Lisa Bella Donna's hidden sonic sanctuary

video upload by EarthQuakerDevices

"Join us as we take a detailed tour of Lisa Bella Donna's legendary home studio, Appalachian Recordings, deep in the Appalachian mountains of the eastern United States. Lisa is a longtime friend of Jamie Stillman’s since before the inception of EarthQuaker Devices in the early 90s, when they would play punk house shows together. Lisa is a renowned recording artist, composer, sound designer, modular synthesist and educator.

In this incredible episode of Show Us Your Junk, Lisa talks about her early inspirations that led her to start playing music, and eventually using electronic synthesis to craft the unique voice that she envisioned. After hearing Black Sabbath's “Paranoid” and Wendy Carlos's “Switched on Bach” and “Sonic Seasons,” it became clear that music was her destiny. Her stories include recording and editing commercial jingles in the 80s, selling her car to put a down payment on an Arp 2600 synthesizer, and discovering the rich characteristics of recording to 8-track tape.

While this studio packs in a ton of rare gear, Lisa claims she doesn’t consider herself a collector. “My choices are very utilitarian; pretty much everything in here is here for a purpose, and it’s part of the big picture - the great stream of what my albums become,” she says. Some of her staple instruments include the ARP 2600, ARP Odyssey, ARP Omni, Mini Moog, and Fender Rhodes. EQD pedals she frequently uses include the Rainbow Machine, Arpanoid, and Grand Orbiter, but her favorite EQD pedal is the Avalanche Run. She loves it so much that she had a custom rack mount version built, which is patched directly to her main console. “It's one of my favorite reverbs still - one of my most used for sure.”

Lisa has an interesting perspective when it comes to connecting music to visual concepts in nature and her environment. “When I compose music, I see it just as much as I hear it. I look at my arrangements as landscapes or deep woods mountain paths with all the textures and colors of the elements that surround it,” she says. This all makes sense when you see the picturesque plot of land in which she chose to settle down to build her studio and raise her daughter.

Shot by Chris Tran, Jeff France, David Whited, Dannesh Moosa
Edited by David Whited
Additional footage shot by Tristan Whitney Weary
Music by Lisa Bella Donna, EYE, Deadsea

Music Provided by Lisa Bella Donna
'Turning Points'
'Twi Spirit, One Life'
'Kohoutek'
'Emerald's Run'
'Ascension'
'Pure Stereo Time Machine'
'Falling Leaves'

Special thanks to:
Moog Music Inc.
Waves Audio
Antonus Synthesizers
Hologram Electronics
Lower West Side Studio / Canada
Behind The Sky Records
SFI Records

Check out more of Lisa Bella Donna's work:
https://lisabelladonna.bandcamp.com/
https://lisabelladonna.com/"

Time Is Not A Healer It's A Fuel For Resentment - Look Mum No Computer, 1986 Top Of The Flops

video upload by LOOK MUM NO COMPUTER

New release from Look Mum No Computer. See if you can ID the keyboard/organ/synth. Update: Answer at the bottom of this post.

"Chop Of The Plops December 1986 Screening of Look Mum No Computer - Time Is Not A Healer It's A Fuel For Resentment. Stream/Listen/Buy here :- https://linktr.ee/lookmumnocomputer
VOCAL STEMS AND INSTRUMENTAL AVAILABLE. HERE TO LISTEN OR REMIX ETC :-
https://www.patreon.com/posts/7566007...

BIG UP TO JOHNNY GODDARD for MAKING this vid!"

Sam Battle, aka LOOK MUM NO COMPUTER closes out the year with his cathartic new single Time Is Not A Healer It’s A Fuel for Resentment. The latest release from the renowned musician, innovator and maker is an upbeat melancholic indie ballad that finds him at his most contemplative.

"This is a song I have been humming for a while, I initially made up the riff when making the furby organ, and played it in the furby organ video but to me it was always this song I was playing. I wrote it in a lonely place in me life, no idea what it’s actually about but I have my ideas haha! Only sad times you can write tunes like this I think! I made it on my home made synth and an

old analog polyphonic synth to make it fit with my other tunes even though this one is a tad more on the emotional end of it all."

Speaking about the accompanying video, Sam says:

"We went to the woods at sunrise but we just missed it because I spent an hour in the morning trying to figure out a bow tie. We shot it to make it look as believable as we could it being a low budget music video from 1986 including power stances and arm waves. All the good stuff"

https://linktr.ee/lookmumnocomputer

https://linktr.ee/lookmumnocomputer

The keyboard is the Eko Encore 49.

