Soundfly wrote in to let us know they are offering a Writing Lab w/ Com Truise featuring music production including synths and drum machines. You can find a few Soundfly videos featuring Com Truise in previous posts here.
Details on the new writing lab follow:
"Soundfly has teamed up with synthwave artist Com Truise to host his first ever month-long learning cohort, with weekly Zoom calls, projects, discussions, feedback and more, in an intimate group environment.
It’s like a small, in-depth, graduate-level college seminar — you’ll get nerdy about warbling synths, retro-sounding drum machines, and how to mix them together to create songs that transport listeners to other worlds — guided and led by Seth Haley.
This writing lab runs from May 29 to June 30, 2023.
Are you ready? Sign up before May 12 to benefit from a pre-sale discount of $200 off using the promo code: PRESALE"
"I've just got a used Specular Tempus, and I'm trying it out here with a Bit 99, an analog synthesizer (often used by Com Truise), made by the Italian Crumar in 1984. On the Specular Tempus pedal, there are different great reverb algorithms, but I found the delay/reverb combinations like the one used in this video are the ST real power.
The Bit 99 has a wonderful filter, and you can listen when I turn up the resonance how the sound becomes sharper, almost metallic. In my opinion, the Specular Tempus adds a lot of character and space to the sound without altering the mood."
"Modern synthesizer sounds for microKORG! M83, Tame Impala, MGMT, Aphex Twin, Boards of Canada, Beach House and many more!
Patch list & reference points in video (see below) If you want to buy this pack, send a message to rzpresets@gmail.com This pack costs 20 Euros, payment is via Paypal. Patches are also available as manual text input.
BASS 0:00 MGMT - Kids 0:18 College & Electric Youth - A Real Hero 0:38 Neon Indian - Baby's Eyes 1:07 LCD Soundsystem - oh baby 1:30 Pond – Sweep Me Off My Feet 1:51 Desire - Under Your Spell 2:12 The Knife - Heartbeats 2:31 The Dø - Despair, Hangover & Ecstasy 3:09 Hot Chip - Huarache Lights 3:43 Still Corners - Berlin Lovers 3:55 Bruno Mars - 24K Magic 4:09 M83 - Midnight City 4:31 A$AP Rocky - L$D 4:48 The 1975 - Somebody Else 5:10 Phoenix – 1901 5:27 Pond – Sixteen Days
Pads/Organ 5:43 Empire Of The Sun - Walking On A Dream 6:07 Tame Impala - Eventually 6:29 Wild Nothing - Paradise 6:51 Caribou - Can't Do Without You 7:15 Aphex Twin - Rhubarb 7:39 Tame Impala - Lost in Yesterday 7:56 Jungle – Casio 8:17 Litany - Bedroom 8:32 Toro y Moi - "Girl Like You" 8:50 M83 – Road Blaster 9:11 Boards of Canada - Everything You Do is a Balloon 9:33 Adamski - Killer 9:52 Christine and the Queens - Tilted 10:06 Clio - Ai-je perdu le nord ? 10:34 Kavinsky - Nightcall 10:54 The Killers - Read My Mind
POLY 11:21 The Weeknd - Blinding Lights 11:41 Metronomy – The Look 11:59 Future Islands- Seasons 12:18 Caribou - Never Come Back 12:50 All Saints – Pure Shores 13:23 Neon Indian – Polish Girl 13:37 Beach House – Space Song (arp) 14:05 Beach house – Lazuli (arp) 14:30 The Horrors - Still Life 14:57 Com Truise - Memory 15:19 Tove Lo - No One Dies From Love 15:39 Georgia - About Work The Dancefloor 15:59 Harry Styles - As It Was 16:15 The Wombats – Techno Fan 16:34 Kavinsky – Nightcall 16:57 The Weeknd - Gasoline
LEAD 17:15 MGMT – Time to Pretend 17:29 MGMT – Electric Feel 17:49 MGMT - Kids 18:05 Tame Impala - Why Won’t They Talk To Me? 18:34 Röyksopp - Eple 18:50 Air - La femme d'argent 19:04 Daft Punk - Da Funk 19:27 Men I Trust - Tailwhip 19:48 Metronomy – The Look outro lead 20:13 Boards of Canada - Olson 20:33 Twenty One Pilots - Stressed Out 20:48 Tycho - Awake 21:00 Tame Impala - Is It True 21:16 Aphex Twin - Fingerbib 21:39 The Wombats - 1996 22:03 Foxygen - Shuggie"
"Up for grabs is a rare Kijimi from Black Corp. A beautiful completely analog 8 voice synth which is a spot on Polykobol clone.
We acquired this Kijimi from Synthwave icon Com Truise last year.
Comes w/ power supply."
Note: MATRIXSYNTH readers can use the MATRIXSYNTH20 code for 20% off Soundfly courses.
