The EBM masters are soon ready
Hi everyone
Come to think of it I seem to have a tendency to write on artists rather than gear on Fridays, guess it must be because I am entering a stage of party mode 
And that´s why its nice to give some news (well I am certainly not the first to bring this out on the web, but what the heck) on one of my fav EBM acts:
VNV Nation, new album on the way
It has been confirmed that the next VNV Nation album “Reformation” is on the way. The finishing touch is all that remain.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTL8NtqGdw4]
Here some news from the band:
PLANS FOR 2009 : We hope you all had a good time over the holiday period. We finished 2008 on a high note at the Neuwerk Festival in Berlin. When an audience sings that loud and shows such unity and euphoria, you know it’s a special night. So, what’s coming in 2009? During the last months of 2008 we were extremely busy making plans and we promise a busy year with lots happening. Firstly, the long awaited Reformation CD Pack will be released (finally, and yes, we said “pack”). Work on the next VNV Nation album “Of Faith, Power and Glory”, is well underway. There will also be European and North American Tours this year. We are also planning a lot of special releases for our fans but more on that in the coming months.
New in Promote your music here: Far Go traders
Far Go Traders
Listen here >> http://www.myspace.com/thelale Web site/MySpace : http://www.planetariumrecords.com/plane_arium/023.html Contact info: ljigotina@gmail.com)
Music production tool/s: Not mentioned
This time we have the band Far Go Traders up for review. To be honest I have not listened to all their songs on their website, but I went thru two or three of them, and based on this I would describe it a experimental electronica – with emphasis on experimental.
And how does it sound? Well at first I was very intrigued by their soundscapes and the images that they managed to paint with small electronic sounds and sampled noices etc, that by the way was very professionally done – no complaints there. However after a couple of minutes into each song I tend to get a bit bored (might be me, but than again) and the main reason for this is that I lack the common thread thru the songs – the thing that keeps it together as one entity.
Experimental music can be extremely beautiful, just look at guys like Brian Eno, but in order for it to be beautiful one need to put something that carries the story thru the song and I feel that this is kind of missing in these songs. A lot of experimental artists solves this with vocals, voiced samples, choirs etc, but that is kind of taking the easy way around it and I do believe that Far Go Traders have the capacity and musical skills to master this without these tricks.
The music is well balanced and the sounds are very nice and the mastering I have nothing to complain about so if you just can master the red line across the songs (espacially when songs to suddenly take a completely different directions) you are right on the track towards a balck belt in experimental music.
Worth listening to? Yes
☻☻☻☺☺
Closer look on Peak Pro 6.0.4
Peak is an unusual tool, in a way, in that it remains a stereo waveform editor only, whereas most of its competitors have added multitrack compatibility. On the other hand, Peak also bundles an unusually rich set of tools in the box, which explains the higher price of the full-blown Pro versions.
Peak Pro comes bundled with a wealth of goodies. There is, of course, the program itself, along with SoundSoap LE, Bias’ excellent noise remover; WireTap Pro, an audio capture tool; a bundle of 32 VST effects from Maxim Digital Audio; and the wonderful SFX Machine LT plug-in, which contains nearly two dozen unusual effects.
Third-party AU/VST effects and instrument plug-ins are supported too.
Additionally, you get a suite of analysis tools in the form of Bias Reveal LE, a gorgeous four-band EQ, Bias Sqweez dynamics, and the dynamite Vbox plug-in matrix.
As if that wasn’t enough, AMG’s ONE sample player is included, along with audio files from PowerFX, Hollywood Edge and Sound Ideas. Believe it or not, the XT version gives you even more, adding SoundSoap 2 and SoundSoap Pro, along with the Master Perfection Suite.
If you’re an experienced Peak user, you’ll notice immediately that the interface has been given a bit of spit and polish for this version. Peak has always had a reputation for being very easy on the eye and, more importantly, easy on the brain, and that approach is maintained here.
What’s New in this Version
– Add support for transferring recordings from iProRecorder via WiFi.
– Fixed a problem where CD-TEXT in a DDP fileset containing accented characters could have those characters missing on discs produced from that DDP fileset.
– Fixed a problem in which Playlist output could contain a burst of noise (i.e., in bounced files or burned audio CDs).
– Many more enhancements.
DIY, the 8-step GorF step sequencer
This is a demo of the GorF, a minimal step MIDI sequencer that offers analog-style sequencing.
It sends MIDI notes and velocity on a user selectable MIDI channel, along with two MIDI CC’s (user selectable. the GorF offers variable sequence length. You can also turn steps on an off using the buttons, though this is not demo’d.
The sound is coming from the MonowaveII sound skin.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHdpEM4l3Xg&eurl=http://createdigitalmusic.com/&feature=player_embedded]
With four sequences with parameters, steps with pitch, gate, and Control Change, sequencing controls, legato mode, and the planned ability to both send and receive clock, this is one useful-looking device. And from the video above, it looks like it’s progressing really nicely.
The new Roland V-synth
The reason I recommend the V-Synth is because it is the only synth of its kind that provides an amazing combination of sampling, synthesis and looping along with the best set of programmable controllers ever assembled. Having such a great knobular synth combined with touch screen and a loaded controller set makes this an awesome performance keyboard. The factory sounds are great and it’s cool that you can always recover them if you want them. The best part is creating your own sounds because this keyboard makes it so easy and awesomely fun.
