Subterranean Commute || Ambient Eurorack Modular Synthesizer + Moog Semi-Modulars

video upload by Sam Kyzivat

"The year is 2130, and major cities have begun moving underground. Those who can afford it have followed. For the rest of us, a 30-floor long, 100-foot wide escalator commute starts and ends each day. The overhead lights have been expertly tuned to mimic the sunrise, and the transition from natural to artificial light is hardly detectable. As you descend, you close your eyes and mentally hit shuffle on a curated playlist of 6 minute long ambient tracks (the exact length of the trip) and a track called 'Subterranean Commute' starts playing. You didn't sleep well last night — the ceaseless low frequency rumbles from underground construction don't seem to bother anyone but you. The music fills your head and you immediately feel the tension in your shoulders relax. The algorithm has chosen well. You look around you at the sea of heads, some gently bobbing, some motionless, a scattering of head-bangers, and wonder what everyone else is listening to...

Patch notes:

RINGS, in modal resonator mode with two-note polyphony, is receiving gate and pitch CV from an arpeggio on the KEYSTEP PRO that's playing back randomly. The output is going into BEADS for clocked grain generation, which is creating a quasi-contrapuntal melody to the input material.

MOTHER-32 is receiving gate (Euclidean rhythm) and pitch CV (quantized random) from PAM's, with its internal LFO modulating the filter cutoff. It's also sending noise into RIPPLES for filtering (more apparent in the second half of the track).

DFAM, with a short VCA decay, is receiving somewhat erratic triggers from PAM's Euclidean rhythm via MOTHER-32.

STO is receiving random pitch CV from NOISE TOOLS' sample & hold circuit, quantized and offset by the DISTING EX. The sine wave output is then going into a VCA with every third pulse receiving an envelope from PAM's, giving some variation as the sound goes from a sustained note to a pluckier sound. The output is then sent to MAGNETO for tape delay.

PLAITS is in the two operator FM mode, receiving pitch CV from MARBLES, and then going to KAMIENIEC for subtle phase shifting, before heading to its penultimate destination: DATA BENDER for glitchiness followed by a VCA with a relatively slow LFO bringing it in and out of the mix."