This & That #5

MeeBlip Reference Guide

A few weeks back, we investigated the MeeBlip - a hackable desktop digital synth that's more than a little innovative. 

This week, CreateDigitalMusic.com posted a link to the MeeBlip's reference guide, which is not only robo-in-depth, but actually teaches the reader the essentials of subtractive synthesis.

If you're wondering why I'm so jazzed about an inexpensive digital synth, check out the MeeBlip SoundCloud page. The little beast oozes character in ways that most digital synths don't, simply because it's not trying to be an analog emulation. The MeeBlip just uses the same architecture.

Bottom line? I want one.

Expect a six-pack in the coming weeks :)

More tidbits and free stuff after the jump...

Free Loops: Korg Monotron Sixpack #1

Last week, fellow Sentinel Billy Jay and I were tinkering with our Korg Monotrons and I decided to record the experiments. Since Billy's a bit of a Monotron virtuoso, the results were worthy of posting as a Sixpack.

We really dig the Monotron, not 'cause it's cute like a little raccoon, but because it's duuuurty. So don't expect pristine little riffs. That's not what it's about.

Loop links and tech notes after the jump...

Yamaha CS-60 Synthesizer Demo

My bf(f) in highschool used to have this synth.

God, what I'd give to snag one now...



(via Matrixsynth)

New Bootleg: The Reward Is Our Night

For my New Year's Eve gig with Gabriel & Dresden at the Hollywood Palladium, I re-booted a bunch of my older remixes to get the crowd going.

One of the big hits of the night was "The Reward Is Our Night" which mashes my remix of "This Is Our Night" by Sander Kleinenberg with the grooves from "The Reward Is Cheese" and "Community Funk" by Deadmau5.

The combo is apparently quite explosive, so I'm sharing it with the world via my SoundCloud account.

Download The Reward Is Our Night

Five Tips For Perfecting Your Arrangements

Making an eight-bar groove with cool riffs and funky drums is actually pretty easy once you get the hang of it. I mean, think about it... How many "brilliant ideas" do you have on your hard drive that would be huge Beatport hits if you just took the time to finish them? Yeah, like I said, it's the groove that's easy. The work is all in the arrangement of the track. Great music with a crap arrangement just isn't compelling.

It's the story, stupid.

Let's face it, crafting an arrangement is a massive, time-consuming chore. Some producers really get into it and focus, but others - like me, actually - find this part of the process a gigantic pain in the ass. I just wanna make neat sounds and wiggly grooves.

Well, short grooves are great if you want to carve out a future making loop libraries. The world needs those too. But if you want to be an "ah-tist" you'll have to buckle down and get to work. So here are a few things to think about as you create your masterpieces.

This & That #4

Musicradar.com posted a wonderful history of Roland synths, with tons of sexy pictures. Naturally, someone took all that gear porn and made a seizure-inducing animated GIF.

Create Digital Music has a brilliant tutorial on turning that old cassette deck in your closet into a nifty little analog saturation effect.

One of the artists I'm working with these days is an extraordinary guitarist, DJ, producer, teacher, and Zen badass named Shreddward. He has some top-notch tech house tracks in the pipeline and recently added some moody guitar parts to a track I'm working on. Now, he's got his own blog too.

It's been a fun week for free stuff too... More info after the jump.

My Thoughts On The Monotron

Korg's Monotron is absolutely one of the coolest little synths that has come my way.

It's real analog.

It fits in your pocket.

It's under a hundred bucks.

And you can actually run audio through its synth engine.

I've done two reviews for it, so if you want a deeper look into my opinions on this affordable wündertoy, check them out.

Review links after the jump...

William A - Push The Umbrella (free MP3)

One of my star pupils and Armada artist, William A, had a bunch of great releases last year: "Tall Glass", "Shot Glass", "Umbrella", along with quite a few well-received remixes.

Maybe I'm a tad biased, 'cause we've spent so much time hanging out in the studio - but it's obvious that I'm not the only one who's into his sound, since he's received support from superstars like Pete Tong and Dave Seaman.

For my February minimix, I played his latest bootleg, "Push The Umbrella", which mashes up William's "Umbrella" with Nightcrawlers' "Push The Feeling On" - a totally unexpected combo that works really, really well.

I asked William if he'd post it to his SoundCloud account, so I could share it with ya and he was 100% down, so here it is.

Download William A - Push The Umbrella