Playlist Electraumatisme du 09/06/2021 - Bioniké

Ce soir on annonce enfin une vraie date de concert avant d'attaquer la sélection top-bioniquée de la seconde partie de cette édition d'Electraumatisme.

Precision Field - Gumbinger 1
Moya81 - Advanced Discoveries
Planetdamage - Firewalls (Vandalaze Mix)
Triode - Less
Full Contact 69 - Zombie
Funker Vogt - Thanatophobia
GASR - No Empathy
The Gothsicles - Super Scary Action Figure (I Want To Eat Your Brain)
John von Neumann - I can't stop get on
Hexadiode - 6th Dialect
Hexxcode - Edge
Persephone – D.S.S.D
Holocoder - Век завершен
Notstandskomitee – Der Zweite angriff

Release of the week

Precision Field - Blank Mars (1999​-​2001) 

 

Download : http://electraumatisme.info/broadcast/20210609.mp3

Kitchen Notes : Hex Me on Some Robots Have All The Luck

 

 

 

 

Ken Mars nous présente la combinaison de matériels et logiciels qu'il a utilisée pour développer l'univers très personnel offert à nos oreilles dans sa dernière production sous le projet Hex Me :  Some Robots Have All The Luck
C'est aussi l'occasion d'évoquer ses autres projets musicaux comme Precision Field dont le dernier (et ultime malheureusement) album Love & Debauchery qui avait fait partie du Top 10 d'Electraumatisme l'année dernière.

Ken Mars present the software/hardware combination he used to develop his very personal universe opened to our ears in his latest Hex Me release : Some Robots Have All The Luck.
It is also the occasion to mention his other projects as Precision Field's Love & Debauchery was one of the best release for Electraumatisme podcast last year.

Gears and software

What gears/software did you use for this album ?

For recording I have a Focusrite Scarlett 8i6 and Acid as my DAW. For sounds I used a Roland JD-XI and a Roland JX-3P for most of it, along with a Cazio CZ-3000, Arturia Microfreak, Korg Volca FM, Korg EA-1, and Korg X5-DR. For drums I used samples and the vintage 808 and 909 kits from the JD-XI. Right before I finished the album, I got an Alesis Nitro Kit but only used it on one track. For “Earthbound” I used a very old song I made with Ejay as the basis and recorded over it.  I also tried sampling bass guitar using an Electro-Harmonix Bass Mono Synth pedal, but it didn’t work as well as I’d hoped so I will try that again.

 Your favorite gear(s)/software(s) ?

Roland and Boss are my all-time favorites, but I don’t limit myself. Arturia makes good products for the cost. I wish Yamaha would make more synths. I love Yamaha but other than the Reface series, they haven’t done much to get you exited. I also have a fetish for vintage Casio keyboards. The CZ series was visionary. I have used Acid for over 20 years so I can stay backwards compatible with old projects. It has always worked for what I need so they have my loyalty. Acid has changed ownership several times, Sonic Foundry, Sony, and now Magix. It isn’t fancy like a lot of DAW’s but that is exactly why I like it. So far, Magix have been very good with their service.

 

Any evolution in your setup ?

I started playing electronic music in the mid 1990’s so my setup has gone through multiple evolutions over the years. Currently, I have all my equipment for playing live mounted in a case for easy transportation and everything else revolves around that. My studio room is very small so I can’t have everything plugged in all the time the way I would like.  I recently bought a metal table with wheels on it so I can move around my equipment rack easier, which has been very helpful.

 

Sound Design

Do you use/tweak presets  ? 

Yes, but not as a rule. I try not to use the same sounds over and over, but a good pad is a good pad, and a good kick drum is a good kick drum. I don’t mind using a preset or sample as long as I don’t recognize it from somewhere else immediately.

Do you design you own sound  ? On which synth/plugin in particular ?

The JD-XI, JX-3P, and Microfreak are very expressive, so designing sounds is a lot of fun. I use a few common software synths and have a good controller, but it is not the same. I would prefer to record my synths and drums through amplifiers, but I don’t think my roommates would appreciate that.

