog was in production. R&D efforts were underway for what would eventually become the Memorymoog. The blackboard was in an R&D room that contained circuit boards patched together. Some of the circuits looked to be Polymoog in origin, and some appeared to be parts of a Moog modular. My sense was they were developing an instrument that carried the essence of the Minimoog expressed in a polyphonic form that expanded the capabilities of the Polymoog. The pictures of drawings are concept drawings of the Memorymoog.
-William Beith
Click the image for more
Moog Fest 2014 - Speakers announced
Moogfest, the 5 day festival that celebrates electronic music, with a focus on but not limited to Moog synthesizers old and new, have just announced a great lineup of day time speakers. From legendary synthesizer pioneers (Don Buchla, Dave Smith, Tom Oberheim) to users (Malcom Cecil, Giorgio Moroder, Keith Emerson, Cliff Martinez) it will be a great opportunity to hear first hand the impact of the synthesizer (specifically the voltage controlled synthesizer) in its 50th year.
Korg Little Bits Synth Kit
A lovely little package from Korg (who seem to completely get the current synthesizer craze right now, with their classic filter featuring Monotrons and recent re-issue of the classic MS-20 monosynth) and electronic gadget company Little Bits. From the little information available it seems to be a snap together kit for building your own modular synth. I know what I'll be doing this Christmas if Santa reads my letter. I'm rubbish at soldering and this fact has put me off attempting to build my own electronic music circuits - but this kit appears to be solder free. Perfect.
More info here.
UPDATE - Peter Kirn over at Create Digital Music has a hands on review with some interesting sound examples sounding very much like Raymond Scott. More here.
Brussels Atomium - a Worlds Fair pilgrimage
The Atomium is a structure built for the Brussels World's Fair in 1958. At 102 metres high, with its nine interconnected spheres, it represents an elementary iron crystal enlarged 165 billion times.
I'd love to perform with my Buchla Electric Music box in one of the spheres.
Sound Explosions
I'm not sure if these explosions are being caused by the vibrations of the electronic sound, or if there is something else being used to create the powerful eruptions of colored powder. However it's done, it looks fantastic.
Sound Explosions by Martin Klimas
For Sound Explosions, he asked several musicians to work on short sound sequences, so called patches, using analogue synthesizers made between 1930 and 1990. Klimas shows those synthesizers with all their wires and cables, to give people an idea of the complexity of the sounds he is working with. He then replays the patches on his set, using pigments in place of liquid colors this time. He puts up the volume and lets the colors explode.
Pyramid Sounds
Stunning mix of music from obscure 16mm films from the always inspiring I*HATE*THIS*FILM blog, where you can also find the track listing.
Charles Cohen at the Buchla Music Easel
A film by Alex Tyson of Charles Cohen playing his vintage Buchla Music Easel. Launched in 1975, only 14 of these performance synthesizers were ever built. In 2013 Buchla are re-issuing the Easel.
Produced + Directed by Alex Tyson. Viewing with headphones or a stereo is highly recommended.
A film featuring sound artist Charles Cohen improvising on a 1970's Buchla Music Easel. This extremely rare instrument is one of Don Buchla's 200 series. Buchla (a pioneer of audio synthesis) only manufactured 14 of these units. The film was edited from over an hour of free improvisation, with audio taken directly from Charles' mixing board.
