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Watch “Synth God” Mike Dean play Moog’s highly anticipated new synth, the MuseA little over a week after “Synth God” Mike Dean gave us an initial insight into the new Moog Muse, we can now see footage of the producer playing it.
READ MORE: Moog Music is moving out of its current Asheville home
Andrew Huang teased a new Moog synth during Usher’s Super Bowl Halftime Show in February, when it was thought to be called the Moog Mirror, but an Instagram Story from Dean last week seemed to suggest that it was called the Muse.
And now, a Reddit user has posted a video of Dean playing the Moog Muse to the r/synthesizers subreddit. In the video, which is around one minute and 42 seconds in length, Dean showcases the synth.
Mike Dean playing the new Moog Muse byu/RK-MUSIC insynthesizers
Moog itself has not shared any official information about the Muse, as yet, so things may be subject to change, but from what we know so far, the Muse is an eight-voice, polyphonic, analogue synth with a screen display, a chord function, two oscillators, and a five-octave keyboard. It also has a ring modulator, a mod oscillator, an arpeggiator, an overload circuit and a noise generator.
And as you might expect, there’s no information yet on when it the synth may hit the market. However, the increasing frequency of rumours and footage suggest it may be getting closer. The team here at MusicTech will endeavour to keep you posted as we know more.
If you’re a Moog fan, you might want to keep an eye on the upcoming Minimoog Book, too. From the independent book publisher Bjooks, this book is set to launch on Kickstarter later this month and takes a close look at the history of the Minimoog. Can’t wait for it to come out? You can read Bjooks’ earlier release, Patch & Tweak with Moog, now.
The post Watch “Synth God” Mike Dean play Moog’s highly anticipated new synth, the Muse appeared first on MusicTech.Watch “Synth God” Mike Dean play Moog's highly anticipated new synth, the Muse
musictech.comA little over a week after Mike Dean gave us an initial insight into the new Moog Muse, we can now see footage of the producer playing it.
- in the community space Tools and Plugins
The Crow Hill Company launch The Vertical Piano The latest release from The Crow Hill Company aims to stand out from other piano libraries by capturing an instrument with a rather unusual back-story.
The Crow Hill Company launch The Vertical Piano
www.soundonsound.comThe latest release from The Crow Hill Company aims to stand out from other piano libraries by capturing an instrument with a rather unusual back-story.
The Reese bassline was inspired by historic NYC club Paradise Garage, says creator Kevin SaundersonThere are few more iconic basslines in dance music than the Reese bass, with its driving low-end sonics that have permeated rave music. Now, Kevin Saunderson, the Reese bass’s original creator, has revealed its unexpected source of inspiration.
READ MORE: Kevin Saunderson: “I changed the game” with 1988 Heat It Up remix
In a recent interview with MusicTech, the techno pioneer and Inner City member discusses a number of impactful innovations he’s created – not just the Reese bass but also a remix technique he applied in 1988 that “changed the game”.
In the interview, Saunderson also discusses creating the first-ever Reese bass in the same year, under his Reese alias for the track, Just Want Another Chance.“Actually when I made that record, I made it for [influential 1980s New York club] Paradise Garage. I was thinking of the Paradise Garage. I don’t know if it was still open then but I went there several times so I always thought ‘how would it sound?’ I thought this track would work, get inside the dancers. I could see them dancing, screaming, and just twirling, doing their thing and it being played for an hour. Larry [Levan] playing it over and over.”
Saunderson, who is recognised as a part of the legendary Belleville Three, goes on to respond to modern producers today trying to recreate this bassline, specifically those posting Reese bassline tutorials on YouTube.
“I’ve seen a couple try to recreate the Reese bass,” he says. “They’re using different machines I didn’t even use – I created it on a Casio CZ-1000 – but the sound was close enough.
“I didn’t know I was going to create this bass. I created this bassline — I thought it was OK. But I thought ‘how am I going to enhance that line?’ [I began] looking around the oscillators of that unit, finding a sound and developing it.
“It’s dark, it’s deep,” says Saunderson, describing the sonic qualities of the bassline. “It gets into your soul. That’s where it grabbed me. It’s vibrant, powerful. It’s a hurricane of a bassline, the frequencies.”