Any personal synth story ?

When I was very young, maybe 6 or 7 years old, my family bought a big two-tier Yamaha console organ and when we were at the store the salesman gave us a demonstration of a synthesizer (I don’t know which) and I got to play it for a few minutes and turn some knobs. I wish I remembered more details, but I never forgot that brief experience. I was so young I did not understand what I was hearing, but that sound and feeling stuck with me for life.

 

Writing/composing method

What would be your main writing/composing method ? Do you start classical rythm/bassline then arrange around it ? Do you already have structure in mind ? Do you improvise, record sessions then select ?

It depends on the song and project, but for Hex Me I always start with a simple drum beat and then build up the bass line by improv jamming until I get a loop I like, which usually gives me more drum ideas, so I go back and forth with that until I have a melody line in my head. From there I’ll flesh it out and add parts. If I’m recording a guitar-based song I usually have it all written out on paper before I do it. The reason I like synths so much is that with a few adjustments, you can make things sound entirely different and get inspiration from that. My other band, Sick Tree, is very psychedelic and jazzy and slow by comparison, so the process of recording that project is much different. My singer for Sick Tree, DKA, plays harp and recording her is a fun challenge. I hope we will release an album at some point, but she is hesitant to do original material sometimes, so progress is slow. Mostly we play covers of Angelo Badalamenti or songs from David Lynch movies.

 

Producing/mixing method

Do you produce/mix in the box or do you use mainly external gears (effect/comp/eq...) ?

I do both, but it is mostly external gear driving the sound. I like VST’s but they don’t have the same feel.

What is your most painful / enjoyable step in track production ? Sound design, arrangement, mixing, mastering ?

I enjoy the whole production process, but the final mix is the most frustrating. Sometimes it helps not to listen to a song for a few days and come back to it with fresh ears. Writing lyrics is a challenge sometimes.

 

Ken Mars tips

You only learn by trying new things. Go fearlessly into the unknown.
Take notes on paper. Do not rely on your memory. Backup your data regularly.

 

Contact info

HEX ME

hexmeband.bandcamp.com

facebook.com/hexmeband

SICK TREE

facebook.com/sicktreeband

soundcloud.com/user-880616904

Final Note

Last year my best friend and bandmate of ten years, Hobart Blankenburg of the Industrial band, Precision Field, passed away. In support of his family I will be releasing tracks we recorded from 1999-2006, and some new material we recorded in 2019 and 2020. He was a brilliant musician and I hope Precision Field fans will enjoy our early material.

Precisionfield.bandcamp.com

 

Kitchen Notes : G.H.T. on Voices of the Night

 

 

G.H.T. nous décrit les processus de production de l'épais Voices of the Night, plein de couches massives mais dont les titres cachent de sacrées bonnes mélodies à base de bon vieux synthés logiciels (si Olga vous rapelle quelque-chose...)

G.H.T. describes us the process he went thru to produce the thick, heavy layered industrial Voices of the Night tracks hiding clever melodies with good old softsynths (remember Olga ?)

Gears and software

What gears/software did you use for this album ?

I create all music in Logic Pro that meets all my needs when it comes to music production. There are lots of software syntheses and effects to buy, which means that I never stagnate in my music production.

Your favorite gear(s)/software(s) ?

My favorite plugins when it comes to Synthesizers are Logic's own Alchemy. I think it is absolutely fantastic when you want to program and create dirty sound. Together with different distorted effects, you can create magic sounds. Some other favorites among software synths are Hexeract, Knif Audio Knifonium and Olga. It is very easy to create really dirty and distorted sounds together with the right effect. Punchbox is a favorite for creating awesome bass drums.
To get a really dirty sound on the bass I often use a bass amp simulator and it works fine with the one in Logic.

 

 

Sound Design

Do you use/tweak presets  ? 

