Resynthesizer by Make Noise - Ambient performance

video upload by Jay Hosking

"A live synthesizer jam performed entirely on the Make Noise Resynthesizer.

This might be the most beautiful instrument I own.

Eurorack is traditionally about choice, about configuring a case to your preferences or imagination. The Make Noise Resynthesizer is the antithesis of this, in many ways. It's a crafted case from only one manufacturer, from their imagination, and with a specific philosophy and goal in mind. In this respect, it is an instrument, with the strengths and limitations inherent in any instrument. And when you embrace those strengths and limitations, it's truly incredible what it can create.

This is the very first patch I made with the Resynthesizer, with no goals in mind, without any sample content loaded onto the Morphagene (sampler). I didn't even know how to use half of the modules going in, and still don't know how to use many of them in any depth. But it's a testament to the Resynthesizer that it has a unified philosophy, and that its two main sound-creating voices (the Morphagene and the Spectraphon, a dual stereo oscillator) work so well together. What a synth.

I learned how to quickly sample the Spectraphon into the Morphagene, learned how to use the basics of René, and away I went. Within minutes I was making sounds and music I hadn't approximated with any other gear before.

Not only am I pleased with the musical results, I'm truly excited about the depth of this machine, to learn more of what it can do, to embrace its strengths and limitations and see what comes out of it, free of expectations.

Performed and recorded live to a stereo output, with EQ, compression, and limiting on the master.

Thanks for listening.

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"

Cinematic intergalactic - live synth performance with Prophet Rev2, Walrus Qi, piano, strings

video upload by Jay Hosking

"Here, I used the 5-pin MIDI out of the M-Audio Keystation 61 Mk3 to control the Sequential Prophet Rev2, and used the Keystation's USB MIDI out to control a number of plug-ins at the same time. What you're hearing here is a single MIDI line that's being split to multiple instruments that get layered on top of each other. I'm really happy with the final result.

This song was inspired by exploring the Walrus Qi Etherealizer, which is adding granular, reverb, and delay to the Prophet Rev2. Once I had the basic idea on the Rev2, I realized that I could use the Keystation's USB MIDI out to control software instruments at the same time. Mostly what you're hearing are a collection of Spitfire plug-ins (piano, strings, mandolin) being stacked on top of the Rev2, using the same live MIDI data that I'm sending to the Rev2. It's a neat effect.

Thanks for listening.

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"

Walrus Qi Etherealizer - exploration w/ hardware synths (SH-101, Prophet Rev2, 303, Nymphes, OP-XY)

video upload by Jay Hosking

"Trying out Walrus's new multi-effect with some hardware synthesizers.

Full disclosure: Walrus sent this pedal along for me to try for free. I'm a big fan of their Slöer pedal and also really like the Meraki (both of which I bought with my own money), so I was happy to give the Qi a spin. Happy to report that I am super impressed with this one. You can think of the Qi as kind of complementary to the Hologram Chroma Console: if the Chroma Console gives everything grit, colour, and texture, the Qi gives everything space, width, and ambience.

Here, I use it with a few synths I love and found myself lost for my entire Sunday exploring what the Qi could create with the right synthesizers. In fact, one of the improvisations (not in the final video here) has turned into a full song, which I'll put up as soon as I have time to record a performance. It's a really inspiring pedal and works very well with hardware synths.

00:00 - with Prophet Rev
04:25 - with Cyclone Analogic Bassbot TT-303
06:34 - with Dreadbox Nymphes
10:02 - with Teenage Engineering OP-XY
12:33 - with Roland SH-101


Recorded live to a stereo output, with only limiting on the master (no compression, EQ, or other effects).

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"

Elektron Octatrack and Roland SH-4D - Live energetic performance

video upload by Jay Hosking

"A live synthesizer jam performed entirely on hardware.

This is a remix/reimagining of "Suantrai" by Jan Steiner, which is on his new EP. Jan is a friend, and a member of my Patreon community, and he reached out about the idea of a remix. The song itself is quite sparse, but beautiful and melodic, and the whole EP is a little hard to predict; I tried to take the beauty and melody, and add my own type chaos into the mix.

