Tag: microbrute

The Making of Belizean Heat: Part 6 & 7 – Hideaway & Stowaway

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I’m grouping Hideaway and Stowaway together in this post because in a way, they are two sides of the same coin. By that I mean that they both use the same processed cricket recordings as their source.

Hideaway Caye is a tiny peaceful mangrove island and is home solely to the family that runs a guesthouse and boat access restaurant, their two dogs, along with many crabs, seabirds, iguanas, and lots of crickets. The island is so small that rather than taking their big Rottweiler out for walks, they go out in a kayak and he paddles along behind them. Our host Dustin explained to me that before they built the houses there were no crickets or iguanas. While bringing over the thatch for the roofs these little stowaways hitched a ride and then decided to call the island home. Continue reading “The Making of Belizean Heat: Part 6 & 7 – Hideaway & Stowaway” →

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Warming the Winter With Belizean Heat

At long last I’m excited to say that I can start sharing Belizean Heat, the follow up to Sonidos de Cuba! I’m really pleased with how this album turned out. It’s quite eclectic, stylistically spanning from ambient and downtempo to progressive house and synthwave, but manages to be cohesive as a whole. It features a wide array of acoustic and electronic instruments, including trumpet, trombone, melodica, xaphoon, shakers, hand percussion, electric guitar and bass, Sonic Forest, Arturia MicroBrute, Elektron Octatrack Analog Four and RYTM, MFB Kraftzwerg, Dave Smith Poly Evolver, Novation Nova, and modular synthesizer. Continue reading “Warming the Winter With Belizean Heat” →

Maker Faire 2014 and a WCMA Nomination!

Maker Faire SpreadOn June 8th I performed Sonidos de Cuba at the Vancouver Mini Maker Faire. My wife was also showing off her Drift clothing and accessories (you can check out her stuff here). Previously I had used a laptop running Ableton Live with an Akai APC40, a Korg Electribe ES1mkII and my trumpet. This time I debuted my new live setup focused around the Elektron Octatrack. I’m also using an Arturia MicroBrute, MFB Kraftzwerg, Electo-Lobotomy Sonic Forest, Manastone Hank Drum and Trumpet. Changing my setup has caused the songs to evolve quite dramatically. I’m still playing back stems from each song on the album, but sequencing them on the Octatrack has changed the way they’re configured. The Octatrack is also sequencing the two synthesizers which imparts some great new life into the material. Continue reading “Maker Faire 2014 and a WCMA Nomination!” →

New Live Set at the Vancouver Mini Maker Faire

Poly got potentiometered!
Poly got potentiometered!

I’ll be playing again at the Vancouver Mini Maker Faire on Sunday June 8th at 2pm, only this time I’ll be using my Elektron Octatrack. I’ve been working hard exporting, sequencing, and reworking Sonidos de Cuba so that I can perform it live with this amazing device. At first I was trying to remake the songs close to how they sound on the album, but I kept encountering happy accidents and decided to let go and allow the album to evolve into a new form. Now some parts sound similar, but others sound completely different. It’s allowed me to get excited about the music again as I had grown a little tired of it after hearing so much of it. I’m using the Octatrack to sequence my MFB Kraftzwerg and Arturia Microbrute and as an effects unit for my Electro-Lobotomy Sonic Forest and Trumpet. It should be fun so I hope to see you there! The Maker Faire is a really great inspiring event so I highly recommend checking it out even if you can’t make my performance. If I have time I may even play one of the songs off my next album featuring recordings from Thailand along with my Manastone Hank Drum. More info at: http://makerfaire.ca Continue reading “New Live Set at the Vancouver Mini Maker Faire” →

New Toys for the Studio!

Fall and winter of 2013 saw a few new instruments enter my arsenal at Studio Sublime. The strangest one came first. My wife bought me something called a Sonic Forest for my birthday. I must admit my initial reaction when she showed it to me was not very enthusiastic as I didn’t really know what to make of it or how I would incorporate it into my music. However, when it arrived I quickly fell in love with it and the experimental, hands on approach to music making that it invited. Basically, the Sonic Forest is a wooden box with a contact mic inside and a 1/4″ audio output. Attached to the box sprouts a forest of guitar and bass strings of various lengths that you can pluck, rasp, bow or otherwise molest to produce a variety of sound textures. It also has a Mute switch and a tone switch that functions as a high-pass filter. I made a short song using only the Forest and effects from Ableton Live and you can listen to it below. You can also check out Electro Lobotomy’s other esoteric creations here: http://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/ElectroLobotomy?ref=l2-shop-info- 

I received a generous bit of birthday money from my Grandpa so I decided it was time to pull the trigger on an instrument I’ve been obsessing over for a while now: A Hank or Steel Tongue Drum. Hank drums are propane tanks modified into beautiful musical instruments. Continue reading “New Toys for the Studio!” →