Listen to Kevin Saunderson’s music on Bandcamp.
The post The Reese bassline was inspired by historic NYC club Paradise Garage, says creator Kevin Saunderson appeared first on MusicTech.The Reese bassline was inspired by historic NYC club Paradise Garage, says creator Kevin Saunderson
musictech.comKevin Saunderson, the creator of the Reese bass, has revealed that it was inspired by New York's legendary nightclub, the Paradise Garage.
Plugin Alliance releases Battalion, a new drum machine by Unfiltered Audio with 20 “distinct” synth enginesPlugin Alliance has introduced Battalion, a “flexible” drum machine from Unfiltered Audio, delivering the “colour and control of iconic drum synths”, with the sampling features of a modern drum machine.
This new offering also features a performance mode for DJ sets and live gigs, allowing users to trigger, loop and manipulate sounds on the fly.READ MORE: Native Instruments’ Electric Keys – Tines Duo are among the best Rhodes emulations out there
Plugin Alliance, which is part of the Native Instruments family, says Battalion lets producers create studio-quality beats in three main ways. Firstly, you can build from scratch using the synth section. It features 20 “distinct” synth engines, many of which are inspired by 1980s greats.
If you prefer, you can choose sounds directly from the Battalion sample library. There are four sample modes on offer: Classic, Phase Warp, Cloner, and Granular. Or thirdly, you can upload original samples and then use the tools within Battalion to sculpt them however you like.
Onboard there is also a Blend slider, which enables you to move between sampling and synth generation for “unprecedented sonic combinations”.
Take a closer look in the video below:Also inside Battalion, you’ll find Unfiltered Audio effects, including Shatter Delay and Headspace Reverb, plus a Channel Strip with Delay, Reverb, Pan, and Voice Gain. There’s a multi-mode filter and non-linear distortion, plus filter algorithms including Low-Pass, High-Pass, and Band-Pass.
Distortion algorithms include Bitcrush, Rate Crush, Wavefold, Phase, Tape, and Tube. You can also utilise controls for EQ and pitch, plus a Clipping Mode selector for managing signal clipping behaviour.
In our rolling guide, you can check out the best new mixing plugins, effects and VST instruments released over the past week, all curated and handpicked by the MusicTech team.
Battalion is available now via Plugin Alliance for $129 for a limited time only, eventually rising to $199.
The post Plugin Alliance releases Battalion, a new drum machine by Unfiltered Audio with 20 “distinct” synth engines appeared first on MusicTech.Plugin Alliance releases Battalion, a new drum machine by Unfiltered Audio with 20 “distinct” synth engines
musictech.comPlugin Alliance has introduced Battalion, a “flexible” drum machine from Unfiltered Audio, delivering the “colour and control of iconic drum synths”, with the sampling features of a modern drum machine.
- in the community space Music from Within
Music Industry is moving from middle-men to ‘disintermediation’New technology suggests that current music business models should be more artist-centric instead of including unnecessary middlemen. from ArtistVerified via Medium Disintermediation is a really long word for a really. Continue reading
The post Music Industry is moving from middle-men to ‘disintermediation’ appeared first on Hypebot.Music Industry is moving from middle-men to 'disintermediation' - Hypebot
www.hypebot.comNew technology suggests that current music business models should be more artist-centric instead of including unnecessary middlemen. from ArtistVerified via Medium Disintermediation is a really long word for a really. Continue reading
- in the community space Music from Within
The marketing magic of ‘STANS’ [Fred Jacobs]How Eminem coined the term "stan" and how developing such strong bonds with music listeners can move mountains when it comes to marketing.....
The post The marketing magic of ‘STANS’ [Fred Jacobs] appeared first on Hypebot.The marketing magic of 'STANS' [Fred Jacobs] - Hypebot
www.hypebot.comHow Eminem coined the term "stan" and how developing such strong bonds with music listeners can move mountains when it comes to marketing.....
Tracktion’s “huge” Waveform Pro 13 update introduces a brand new Clip LauncherTracktion has launched Waveform Pro 13, a new update introducing an “inspiring” clip launcher workflow, a Wavetable synth, a refined UI and exclusive audio content from Mode Audio.
