Remember in my last newsletter when I said I should be able to move into my studio before the end of June? Not so fast: We discovered a problem where the crew finishing the walls cut several expensive, high speed data cables embedded in those walls (and the floor). Repairing that damage has thrown the schedule into disarray.
But on to the good news:
My latest album Finite Space is now shipping, and will soon appear on all of the major streaming services. Steve Turner of Australian Control Voltage also did an in-depth interview with me where we dove into how several of the sounds and sequences were made. I will also be hosting a Listening Party for the album on July 13.
Plus, I shared a bill with Michael Stearns in June that was very well received; we are looking forward to sharing an extended gig at the Paradiso in Santa Fe in September. I will be previewing at least part of my set at Knobcon the week before.
The background thread weaving through all of the this is the way I make music: I don’t have the depth of musical practice that many other accomplished musicians do, so I have found ways to have technology help me get my ideas out of my head and have them vibrate the air. Is that cheating?
- featured article: Rick Beato recently released a video about why music is getting worse. In it he implies making good music should be hard work. I have mixed feelings about that…
- Alias Zone updates: My latest album – Finite Space – is now officially released. I have a number of reviews convince you to give it a listen, a deep-dive interview on its creation, and a listening party scheduled.
- Learning Modular updates: I created a custom WavPak for the ModBap Osiris oscillator with a trick where musical intervals are embedded in the wavetable. Here’s how to use it.
- Patreon updates: New posts since the last newsletter include an article on applying hocketing in a modular patch, impulse response samples of my new studio, and indexes for my recent interview and Osiris video.
- upcoming events: A listening party, Knobcon, playing the Paradiso in Santa Fe with Michael Stearns, and maybe even more…
Should Making Music Be Hard?
Rick Beato has created an amazing set of videos on YouTube about music composition and creation, including many wonderful interviews. There’s a good reason he has over 4 million subscribers.
In his recent video above, he goes through his list of reasons for why he thinks music has gotten worse – including how easy it has become to create music, denouncing things like autotune, quantization, sound libraries, plugins, and presets.
Some of those are indeed problems. And being a modular synth user and teacher, it would be easy for me to say “you’re right – ditch all of those preset instruments, and patch all of your sounds from scratch on a modular. And while you’re at it, remove all of the cables after each song.”
But there’s one remark he made that gave me pause:
“The creative dependency on technology limits the ability of people to innovate, I believe. Could be wrong about that; maybe it helps them innovate. I don’t think so, though.”
In short, he links music getting worse to it becoming easier to make. The implication is that to be a true musician, you need to study and practice hard and long; to record your music properly, you need hours and years of experience placing microphones and dialing in the desired sound on the right gear.
On the one hand, I do firmly believe that it is worth learning your tools so you can better express yourself with them. After all, that’s the point behind my own online courses and Patreon channel. But I myself continue to learn, and as a result I think each of my albums is better than the previous one. Happy accidents do indeed happen, and intuition helps, but relying solely on them can mean long intervals between uncovering the occasional musical gem – when it might have gone much faster if you had some idea first where to dig.
On the other hand – both as an instrument designer, and as one who did not have the benefit of being immersed in music education when I was a kid – I don’t believe that making music should inherently be hard. It should be your inspiration and taste that matters the most; not how many hours of hard labor you put in.
If the tools you use make that hard, I feel that’s more the equipment’s fault than the user’s. The engineer in me feels the goal should be to design instruments and recording equipment that is more intuitive to use, and which facilitates trying to express the ideas in your head.
Aside from my engineering brain saying “design better!”, this is also personal. I loved music since I was a toddler. But my parents apparently had a bad experience trying to get my older brother and sister to learn instruments, because they did not even try with me. When I announced at the age of 15 that I wanted to learn how to play a piano, they literally told me: “That’s great – buy a piano and take lessons.”
So, I saved up and bought a used Wurlitzer EP-200 electric piano, and paid for my own lessons. My bass guitar was a trashed Hagstrom model I found at a garage sale; I restored it myself and paid for lessons on that as well. I also took synthesizer lessons on a Steiner-Parker Synthasystem before I had my own modular synth.
But after only a year or two learning each, I went through a large plate glass window and cut up one of my hands so badly that I couldn’t close it for a long time – which was quite an obstacle when dealing with the user interface presented by a piano or guitar. Then I started college, followed by a career, leaving little time to keep practicing.
