where i have been

[bill]

i have been here.

i decided to set up ALL the synths you can see the two sixteen channel mixers underneath the stack in the first photo.
what this basically means is i can play any synth anytime live.
how does it sound. it is over the top
i also bought two more vintage boards a yamaha sy77 wich is just a incredible digital synth. also a d50 i got a bit burnt on the d50 the keyboard is hooped.

the d50 is controlled with midi so i can still use it no problems.

i also put all my rack mount gear into the rack and midied it up and filed it into the mixer.
there is a couple things i need to work out i need to get my emax into a more usable configuration but al in good time.
i have basically kicked the band to the curb. just too lazy ,there was talk about finding another singer but i really dont think i need them

there is also a ton of outboard effects and stompboxes. i havent got that into a smart configuration yet.
i just cant wrap my head around a way to do that yet but i am sure it will come.
this is the best set up of all the dozens and dozens i have tried. there is so many wires. it drove me crazy figuring out how to get everything to talk to eachother but i got it worked out.

so i have been jamming with this set up and spending hours a day now.
the force behind the sound of everything running at once is a bit overwhelming at times. i mean it can go from sounding like there is a orchestra in there to just being so intensely industrial and hard sounding.
i still havent decided what kind of project i am going to do next ,but i can say with no shadow of a doubt i am finished with pop music. i have nothing against it but i just dont want to produce it anymore.
i have one piece of music i have been working on for over five years and never have quite put the pieces together for it.
now it is time to make some sounds and arrange them.
i want to totally get aways from any of the current hipster glitchy sounds. i dont mind that genre in limited doses but quite frankly find it boring and fairly lame.


i have aranged everything so its really useable everything is at arms length.
i also have arranged all the beat boxes so they can all be synced to eachother and i can run a midi line to any of the midi analogs.
alot of these synths are multi timbral so they can play more than one channel at a time.
what this means is if i want i can bus close a to a hundred live audio tracks into the recorder.

the sy77 i picked up is just incredible sounding. i mean the depth and range of sounds you can create from this one piece of gear is staggering.
its not analog but it is a 1989 4000 dollar piece of gear.
it can sound completely analog and go to extremely ethereal sounding in the next breath.
i had a friend over the other day who has a new korg m50 and he was shocked with the scope of sounds from the sy77.
of course the d50 with the broken keyboard sounds fantastic when you program it.

i can reach all synths at anytime so its very fun to play.
the hardest thing is to try and keep the musical pieces simple but really sonically deep.
i mean this is soundscape paradise for me.

 

[Terry]

Sweet set-up bill.

You didn't mention the groovebox at all? You just use it for beats and breaks??
Hellish things to program, my right brain thinking didn't cope to well with mine.
I like the Juno 60, I remember smooth orchestral sounds....

Ever used a Yamaha DX-7?

 

[bill]

Sweet set-up bill.

You didn't mention the groovebox at all? You just use it for beats and breaks??
Hellish things to program, my right brain thinking didn't cope to well with mine.
I like the Juno 60, I remember smooth orchestral sounds....

Ever used a Yamaha DX-7?

thanks.
the mc505 has a bit of a learning curve but it is a excellent synth in its own right. i mean it has the roland jv sound engine in it .
the drum sounds are sample play back but so was the r8 and that was a pretty awesome drum machine. the mc505 has its own flavor.
i have used it on some projects as the sole instument.
i love my juno but the jupiter 6 below it just demolishes it in all ways.
the two korg electribe grooveboxes are very excellent. i use the blue ones virtual analog synth to make drum sounds with it.
the sampler i have tons of samples from old beat boxes in it. some synth sounds but if i have a real synth i dont use it much. sometimes i will load up some of the synth sounds in it and go portable.
what i will usually do when i am jamming it pick drum beats off of the three rythm machines i have progammed.
then i will trigger them in real time .
i guess i would describe this set up as abelton real.
i mean instead of working in the software world it is kind of the same idea but with hard way.
i know its insane to do this with hardware but i just work the best with hardware.
sometimes i will use the jupiter and juno to make a bunch of drum sounds along with the two kawai synths. once i have the pieces for a electronic kit i will sample them into the red korg electribe.
there is just so many options i need to cull the urge to tone chase and just play.
i do prefer the actual act of sound design to playing.
i can go from doing a old school vangelis inspired track to a crazy acid house track in almost no time in here.
then switch gears and do some electronic concrete music.
i am having fun doing music again and that is a good thing.
before i had everything taken down so other people could come over to jam and stuff.
i realise now i dont really need anyone else. in fact in many ways its a hinderance, i mean to many times i have been working on something and instead of adding to what i am doing i find the bandmates detract from it.
i want to add some vocals to some of the tracks. i have some ideas for that but more on that at a later date.