I started with altered versions of four of Jan's instruments (string thing, bass drone, Rhodes, light percussion) and went wild with my own additions (my own orchestra sound, off the top; mangled drum breaks; glitched percussion). This left me with some audio files I could work with in the Octatrack.

Once in the Octatrack, I realized I wanted additional melodies and sounds, so I hooked up the Roland SH-4D. The SH-4D is a four-part multi-timbral synth with a fifth layer for drums, very useful for making songs. The melody, arpeggio, extra bass, and midrange distorted drums all come from the SH-4D.

Altogether this left a pretty full arrangement, and the scenes/fader—the magic of the Octatrack—helped to bring out the performance. Most scenes were to alter the drum breaks, by reordering, repitching, and/or retriggering the drum slices, plus with additional effects like phaser, sample- and bit- reduction, distortion, etc.

The end result captures what I loved about Jan's track, and his EP in general: beautiful and melodic, sprawling but intentional, but with a little chaos thrown into the mix. I hope you enjoy.

Thanks for listening.

Elektron Octatrack MkII - Six audio sample tracks playing eight or nine audio sample parts across the song, plus effects, plus sequencing of everything (including MIDI), plus mixing of the audio from SH-4D, plus scenes

Roland SH-4D - Three synths (melody, arpeggio, bass) plus minimal drums in the finale

Performed and recorded live to a stereo output, with EQ, compression, and limiting on the master.

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"

Motor Synth MkII and Synthstrom Deluge | downtempo synth performance

video upload by Jay Hosking

"Please support my work on Patreon: / jayhosking
A live synthesizer jam performed entirely on hardware.

Full disclosure: Walrus sent me along the R1 MkII for free. I'm a big fan of their Slöer pedal and also really like the Meraki (both of which I bought with my own money), so I was happy to give the R1 MkII a spin. It's a decent workhorse pedal with full stereo, some cool algorithms (including a sort of granular-delay-reverb thing), and an easy interface. I think the Slöer is still the better pedal if you're choosing based on character/personality, but if you need versatility and a small footprint, the R1 MkII might be for you. I look forward to exploring it more!

Once again, the incredible Miles Away leant me some of his gear to try out. This time, it's the Motor Synth MkII. It's hard to justify at the price point and with a technology that is less known in terms of longevity, and it certainly has some quirks that won't be for some. But man alive, the Motor Synth sounds absolutely incredible: warbly, rich, binaural, capable of mellow lofi ambient all the way up to overdriven bananas cyberpunk. It's incredible.

Check out Miles Away's exploration of the Motor Synth MkII here, and be sure to check out the second jam (heavy industrial electro): • Is This The Most Unique Synth EVER???... [posted here]

Here, I leveraged the mellower side of the Motor Synth and paired it with the Deluge, which is a natural fit in terms of complementary sounds. The R1 MkII was the reverb on the Motor Synth and also was a perfect fit; there's something about the R1's algorithms that makes the good for fitting in a mix. And to glue the Deluge sound together and add a little more personality, I added the Chroma Console doing saturation, doubling, delay, and tape.

Thanks for listening.

Gamechanger Audio Motor Synth MkII into Walrus R1 MkII - Main synth, played on keyboard, with reverb
Arturia KeyStep 37 - keyboard for Motor Synth
Synthstrom Deluge into Hologram Chroma Console - drums, bass, synths

Performed and recorded live, with EQ, compression, and limiting on the master.

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"

Teenage Engineering OP-XY - portable synth performance

video upload by Jay Hosking

"Please support my work on Patreon: / jayhosking
A live synthesizer jam performed entirely on the Teenage Engineering OP-XY.

The OP-Z was perhaps my biggest "so close, but not close enough" piece of gear from the last few years. Its sequencer and performability and portability were great, but the build quality was terrible was terrible (of my unit, anyway) and the internal synths and effects weren't for me. I was exactly that person who wanted the upgraded, more robust version of the OP-Z.

