Let's kick this music tech/ gear/ production segment off proper with a discussion that's sure to push a few buttons - the use of hardware vs software in the creation of electronic music. It's a really broad topic that definitely deserves more than just one post, so this will be a good jump off for future posts.
deadmau5 in his new mega studio.
i can has MOAR ghosts????
It's a well known fact that most modern electronic music is made using a computer. Software for music creation is easy to obtain, and relatively easy to learn to use.
Now, you too can sound just like the Swedish House Mafia!
swedish bros 4 lyfe
It's hard to deny the immediacy and ease of use when it comes to music software. Softsynths have come a long way and sound pretty bangin now. It's really nice to be able to just sit with a laptop and pair of headphones and make hot tunes, not gonna lie.
laidback luke uses nothing but a computer and his "DJ bed"
A Logic user, LL is a shining example of someone
who makes bombs exclusively with software.
While this has opened doors for many producers, it's also made for a lot of blah mediocre beats :/ Let's face it, there's a lot of generic EDM out there... So how do you set yourself apart? How do you get your own sound? (aka the meaning of life)
There are definitely more than a few answers to that. One of my answers is: HARDWARE! Now, I'm not talking a $3300 vintage minimoog model D..
...tho it would b nice.
I'm talking about that hardly working boss distortion pedal from when you "played guitar" in high school. Or that $50 super-nineties looking reverb processor on craigslist.
the harmless looking midiverb 2..
more interesting sounding than all but the best software reverbs..
..and cheaper too.
It doesn't have to be expensive, or even analog for that matter. It just needs to have some jacks n plugs (twss). Whatever it is, just plug it in, start making sound with it and record, record, record.
You can even take your pristine sounding softsynth patches and run them out, into some hardware, and then record it back in. Something about real, physical sound making devices gives them each a sort of "magic" that hasn't yet been evoked by software. If you're ever curious as to what this phenomenon feels like in full effect, I suggest you take a trip down to Switched On and play on some of the brilliant vintage synths they have. Just hold a key and start turning knobs, you'll feel it.
Switched On switches me on! :o
The key is recombination and finding those little magic formulas between your hardware and software. This is, of course, only one way to set yourself apart from the crowd and just one way of thinking outside the box (literally) to obtain sounds no one else has.
a little counterpoint experimentation using some Simplers to generate pad/ key sounds, run out into and Electro Harmonix #1 Echo ($45 at teh pwn shop) the spooky magic happens when you crank the feedback up. try doing that with software!
Next week I'll talk about a few specific software techniques that have been developed over time and have shaped modern dance music.
ELSTAR
Yes indeed!
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