I start from a preset and as I almost exclusively reprogram to get the perfect sound. I can sit for hours with headphones and change the sound with different parameters.

 

Do you design you own sound  ? On which synth/plugin in particular ?

Yes, absolutely. I try to make a dirty and distorted sound and it’s a combination between programming a software synth and use a nice guitar amplifier or effect pedal. A new favorite has become Soundtoy's filter freak.

Any personal synth story ?

I bought my first synth in 1985 and it was a Casio CZ-101. I thought it was great and the fact is that I still have it but do not use it when I produce music. Maybe I should dust it off for the next album.

 

Writing/composing method

What would be your main writing/composing method ? Do you start classical rythm/bassline then arrange around it ? Do you already have structure in mind ? Do you improvise, record sessions then select ?

I usually start with the bass and looking for interesting tone sequences. The bass sound is extremely important for the entire production.
But sometimes it's a soundscape that I'm looking for and that can start the process with a new song. I´m obsessed with bass drums with which I can spend many hours trying to find the best bass drum. I've been searching for over 30 years but still not found what I hear in my head.

I often try to build soundscapes with distorted sounds on many tracks and part of the process is to use an arpeggiator to create different rhythms.
The great thing about creating music is that chance and coincidence are always included, you have to be a little lucky.  
When it comes to song recordings, I often improvise melodies while singing into the microphone. I spend a lot of time to get the right vocal sound often with distortion and other effects.

 

Producing/mixing method

Do you produce/mix in the box or do you use mainly external gears (effect/comp/eq...) ?

I mix in Logic and when it comes to mastering I use Ozone 9 together with a tape emulator and a saturation plugin. I try to avoid the mix to get to digitally sharp and add more analog feeling to the mix.

What is your most painful / enjoyable step in track production ? Sound design, arrangement, mixing, mastering ?

The best part is the creative process, to create songs without any pressure that I usually get later in the process. The most difficult and anxious part is mixing and mastering. On the latest album, I had fifteen different mixes and ten different mastering mixes. It was a long process and I usually test the mixes in three different studios to see if it's sound good. I use Sonarworks which I think works well to get a balanced sound image in a room that does not have the perfect acoustics.

Part of the process of creating an album is album covers, pictures and music videos. Since I have worked with both photography and layout, it is a process that I love to do. The whole process is based on simple ideas and a zero budget. The music together with pictures and film must harmonize and have a common language.

 

G.H.T. tips

Try to find your own musical expression in terms of both sound and structure of songs. There is so much music that just follows musical templates and tries to follow the next trend in music.

 

Contact info

You can visit www.ghtproduction.com or follow me on instagram.com/ghtproduction or
watch a music videos on https://youtu.be/OCTeie4Mac4

Electraumatisme du 02/06/2021

Ce soir, on entame cette édition régulière d'Electraumatisme avec une fine équipe slovaque et pour la seconde partie, beaucoup d'extraits des sorties précédemment présentées dans le podcast.

Eclipsed - Apollo Space Program
Super Dragon Punch !! - Frame
Analog Code - Gravity
Noise Unit - Body Aktiv
Virtual Violence - Blood Matrix
Nattskiftet - Adrenalin
Carriegoss - Recluse
Distorted Memory - Burning Heaven
G.H.T. - Woods in the winter
Hex Me - The Tenth Planet
Qual - Equinox Of Death
Emu Bomb - Pokerface
Johnson Engineering Co. - Thug
Bio-Tek - Ashes
MindFluxFuneral - A quiet state

Release of the week

Eclipsed - Holyiens

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Download : http://electraumatisme.info/broadcast/20210602.mp3

Top 10 Mai 2021

01 - dISHARMONY - Resonance
02 - QUAL - Tenebris In Lux
03 - cEvin Key - Resonance
04 - Hex Me - Some Robots Have All The Luck
05 - G.H.T - Voices of the Night
06 - Carriegoss - Touch
07 - Nattskiftet - Stämplar in
08 - Statische Monotonie + New Fabrik - Tape Tanz
09 - :wumpscut: - Fledermavs 303
10 - Tyske Ludder - Kaputt

Playlist Electraumatisme du 26/05/2021 - Indus made in France

Un gros bout de la seconde partie d'Eletraumatisme cette semaine fait un petit survol de la musique Indus (purement Indus) et parfois expérimentale produite en France ces houlààà 35 dernières années. Ben y'a du bon là-dedans, en fait.