Under The Winter Sun - slow ambient one synth jam in the forest | Microkorg XL, Boss RV6 RC500 + DD7

video upload by drone-in-the-woods

"First video of this track that I wrote last winter (original composition: https://soundcloud.com/keith-sutton/u...)
Had fun recording this one with the looper set to play the first loop in reverse.
Goodwood 19th Nov 2022

Korg Microkorg XL synth
Boss RV6 reverb
Boss RC500 looper
Boss DD6 delay
Roland Cube Street Ex amp
DR-40 audio recorder

Composed and performed by Keith Sutton"

drone-in-the-woods live performance for Ambient Leeds with DAW-less setup Juno6 Poly800 MC101 MFC42

video upload by drone-in-the-woods

"Back in the spring I had the amazing experience of playing a solo set in the Wharf Chambers in Leeds to an attentive seated audience. It's taken a few months for me to be able to listen to it but some very kind words out of the blue have motivated me to fix the audio and put some FX on the video.

Ambient Leeds
Wharf Chambers
20th April 2022

CHAPTERS
00:00 – Under the Winter Sun
11:19 – Sunset*
23:00 – Beyond The Horizon
34:55 – From The Spring
44:44 – Squirrel Song

Roland Juno 6 analogue synth into Boss RC500 looper
Korg Poly 800 analogue synth into Akai MFC42 analogue filter
Roland MC-101 sequencer
Boss SE-50 reverb

all tracks composed and performed by Keith Sutton 200422"

ambient folly - looping improvisation at Racton Ruin on the South Downs with Microkorg XL and RC500

video upload by drone-in-the-woods

"My first attempt at producing an ambient track by only looping my newly acquired Korg Microkorg XL. I'm still discovering cool sounds and digging deeper into editing but am already confident I've made the right switch from the Gaia.
The bass sound I used in this track is just mahoosively subby and something in the chain was distorting here and there but I've left those bits in to retain the live one-take feel of the video. Some of the arpeggio timing is a bit wobbly too, but I've since discovered key sync and switched it on :)
I'm surprised to find no hold function on the Microkorg and the lack of a MIDI THRU is pretty frustrating. Nonetheless it is a fantastically feature-rich and incredibly portable instrument.

Korg Microkorg XL
Boss RC500
Boss DD7
Roland Cube Street Ex
Tascam DR40

Composed and performed by Keith Sutton
Racton Ruin 2nd September 2022"

Generative iPad Jam In The Woods (ZOA + Pure Upright)

video upload by Perplex On

"Please enjoy this calm generative jam in the woods, just using the ipad with a bunch of apps.

Apps used:

2 instances of #pureupright piano, #decentsampler loaded with #sneakypiano from pianobook, sequenced by #zoasequencer, additional fx with #spacefields and #k7ddelay."

The Monument 101-101 | forest-jamming analogue synth loops with Roland SH101 + MC101 & Boss RC500

video upload by drone-in-the-woods

"Having decided to finally ditch the Gaia and whilst patiently waiting for a Microkorg to turn up at the right price, I've been using less synths recently but using the MIDI synced looper to create additional layers. Portability is key and I can fit all this into one case.

Planning on recording a 'studio' version of this track soon with Nigel on Gyil.

Roland SH101
Roland MC101
Boss RC500
Boss DD6
Roland Street Cube Ex
Tascam DR40

The Monument performed 27th July 2022
Composed by Keith Sutton"

Tales from the Hedge no.3 | ambient-chill amongst the bluebells with vintage SH101 synced with MC101

video upload by drone-in-the-woods

"Recorded in springtime back in the copse where drone-in-the-woods started out.
The looper pedal is stereo with one side syncing the sh101 and the other side looping it later in the piece.

Composed and performed by Keith Sutton
29th April 2022

Roland SH101
Roland MC101
Boss RC500
Boss DD6
Roland Cube Street Ex
Tascam DR4"

Running Up That Hill (Kate Bush) | outdoor daw-less acid-synth jam at dusk in a field of daisies

video upload by drone-in-the-woods

"Preparations underway for the next drone-in-the-woods public performance at Glastonbury Festival.
Chill-time slot on the Mandala Stage in the Green Futures Field on Sunday at 4:30pm.

