Analogue Ambient Sci-Fi by Benge

video upload by Memetune Studio

"Here is a long version of the sci-fi inspired videos for The Evolving Riddle Volume 2

Featuring interpretations of some of my favourite sci-fi visual artists brought to life in the Memetune Video Lab

The music was made on the following instruments: Crumar DS2, Buchla 100, ARP 2500, Buchla 200, Roland SH5 and System 100, each track being a live improvisation on each system using a modular looper and effects system"

Dark Vintage Roland Synths with SciFi video - by Benge

video upload by Memetune Studio

"zackdagoba.bandcamp.com/album/the-evolving-riddle-volume-two

Fifth and final video for another track from my new album, but I will be compiling them into a longer video soon so they are all in one place

This track is made on a vintage Roland SH5 (with special modular breakout-box), plus a modified Roland System 100. These are the best sounding Rolands ever made in my opinion - stuffed full of beautiful discrete early '70s circuits, before they started making their own proprietary sound chips. I also used a series of looper modules to construct the music in real time

You can watch the original performance here:
• Roland Ocean (Rocean) [posted here]

This video pays homage to yet another of my favourite science fiction illustrators Chris Foss, a British artist who, along with others in this series, worked on designs for the original Alien movie, as well as, amazingly, the spacecraft in Guardians of the Galaxy. He also designed loads of classic sci-fi book covers and art, even though he never read much sci-fi as apparently he didn't like it as a genre!

I have tried to bring his work to life in my own way by putting some of his images through the Memetune VideoLab. For more info about how I work in the VideoLab, check out my Memetune Programme series which ends each episode with a special VideoLab section where I go through the various processes I use (there are 18 episodes in total)

Enjoy!"



Additional posts in the series

Dark Buchla 200 with SciFi video - by Benge

video upload by Memetune Studio

"Another track from the new Benge album

This track is made on a cloned Buchla 200 modular system and a series of looper modules to construct the music in real time

The Buchla 200 is probably the most advanced electronic music synthesis system ever conceived by a human mind. It has such depth and nuance only perhaps some far away alien civilisation could come close to matching its experimental sonic quality

You can watch the original performance here:
• Midsome - Live Buchla 200 Performance [posted here]

This video pays homage to another of my favourite science fiction illustrators H.R.Geiger, who was responsible for creating the incredible world of the Alien movie franchise, but actually, before that I was familiar with his work as a young boy growing up in the 1970s and owning the ELP album Brain Salad Surgery, the cover of which was designed by Geiger. Actually before I had the album I had the single of an exclusive BSS track on some kind of flexi-disk which had a mini version of the fold out artwork as featured on the album. Or maybe I dreamed that? I'll have to dig it out!

I have tried to bring his work to life in my own way by putting some of his images through the Memetune VideoLab...enjoy!"



Additional posts in the series

Melodic ARP2500 with SciFi video - by Benge

video upload by Memetune Studio

"Another track from the new Benge album

This track is made on a vintage ARP 2500 modular system from 1970. A series of looper modules made by 2hp were used to construct the music in real time

The ARP 2500 was known as the concert grand of synths. This is because it is so magnificent in every way possible

You can watch the original performance here:
• Summersend - ARP2500 [posted here]

This video pays homage to one of my favourite science fiction illustrators Syd Mead, who was responsible for many amazing designs, including some of the world building in Blade Runner and Tron. I have tried to bring them to life by putting them through the Memetune VideoLab...enjoy!"

Melodic Buchla 100 with SciFi video - by Benge

video upload by Memetune Studio



"Another track from the new Benge album

The track itself is made on a vintage Buchla 100 series modular system from the 1960s. A series of looper modules made by 2hp were used to construct the music in real time

How many melodic Buchla 100 videos are out there? Not many I wager

You can watch the original performance here:
• Orangey-Brown Accumulation (Buchla 100) [posted here]

This video pays homage to one of my favourite science fiction illustrators Bruce Pennington, who was responsible for many amazing book covers, which I have on my shelf. I have tried to bring them to life by putting them through the Memetune VideoLab...enjoy!"

