Tag Archives: Music Sound Noise

New Arturia Keystep 37 Chord Mode Sequence Experiment # 1

Made my first experiment with my new Arturia Keystep 37

IMPORTANT! THERE WAS NO PLAYING ADDED ONTO THIS! JUST THE INITIAL SEQUENCE AT THE START. The expanding of the sequence is all achieved by adding notes to the chord structure with the dials. (And well, because I like effects I played with some chorus and panning because YOU SHOULD EXPECT THAT OF ME BY NOW!)

BEST IN HEADPHONES!!!

Keystep chord mode seq 1

The ingredients are as follows:

  1. Created a few notes sequence very slowly which you hear immediately at the beginning.
  2. Added some sustain pedal just because.
  3. Went from 1/4 division to 1/8 division (faster) and removed sustain.
  4. Added the chord mode with a user chord I set up earlier and slowly increased the note count in the chord.
  5. Then reduced the chord note count and added sustain and slowed it back to 1/4 division.
  6. Then messed with some of the chord modes (5ths and sustained chords etc) while adding notes to it.

I’m in a bit of shock right now. So I’m going to step away and think about how I’m going to exist moving forward. I am completely blown away already.

New Minilogue XD buttons + Reface CS TEster File

Minilogue XD and Yamaha Reface CS

Got some fancy new colored buttons for the Korg Minilogue XD (in the back there with the colored buttons). The original buttons were black with black lines so you couldn’t tell where anything was set. It sucked. Most owners of the Korg Minilogue XD replace their buttons with brightly colored buttons with clearly visible lines, so you can see where stuff is actually set.

Well since I replaced the buttons, I had to test it. So I set about playing some “latched arpeggios” washed in too many effects. I recorded that. Then, because I don’t know when to quit (because I am not a real “artist”), I went back into the recording with the Yamaha Reface CS (in white in the foreground) and did a layer of noodling on top. This is how it sounds.

XD new buttons + CS

It’s not too long and is kind of a mess, but this means EVERYTHING WORKS! HOORAY FOR ME !

Dusty Bass Guitar

Dusty Bass Guitar mp3

Today I got tired of my bass guitar being all dusty and junk. I haven’t played it in so long, I started to feel guilty. As many know, I do not know how to play bass guitar at all so once again, Ableton and looping come to my rescue. I ASSURE YOU THE BASS IS IN TUNE (even if my E sting is STILL strung backwards).

I simply played a couple of bits and chopped and looped the good. I used this chorus effect that makes the bass sound like it’s fretless (as I love the sound of a fretless bass even though I do not have one).

The drum pattern has been dormant on my computer now for a few months and I didn’t do anything with it, so I figured this would be of good use. It’s a Roland 606 plug in. I created the pattern a long time ago when I first acquired the plug in.

I added a little Yamaha Reface CS two chord loop to make it less boring (although it is still boring). The Mod and Texture sliders on the CS are AMAZING. I slide those up slowly for the duration of each chord. Powerful stuff.

I figured this is yet ANOTHER WORK IN PROGRESS laying around on my hard drive but I figured I’d post it just to see what people think.

No EXTERNAL HARDWARE effects (which really is a shame) but that could change in the future.

Thanks for listening/commenting and using headphones (they always help).

Yamaha CS 3 Project Note Sequence Smash 1

Still not very “Musical”

The looper on the Yamaha Reface CS is a strange beast. I found myself amused by just cramming as many notes in it as I can, and just leaving the REC turned on so its recording anything I do with the keyboard while it’s looping. Although while it is looping, I’m doodling more with the sound itself and the effects.

This sounded better in my headphones than I thought. I just love sustain, delay, reverb,… anything with a tail. This is so fun!

NOTE:

Around just before 1 minute mark it gets crazy. It’s amazing how something cute and pretty can just fall apart on this thing. I think the ability to get full rich sound quickly on it, is the charm. Then, with one jiggle of a knob it screams like a demon and just crumbles. Go ahead, call it a toy. I don’t care. The track has a Fripp & Eno-Swastika Girls kind of vibe to it.

The “Yamaha CS 2 project Project” has interesting bits in it too, but I need to chop it down a bit. But this above? Only 5 minutes? Good enough!

How To NOT Be Musical

Yamaha Reface CS

So I purchased a Yamaha Reface CS because:

  1. It was cheap on craigslist
  2. I always loved the Yamaha CS80
  3. There is no menu just sliders so its easy to torture sound

I brought it home and immediately plugged it in and hit record and just started blowing my mind.

AND NOW because you are lucky enough to BE THERE WITH ME (thank you Internet), you can hear 38 minutes of me messing with it.

Nothing sane, professional, or musical at all. Just making funny noises and pushing it around.

I am a sucker for Reverb, Delay, Sustain, and Pad sounds. This punches all those tickets… BIG TIME! I am quite happy.

Yamaha CS First Time Brain Explosion

OK I CONFESS! I like spending money just to press buttons that make funny noises. I ask so little from life.