However, I still wanted to make music. So, I learned how to use music technology to overcome my lack of traditional training. I sold the piano to buy a PAiA modular synthesizer, which had not just a keyboard but also a pair of sequencers, as well as an audio input and an envelope follower so I could process found sounds and other musicians (echoes of Brian Eno’s role in Roxy Music).
Working on the Prophet 2000 and Studio 440 samplers while at Sequential Circuits led me to discover loop-based composition; I also got into dub-style mixing as a way to express myself. At the same time I started collecting hand percussion (although I have no formal training in playing those instruments, meaning I mainly used them for accents).
Those all led to me taking the roll of “the drummer” as well as ambience-creator in various ensembles including Richard Bugg’s Cosmic Debris, which resulted in the first Alias Zone album decades ago. I continued in this role when I moved to using Ableton Live, starting with version 1.0. After a long hiatus, I returned to making music several years ago, now using a modular synth instead of predominately loops.
Then Covid hit. I was faced with the challenge that if I wanted to continue to make music, I had to learn how to play all the parts myself.
So, I started studying music theory and scales, while also moving to an isomorphic controller that automatically maps my requested scale and root to the available pads. This means I just have to know what interval I want to play next (which I consider to be a matter of taste) rather than which black keys are in this particular scale (which I consider to be a user interface flaw with the traditional keyboard): a change in user interface made it easier to express my ideas.
I still don’t have the dexterity to play all of the parts myself in real time, so I have been learning how to program them into a sequencer – especially one like the Five12 Vector with “Chance Operations” that allows to also program variations to keep things interesting. I have two electronic percussion instruments – the Korg Wavedrum Global and the ATC aFrame – which allow me to focus on learning one style of drumming (hand drums) while still getting a variety of sounds. And, I still spend an much time trying out new patch ideas on my modular as I do composing new material with it.
So to answer Rick Beato: I do indeed have a creative dependency on technology. And it does not limit my ability to create and innovate; it’s what enables me to do so!
Alias Zone Updates
My latest album – Finite Space – is now available. You can get streaming, downloadable, and physical CD versions (including a bundle with stickers, glow-in-the-dark stars, and a patch cable) from the Alias Zone Bandcamp page; it should be available on all of the streaming services soon.
The video above is an interview by Steve Turner of Australian Control Voltage (AU-CV) where we take a deep dive into how the tracks were created, including patch and sequencing tips. Other interviews and videos will appear soon.
I know you’re busy; how can I convince you it’s worth your time to check out my album? Rather than me tell you how great it is (which it is, but I’m understandably biased), what if I quote a number what other electronic musicians plus music reviewers have to say about it?
Ian Boddy:
“Some lovely work on there, and great to hear modulars used in such a musical way.”David Helpling:
“…sounds wonderful! You have such restraint musically, though your pieces are never static… continually moving and morphing. It sounds so very ‘alive’.”Robert Rich:
“Nice bass extension on the low notes. A fresh take on sequencer melodies that avoids the overtly Teutonic zone.”Bart Hawkins:
“…absolutely a brilliant work of electronic ambient space music. This album showcases Chris’s mastery around the modular synth and his ability to blend organic sounds in a pristinely clear hypnotic space ambiance. Finite Space demands your attention with its pulsating rhythms and evolving sequences. I simply love the deep and powerful low end that enriches the sonic tapestry. The immersive atmosphere of Finite Space is always moving, engaging you through all of its four tracks.”Paul Rijkens for iO Pages:
“…a nice combination of Berlin School sequencing and space music. But there is also more and that manages to distinguish Chris’ music from its peers. (…) I think this is a particularly strong album. It sounds just a little bit different from the electronic music I normally hear, and I like that. “Robin James for Brainvoyager:
“With Finite Space we get a carefully constructed excerpt of Infinity. (…) Each slowly-unfolding piece is its own cinematic journey, inviting you to explore Chris’ dreamscapes and imaginary worlds.”Steve Sheppard for One World Music Radio:
“…a perfect example of top notch electronic music with an added twist of a global infused manifestation of sublime quality. This has to be the finest for me this year with ease. I defy anyone to press play on this album and not be totally immersed by the experience that follows. Albums of this ilk do not come around that often. As such, one has to say that Finite Space is a total masterpiece of a release…”Bart Hawkins (again):
“The sonic clarity, balance, dynamics and detail in the production of Finite Space makes this one of my favorite albums to listen to for the pure pleasure of it, as it transcends conventional auditory experiences. The depth and immersion of this album is amazing. Finite Space is a remarkable album, a must have.”