The Evolving Riddle V2 by Benge

video upload by Memetune Studio

"New album out now:



This track was made on a Crumar DS2 from 1978

As one’s life winds its way through the corridors of infinite time and space, I find myself relocated and reset, so to speak, in a place many miles and many moons from the West Country—my former domain—in one of the shires just north of our splendid capital

And I find myself once again following my musical instincts down yet more labyrinthine sonic rabbit holes and through yet more labyrinthine electronic circuit boards

On this outing I decided to try my hand at live sound-on-sound improvisational looping, a method of composition I find particularly rewarding when using relatively unwieldy modular synthesiser systems. The act of looping provides a convenient way of setting down short compositions in real time, allowing simple melodic studies to be created, riddles, if you will, to be solved whilst sitting at the instrument’s console and engaging with the various dials and switches

The core device used on this recording is what I call the Concrete Box - an assortment of Eurorack modules I put together consisting of four loopers, two delays, two digital reverbs, two compressors and various mixers and utility units. Using this box of tricks I was able to run sounds around upon themselves, creating the pieces you hear on this album

Not all tracks were made this way, some took a more conventional path, namely those which made use of polyphonic keyboard synthesisers (the Ensoniq Fizmo, the Crumar DS2) where I simply recorded a few layers of sound one upon the other

And on one track I made use of a rather special device called the Tempera, alongside a regular acoustic piano. The device is able to take stereo recordings and resynthesise them using granular synthesis. You are then able to layer them and manipulate the sound in a great variety of ways. Practical applications of granular synthesis have been around since the mid 1990s, but it is only now, it seems, that dedicated hardware units are beginning to appear on the market, and they seem to be taking hold as an extremely interesting synthesis path

And so it is that these riddles I have been working on have been neatly packaged up for you in this second volume, itself a kind of evolution of the idea presented in the first of the series last year. And who knows where I will find myself in another year’s time - hopefully still diving down sonic rabbit holes and exploring labyrinthine electronic circuits

Synthesisers and recording equipment used on this album:

ARP 2500
Buchla 100
Buchla 200 (cloned)
Roland System 100
Crumar DS2
Ensoniq Fizmo
Tempera Granular System
Yamaha G1 Piano
Eurorack ‘Concrete Box’
Dynacord VRS23 Vertical Reverberation System

The various track titles depict the main instrument used on each track

Released August 7th 2026

Written, recorded and mixed by Benge (B.D.Edwards) at Memetune Studios, England

Design and video work by Benge, made at the Memetune Video Lab

(c)+(p) 2026 Memetune Recordings (Memesongs) all rights reserved"

Tempera Quirks and Foibles by Benge

video upload by Memetune Studio

"I’ve been exploring granular synthesis since around 1997, when Native Instruments brought out Reaktor, because it was the first system I knew of that had a granular synthesis engine built into it

But even before that I was experimenting with certain samplers that could do a sort of proto-granular thing where you could control the loop start and end end points of a sample independently, and use sliders to scroll through the sample by hand (for example on the Fairlight CMI 2X and also the Akai S612)

But nowadays we have it so easy, as there are a whole slew of desktop granular devices coming out, often based on ARM chips, such as the Tasty Chips GR units, the recent Waldorf synths, the Torso S4, Endorphines Evil Pet, not to mention the Mutable Instruments Clouds and its many derivatives

And then there's this little monster, The Beetlecrab Tempera - a strange and tiny box which takes granular synthesis and does something completely unique with it

It’s got 8 stereo granular samplers at its heart, but the way you interact with them is using the 8x8 touch-points. They are called emitters, and you play them either over midi or using some of the touch-points. You can change and trigger emitters in x - y directions, and it's all extremely complex, and things can get really wild very quickly, so as this is my first patch on it, I decided to keep it simple by using just 2 of the 8 grain samplers

I captured the samples myself using the built in mic (sample 1 is just tapping the box with my fingers, and sample 2 is me humming

It also has comprehensive mixing and FX processors, so here is a little ambient sketch done in real time, using just the Tempera

I’m going to have fun exploring this thing - especially when I integrate it into some of my modular systems, once I have got my head round its many quirks and foibles"