Accompanying the update is the release of the Clip Launcher Feature Expansion, which adds to the DJ Mix Tools, Pro Video, Recording Engineer, MIDI Producer and Synth Pack offerings, essentially allowing for Waveform Free users to build their own DAW. This way, users can keep workflows streamlined and costs down.READ MORE: Plugin Boutique is offering its “lowest prices ever” on a range of Universal Audio UAD plugins
Within the new Clip Launcher, sequence actions can be used to build complicated arrangements with speed. The probability of each can be adjusted for “human-like variation”, or even quirky and unpredictable sequences.
Waveform 13 ships with a range of new content from Mode Audio so you can get easily started with the Clip Launcher, including exclusive content, from drums and basses, to synths and more, in a range of contemporary styles.
You can also capture your work with Performance Recording, which prints the performance to the arranger window so you can edit, mix and further adjust your creations later on. It’s also worth noting that a range of launchpad-style controllers are supported in Waveform, with zero configuration required.Elsewhere in the update, the new Wavetable synth features two wavetable oscillators, plus a sub and noise oscillator. There are 150 wavetables included, and you can create your own by dragging and dropping a .wav file onto an oscillator. Serum format wavetables are also supported.
Additionally, the look and feel of Waveform 13 has been given a glow up, with a selection of new colour schemes to choose from. You’ll also have the option of creating and saving your own schemes, and colour-matched lanes can now aid with managing automation and more.
Waveform Pro 13 retails for $199. Feature Expansions for Waveform Free users start at $30.
Find out more or access a 30-day free trial over at Tracktion.
The post Tracktion’s “huge” Waveform Pro 13 update introduces a brand new Clip Launcher appeared first on MusicTech.Tracktion’s “huge” Waveform Pro 13 update introduces a brand new Clip Launcher
musictech.comTracktion has launched Waveform Pro 13, a new update introducing an “inspiring” clip launcher workflow, a Wavetable synth, a refined UI and exclusive audio content from Mode Audio.
- in the community space Music from Within
Bifurcation theory | How today’s music business will become twoOne of things we pride ourselves on at MIDiA is helping the marketplace peer over the horizon with disruptive, forward-looking ideas and vision. We have a long track record of doing this (you can find a list of report links at the bottom of this post). While many of these ideas were difficult to swallow, or a little ‘out there’ at the time of writing, they became (or are still becoming) a good reflection of where markets ended up heading. Well, it is now time for another of those big market shaping ideas: bifurcation theory.
Today, MIDiA publishes its major new report: ‘Bifurcation theory | How today’s music business will become two’. The full report is available to MIDiA clients here and a free synopsis of the report for non-clients is on our bifurcation theory page here. So, check those out to find more, but in the meantime, here is an overview of just what bifurcation theory is, and why it is going to affect everyone in the music business, whatever role you play in it.
The old maxim that change is the only constant feels tailor-made for the 21st century music business. Piracy, downloads, streaming, and social all triggered music industry paradigm shifts. Now, all the indicators on the disruption dashboard are flashing red once more. AI is, of course, standing centre stage, but it is not the cause of the coming change. It is simply a change enabler.The causal factors this time round are all direct byproducts of today’s music business, unintended consequences of a streaming market that has cantered along its natural path of least resistance. Everyone across the music industry’s value chain has played their role, often unwittingly. Whether that be shortening
songs, increasing social efforts, changing royalty systems or following viral trends, each of these micro actions has contributed to a macro effect.
The fracture points of today’s music business are simultaneously the catalysts for tomorrow’s. For example, the commodification of consumption is resulting in a raft of apps and industry initiatives that try to serve superfans; the rise of the creator economy’s long tail is resulting in both traditional rightsholders raising the streaming drawbridge (long tail royalty thresholds) and a fast-growing body of creators opting to invest less time in streaming.