"Watch producer Seth Haley, aka Com Truise, break down the inspiration and production behind his 2019 hit 'Ultrafiche of You.' Keep learning in his full-length course, exclusively available on Soundfly at https://soundfly.com/comtruise.
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About the Video:
In 'Ultrafiche of You,' Com Truise took inspiration from an Italian polyphonic analog synth, the Crumar Bit One. He used the Crumar for almost every part of the song — including the main melody, counter melodies, and as samples — adding effects, tweaking the patch, and chopping and reversing sounds to get as much variation as he could from it. The result is a deep exploration and meditation on a single instrument and sound source.
Here, Com Truise opens up the track in Ableton Live and plays each section of the song to show how he processed the sounds and used the synth to create the song's "flowing atmosphere."
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About the Course:
Combining a nostalgic reverence for ‘80s drum machines and production techniques with a futuristic sensibility, Com Truise has been building intricate musical worlds that are hypermodern and yet emotionally familiar for over a decade.
In this course, you’ll discover how Com Truise produces music that is both textural and driving, awash in retro drum sounds and thick clouds of synthesizers. You’ll follow along as he creates a brand new track from scratch, and opens up the sessions to some of his most popular songs, giving you a unique look at how he approaches synthesis, drum machine programming, production, gear, and more.
Whether you’re an aspiring synthwave artist or simply someone in need of inspiration and constraints for your next musical project, this in-depth course will help you add an otherworldly quality to your music. Sign up here: https://soundfly.com/courses/com-trui...
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This course is exclusively available as part of Soundfly's course subscription, where you can access dozens of in-depth, high-quality courses on topics ranging from songwriting to producing, mixing to beatmaking, and so much more. Subscribe today to get learning: https://soundfly.com/subscription"
Note Soundfly is a new sponsor of the site. You'll find their banner on the right. They offer various courses on music production. You can find them at https://soundfly.com, and the Com Truise course here. Details on the course and video above follow.
"In this excerpt from his new Soundfly course, Com Truise: Mid-Fi Synthwave Slow-Motion Funk, producer Seth Haley shares the story of how he got into music, what inspires him, and how the music he makes as Com Truise first took off. Keep learning at http://soundfly.com/comtruise
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Seth Haley shares the stories behind how he first got into music as a kid, banging on pots and pans, through his breakout success as Com Truise.
Seth first began sharing music under the moniker "Com Truise" on MySpace in 2010. Before that, he'd made music under different names (Sarin Sunday, Airliner, SYSTM), but it was the Com Truise project that started to generate buzz. His is the rare story of labels and artists reaching out to him for opportunities. He got asked to do remixes by artists like Neon Indian and Daft Punk and eventually hooked up with the famed electronic label Ghostly International.
Since joining Ghostly, Seth has released three full-length albums, numerous EPs, two compilation albums, and countless remixes for artists like Tycho, deadmau5, Deftones, and more.
Throughout all of this, Com Truise has been exploring alternate dimensions through sound. A number of his albums follow the fictional tale of the world's first android astronaut, who launches into space to encounter other civilizations, falling in love and fleeing for his life in the process. Seth's interest lies in world-building: Defining exciting and detailed sonic spaces and soundtracking the emotions of the characters within them. He's trying to tap into something emotional and nostalgic, but also futuristic and fresh.
Nowadays, Com Truise continues to make music while also exploring new areas, from soundtracking cryptic Super Bowl commercials to working on feature film scores. And he performs live and DJ, often with elaborate visual displays to accompany his music.
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About the Course:
Combining a nostalgic reverence for ‘80s drum machines and production techniques with a futuristic sensibility, Com Truise has been building intricate musical worlds that are hypermodern and yet emotionally familiar for over a decade.
In this course, you’ll discover how Com Truise produces music that is both textural and driving, awash in retro drum sounds and thick clouds of synthesizers. You’ll follow along as he creates a brand new track from scratch, and opens up the sessions to some of his most popular songs, giving you a unique look at how he approaches synthesis, drum machine programming, production, gear, and more.
Whether you’re an aspiring synthwave artist or simply someone in need of inspiration and constraints for your next musical project, this in-depth course will help you add an otherworldly quality to your music. Sign up here: https://soundfly.com/courses/com-trui...
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This course is exclusively available as part of Soundfly's course subscription, where you can access dozens of in-depth, high-quality courses on topics ranging from songwriting to producing, mixing to beatmaking, and so much more. Subscribe today to get learning: https://soundfly.com/subscription"
"Learn to blend nostalgic synths with driving beats and retro production techniques to create sci-fi-inspired electronic music with our newest course, Com Truise: Mid-Fi Synthwave Slow-Motion Funk, available now at http://soundfly.com/comtruise
Combining a nostalgic reverence for ‘80s drum machines and production techniques with a futuristic sensibility, Com Truise has been building intricate musical worlds that are hypermodern and yet emotionally familiar for over a decade.
