I’ve done the band thing playing guitar and keys with a drummer, bassist/keyboard, and occasional vibraphone player with us all synced to sounds coming from a computer. I’m now working on doing solo work as both an ambient guitarist, and doing live electronics.
My guitar setup is nearly complete, and involves a lot of pedals. Basically, I have the general structure for each piece in mind (key, chords, melody, etc.), and improvise the arrangement and effects so each performance is unique. I’m currently looking into adding a midi synced looper to my setup to improve and expand on the complexity of these arrangements.
For electronic stuff, I am currently working around a Digitone and Rytm, and want to expand with a BlackBox so I can use my Minilab keyboard for a powerful and compact setup. I am also in the process of building a portable case for the Elektrons and will do the same for the BlackBox and Minilab if I end up getting the BlackBox. I’ll also have room to put a couple of Pocket Operators in there as well which will give a really wide range of possibilities. For performing, I think I will tend to stick to using 2 of these at a time for each piece, but with the ability to use all of them synced together if called for.
i’d like to resurrect this from the dead as i think it’s extremely interesting!
currently started working on a techno set and I have to say it’s fun to approach music in such a vastly different way.
so far, I want to use tr8 for drums, mother 32 for bass, and 0coast for leads. both the moog and 0coast are racked together in a module with some utility
thinking about using ableton as my sequencer, mixer and fx box and would like to get some feedback and ideas from people with a similar setup.
i’m a bit unsure if a laptop is reliable enough but at the same time it has never given me problems. the idea is to generate midi clips in ableton and use those to trigger the mother 32 and 0coast.
for me now I just use 2 elektrons together for live. one for drums etc & one for melodic stuff.
have em tempo synced but treat them like turntables. ultimately crossing over from one to the other via mutes.
so I can choose any drum pattern to mix into any melodic pattern. break down gradually into just beats, then mix in the next melodic pattern starting from all melodic tracks muted, bring it up, mute the drums for a melodic breakdown, then slam in the next drum pattern. etc etc.
nice & simple. I can’t hack too many things to control at once.
it also means I can experiment live, trying out different combinations of drums n melodics I haven’t tried before.
my set philosophy? my set consist a interaction of a healthy balance of the human element involved with machines.
the human error element is missing on most electronic live sets nowadays.i like to focus that aspect that is Been missing and really enjoy it.
everything is controlled Simultaneously with the condutive labs MRCC.midi host midi router by 4 controllers fader fox uc4,launchpad,midi fighter twister and roland v drum td-8. i control all parametres from the octatrack between the midi fighter and faderfox. blackbox mostly used with roland td-8 as a instrument with launch pad to do fast changing sound pallets do on the fly basslines or on the fly soundspades with program changes along with the program change on the eventide h-90. i use the another midi channel to to control the the bluebox vol,gain,solo,mutes,via the faderfox uc4 it opens up the whole rig without going menu diving on each box
I go onstage with something prepared. The first thing I do is insult the crowd and tell them how much I loath them for coming out.
Then I turn my back on them and play to the wall behind me.
I occasional turn and flip the crowd the bird. Between songs, if I hear any clapping or cheering, I tell them to shut up.
About 5-6 songs into my set, when the energy is really hype and flowing, I cut everything off abruptly and tell them they aren’t worthy of hearing more.
I drop the mic and storm off stage hurling expletives and more hand signs of contempt.
My roadies collect my gear whilst I wait in my limo.
Until now I have only been on stage with a band or solo with my own gear, no electronic music really. For that, my philosophy is preparation and live performance, maxing out the performance design of my sounds. A single board, a Korg Kronos, nothing else.
Now for electronic music, I’m intrigued how I would go about that. Probably with some looper for live recording and a blackbox for backing tracks and loop playback. On stage, live arpeggiator use with a looper can be cool, in particular with Karma. Anyhow, I would try to keep it as aLive as possible because I am pianist and keyboardist.
My set is mainly prepared, some parts of a few songs I I improvise a bit over stripped down loops.