Streaming was once the future but now it is the establishment, the cornerstone of the traditional music business. It has rocketed from a lean forward, niche proposition for superfans into a lean back, mass market product for the mainstream. Music consumers have always fallen into two buckets:
1. Fans
2. Consumers
The former used to buy music, the latter used to listen to radio. Streaming put them both into the same place, pulling up the average spend but pulling down fandom into consumption. Streaming is the modern day music business’ radio, just much better monetised than the analogue predecessor. Now though, everyone across the music industry’s complex mesh of interconnected value chains is realising there needs to be something more, built alongside, not instead of, streaming. This is the dynamic behind bifurcation theory. This report explores how today’s music business challenges are becoming the causal factors of a new business defined by two parallel consumer worlds.
The music business is bifurcating – splitting into two – with streaming emerging as the place for mainstream music and lean back consumption, and social as the spiritual home of fandom and the creator economy. We identify these two segments as:
1. LISTEN (user-led): streaming services, monetising consumption at scale
2. PLAY (creator-led): highly social destinations where fans lean in to create, connect and express identity
Of course, this process has already started, but social is still largely seen as a driver for streaming. Many artists who try to get their fans to participate on social do so primarily in the hope of driving streams rather than for the inherent value of fans participating in their creativity. However, many next-generation creators are realising they will simply never reach the scale needed to earn meaningful income from streaming.They are therefore shifting focus to building fan relationships on social media and monetising them elsewhere, be it via merchandise or brand sponsorships. Meanwhile, a new generation of fans are creating as a form of consumption, whether that means using songs in their TikTok videos or modifying the audio of their favourite song. While copyright legislation and remuneration have lagged behind these developments, they will be an important part of the future of PLAY. Over time, PLAY will evolve as a self-contained set of ecosystems, built around the artist-fan relationship. It will not be an easy transition. Mainstream streaming will become even more lean back, and social and new apps will exert what will increasingly look like a stranglehold on fandom and the creator economy.
Social apps are plagued with challenges (royalty payments not the least of them) but they will emerge as a parallel alternative to streaming, rather than simply a feeder for it. To this end, the full bifurcation theory report not only describes the lay of the future land, but also presents bold visions of how we think both sides of the music business equation should evolve. We present detailed frameworks for what PLAY services will look like and how LISTEN services can evolve, focusing on core competences to continue to appeal to the mainstream but also deepen appeal to – and better monetise – superfans.
AI will play a key role in the future of both sides of the bifurcated music business, but rather than being tomorrow’s business, it will act as an accelerant for the underlying dynamics of bifurcation theory.
Bifurcation is such a big concept with so many layers and nuances, we have only been able to skim through some of the highest level trends here. We encourage you to check out the full report and report synopsis to learn more.
We’ve spent a long time gestating this concept, so we’d love to hear your thoughts. We’re not expecting bifurcation theory to be to everyone’s taste, but if nothing else, hopefully it will spark some creative thinking and debate.
Don’t forget to check out our bifurcation page for a video discussion of bifurcation theory and a free pdf report synopsis.
As mentioned above, here are some of MIDiA’s most impactful future vision reports, in (roughly) chronological order:
Agile Music (Free report)
Music Format Bill of Rights (Free report)
Rising Power of UGC (Free report)
Independent Artists (Free report)
Music Rights Disruption
Insurgents and Incumbents
Creator Culture
Rebalancing the Song Economy (Free report)
New Top of Funnel
Slicing the Funnel
Music’s Instagram Moment
Scenes – a New Lens for Music Marketing
Attention Recession
Creator Rights (Free report)
Creator Hubs
Music Product Strategy
Fan Powered Royalties (Free report)
Addressable Creator Markets
Misaligned Incentives
Artist Subscriptions
Field of All Levels
Kill the Campaign
Rise of a Counterculture Industry
Bifurcation theory | How today’s music business will become two
musicindustryblog.wordpress.comOne of things we pride ourselves on at MIDiA is helping the marketplace peer over the horizon with disruptive, forward-looking ideas and vision. We have a long track record of doing this (you can f…
Band invent bionic robot arm that lets plants play musical instrumentsManchester-based musicians Bionic and the Wires have invented a machine that lets a living plant “play” a musical instrument.