G.H.T - The day is done
Hex Me - Maustopia
QUAL - Technoid Bloodlust
Muckrakers - Derniere coulee
Groupe T - DMT
Geins't Naït - Canari Et C Nie
Gerostenkorp ‎– Velluto Grigio (extract)
Flint Glass - Hierakonpolis
Polymorphe - Tranquilitatis
Groupe T - Marchez
Hermetic Delight - War is closer
Hologram_ - Equilibrium
HøRD - Night out

Releases of the week

G.H.T - Voices of the Night

 

Hex Me - Some Robots Have All The Luck

 

QUAL - Tenebris In Lux

 

Download : http://electraumatisme.info/broadcast/20210526.mp3

Electraumatisme du 19/05/2021

On commence à voir de nouvelles dates fleurir un peu partout, espérons que celles-là seront exaucées, c'est en bonne voie.

En attendant, cette semaine, on évoque la fin partielle de la loudness war dans cette édition régulière d'Electraumatisme.

Nattskiftet - Aceton (Album version)
Carriegoss - Standby
5ilent 5olution - Blessed
M73 - Empty
Sins - Psychic Children
Tyske Ludder - Kaputt (Van Bloomen 100Blumen Edit)
Distorted Memory - Disciples of the Watch
Apparat - Goodbye
3teeth - Away from me
Project Pitchfork - Merry-Go-Round-To-Hell
Djurkliniken - Da di do
ESR - Revolutions
The Blood Of Others - I See Bad Spirits
Ritual and Repetition - A Coward You Are, Withnail! An Expert On Bulls You Are Not! 

Releases of the week

Nattskiftet - Stämplar in

 

Carriegoss - touch

 

Download : http://electraumatisme.info/broadcast/20210519.mp3

Kitchen Notes : Statische Monotonie on Tape Tanz

 

La deuxième salve d'informations nous vient cette fois de Statiche Monotonie originaire du Chili et de passage à Bordeaux qui a bien voulu prendre du temps pour nous raconter comment ont été concoctés les perles d'EBM sombres et froides que vous pouvez retrouver dans la split cassette Tape Tanz sortie chez Pink Bunker.

The second information burst comes from Statiche Monotonie originally from Chile and curently living in Bordeaux, he kindly took the time to tell us how he cooked the dark and cold EBM gems you can find in the Tape Tanz split tape out on Pink Bunker label.

 

Gears and software

What gears/software did you use for this album ?

In this album I used Reason 5 software, audition 5, "boss ve20" voice pedal and midi controllers. It happens that I live in France for a short time, I am Chilean and when I decided to come I had to sell my things.
Before I was a drummer in the band "cause of death", so I started from scratch again, little by little I am putting together my new artillery.

 Your favorite gear(s)/software(s) ?

I love Reason as it is a very versatile software and allows me to create my own sound based on basic parameters.

 

Any evolution in your setup ?

Yes, when I bought my voice pedal and the interface, I learned the operation and the fun of the experimentation, every day I learn something new.

 

Sound Design

Do you use/tweak presets  ? 

Yes, for example, it gives you basic parameters of drum machine, kick drum, snare, hihat, etc , the same with basslines and everything ... I prepare my own sound by adding custom effects for each sound that I am going to use, be it reverb, phaser, chorus, etc. I never use presets without my tweaking.

Any personal synth story ?

Now I am 31 years old, but since the age of 19 we have been learning to use software or synthesizers. Before I worked with a friend on a project for a long time called "Dr.Body" with which we made 3 studio albums with only limited resources, controllers line 6 and very cheap microphones. 