Background Modulars No12 - Buchla 200

video upload by Memetune Studio

"Don’t have a real cloned Buchla 200 to hand? No worries! Just put this video on in the background (in full-screen mode), and have the next best thing 😁

Here is 10 minutes of self-playing modular synthesiser randomness

Why not put it on loop - then you can have it playing away in the background while you do other things

A note on the patch:

'I’m using the 259 as the main sound source, which is being sent to various places: the 288 delay, the 296 filter bank and the Dodeca modules’s LPGs

The MARF is combined with the 208 5 step sequencer to produce all the modulations, all powered from a 281 VC function generator

The Dodeca mixer provides stereo panning and the general output'

This piece was featured on Modulisme Session 131: https://modular-station.com/modulisme...

And it appears on this album:



Please support them if you like this kind of stuff! 😁

Synthesiser programming and recording, design and concept: Benge (B D Edwards)

Made at Memetune Studios, England
(c)+(p) 2025 Memetune Recordings"

Cabaret Voltaire - Full Performance (Live on KEXP)

video upload by KEXP

Some synth spotting with Cabaret Voltaire. You might recognize Benge of Memetune Studio, and Tara Busch of I Speak Machine.

"http://KEXP.ORG presents Cabaret Voltaire performing live in the KEXP studio. Recorded May 3, 2026.

Songs:
24-24 00:30
Landslide 05:26
Spies In the Wires 08:44
Nag Nag Nag 13:39
Sensoria 18:20

Stephen(Mal) Mallinder - Vocals, Synths
Benge Edwards - Drums
Tara Busch - Synths
Eric Random - Guitar, Synths
Dan Conway - Visuals, LD

Host: Kevin Cole
Audio Engineer: Jon Roberts
Mastering Engineer: Matt Ogaz

Cameras: Jim Beckmann, Carlos Cruz, Emma Juncosa & Ettie Wahl
Editor: Carlos Cruz

https://cabaretvoltaire.bandcamp.com
http://kexp.org"

Self Playing Patches by BENGE

video upload by Memetune Studio

"This series of studies explores an idea that Benge has been working on over the past year or so, namely that of Cybersynthesis. This involves programming self-contained patches on various modular systems which, once set in motion, will produce dynamic, evolving soundscapes, sometimes purely abstract in nature, at other times veering towards the more melodious

Many different methods were deployed in the patches, depending on the system being used, but normally multiple sequencer and switching devices were combined to give varying degrees of control over long time periods, often without repetition

Other things like random control signals and semi-random events were combined with the sequencers and switching units to bring variation to the performances the machines were making

The key idea at the heart of Cybernetics is the concept of bringing control to chaotic processes. To do this, some kind of feedback loop would ideally be established that can monitor and limit events that might otherwise spin out of control. The Serge and Modcan systems featured here each have various comparator circuits that can, to a certain extent, achieve this highly advanced synthesis feature

In the absence of such sensor paths, it is sometimes possible to use audio or voltage mixers and feedback chains to set various parameters to be on the very edge of chaotic behaviour, an approach used in many of the patches on display here

Other techniques such as the quantisation of voltages and the forcing of notes to play within certain predetermined musical scales were also employed in some of the pieces, which is another way of taming chaotic elements into into a more musical realm

Overall, a wholly experimental approach was applied to the various setups, with the intention of providing an insight into how these machines can behave. Of course, each system has an almost limitless depth to the complexity of patches available, and each track on the album provides just a single snapshot of each instrument used. But hopefully it provides an interesting glimpse into the wonders that these self-playing systems can achieve

Tracklist:

01 - Buchla 100 and EMS VCS3
02 - Serge Paperface
03 - Modcan A-Series
04 - ARP 2500
05 - Buchla 200 and DK Synergy
06 - Serge and LW Comparator
07 - Moog Modular 3C
08 - Roland Discrete System
09 - Buchla 200

MORE INFO HERE:
https://modular-station.com/modulisme...