 

[Fatdog]

Dang...

I think I could also spend hours a day in that room. I really would like to get back into creating music. Bill, those Electribe units are freaking bad-ass! Have you ever messed with a JoMoX 888 or 999?

 

[bill]

Dang...

I think I could also spend hours a day in that room. I really would like to get back into creating music. Bill, those Electribe units are freaking bad-ass! Have you ever messed with a JoMoX 888 or 999?

i did have a jomox 999 and the 888 is also a lot of fun.
they are both very cool and the 999 is super close to the tr909 in many ways.
i can say the miami drum machine put out by acid labs is the hands down best tr808 reproduction out there. the difference is about the same as the difference between two different tr808s.

i have been spending tons of time in there since i changed it all around. there is no electronic music i cant make in that room.

you know bobby for the cheap prices the old emax samplers bring now they really are worth picking up.
i mean tons of the best house and electro tracks were produced on just that one piece of gear.
in fact the first nin album is almost solely that one device.
its a bit more complicated than a roland tr or tr clone but for drums its the bomb.
i mean lofi digital samples through analog filters and envelopes.
plus individual outs.
if you can find one the sequential circuits drumtracks with the 808 eprom is also a killer secret drum machine.

honestly tho those jomox drum machines are very good.

 

[oldskool69]

Sheesh! If I had that kind of equipment and talent I'd spend days there too!!!

 

[Gluecifer]

Geezum crow!! Amazing!

Best of luck being a solo artist again, Bill!

You deserve much success.



Rock On.

 

[bill]

thanks guys. today has been one of those days where it just went so good in the studio. i mean i really feel beyond lucky to have the rig i have, i can say that its pretty much perfect for me now.
sure there is a few things i wouldnt mind having but i am pretty exactly where i wanted to be.
i jammed for a few hours today and had everything turned up so it thumping pretty hard.
i cant really say what kind of genre i am aiming for because i am simply dont care about any of that stuff anymore.
i formally cut all loose ends today. i emailed all the peoplle i am involved in projects with and said it was time to go.
the futility of being in a band is more aparent to me than ever before.
the last person i met up with told me how they hate samples because its playing other pieces of music then proceeded to bestow me with playing some of there music made up of loops from garageband.
i mean i asked them what the difference was and they expained to me it wasnt the same because the loops are from garageband.
when i asked them who they thought programed the loops in garage band they didnt really answer me.
i have really thought a lot lately about what is original in terms of musical composition.
there is a limited number of notes and well i dont really think being completely original is very relevant anymore.
i mean someone recently showed me a documentary about john lennons jukebox,and i also checked out the video about the songs led zepplin stole from people.
for me its all about having a sound that is your own. i also completely bummed out working with people who contradict themselves.
i mean saying you hate funk then wanting to do something with a early hip hop vibe crosses the wires in my brain to the point where i am almost able to see sparks.
the truth is i like all kinds of music from all kinds of different parts of the world.
i am tired of the road blocks from being in bands and well einstein did say insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.
i have learned much in the last few months about the mistakes i have been making. i mean there is a reason why people like vangeilis and jarre work by themselves. ultimately its up to me if i succeed or fail.
i already have suceeded on many levels but i am not satisfied.
yep its easy to spend time in that room. to say it is infinate is no understatement.

 

[bill]

Sweet set-up bill.

Ever used a Yamaha DX-7?

oh i forgot.
the sy77 i have is a dx7 mk2 with sample playback sounds as well. you can layer the two different synth egines on it.
it can import any dx7 sound beacuase as i say it is a full on dx7mk2 stuffed in there.
i did have a dx7 but recently kicked it to the curb.
just not for me in terms of how its laid out.
i like the fact with the sy77 i can do fm sounds and use subtractive synthesis with them.
the sy77 was four grand in late 89.
it sounds fantastic.

 

[monchito]