Start with an intro track that lets me continue with a sound check.
Play about 15-20mins of my best tracks. Playing some leads, bass or vocoding over prepared material. It’s a push play situation, but looks like I’m playing a lot by improvising fx, parameter manipulation, with a tiny bit of actual live playing/imporov .
It’s fun for me, less stress, easy to rehearse, and I can get fairly tilted and still have fun doing it.
Then 1 mellow track I use as sort of resetting the mood. Just breaks things up.
Then about a 10min electro Motorik kind of track that speeds up to around 150-160bpm until it’s full Motorik.
That will be the end of a 30min set, leaving room for wanting more, and not over doing it.
If I get a ton of response from stopping, I’ll play one more faster Motorik track. Roughly 8mins.
I use my dark trinity, some visual lighting elements sequenced from the octatrack.
One very important goal to me is to be able to set everything up in less than 15 mins, and tear down in 10, by myself.
I’ve always been hesitant to use a laptop live, hardware seems so much more reliable. It also feels immediate and more tweakable live. Somehow the more limited file architecture (I’m using non-plus silver boxes so no snapshots/projects) makes it easier for me to commit to material and build complete sets. If I could just save and switch projects to something new I might never get anything done!
Yeah, I have 3 large TVs on PA speaker stands in a panoramic display behind me. Fog machine.
I sequence a prepared WIP edit on a computer running VDMX.
Only 6 cables for the monitors and 3 stands. Takes roughly 5-10 mins to set up alone.
Going to change that up soon and use 2 lasers instead.
That’s pretty sweet! The fog machine is a must. I’m still trying to remember to press the little button on mine every song or so. Not the most professional!
I got a foot switch.
There used to be another band in town that was heaven on the fog. The guy would just hold the foot switch forever. I loved it.
It pisses off some venues and a few people, I love the effect tho.
mostly pre-planning.
there are certain parts and certain sections of tracks for improvisation.
however, track structure is not rigid, it’s flexible enough to be modified on the fly.
Do you work with loops? Full stems? Nothing at all?
Does it involve audio files? Or is everything synthesized on the spot?
everything is synthesized except for spoken one-shots.
Song mode? Patterns? Looper?
patterns/clips, often chained in various manners.
anyway, switching between patterns or pattern chains (which are basically track sections) is manual.
Does it involve a computer? How much do you “audio engineer” yourself?
involves iPad, but only as MIDI sequencer/processor, no audio jobs.
What do you think of the “improvised techno” movement?
In regards to electronic music (i.e., Techno), I am more of a studio producer and vinyl DJ than live performer. That said, I performed a live set a while back for an event sponsored by a local electronic music group as a favor for a friend who is heavily involved with the organization. The theme of the said event was focused on modular gear and each performer had a strict fixed allotted time. My approach applied a pre-arranged mix with options to adjust on the fly, which I obviously practice several times to address any identified technical issues or potential arrangement changes.
I am not a modular guy as of yet, but my Moog semi-modular setup sufficed for the event criteria. If I recall correctly, the following gear was used:
Arturia KeyStep Pro
2 x Moog Mother-32
Moog DFAM
Moog Subharmonicon
Alesis QSR
Pioneer DJ Toraiz SP-16
Mackie 1202 VLZ1
Lexicon Alex (reverb send effect)
Roland SDE-330 (delay send effect)
Digitech Studio Quad 4 (4 insert effects)
Pioneer DJ RMX-1000 (mix bus effect)
Drawmer MX30-Pro (mix bus gate/compressor/limiter)
Livewire 11-Outlet Power Conditioner and Distribution System
Overall, everything was easy and fast to setup and breakdown. Nevertheless, in hindsight, I probably would tweak a few items in the future given the same event limitations.
I do gig regulary as either a bassist or guitarist for various R&B, Neo-Soul, Gospel, Jazz, and HipHop artists/groups; and participate in open mic nights at Jazz clubs around town on trumpet/flugelhorn when possible.