In his new course with Soundfly, you’ll discover how Com Truise produces music that is both textural and driving, awash in retro drum sounds and thick clouds of synthesizers. You’ll follow along as he creates a brand new track from scratch, and opens up the sessions to some of his most popular songs, giving you a unique look at how he approaches making music. The unreleased song he builds in the course, "Dynetics," is available exclusively to Soundfly subscribers.
Over more than 30 videos, as well as readings, downloads, stems, and more, Com Truise demonstrates the techniques he uses to pull a track together, building synth patches, sampling retro drum machine sounds, and leveraging ‘80s production techniques to create music that feels both nostalgic and novel. He digs into his sources of inspiration like the sweeping retrofuturistic android astronaut narrative that’s driven many of his albums, as well as visual art, 3D renderings, and more.
Whether you’re an aspiring synthwave artist, a gearhead, or simply someone in need of inspiration and constraints for your next musical project, this in-depth course will help you add an otherworldly quality to your music. Sign up here: https://soundfly.com/courses/com-trui...
–
This course is exclusively available as part of Soundfly's course subscription, where you can access dozens of in-depth, high-quality courses on topics ranging from songwriting to producing, mixing to beatmaking, and so much more. Subscribe today to get learning: https://soundfly.com/subscription"
"This synth has recently been serviced and had the Tauntek Mod installed so you can control midi cc remotely.
I've noticed that the very high notes sound a little softer than the rest of the keyboard. This may have something to do with velocity sensitivity. It's only happening near the top octave of the keyboard.
This Crumar Bit One is a quirky and dope sounding poly synth. Com Truise calls the Crumar Bit One his "secret weapon."
"Here are sounds from Oberheim Matrix 6. I think this is one of the best synthesizer for synthwave and 80s style sounds. This sound is right out of the box without sweeteners. Only Alter Ego 2 is used as delay effects.
"A documentary about the synthwave scene, 80s nostalgia, retromania & memories. Inspired in Carpenter, Moroder & Tangerine Dream legacy.
Feature documentary (90-120 min.) about the synthwave scene, 80s nostalgia, audiovisual collective memories and electronic music.
The natural way of the cultural wave: we generally experience that musical and cultural trends shift from an outstanding position within public opinion to near utter rejection, refusal and ridicule, through an ever-shortening period of time. However, if that period of time is extended, to often several decades, we can witness a renovation, a new heightened recognition – the rebirth of the wave. Through today’s global reach, powered by the internet, cultural waves and fascinations can resurface and manifest themselves, with an even much bigger fan impact than the original source.
The film is a travel in time towards the roots of a worldwide grass-root music scene known as Synthwave, an irresistible blend of modern electronic composition with 80s pop culture’s nostalgia, that over the last two years has transformed from a whisper on selected internet hubs, to an ever-growing scene, expanding rapidly as we speak. Accounting millions of plays on social media, devoted fans are legion, but nobody in the mass media knows about them.
Thousands of synthwave composers around the world are living out double-lives. Away from their normal everyday life they spend another half-life behind a faceless musical avatar, creating and uploading their own renditions of 80’s-styled film scores, sharing them with the world – surging the wave. They belong to an endless army of watchers for the master’s legacy: the sound that Edgar Froese, Giorgio Moroder and John Carpenter created in the late 70s.
A time travel into the universe of creating sounds. A love letter to human fascination and the collective memories of an universe that never existed."
The Rise of the Synths on the radio show "Synthaves"
Published on May 10, 2016 The Rise of the Synths
"Our director talks about the project on the radio show "Synthaves" hosted by Noah Kaufmann on "KFAI" Radio. CROWDFUNDING NOW RUNNING ON KICKSTARTER: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/...
The Rise of the Synths is a documentary about the Synthwave scene, nostalgia and the universe of creating sounds.
'The old soundtrack of a new generation'
The film is a time travel towards the roots of a worldwide grass-root music scene known as Synthwave, an irresistible blending of modern electronic composition with 80s pop culture’s nostalgia, that over the last two years has transformed from a whisper on selected internet hubs, to a ever-growing scene expanding rapidly as we speak. Accounting millions of plays on social media, devoted fans are legion, but nobody in the mass media knows about them.
A time travel into the universe of creating sounds. A love letter to human fascination and the collective memories of an universe that never existed.
Featuring: Electric Youth, College, Miami Nights 1984, Com Truise, Nightcrawler, Dynatron, Dance with the Dead, Maethelvin, Stellar Dreams, Vincenzo Salvia, Jordan F, Futurecop!, The Midnight, Power Glove, 80s Stallone, Betamaxx, Kristine, Darkest, Lazerhawk, Mitch Murder, Carpenter Bru, Timecop 1983, OGRE, Waveshaper, MPM Soundtracks.
A documentary about the universe of sounds created by: Giorgio Moroder, John Carpenter, Claudio Simonetti (Goblin), Tangerine Dream, Brad Fiedel, Stu Phillips, Vangelis, Harold Faltermeyer and Jan Hammer (to name a few). "