 

Writing/composing method

What would be your main writing/composing method ? Do you start classical rythm/bassline then arrange around it ? Do you already have structure in mind ? Do you improvise, record sessions then select ?

I do not have a specific composition parameter, that depends on the inspiration or the idea that occurs to you.
We already know that inspiration occurs without looking for it. I generally like to create clean sounds from my drums and go through rhythms, arrangements or samples that I record.
For example, with glass bottles or pans for cooking, I add that to the final mix and I abide by the rhythm already created on drums, then I hum some melody and try to carry it out as close to reality and so little by little , although it is not always the same process.

 

Producing/mixing method

Do you produce/mix in the box or do you use mainly external gears (effect/comp/eq...) ?

The instrument mixes are made in Reason, but since it is an old version, I can't seem to record voices or I don't know how to do it, so to integrate the voices, I take Audition and export each Reason instrument in WAV to integrate it into Audition and add the recorded vocal tracks and samples.

What is your most painful / enjoyable step in track production ? Sound design, arrangement, mixing, mastering ?

Painful could be the time to write lyrics because it is difficult for me to write fiction, so I take my lyrics to my real life and it is painful.
Nice is the moment to experience the sounds that I am going to use to create the structure of the song, that is very pleasant and also when the final projects arrive after mastering, since there is a third party who works with me on the mastering.

 

Statische Monotonie tips

More than an advice on how to produce, I would tell you to go ahead with your projects and even if people do not support you, it does not matter, go ahead and you will learn a lot along the way, it does not matter that you do not have money or synthesizers, music is created with enthusiasm and feeling that and combining reverb and phaser on your bass lines hahaha.

 

Contact info

You can find us via:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DesignerViolenceOfficial

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Statische.monotonie/

My e-mail address: ratredneck@gmail.com

Also with the name of the label "Pink Bunker Ltd.", you can find updates, physical formats and merch

and with my name you can buy on bandcamp and listen on all platforms, spotify, youtube, soundcloud etc ...
 

Playlist Electraumatisme du 12/05/2021 - Vieilles démos

Premiers jets à la qualité sonore incertaine, essais sans lendemain ou naissance de légendes, ce soir Electraumatisme plonge dans l'univers des démo cassettes et CD dans sa seconde partie d'édition.

Tyske Ludder - Kaputt (EBM Edit)
Cold Connection - Beautiful
In Absentia - Night Train
Nature of Wires + Machina X - Within
The Quinsy - Le Vide single
Serpents – Das Zweite Leben
Cyber - Nervous
Absolute Body Control - Slow Action
Afterlife - Hybrid-[m]machine
Polymorphe - Sacrifice V1.0
Audio Head Cleaner - ??
John Blak Fire - After Rain Comes the Despair
Lescure 13 – Sleep In My Garden
EAR Label - Track 2
H.N.A.S. - 2 fremde ehepaare

Release of the week

Tyske Ludder - Kaputt

 

Download : http://electraumatisme.info/broadcast/20210512.mp3

Kitchen Notes : Designer Violence on Televised State Lies

 

Aujourd'hui nous ouvrons une nouvelle rubrique dans le blog d'Electraumatisme où la parole est donnée (en anglais la plupart du temps) aux membres des groupes qui font l'actualité du podcast sous un angle purement technique.
On va donc parler de synthés, de softs, de méthodes de production et de composition, découvrir comment est cuisinée la musique qui nous fait pulser. 

Designer Violence ouvre le bal avec une quantité impressionnante de détails sur les ingrédients qui ont permis la réalisation de la bombe queer-indus-vénère Television State Lies.
Un immense merci à Gaya et Nina pour avoir pris le temps de répondre à ces questions.

Today we open a new section in Electraumatisme blog where we let band members talk on a purely technical side about the releases we praise here in the podcast.

So we will speak about synths, softwares, production and arrangement methods, we will discover how the music we love is being cooked.