5 Mystic Eggs

Bob and I did a track with samples from Diamond & Silk. The reference source for this is a monologue they had about how “Socialist Cubans only get 5 eggs a month.”

This was too funny so we made a song.

Diamond and Silk
Diamond & Silk

Bitchin Bob’s birthday gift was used for this. He got a groovy drum pad. It’s a Kat Percussion KTMP1 Electronic Drum and Percussion Pad Sound Module. We were breaking it in and came up with this track. The timing is off and its very sloppy but MAN did we have fun and laugh while making it.

Bob's New Drum thingy
Bob’s new drum pad thingy.
5 Mystic Eggs

Click the play thingy and give it a listen. The orchestra hit at the very beginning was left in intentionally. It was triggered by Bob on the drum pad.

Also used:

  • Korg Volca Bass, Keys, & Drums
  • MicroKorg
  • Korg Kaossilator
  • Korg MiniKP (red box)
  • Zoom MS-70CDR Effects pedal (on the Volca’s)
  • Korg Minilogue XD

It Catches Up Down The Road

It has been quite some time since I posted anything on the blog. I figured I should put something here since I pay for it and the numbers (what little I get) are dropping to nothing.

Today I thought I’d do some drone’y ambient’y thing with the Volca’s and this new Zoom MS-CDR-70 effects pedal. I have it connected to the output of the mini-mixer that holds the Volca Bass, Beats, and Keys. It has a lovely shimmer effect that I over used on this track.

This track was really slapped together (as most are) with little edits. Everything here is a hardware synth (no MIDI or Ableton was used).

Ingredients:
Korg Volca Keys and Bass (through Zoom pedal)
Korg Minilogue XD with tons of Riser reverb
Korg MicroKorg with tons of delay from the Korg MiniKP (red box)
Korg Kaossilator Pro with 2 drum patterns and a little solo lead synth noodling.

I recorded the thing at 60bpm but things are triggered haphazardly and initially when the drums kick in, its off beat. But if you listen and let the trance wash over you, it sort of catches up (hence the quicky song title).

It’s about 10 minutes long. Probably TOO LONG, but enjoy either way

The Chef Jeff 2020 End of Year Mix

IT’S HERE! Mark your end of the year with the Chef Jeff mix of musical, danceable goodies. Enjoy 68 and a half minutes of pure bouncy jams lovingly curated by Chef Jeff.

Chef Jeff – 2020 End of The Year Mix

Mix includes the following tracks:

  1. Deeper Love – Aretha Franklin
  2. Fallin’ For You – Sidepiece
  3. Vibration – Don’t Blink
  4. It Is What It Is – Vintage Culture (feat. Elise LeGrow)
  5. International Thief Thief – Fela Kuti
  6. Cat Vibing To Levan Polka – Bilal Göregen
  7. They Frontin – Catz n Dogz (feat. Monty Luke)
  8. Lose Control – Darkmountaingroup
  9. Jesus Creates Sound – Marlon D
  10. The Sound Is Yours (Kerri Chandler Remix) – RiskSoundSystem
  11. Panic Room – Au/Ra
  12. Don’t Call Me Baby – Madison Avenue
  13. I’m Coming Out (Integer Bootleg Mix) – Diana Ross
  14. U Got My Love – Guz
  15. The Heat – David Penn
  16. Cloud Nine (Purple Disco Machine Remix) – Jamiroquai

Unemployed Early rainy Friday Morning

I woke up around 7:30am and did this 5 minute bit. It’s a repetitive 2 chord loop with hand pressed automated sustain pedal (had to figure out how to do that). Soloed another reverby/delay’y piano on top for fun. Then figured, I would just solo some foggy pad in the background in hopes to keep it together or make it more interesting. Recorded it without a metronome/clock so not a finger snapper or dance hit. (You should know by now).

This is what ya get. A futile musical brain fart. Hope you find this amusing and it sustains you for 5 minutes or takes you out of where you were.

Best in headphones.

Formlessness (Updated With Bass Solo Re-pitched)

Formlessness

This was started with an Active Step Recording experiment on the Volca Keys for the arpeggio that runs throughout the bit. I kept dropping out and changing the keys subtly for the duration. Note: There is no beat or rhythm even though the whole thing was done at 100bpm.

After creating this, I found a “Filter Delay” effect that allowed changing the sound filter per left and right channel of speakers so this arpeggio doesn’t just have a variance on the keys being played but also the timbre of the sound per channel. Essentially its changing notes then it changes quality per Left/Right speaker channel independently. So, IT’S ALIIIVE!

I added some space delay piano, a little MicroKorg here and there, and I actually noodled around on the bass guitar a bit.

Good murder of a Sunday.

UPDATED (Thursday June 25, 2020):
I learned how to re-pitch audio file SEGMENTS and fixed the sour notes on the bass solo at the end. I’m much happier with it now. I also did some volume changes on the bass solo. It starts at 1:45 if you are in a hurry to compare the two. Give it a listen if you want to challenge your ear a bit.

Formlessness Bass Corrected

AS ALWAYS, BEST HEARD IN HEADPHONES.