And we got it. Yes, I recognize the price is high. But so far I am very, very happy with the OP-XY and what it does. It's sturdy, it feels great, its synths and samplers sound great, its effects are great, its sequencer and arranger are powerful, its Punch-In FX are useful.

And most importantly of all, it's fun. When I'm using it, I'm having fun.

Considering you can get an absolutely superb portable groovebox in the Tracker Mini for far less money, it's hard to recommend unless you're the type (like me) who just loves grooveboxes. But I'm loving my time with it so far.

Thanks for listening.

Performed and recorded live to a stereo output, with EQ, compression, and limiting on the master.

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"

Sequential Take 5, Moog Subharmonicon, Walrus Slöer - cinematic synth performance

video upload by Jay Hosking

"A live synthesizer jam performed entirely on hardware.

I'm on a big kick right now in just playing the gear in front of me. Here, I brought out my favourite all-arounder, the Sequential Take 5, and paired it with the Moog Subharmonicon to create a little rhythm and arrangement. The Walrus Slöer adds reverb to the Subharmonicon; the Take 5's delay and reverb are both from its internal effects.

It's incredible how the Subharmonicon can quickly inspire some chords, and how the Take 5 can take you from an idea to a finished song with just a little tweaking.

Thanks for listening.

Performed and recorded live, with EQ, compression, and limiting on the master.

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"

Neutral Labs Scrooge – sequenced malfunction generator

video upload by nyppy

"Available as a DIY kit or assembled desktop synth or 42 HP Eurorack module."

Check with dealers on the right for availability.

User videos:



1. Neutral Labs Scrooge and Digitakt II - live electronic performance - Jay Hosking

2. So…is it a drum machine?" The Neutral Labs SCROOGE Demo - mylarmelodies

00:00 Don't call it a drum machine!
01:06 What is Scrooge?
02:02 How it works.
04:07 Panel Controls
06:49 Making a Pattern From Scratch
08:42 Step Knob Automation
13:09 Adding More Voices
14:25 Ratcheting for Tone Creation
15:25 ...Then Adding 808
16:39 Funky Oizo Jam
17:17 'Control All' Feature
19:00 'Random Pattern' Generator
20:55 Manually Editing It.
22:17 A Techno Ending.

3. What's a Sequenced Malfunction Generator // Neutral Labs Scrooge Review and Demo - Starsky Carr

0:00 What's A Scrooge
2:00 Demo with TR606 and Elmyra2
4:04 Quick Start Guide
12:20 CTL ALL FTW
13:58 How to Create a Pattern
21:18 Creating Variations with CTL ALL
25:12 Randomisation
25:51 Function Buttons
27:41 Microtiming
30:24 Evolving Patterns with Random Variation
32:13 Playing with Perkons



"Scrooge is a sequenced malfunction generator, available as a 42 HP Eurorack module or semi-modular desktop synth. While you can convince it to deliver boomy kick drum sounds, clicky hi-hats or metallic snares, it would much rather be making glitchy artifacts, hollow crackles and horribly distorted growls. It contains a sophisticated and performance-oriented step sequencer with parameter locking and the possibility to control all steps across multiple tracks at once. Its 5 distinct and fully analog voices are made up of special circuits that work without dedicated power supplies, scrounging power from the sequencer control signals instead, which gives them an organic and unstable quality. As a bonus, it means you won’t have to power the unit itself if you sequence it from external gear.

5 distinct analog voices
device can work passively without a power supply if sequenced from external gear
each voice can be routed to either of 2 main outputs (headphone compatible)
individual voice outputs
individual voice CV inputs that respond well to audio signals
2 modulation tracks, individually routable to voices
2 modulation CV inputs
onboard step sequencer
parameter locking per step
"control all" mode (change parameters for several steps and tracks at once), great for interactive playing
arbitrary step length per track (up to 64 steps)
generative algorithm builds random variations on patterns (available while performing), or creates random patterns from scratch
pattern chaining (up to 32 patterns)
stores up to 128 patterns in 16 banks
microtiming
CV slew limiter per track
can sequence external gear
sync output
sync and reset inputs
MIDI input (TRS type A)"

Synthstrom Deluge - classic downtempo synth with Zeptocade, Chroma Console

video upload by Jay Hosking

See this post for additional details on the Zeptocade.