The group — led by Andy Kidd on keyboard and synthesizer, and “Jon Ross on plants” — will deliver their first performance featuring the “bionic robot arm” and a plant-mate at the city’s Castlehead Viaduct venue this Saturday (20 April).READ MORE: Akai launches dub siren-inspired Ring The Alarm software synth
According to their website, the UK music collective specialises in creating electronic music with plants; their compositions combine botanical rhythms with atmospheric textures and soundscapes created by synthesisers.
The group’s music is said to explore the “interplay between plants and music” and encourage “new ways of thinking about the natural world”.
As for their latest invention, the machine works by capturing the electrical bio-signals plants create during natural processes like photosynthesis. Sensors are attached to the plant leaves to capture these pulses, which are then transformed by music making equipment into electricity to power the robotic plant ‘arms’.
The device builds on inventions such as the Plantwave device released by Data Garden a few years ago, though this bionic robot arm marks the first time a plant is allowed to directly ‘play a live instrument’ such as the steel handpan drum and the violin.
Of the new invention, Bionic and the Wires’ Jon Ross says: We’ve spent many months researching and developing the new bionic robot arms. It’s exciting to think that with this invention we may have opened up the opportunity for a whole new genre of music. Maybe it’s called bionica!?”Speaking of plant-music, avant-garde designer and synth-maker Love Hultén has turned a cactus garden into an instrument for his project, Desert Songs.
The project uses the aforementioned Plantwave, which turns biodata from organic objects into MIDI. This means that instead of composing the music, it’s simply sending “biofeedback creating true organic randomness,” says Hultén.
The device features a range of different specimens of cacti, selected for their sparse and sporadic activity. Each cactus is hooked up to a probe, and users can change output between individual plants as they go using patch points upfront.
Learn more at Bionic and the Wires.
The post Band invent bionic robot arm that lets plants play musical instruments appeared first on MusicTech.Band invent bionic robot arm that lets plants play musical instruments
musictech.comManchester-based musicians Bionic and the Wires have invented a machine that lets a living plant “play” a musical instrument.
Kevin Saunderson: “I changed the game” with 1988 Heat It Up remixDetroit house and techno pioneer Kevin Saunderson has discussed creating an early acid house remix in the late ’80s, boldly claiming that the way he created it “changed the game”.
READ MORE: “There’s no other machine that has a sound so remarkable” — Artists give their take on the TB-303
The remix is his version of UK duo Wee Papa Girl Rappers’ 1988 hit Heat It Up. It’s an acid house take on the hip-house track that ups the tempo, chops and loops the vocal and introduces, of course, a Roland TB-303 bassline. According to Saunderson, “nobody” at the time “did what he did” regarding this innovative remixing process on the track.
While up until this point, edits and remixes were a thing, according to Saunderson, this was the first example of a remix where all of the components were completely removed, leaving just the vocals on top of a similar, but entirely new instrumental. At the time, this was a completely new way of remixing a song as opposed to just extending the music or making it more DJ-friendly. Compare the two below:Saunderson, a pioneer of techno as part of the Belleville Three and member of Inner City, recalls making this style of remix in a recent interview with MusicTech, going on to highlight its impact on genres outside of electronic music, too.
“Remixes were done back in the day [by] Shep Pettibone, Jellybean Benitez, Larry [Levan]. Re-edits to make it more DJ-friendly,” he says. “Nobody did what I did when I did the first remix for Wee Papa Girl Rappers [Heat It Up]. I completely changed the game. There’s a reason why they call me The Elevator. That fits right in there.”
“People should always know: that remix didn’t just change the game for electronic music – hip-hop DJs started doing it. Everyone started doing it. It’s just part of my legacy,” he adds.
A 2018 interview by Red Bull Academy sees Saunderson delve a little deeper into how he remixed the track in this new way. According to Saunderson, his approach was to “lose everything and to make a track, and make sure it was in the same key, and take a bit of the vocals, and use it over my track”.
Also in MusicTech‘s recent interview, Saunderson talks about the lasting impact the city of Detroit has on music, and how it’s important to provide a platform for budding electronic music producers from the city.
“A lot of music has come out of Detroit that’s been impactful in the world,” he says. “There’s something that could come out of this place again. But it takes someone to give somebody an opportunity. We made our own path. As you get older, you try and open up doors for other generations.”