Designer Violence kicks it off with an impressive amount of details on the ingredients it took them to release their furious queer-indus Television State Lies.
A warm and big kudo to Gaya and Nina for the time they spend to answer these questions.

 

Gears and software

What gears/software did you use for this album ?

We used a bunch of different gear and software in the production of this EP, primarily based around a hardware setup. The mixing was done in the DAW PreSonus Studio One 4 while the recording was done through the PreSonus StudioLive AR16 USB mixer-interface.

• The setup we used differs per track, we used:
• Korg ESX-1, EMX-1 and Microsampler
• An Akai S-1000 rackmount sampler and old Akai mic
• An Elektron Octatrack and Machinedrum
• An Atari Mega4 ST and 1040STF for sequencing through Cubase 2 (only on Revolution, Total State Terror and Illuminate)
• An E-mu Emax 2
• A Roland SP-404
• A Yamaha MT-4X Multi-track tape machine, REX-50 multi-effects unit and a Reface DX
• An Ensoniq Mirage, SQ-80 and EPS Classic
• Waldorf Blofeld (2x)
• A Dave Smith Mono Evolver Keyboard, Pro2 and Prophet 12 module
• Two Audix OM7 mics and two Shure SM58 mics
• A Moog Sub37
• A Stratocaster clone tuned to D-A-D-A-A-D
• An Inkel Power 800 mixer
• A beaten-up oil barrel
• And a bunch of other stuff that was primarily used as raw sample material for the S1000 and ESX 

 Your favorite gear(s)/software(s) ?

Nina’s favorite piece in the studio has to be the Akai S-1000 for its ease of use, she also loves the Ensoniq Mirage ran through a distortion pedal for its extreme grit and the E-mu Emax 2 for its classic Industrial sound. Tessa’s favorite piece is the Dave Smith Pro 2 for the ease of building a new, impactful sound as well as its brilliant arpeggiator that’s able to beat sync seamlessly with the other gear.  

Our favorite software is the one we just mentioned, PreSonus Studio One. We’ve been using Studio One ever since we started seriously mixing our music and are still using it to this day. We also used Cubase 2.0 for the Atari ST as a midi sequencing program which is one of the tightest and easiest to use midi sequencing programs in our experience.

 

Any evolution in your setup ?

We started out with a fairly small setup, with a small assortment of synths and some drum machines. This setup was located in the front room of our house, but we quickly realised this was too small as the collection grew and it lacked soundproofing. In 2019, we moved the studio to the garage with some outside help, which transformed the back of the garage into a studio space. This is where we wrote, produced and mixed the majority of When Beauty Expires and the entirety of Televised State Lies. We originally also had an Atari 1040STF computer, which we have since replaced with an Atari Mega4 ST computer for use in sequencing some of the songs involving the Akai S-1000.

 

 

Sound Design

Do you use/tweak presets  ? 

Yes. The synth track on Not Dead Yet was Nina playing a Blofeld and a Prophet 12 at the same time using midi, both set to tweaked presets. We don’t use presets on the drum sounds though, all drums are homemade and home-recorded. Most of our bass sounds, especially the FM bass sounds, however, are presets from the Yamaha Reface DX, which can be heard on Not Dead Yet, Revolution and Total State Terror, while the bass on Illuminate is a slightly tweaked and processed Evolver preset.

Do you design you own sound  ? On which synth/plugin in particular ?

Yes, on every synth and sampler we have we’ve been designing our own sounds. Designing our own sounds is integral, even with presets we try to tweak them as much as we can before considering using them. Tessa, for instance, designed the main synth lead and melody sounds from Revolution, as well as the melody sound on Total State Terror as well as the bass, arpeggio, choir and melodic pad from Head Trauma etc. Most drum sounds as well as most non-melodic samples were homemade from a variety of different sources and processed in wildly different ways.

Any personal synth story ?