Synthesiser programming and recording, design and concept: Benge (B D Edwards)

Made at Memetune Studios, England

(c)+(p) 2025 Memetune Recordings

Special thanks to Philippe Petit at Modulisme (modular-station.com/modulisme) for his continued support"

Fizmosphere by BENGE

video upload by Memetune Studio

"Here's a little end-of-year ambient composition made on the Ensoniq Fizmo. I love this synth - it's my new favourite ambient pad machine

I am recording two stereo loops into the Concrete Machine and adding extra reverb from the FX Aid Spin Chip device

I made the visuals myself - I love doing this sort of thing as you can probably tell

Happy New Year everyone!"

Benge electronic album Orgoustic Plus 30

video upload by Memetune Studio

"There is a new Benge album out today!



It's 30 years since I released my first album. This is a a kind of follow up

In 1995, I decided to set up a small home studio and record an album, using a combination of acoustic and electronic instruments. The result was my debut solo record Electro-Orgoustic Music, which was also the first release on my label Expanding Records

It was the beginning of a lifelong journey, a sonic adventure in which I explored my musical passions, combining old and new equipment, trying to discover my own unique voice with these fascinating instruments. I have followed my instincts and expanded my toolbox, but kept true to my original vision: to surround myself with inspirational tools and live amongst them, using them daily in my work and play

Here, I present to you an album made 30 years on from that debut recording, using a similar cast of instrumental characters, in fact many of the same ones which appeared on the first album

This album was made on the following equipment (asterisk denotes an appearance on the 1995 album):

Moog Modular 3C*
Arp 2500
Buchla 200
EMS VCS3*
Serge Modular
AKAI S950* / S5000 and AX73
Minimoog*
Yamaha CS40M
Korg Lambda
Baby Grand Piano*
Double Bass*
Clarinet*
Drums, Cymbals, Percussions*
Lexicon 224X and PrimeTime-95
AMS RMX16, Quantec QRS
Neve 88D Mixing Console"

TMP-3-06 Vintage Synth TV Series from Benge

video upload by Memetune Studio

00:00 Opening Titles
00:17 Introduction
01:27 Switched On 80s
12:54 Little Black Boxes
17:29 Commercial Break
19:58 Patching Today
29:19 Synthesiser Club
31:59 Video Lab
36:07 Outro

"////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Sixth and final episode of the third series of the TV program from Benge, made at his Memetune Electronic Music Studio

The series explores his passion for vintage synthesiser instruments and studio gear and how he uses them in his productions and collaborations

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

It is divided into the following sections:

SWITCHED ON 80s - This third series takes an in-depth look into six classic 80s synthesisers, selected because of their interesting and unique attributes

LITTLE BLACK BOXES - A further look at some classic rack mount studio gear of the 80s and 90s

COMMERCIAL BREAK - Some shameless Memetune shilling

PATCHING TODAY - A deep-dive into vintage modular systems and how to set up a patch on them, starting from scratch, this time using Cybersynthesis techniques to bring an element of surprise to the patches

SYNTHESISER CLUB - A short musical demonstration of a synthesiser classic or three, concentrating on 'families' of synths

VIDEO LAB - A look at old video equipment and how to create experimental visuals, concentrating on a specific device in each episode

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

In THIS episode:

SWITCHED ON 80s - A look at Roland's first fully digital keyboard the D50 Linear Synthesiser from 1987

LITTLE BLACK BOXES - A look at the unique Kawai K5m additive synth

COMMERCIAL BREAK - Some adverts for Memetune-related goodies, including a new Benge album and the range of Memetune merchandise

PATCHING TODAY - Today is a bit special - Benge sets up a mega-patch using a Modcan A Series, an Emu 2000 modular, a Serge Paperface and an ARP 2500

SYNTHESISER CLUB - In todays episode, Benge makes some elevator muzak on Ensoniq synths: an ESQ1, an SD1, an ASR-X and a Fizmo

VIDEO LAB - In this episode we take a brief glance at the editing platform, DaVinci Resolve from Blackmagic Design

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

LINKS:

Memetune Studio Instagram: @memetunestudio

Benge & Memetune Merch on Bandcamp: https://zackdagoba.bandcamp.com

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

The MemeTune Programme Credits:
Everything in this video was created by B D Edwards (Benge)
All music, design, writing, filming and production completed at Memetune Studios, UK, 2025"

Additional Vintage Synth TV Series episodes from Benge

Evolving Riddle-4

video upload by Memetune Studio

"Yesterday a new part of the riddle arrived in the post - a beautiful Ensoniq SD1!