Read the full interview on MusicTech.
The post Kevin Saunderson: “I changed the game” with 1988 Heat It Up remix appeared first on MusicTech.https://musictech.com/news/music/kevin-sauderson-first-ever-remix/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=kevin-sauderson-first-ever-remixFight musique: claire rousay is making — and recording — the most of every momentClaire Rousay likes to get into fights. “If there’s a fight at a bar,” she says, “and you remove yourself from the bar while it’s happening, you’ll probably remember less about that night. But if you sit there and watch it, or get in the fight, you’ll definitely remember it.”
READ MORE: Grimes issues apology following Coachella DJ set – what went wrong?
Rousay’s work is far from fight music. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t violent. Through fiercely emotional field recordings, drone flecked with found sounds and musique concrète spiked with blips and glitches, she elevates small moments to ruinous status.
“That’s the way I work: get really involved and put an emphasis on everything. Get the most I can in the moment.”
Her output is all about these moments. On the 2020 album it was always worth it, Rousay smoothes the rollercoaster textures of life into text-to-speech vocals assembled from messages exchanged over the course of a recently terminated relationship. On 2021’s 17 roles (all mapped out), clanging railway bells and barking dogs give way to a diary entry on self-doubt, loneliness and the afterlife. It’s almost too quiet to hear and too real to bear.
Speaking from her home studio in Los Angeles, Rousay is louder and quicker to laugh but every bit as candid. “You don’t want to get your hopes up for anything,” she says of her new album, sentiment. “But I’ve put the most work into this record of anything I’ve ever made.”
Rousay’s experimental recordings, released through Bandcamp with almost reckless abandon, have attracted high-profile subscribers. When Thrill Jockey founder Bettina Richards reached out to see if she wanted support from a label, the stage was set for her biggest album yet. “[Thrill Jockey] were open to anything,” says Rousay. What they got was her “‘song’ record”.
Image: Zoe Donahoe
Fans of the musician’s more oblique works needn’t worry. sentiment has songs — real songs — but it’s no conventional pop coming-out. Its opener, 4pm, for example, is a spoken-word “letter to the universe, begging for the aching to let up”. It’s written by Rousay but voiced by someone else (Theodore Cale Schafer, one of multiple featured players from the Rousayverse), the first clue to the album’s depth and intertextuality.
From there, mournful strings and synths settle over sentiment like a heavy blanket; spare acoustic guitars rise like flowers erupting through concrete. And Rousay claws at the heartstrings with lines that are by turns soft, sensual and devastating. It’s all seasoned with street sounds, birdsong and snatches of conversation.
Rousay, who grew up an evangelical Christian and played in worship bands before abandoning religion, doesn’t make maudlin music. That would be old-fashioned. Instead, her work, which has been labelled “emo ambient” by fans and critics, feels sad in a thoroughly modern way. It acknowledges the promise and the lie of social media: connections made and connections missed. Her close-mic’d confessionals and themes of guilt, sex and anxiety are complemented by the sounds of iPhone message tones and keyboard clacks, rustling leaves and long showers, all of which contribute to a unique sense of millennial American malaise.
sentiment by claire rousay
Within the melancholy, though, there are always moments of joy, of beauty, of uninhibited expression, of fucking around and finding out.
In 2022, Rousay and Mari Maurice, also known as More Eaze, released their fourth collaborative album, Never Stop Texting Me. Across its 10 electric power ballads, ambient minimalism and hyper-pop maximalism meet midwest emo, trap beats and auto-tune. It works.
“Mari and I made it and we were like, ‘This is the greatest record ever made!’ Then it came out and we looked back on it like, ‘That… that was a bold choice’.” Some critics agreed, calling the album a pastiche, as if its pop proclivities were a put-on (they weren’t) and its humour a defence mechanism to protect against criticism (it wasn’t).
“The way it was critiqued was not what we were expecting,” says Rousay. “We thought the influences would come out in the music, which didn’t happen. There’s a level of humour to it, for sure. Especially lyrically. But I think it’s pretty sincere. And pretty transparent. Talking about just wanting to be as famous as Kali Malone [we’re on that Kali Malone shit], that’s all anybody could want. That’s pretty sincere to me!”
image: Zoe Donahoe
The same sincerity and self-deprecation permeate sentiment. The album was already taking shape during the Never Stop Texting Me sessions. Some of its songs were even recorded then, while others are older still.