Years ago, when Nina was just learning to play the guitar, she was a huge fan of Depeche Mode, and wanted to know everything about what gear they used in the studio. She watched a bunch of videos about Depeche Mode and came across a video featuring Alan Wilder sitting with an Emulator 2 and speaking about how the sampler could record every sound imaginable, and that video inspired Nina to start her journey with synthesizers and samplers. We already have an Emax 2 keyboard but really want an Emulator 2 someday.  

 

Writing/composing method

What would be your main writing/composing method ? Do you start classical rythm/bassline then arrange around it ? Do you already have structure in mind ? Do you improvise, record sessions then select ?

This depends very much on the song. Not Dead Yet was composed in one long session using analog triggers to create a bassline on the Moog with its arpeggiator, and then building a rhythm and additional elements around that. Total State Terror, Illuminate and Revolution were all composed pretty spontaneously using a sample or two Nina had stored in the Mirage processed through a distortion pedal. The gritty sound, combined with a sequencer from the Atari and drums from the Akai S-1000, helped inspire us to create those songs pretty much in one go.

With Not Dead Yet, the structure gradually came together, while the other tracks structures were written on the spot, with us sometimes adding additional elements later on (in the case of Illuminate and Total State Terror). Liminal was a jam Nina did on the Ensoniq EPS Classic and the Moog Sub37, with the Moog providing a steady pulse and the EPS providing the weird distorted “screaming” sound. The rest of the track was later improvised over the top. Head Trauma was first jammed out multiple times before we decided on which elements to add where and how the structure would be. The main bass in that track is another trigger pulse bassline while the pulsating faster bass track is a Pro 2’s arpeggiator played by Tessa over the top of the already recorded track, as is the final arpeggio that comes up in the track’s crescendo.

 

Producing/mixing method

Do you produce/mix in the box or do you use mainly external gears (effect/comp/eq...) ?

Most mixing involving compressors and EQ is done in the box. Special effects such as gated reverb, pitch shifting and many of the delays were done out of the box with the Yamaha REX-50 and Elektron Machinedrum being used for gated reverb and the Machinedrum for additional delay processing on some tracks. All vocal processing went through an analog Inkel mixer first with the gain set at the edge of breakup, so the vocal would only distort when we would scream. This was then sent via an aux on our main mixer/interface through the Machinedrum for dub-style rhythmic delays that we could modulate and send into oscillation if we so desired, which was then sent through the Roland SP-404 for additional vocal processing such as chorus and pitch shifting to give the vocal depth. All EQ after that was applied in the DAW.

What is your most painful / enjoyable step in track production ? Sound design, arrangement, mixing, mastering ?

The most painful step has to be getting started. Ideas usually come up pretty spontaneously with samples and other stuff but before we get to that point we must build up a pretty large library of samples, primarily drum samples in the Akai S-1000, and then assigning those samples to different outputs and keygroups in the S-1000 to make sure everything works alright. Either that, or we have to set up a sample set in the Korg ESX and make sure everything is panned right, effected right, etc. The most enjoyable step happens after the drum library has been set up and usually happens when the “magic” is happening and the sounds are coming together into a greater whole. Another thing we really enjoy is recording long collage-style pieces of sound that we can overlay on the songs to further reinforce the atmosphere and grit using our Yamaha MT-4X. Sometimes, these tape pieces inspire whole songs in their own right.

 

Designer Violence tips

Never be afraid to break a rule or break some boundaries when you’re sampling. If something sounds good, use it, and if it doesn’t and you can’t make it sound good, then leave it for later. Even if you don’t like an idea, try to keep it around and maybe re-use that idea in a different song when the time comes. Consider setting limitations for yourself either by actually forcing yourself to only use a few pieces of gear or by using older gear with limitations that forces you to work around those limitations and get creative with them. There’s nothing worse than having an entire library of samples and being overwhelmed with the amount of choice.

 

Contact info

You can find us via:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DesignerViolenceOfficial

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/designerviolence/

Our e-mail address: designerviolenceofficial@gmail.com