The SD1 is a Transwave Rompler workstation from 1990

Did you know that Ensoniq founder Bob Yannes invented the Rompler as we know it (and also the SID chip)? The very first one was called the ESQ1 and came out in 1986, the year before the Roland D50, and then all the other ones from Korg, Yamaha, Kawai, Emu, Alesis, and Kurzweil, each quickly developing their own digital rom chips. Actually Bob used single cycle waveforms stored in rom, but the basic structure and concept of the ESQ1 is what became the rompler. It had 3 simple rom-based VCOs that could be layered and sent through an analog filter. It is a wonderful, epoch defining synth - totally underrated IMO

It was enhanced and repackaged as the SQ80 in 1988 as a fully realised Rompler with more memory for the read-only samples

Their follow up was the VFX which added Transwave synthesis - a bit like the PPG wavetable idea where you can move through the waveform and modulate it. However the VFX had some reliability issues and was replaced a year later by the SD1 which also added a sequencer, and more voices and memory

And this is what we have here - mixed in with the other synths - Quadrasynth, TG33, Waldorf Microwave2 and the Roland JV1080

The reverbs are the Lexicon 224X and the Quantum Room Simulator

There is one part of the riddle left to make - I'll try and work on it tomorrow. Then I will release them all as an album - 'Evolving Riddles' by Benge 😀"

TMP-3-05 Vintage Synth TV Series from Benge

video upload by Memetune Studio

00:00 Opening Titles
00:17 Introduction
01:25 Switched On 80s
12:54 Little Black Boxes
15:48 Commercial Break
17:26 Patching Today
26:07 Synthesiser Club
29:19 Video Lab
33:44 Outro

"////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Episode five of the third series of the TV program from Benge, made at his Memetune Electronic Music Studio

The series explores his passion for vintage synthesiser instruments and studio gear and how he uses them in his productions and collaborations

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

It is divided into the following sections:

CLICK FOR MORE »

Benge - Self-Playing Patches

video upload by Memetune Studio

"A new album of experimental modular synthesiser music by Benge

'This series of studies explores an idea that Benge has been working on over the past year or so, namely that of Cybersynthesis. This involves programming self-contained patches on various modular systems which, once set in motion, will produce dynamic, evolving soundscapes, sometimes purely abstract in nature, at other times veering towards the more melodious

Many different methods were deployed in the patches, depending on the system being used, but normally multiple sequencer and switching devices were combined to give varying degrees of control over long time periods, often without repetition

Other things like random control signals and semi-random events were combined with the sequencers and switching units to bring variation to the performances the machines were making'



Find out more here:

https://modular-station.com/modulisme..."

Tone Science Module No.10 The Final Patch (DiN:TS10)

"Now available as a double CD with an 8-page booklet & download

Tone Science sub-label, from DiN records, concludes it’s exploration of the world of modular synth music.

Since the first volume in the Tone Science series was released in 2018, seventy-two musicians in total have joined in with this celebration of the musical possibilities of modular synthesis. These artists have been from a huge range of backgrounds but have all shared the unifying purpose of showcasing the incredible variety of sonic possibilities these instruments can offer.

Tone Science sub-label, from DiN records, concludes its exploration of the world of modular synth music.

Since the first volume in the Tone Science series was released in 2018, seventy-two musicians in total have joined in with this celebration of the musical possibilities of modular synthesis. These artists have been from a huge range of backgrounds but have all shared the unifying purpose of showcasing the incredible variety of sonic possibilities these instruments can offer.

The intervening seven years have seen the modular synth world expanding at an exponential rate and whilst one wouldn’t go so far as to say these synths are mainstream, they are certainly far more prevalent than in the past. It’s especially gratifying to see so many musicians now either play solo sets with them or to include them in their onstage arsenal.