“It’s been a really, really long process,” says Rousay. “There’s nine or 10 versions of each of these songs. There’ll be songs that sound like Elliott Smith with panned acoustic guitars and double-tracked vocals or something, and then I’ll have the same song but there’ll be a fuzzed-out drum machine with a huge pad over the whole thing, and vocals that are panned all over the place.”
Break down these sessions, though, and you’ll see that many of them are made up of stock Ableton Live sounds. Rousay is fastidious when it comes to composition but less so when it comes to equipment.
“I’m just as happy running a $90 guitar direct into a Focusrite as I am playing a high-end Telecaster through a Vox and recording it with multiple mics.”
The electric guitar parts on sentiment were recorded using a Fender American Performer Telecaster. “I mostly just use that on everything. I use that recorded right into my interface and plated back through my ADAM A5X monitors and then recorded back with a Shure SM57. And that’s the guitar.”
Rousay’s refreshingly unfussy approach to gear is a reminder that emotional clarity is often best achieved through the simplest techniques. “I’ve always been down to play with whatever’s in front of me,” she says. “I’m just as happy running a $90 guitar direct into a Focusrite as I am playing a high-end Telecaster through a Vox and recording it with multiple mics.”
Still, like any musician, Rousay loves getting new toys. Whether through friend recommendations or brand hook-ups, new gear gracing her desk (or desktop) helps her break habits and shake up her routine. To put that bluntly: Claire loves free shit.
Her Tele came courtesy of Fender. She made 40 minutes of music within days of Hologram sending her its Microcosm loop pedal. And after Goodhertz furnished her with new plugins following a rec from friend and collaborator Meg Duffy (AKA Hand Habits), Rousay made them her core compositional tools. “All the Goodhertz plugins are really sick. So now I use them for everything.” That is, until the next new sound comes along.
Image: Mike Boyd
Rousay is a sucker for VST string sounds and a big fan of Felt Instruments’ Blisko cello. She also recommends Spitfire Audio’s free LABS software instruments, especially its LA Atmos field recordings and textures. Can’t afford Native Instruments’ Una Corda? Just use the LABS Soft Piano, she says.
If there’s any sound that’s become synonymous with Rousay’s genre-fluid “emo ambient”, it’s auto-tune. “It’s the only thing I’ve ever paid for or researched,” she says.
The vocals on sentiment are smeared in Waves’ Tune Real-Time. In all its artificial warbling, Rousay’s voice is legion. Its many frequencies echo the desperation and mania of an Instagram comment section: thousands of voices fighting to be heard. But the effect is also a mask — artifice as armour. For a musician so willing to be vulnerable with her listeners, the cloaked voice is the last thing that separates claire rousay the artist from Claire Rousay the person.
The new album draws as much from Jimmy Eat World, Elliott Smith and Broken Social Scene as it does from Brian Eno. But beyond the emo, pop-punk and ambient touchstones, Rousay’s clearest influences are still, well, listen and you’ll hear it: everything else.
Rousay’s field recordings ramped up around lockdown. With the world in stasis, they were a way to recognise that life goes on even while we’re not looking – or listening. “Everything became a bit more interesting,” she says. “When you’re in the same space for a long time, you’re zooming in rather than looking outwards. I kind of zoomed in on my life. There is so much sound happening that I’m not making. The world is still moving even though it feels like it isn’t.”
Image: Zoe Donahoe
Rousay leaves her Zoom H5 recorder running for hours at a time, chronicling everything and nothing. In her kitchen. In Ubers. In hotel rooms around the world. On afternoon walks in the park with her dog, Luna. At restaurants with her friends. Anywhere and everywhere. With so much raw audio on her hands, she’s had to become adept at finding moments of value.
“I’ll drag a file into Ableton to see it visually,” she says. “I’m just looking for activity within the waveforms. Like, something happened here, because the signalling changed. There’s obviously a reason for that. I’m interested in that reason. Something is happening and I need to get it out. I guess that’s important to me.”