Are you curious now? Then go to the Finite Space page on Bandcamp and stream the previews; I hope you come to the same conclusion and order your own copy. My music has to pay for itself, so your support means the world to me.
Learning Modular Updates
The ModBap Osiris has been my favorite digital wavetable VCO for awhile now. I have one in both my studio and live modular systems. I love it so much that I created a custom WavPak that contains some of the favorite patch tricks and sounds from my Monster modular synth, divided into East Coast, West Coast, Formants, and Harmonics banks. Among other things, this allows me to have many of my favorite core sounds in my live system.
But the real trick with this WavPak is what I did with the Y axis: Instead of just loading more waves, I filled them with the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, and 8th harmonic of the source waveforms. That means as you modulate the Y value, this WavPak smoothly crossfades between different consonant musical intervals to the root: octave, octave + perfect fifth, two octaves, two octaves + major third, two octaves + perfect fifth, and three octaves. (By the way, it’s a trick I wouldn’t mind seeing others also implement…)
When layered with a second oscillator tuned to the root pitch – or with the Osiris’ own subharmonic – the result are musical intervals under voltage control. Used with the Osiris’ subharmonic plus its stack & detune algorithm, and now one VCO sounds like three – with custom waves!
The video above demonstrates this WavPak, along with some patch ideas. Click here to download the WavPak (currently free!).
Patreon Updates
My Patreon subscribers get a direct connection into how I think when creating a patch, composing a piece of music, or making an upgrade to my modular synths or studio. Even when I release information publicly, my subscribers get additional background information and insights.
Since the last newsletter, new Patreon posts have included:
- Hocketing, revisited where I discuss this technique for trading off voices (potentially with entirely different patches) when playing a musical line, and give an example of its use on my most recent album. Patch and sequencing details as well as my plugin effects choices are also discussed.(+5v and above subscribers)
- Recordings of impulse responses from my untreated, highly reverberant studio space to be loaded into the IR reverb of your choice. In addition to hand claps, I also used claves for bright-biased and a djembe for bass-biased responses. With some plugins, the latter may produce the sound of your instruments being played through a djembe drum’s body! They were recorded in MS (mid/side), with one element pointed at me for a more direct sound, and one element pointed at the walls for an even more reverberant sound. They also make some pretty cool percussion samples on their own… (+5v and above subscribers)
- More on my Osiris WavPak including links to other Patreon posts that demonstrate some of the modules and techniques used in its creation (those posts do require a subscription), as well as an index for quick location to a particular part of the movie. (1v/oct and above subscribers)
- Album Breakdown for Finite Space which also includes a handy index for locating directly to specific topics in the nearly hour and a half interview. (Free to everyone.)
For those who are not subscribers (and those who are), I encourage you to check out the index for my Patreon channel: There’s a ton of useful of content up there (around 500 posts so far!), and a 7-day free trial if you want to try out a subscription and access a particular post that’s not already free.
Upcoming Events
July 13, noon MDT, Bandcamp Listening Party
I am throwing a “listening party” on Bandcamp for my new album Finite Space where I will be live in the chat, posting details about the creation of each new sound as they appear in the music, as well as answering your questions. Click this link to RSVP for this special event!
September 7, Chillout Room, Knobcon, Schaumburg Illinois
I will be one of the featured performers in the Chillout Room Saturday evening during the Knobcon convention near Chicago, Illinois. The room will be set up in quad, and I plan to develop a new set for the occasion. The Knobcon show itself is also a great hang for fellow synth-heads.
September 14, Paradiso, Santa Fe, New Mexico
Electronic music legend Michael Stearns and I will be performing at the Paradiso in Santa Fe in quadraphonic sound. Our sets will be much longer than the ones we played recently at the Albuquerque Museum. Times and a link to buy tickets will appear later on the Alias Zone website, as well as the Alias Zone Facebook and Instagram pages and in the next newsletter.
I’m also looking at playing in Denver, Colorado this October. More on that as things develop. Let’s just say you should draw a circle around the weekend of 11-13…
So as you can see, I’ve been quite busy despite my new studio not yet being finished. I hope that happens during July, when I can then start moving in and wiring everything up – including an immersive Atmos surround-sound monitoring system, which should be an entire new world to explore.
my musical future remains bright –
Chris