Roland’s original V-Synth set a new standard in expressive synthesis and sound design. It won awards and acclaim around the world, as it forever changed the way sounds were created and performed. But just when you thought V-Synth technology had reached its peak, Roland raised the bar even higher with the new flagship V-Synth GT! This unique instrument injects the V-Synth’s famous Elastic Audio Synthesis engine with revolutionary Articulative Phrase Synthesis technology. Its expression and realism is unprecedented, as is its ability to make never-before-heard sounds.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-QjkCGjaNY]
- Multiple forms of advanced synthesis under the control of a friendly, icon-driven interface
- New AP (Articulative Phrase) SYNTHESIS technology models the performance behavior and nuance of musical instruments
- Includes Roland’s proprietary Elastic Audio Synthesis engine plus Vocal Designer, playable simultaneously
- Sound Shaper II offers incredibly easy and efficient user programming
- Futuristic, high-quality industrial design
- Color touch-screen display with wide viewing angle
Teaser from the new album
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=891CCpval6Q]
Enjoy and have a great weekend!
The new MAX for LIVE
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDJdq3WlLdc&eurl=http://audiolemon.blogspot.com/&feature=player_embedded]
Basically, Max for Live is a tool kit for making new devices. Think of a diverse and comprehensive set of building blocks that you can use to build pretty much anything you can think of. These building blocks include basic objects such as “+”, audio elements such as filters and oscillators, user interface objects, and a set of objects that regulate access to Live and hardware devices. Max for Live also provides a canvas where you can place and connect these objects with virtual wires. Flowing through these wires are audio, MIDI or video signals, or any other kind of data. Max is essentially a visual programming environment where you build courses or tracks for these signals to run through.
You can build new devices from scratch, modify existing ones or simply use devices that others have made. Max for Live includes several ingenious example devices and plenty of tutorials to take you from using to tweaking, and then to building.
New Refill from Nucleus with free demo refill
Here’s what they are saying about it:
Pantheon takes Refill quality to a whole new level. There are no compromises. Each one of the 164 Combinators inside Pantheon is unique, with a widely varied signal path. Further, all Combinator rotaries and buttons are assigned to unique destinations. And finally, each Thor patch *inside* each Combinator has its rotaries and buttons fully mapped! We have even saved all Thor patches separately so you can more easily build them into your own Combinators. There has never before been a Refill with this many powerful, creative modulation possibilities at your fingertips.
Some of the patches you’ll find inside Pantheon range from physically-modelled drumkits; dirty filter FM basses; majestic pads; heavily sequenced chord patterns; pristine belltone layers; futuristic lead arpeggios and much more. Electronic musicians of all stripes will find Pantheon instantly inspiring, and infinitely tweakable. Details:
- 164 unique Combinators.
- 235 Thor patches.
- 28 Subtractor and Malstrom patches
- 9 .rps demo songs.
- All Combinator and Thor rotaries/buttons uniquely mapped.
- Detailed design documentation for each patch.
Demo refill can be found here >>
New stuff from AndOne
New, maybe is saying too much, but still
And One have announced the release of Bodypop 1½, available on Out of Line January 30, 2009. The disc will feature nine live versions of 80’s synthpop tracks, new And One tracks “Und Wenn,” “Paddy Is My DJ” and “Love Is A Drug Abuser,” and new and unreleased versions of additional tracks. Follow the links for more information.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-rMpu2uzGk&eurl=http://www.andone.de/&feature=player_embedded]
Steve Naghavi couldn’t help but noticing that large parts of today’s club crowds had no more knowledge of the ground breaking Synth Pop Hits of the Eighties – which awakened a missionary instinct in And One’s restless front man. Thus, the guys thoroughly naghavigated an illustrious collection of genre classics, from “Blue Monday” and “Big In Japan” to “The Sun Always Shines On TV.” A big tour through Germany’s biggest concert halls followed and now we can reap the fruits of this labour on CD, as well: “Bodypop 1 ½” features nine of the biggest classics of electronic Pop music in And One’s patented SuperDuperCoverLoverSound, with a whole lot of live flavour mingled in. But, don’t fret, the guys were also generous with material of their own and have included the new songs “Und Wenn”, “Paddy Is My DJ” and “Love Is A Drug Abuser” plus old and previously unreleased versions of “Love You To The End” (the song is now about Depeche Mode!) and “So klingt Liebe” (a six minute long version sporting a totally different mood!) “Bodypop 1 ½” – music education turned into a silver disc! Come join us in Naghavi-land – because life I.S.T. too short for bad music!
Launch of Waldorf Largo
Waldorf have released Largo, their first ever software instrument. It’s a synthesizer that the developers say features the same kinds of sounds as the Blofeld and Q hardware synths, giving the user a diverse sonic palette, from complex pads to screaming leads.
Many producers and synthesizer enthusiasts asked for a full-blown Waldorf Synthesizer for their virtual rack. So have I, and now Largo. Largo is the first pure software synthesizer with Waldorf DNA. And again – it is the cutting edge sound that makes the big difference.
Largo has three oscillators with a variety of waveforms that include shapes from the PPG and Wave hardware synths. Two multi-mode filters can be used in parallel or series, and each has a drive section and can self-oscillate. There are three LFOs, one of which has a step sequencer-style waveshape arpeggiator generator, and there’s a selection of effects, including chorus, flanger, phaser, overdrive and delay. Largo runs as a plug-in inside VST and Audio Units hosts.
DATAMASKIN