Rousay isn’t an archivist. Her compulsive field recording isn’t an exercise in nostalgia stockpiling. She won’t revisit these files in the future. In fact, she’s deleted more gigabytes of recordings than most musicians have ever made. It’s not about being able to access the past from the future. It’s about the present. It’s about getting in the fight. Getting the most in the moment. Not to be all sentimental about it, but these moments matter.
“I don’t expect that I’m going to live for a very long time,” says Claire. “I don’t know where that fear comes from. I don’t even know if it’s necessarily a fear. I think it’s just an intuitive thing. But something about recording and deleting things is maybe tied up in that – how things aren’t permanent but they are important.”
‘sentiment’ is released on Thrill Jockey on April 19
The post Fight musique: claire rousay is making — and recording — the most of every moment appeared first on MusicTech.Fight musique: claire rousay is making — and recording — the most of every moment
musictech.com“Emo ambient” star Claire Rousay tells MusicTech about life, death, auto-tune and her new album, sentiment
- in the community space Tools and Plugins
Win a Korg Wavestate MkII Korg are giving away two Wavestate MkII synthesizers to entrants in the UK.
Win a Korg Wavestate MkII
www.soundonsound.comKorg are giving away two Wavestate MkII synthesizers to entrants in the UK.
- in the community space Music from Within
Your Livestream Strategy Sucks! K-Pop’s lessons on reaching a global audience Haven't had much success with live streaming lately or given up altogether? If you're going to learn from anyone, look at how live-streaming contributed to K-Pop artist's global success.....
The post Your Livestream Strategy Sucks! K-Pop’s lessons on reaching a global audience appeared first on Hypebot.Your Livestream Strategy Sucks! K-Pop's lessons on reaching a global audience - Hypebot
www.hypebot.comHaven't had much success with live streaming lately or given up altogether? If you're going to learn from anyone, look at how live-streaming contributed to K-Pop artist's global success.....
Alphabet X’s Bellwether harnesses AI to help predict natural disastersThe world is on fire. Quite literally, much of the time. Predicting such disasters before they get out of hand — or better yet, before they happen — will be key to maintaining a reasonable quality of life for the coming century. It’s a big, global issue. It’s also one Alphabet believes it can help […]
© 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.Alphabet X’s Bellwether harnesses AI to help predict natural disasters | TechCrunch
techcrunch.comThe world is on fire. Quite literally, much of the time. Predicting such disasters before they get out of hand -- or better yet, before they happen --
This Go-Kart Rides on a PalletMany beginner woodworkers, looking to offset the introductory costs of starting a hobby, will source their wood from pallets. Generally they’re easily found and can be low or no cost, but typically require a bit of work before they’re usable in a project. [Garage Avenger] is looking to do something a little outside of the box with his pallet project, though. He’s using raw pallets as a chassis for a four-speed go-kart, partially for the challenge and excitement and also to one-up a Pinterest post.
Almost immediately, though, the other major downside of working with pallets arose which is that they’re generally built out of low-grade pine which is soft and flexible. Flexibility is generally not a good thing to have in a vehicle frame so plenty of the important parts of this build were strengthened with steel tubing including the rear axle, steering mounts, and a few longitudinal supports to strengthen the overall frame. After working out some kinks with ordering a few of the wrong parts, and mounting the steering box backwards, it was time to test out the four-speed engine (and brakes) on the the go-kart, making it nearly ready for the road.
To complete the build, some tidying of wiring and fuel lines was done, along with improving some of the non-critical parts of the build like the bucket seat. Of course, adding pallet spoilers and body kit puts the finishing touches on the build and the go-kart is finally ready to tear up the local go-kart track and the less-inspiring Pinterest projects. [Garage Avenger] is no stranger to strange vehicle builds, either. Although it’s a bit out of season for most of our northern hemisphere readers now, his jet-powered street sled is still worth a view.This Go-Kart Rides on a Pallet
hackaday.comMany beginner woodworkers, looking to offset the introductory costs of starting a hobby, will source their wood from pallets. Generally they’re easily found and can be low or no cost, but typ…