Roland MC101
Behringer Crave
Behringer TD3

Chichester 10th June 2022"

Hardware Jams Weekend Challenge: Forest Queen Jam

video upload by SynthAddict

"Teenage Engineering OP-Z
Car hood jam - view from Mulholland Drive

--------
Story for jam by Seb:

The story so far...
Your car is stuck in the woods with a flat tyre, you've gone to a pub for help. There are 3 guys there: an Enthusiastic guy; an Angry guy and a Sleepy guy.
You decide to get them all to come and help as not to offend any of them. You buy everyone a drink and then you all leave the pub. As you head out of the door, the bartender calls out with a worried look on his face, "Be careful, it's the Queen's Jubilee".
You shrug - how bad can it be - a few flags and bunting?
Eventually the four of you arrive back at the car. To your surprise it is covered with wildflowers and woven twig decorations. Weird. You hear a branch snap behind you - you turn to look at the others - Sleepy Guy has disappeared.
You double back to try to find him - maybe he lay down for a nap somewhere? Suddenly, you hear a terrifying scream. You spin round to see Enthusiastic Guy being dragged through the trees by something, screaming and thrashing as he disappears into the undergrowth.
You and Angry Guy exchange a horrified look. WTF is going on? Angry guy reaches into his jacket and pulls out a massive knife.
"Let's go," he mutters, striding in the direction that Enthusiastic was taken.
Heart pounding you hesitate for a moment, then follow him.
The woods are dark and quiet, all you hear are your footsteps crunching through the undergrowth.
You keep your eyes on Angry Guy, the last thing you want is to be alone in this forest.
As you struggle to keep up with Angry Guy, he suddenly plunges out of view, through the ground. You stop abruptly, at the edge of a massive hole. You can just make out Angry Guy at the bottom of the pit. He's not moving. The moon emerges from behind the clouds and to your horror, you see the Angry Man is impaled on a series of spikes that protrude from his stomach, his legs, his neck.
Instinct takes over and you run, trying to remember which direction the pub was. You see lights up ahead and head towards them as fast as you can.
You emerge from the woods - but it's not the pub. You enter a clearing, filled with hooded figures, holding flaming torches. You see Sleepy Guy and Enthusiastic Guy, stripped naked and tied to posts with binds of thorns. At their feet are bundles of twigs and kindling.
You are frozen with fear.
Two more hooded figures drag the body of Angry Man into the clearing and lash him to another post, stacking firewood at the base.
A tall figure, wearing a mask of a skull steps forward.
'Greetings.' he speaks in a menacing voice.
'You have come to join us as we celebrate the Forest Queen's Eternal Jubilee. Play a song that will honour her or you will join your friends in a more dreadful sacrifice to her.'
You realise, everything counts on this jam - as it may well be your last..."

Sounds of Synth - Ceremony // #hardwarejams // Sequential PRO 3

video upload by Sounds of Synth

"Hey hey hey!!

Its a Hardware Jam Challenge. Read on for the challenge and story so far!!


The story so far:
Your car is stuck in the woods with a flat tyre, you've gone to a pub for help. There are 3 guys there: an Enthusiastic guy; an Angry guy and a Sleepy guy.
You decide to get them all to come and help as not to offend any of them. You buy everyone a drink and then you all leave the pub. As you head out of the door, the bartender calls out with a worried look on his face, "Be careful, it's the Queen's Jubilee".
You shrug - how bad can it be - a few flags and bunting?
Eventually the four of you arrive back at the car. To your surprise it is covered with wildflowers and woven twig decorations. Weird. You hear a branch snap behind you - you turn to look at the others - Sleepy Guy has disappeared.
You double back to try to find him - maybe he lay down for a nap somewhere? Suddenly, you hear a terrifying scream. You spin round to see Enthusiastic Guy being dragged through the trees by something, screaming and thrashing as he disappears into the undergrowth.
You and Angry Guy exchange a horrified look. WTF is going on? Angry guy reaches into his jacket and pulls out a massive knife.
"Let's go," he mutters, striding in the direction that Enthusiastic was taken.
Heart pounding you hesitate for a moment, then follow him.
The woods are dark and quiet, all you hear are your footsteps crunching through the undergrowth.
You keep your eyes on Angry Guy, the last thing you want is to be alone in this forest.
As you struggle to keep up with Angry Guy, he suddenly plunges out of view, through the ground. You stop abruptly, at the edge of a massive hole. You can just make out Angry Guy at the bottom of the pit. He's not moving. The moon emerges from behind the clouds and to your horror, you see the Angry Man is impaled on a series of spikes that protrude from his stomach, his legs, his neck.
Instinct takes over and you run, trying to remember which direction the pub was. You see lights up ahead and head towards them as fast as you can.
You emerge from the woods - but it's not the pub. You enter a clearing, filled with hooded figures, holding flaming torches. You see Sleepy Guy and Enthusiastic Guy, stripped naked and tied to posts with binds of thorns. At their feet are bundles of twigs and kindling.
You are frozen with fear.
Two more hooded figures drag the body of Angry Man into the clearing and lash him to another post, stacking firewood at the base.
A tall figure, wearing a mask of a skull steps forward.
"Greetings." he speaks in a menacing voice.
"You have come to join us as we celebrate the Forest Queen's Eternal Jubilee. Play a song that will honour her or you will join your friends in a more dreadful sacrifice to her."
You realise, everything counts on this jam - as it may well be your last...