Thus we come to this, the final instalment in the Tone Science series. Nothing lasts forever and certainly stopping at this nice round number of ten seems like a good way to not only end the series but to release the Final Patch, a real celebration of what has gone before and perhaps to hint at what is possible for the future. A beautifully packaged double CD featuring twenty artists who have appeared on previous iterations of the series, it really is a who’s who of modular synth musicians. The release is accompanied by an eight-page booklet with an essay by Neil Mason and some final words from the guiding force behind the whole project, Ian Boddy, label boss at DiN. And as Boddy so succinctly puts it in his liner notes, “for me, despite the technological nature of the equipment, the emotional quality of the music is the single most important factor”. The Final Patch certainly delivers on that ethos.

CLICK FOR MORE »

TMP-3-04 Vintage Synth TV Series from Benge

video upload by Memetune Studio

Additional episodes

00:00 Opening Titles
00:17 Introduction
01:25 Switched On 80s
13:08 Synthesiser Club
15:58 Little Black Boxes
20:05 Commercial Break
23:45 Patching Today
35:08 Video Lab
40:29 Outro

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Episode four of the third series of the TV program from Benge, made at his Memetune Electronic Music Studio

The series explores his passion for vintage synthesiser instruments and studio gear and how he uses them in his productions and collaborations

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

It is divided into the following sections:

SWITCHED ON 80s - This third series takes an in-depth look into six classic 80s synthesisers, selected because of their interesting and unique attributes

SYNTHESISER CLUB - A short musical demonstration of a synthesiser classic or three, concentrating on 'families' of synths

LITTLE BLACK BOXES - A further look at some classic rack mount studio gear of the 80s and 90s

COMMERCIAL BREAK - Some shameless Memetune shilling

PATCHING TODAY - A deep-dive into vintage modular systems and how to set up a patch on them, starting from scratch, this time using Cybersynthesis techniques to bring an element of surprise to the patches

VIDEO LAB - A look at old video equipment and how to create experimental visuals, concentrating on a specific device in each episode

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

In THIS episode:

SWITCHED ON 80s - A detailed presentation on the Oberheim Xpander hybrid polysynth from 1984

SYNTHESISER CLUB - The Emu Strut - featuring the Emulator 2, the Drumulator, the Proteus/2 and the mighty Emu Modular 2000

LITTLE BLACK BOXES - A look at the highly underrated Yamaha TX16W and its companion reverb unit, the REV7

COMMERCIAL BREAK - Some adverts for Memetune-related goodies, including the Memetune Annual 2024, the range of Memetune merchandise and Benge's FORMS series of single-synth albums

PATCHING TODAY - on the incredible ARP 2500, which I bought exactly 20 years ago this month

VIDEO LAB - In this episode we take a closer look at the Grass Valley Indigo AV Mixer, which is the central hub of the Video Lab, and provides many more ways of getting that genuinely vintage look to the Memetune video productions, in particular using its memory recall system which allows you to program complex time-based actions

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

LINKS:

Benge's Studio Blog: http://myblogitsfullofstars.blogspot.com

Memetune Studio Instagram: @memetunestudio

Benge & Memetune Merch on Bandcamp: https://zackdagoba.bandcamp.com

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

The MemeTune Programme Credits:
Everything in this video was created by B D Edwards (Benge)
All music, design, writing, filming and production completed at Memetune Studios, UK, 2025"

The Synths Behind OMD's Enola Gay

video upload by Alex Ball

"A look at how Enola Gay by OMD was created."

0:00 Intro
0:51 Detective Work
5:17 CR-78 Feat. Benge
7:53 Live Drums Feat. Jonathan Wills
9:06 Synth Sounds
11:18 Bass Sounds
11:58 Organs Feat. Syntaur
15:26 Effects
18:27 Summary
19:43 Full Remake

CS40M by Benge

video upload by Memetune Studio

"The Yamaha CS40M is one of my favourite mono synths (actually its duo phonic)

When evaluating a synth, I like to do the Minimoog Test (maybe the first and actual best mono?) which goes like this:

1 - is it a big analogue vintage mono synth with wooden bits

2 - does it sound as good as a Minimoog

3 - does it do anything a Minimoog can't do

if the answer to any of the above is 'yes' then I want one, quite badly

(BTW, the CS40M ticks two of the above, can you guess which ones?)"