(no subject)

[nfotxn]

So I'm listening to a rather obscure Dntel track (split 7" picture disc with Styrofoam on the other track) and noticing that it sounds as if it's been recorded on tape. Now it's probably a conditioning but I'm being reminded what audio cassettes sound like, even good ones. The pitch tends to modulate ever so slightly and randomly which I think has the effect of warming and even humanizing the sound. Boards of Canada do this an awful lot, although I'm sure their techniques are pretty complex. They are probably finely tweaking fine pitch adjustment in real time in addition to FX. Listen to the pad on "Olson" off "Music Has the Right to Children", it's a perfect example.

Anyhow, I need to experiment with this in my own music. Was drooling with John last night over the Edirol (Roland) UA-5. I need one.

Comments

Hehe.

[dirtyglamour.livejournal.com]

Man, what I wouldn't give for an extra $2,000 to spend on a good synth... *tear* someday.....

Re: Hehe.

[nfotxn.livejournal.com]

Dude, you seriously don't need that kinda dosh anymore! Just take a nice MIDI controller and some good software synthesis and you've got yourself a synth more capable than nearly all the hardware out there! And for less than $1000. Sure it ain't cheap, but nobody has to spend $4000 on some silly Korg workstation anymore.

Heck, there's tons of free software synths out there too.

Re: Hehe.

[dirtyglamour.livejournal.com]

Thanks man, good advice. Though I am aware of that, it's how I produced my first demo...Used Cakewalk, SoundForge, and various free synth patches for the MIDI controller.

I was being mostly sarcastic ;-) although I still WOULD like to have extra dollars to spend on music equipment.

[cpratt.livejournal.com]

May I direct your attention to "Tuli, A Plain Ride From Canvas" by Max Tundra, "Obligatory Glitch Worship" by Lesser, "A Big 10-8 Place" by Negativland, or "Alaskan Polar Bear Heater #1" by Severed Heads? You can do interesting things with tape.

Bow to the Blooper!

[sonoranbear.livejournal.com]

(a dumb thing..)

Hooray for 'Big 10-8 Place!' I got it on CD about two years ago and now whenever we travel Steve asks that I tote it along so we can listen to it in the car.

I'm going to have to look into your other recommendations. I feel so behind on my modern music.

Re: Bow to the Blooper!

[cpratt.livejournal.com]

Well, Max Tundra is still the best God damn thing I ever heard. "Tuli" is interesting mainly because it's so unlike most "modern music"; it seems to be solo piano with all kinds of, uh, ambience which sounds like it might derive from the kind of tape noise Dolby set out to eradicate, but in a quiet, almost pretty way. I love it because it so obviously sounds handmade, as opposed to a lot of the laptop crowd. Web site is http://www.maxtundra.com .

Jay Lesser is from SF; his CD "Gearhound" is the only even somewhat approachable thing he's released, although I find it's pretty hard going. The last minute or so of "Obligatory Glitch Worship" is [for me] a heartbreakingly beautiful bit of tape manipulation which is a great relief after the preceding hour or so of hard listening. http://www.lsr1.com has more info.

"Alaskan Polar Bear Heater #1" is probably nearly twenty-five years old at this point; it's a prime example of tapeloop use by SH. Check out http://www.sevcom.com for more info on them.

Re: Bow to the Blooper!

[theotherqpc.livejournal.com]

hunh...i didn't know Lesser was in SF (tho that *would* make being "the third matmos" easier). Gearhound is a painful CD....it's kinda like if Atari Teenage Riot slowed down, added more mistakes, and took away the shallow lyrics. myself, i'm a big fan of the Cheeseburger Lady

Re: Bow to the Blooper!

[cpratt.livejournal.com]

yeah, "in" is correct, not "from" [he's from San Diego], thanks for the correction. I don't really care for the Cheeseburger Lady, but I do have vague memories of playing TG's Hamburger Lady on the high school radio station I DJ'd at as a kid. Yikes!

[folkyboy.livejournal.com]

people make fun of me for knowing the difference between digital and analog recording! i can tell the difference in mics too! you rock