PEACE ALL"

SUPERBOOTH 2022 AJH Synth Multiburst Generator

video upload by sonicstate

"We caught up with Alan from AJH Synth who was out in the Bungalow Dorf (the little village in the woods). He was showing a new Multiburst Generator Eurorack Module called - er MultiBurst:

The MiniMod Multi Burst Envelopes module generates variable length bursts of repeating envelopes that can change over time, with CV control of all functions.

Its available now (or at least winging its way) from your favourite modular dealer, priced at £230"

Sequential Circuits Pro One

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

via this auction

"Beautiful Sequential Pro One. No introduction needed, simply one of the most enjoyable and powerful monosynth ever made. This unit is in excellent condition with almost no signs of use. Everything has been tested and works like it should. 100% original, knobs, woods, inside/outside. No tricky mods. A pure beast!"

CLICK FOR MORE »

drone-in-the-woods | Sunset* - ambient mix with Poly800 through Akai MFC42 analog filter Juno6 MC101

video upload by drone-in-the-woods

Korg 800 DV w/ Mods

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

via this auction

"fully recapped
calibrated in the best possible way

filter sliders
attack and release sliders
all completely new

a trigger input modification for both is on the back

all woods are new

Some switches are noise only when you are using them not so much
It doesn’t affect the sound"

CLICK FOR MORE »

drone-in-the-woods | Beyond The Horizon - ambient space-trance workout in the woods SH101 MC101 TD3

video upload by drone-in-the-woods

"The second track from my analogue synthesiser session up Goodwood in the cold of winter. It was really getting dark so I've had to increase the brightness of the video massively. I've also applied some home-made analogue effects as an experiment.

Vocal samples of Swati Mohan in the NASA control room for the landing of Perseverance on Mars 2021.

Original track was composed for Aural Films' Mars Perseverance compilation album which was released on the day of the landing: https://auralfilms.bandcamp.com/track...

Roland SH101
Roland MC101
Behringer Td3

Composed and performed by Keith Sutton 25th Feb 2022

Ambient origin mix: https://soundcloud.com/keith-sutton/d..."

Il s'appelle George | acid-in-the-woods jam with one sequencer and 2 analogue synths SH101 MC101 TD3

video upload by drone-in-the-woods

"A track I wrote for my cat 3 years ago but I've only just sorted out for live.

His name is George"

The Monument - live ambient music in the woods with Nigel Rippon on gyil (West African xylophone)

video upload by drone-in-the-woods

Half an hour before this session it was pouring with rain, but it was the last day of the storms down South and we sheltered from the receding winds on the side of the hill.
This was the first of three tracks recorded during that session, and you can see and hear the wind in the trees above us whilst Nigel improvises flowing patterns on his gyil overtop of the track that I started writing in my last video.

Nigel Rippon - Gyil
Keith Sutton - Roland SH101 Roland MC101 Roland Gaia Sh01

Goodwood 22nd February 2022"

First Ambient Outdoor Jam Of The Year (OxiOne + iPad)

video upload by Perplex On

"I took the chance of one of the first warmer day of the year to visit the woods with the iPad and OxiOne sequencer to summon the spring. Here OxiOne in chord mode is sequencing the iPad loaded with #aparillosynth and the free #wintervoices and #winterpiano sample library for #decentsampler. Hopefully a lot more outdoor jams will happen this year."

An Analogue Winter - synthesiser jam in the woods with Roland SH-101 and Korg Poly-800 on batteries

video upload by drone-in-the-woods

"Analogue synth jam in the woods with SH101 through Ibanez SS-10 distortion/chorus pedal.
SH101 and Poly800 looped with Boss RC30 through Boss DD6 delay pedal.

Audio/video recorded in Goodwood on December 3rd 2021 with additional footage from Field of Blooms at Chichester Cathedral taken the same day.

Composed and produced by Keith Sutton."