"Please support my work on Patreon: / jayhosking
A live synthesizer jam performed entirely on hardware.

Full disclosure: Ian from Synthstrom got in touch and we were discussing my older Deluge videos. I mentioned I had been missing the Deluge since I sold it, and he kindly offered to ship one to me so I could try the new screen and community firmware. I didn't pay for this Deluge, although I did pay taxes and duty on it (O, Canada). In short, while I bought my original Deluge, this new one was sent by Synthstrom.

But I have to say it's so good to have it back. The updates to the hardware (i.e. the screen) and the firmware have fixed basically every shortcoming I felt in the device, and they did so without compromising what makes the Deluge so great. Thanks to the screen, I can finally learn how to better use the device without resorting to YouTube searches, I can easily adjust patches and use samples effectively, and I can see all the new effects and other changes. And thanks to the community firmware, I can now bust out of the one-endless-loop mentality with grid mode, and have stereo chorus, and so much more. And somehow, all these new additions don't seem to get in the way of what made the Deluge so great in the first place: great synth sounds, feeling like a sketchpad space where it's fun to quickly draft ideas, buttons that feel really great to the touch, and a complete groovebox package with endless sequencing plus MIDI and CV out.

Here, I relied on some of those well-known Boards of Deluge preset packs (go check them out!) to drum up some inspiration. From there, I started to explore looped audio stretching, which I'd never done in the Deluge but was now so easy, as well as resampling. And finally, I switched into the new grid mode for some easy arrangement and clip launching. It's just awesome.

I wanted some more drums, and something with a few more buttons to play, so I added in the Infinitedigits Zeptocore/Zeptocade. It's an audio loop slicer and player with a strong emphasis on performability, which is right up my alley. It's also imperfect, which I discuss more in the Patreon behind-the-scenes video. In short, I adore the performance aspect and think it sounds so good (especially through the Chroma Console for saturation, compression, and delay), but I also struggled to keep it in tempo and not bugging out.

Ultimately, I was surprised where this one ended up. I thought it was going to be a busy fast song, but it fell into a more contemplative and interesting backbeat.

Thanks for listening.

Synthstrom Audible Deluge - Many synth voices, percussion loops, effects, sequencing
Infinitedigits Zeptocore/Zeptocade into Hologram Chroma Console - Performed sliced drum loops

Performed and recorded live, with EQ, compression, and limiting on the master.

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"

Solar 42F synth - First impressions and composing ambient music

video upload by Jay Hosking

Solar 42F synth - Cinematic performance


"A live synthesizer jam performed entirely on the Elta Music Solar 42F.

This is the final performance I made after my first day with the Solar 42F. Really pleasing device to just have sitting on a table and exploring!

Elta Music Solar 42F - drone synth voices, melody synthesizer
Walrus Slöer - reverb
Walrus Meraki - delay"

Compact jam on Circuit Tracks & MicroMonsta 2

video upload by Jay Hosking

"A live synthesizer jam performed entirely on hardware.

Sometimes it's nice to go back to the basics. The Novation Circuit was my entry point to the world of hardware in 2018, and while I've mostly moved on from the Circuit, it's so nice to go back to sometimes. Here, I'm using the Circuit Tracks—a worthy successor to the original, thanks to its additional two sequencing tracks—for two synths and drums, plus as the sequencer and mixer for the additional voices from the Audiothingies MicroMonsta 2.

The MicroMonsta 2 is one of those handy devices that does exactly what you need when you need it. It's super small and fits in any table setup, is bitimbral, has effects, and most importantly, sounds pretty good. Here, I stumbled into a sort of arp/pad crossover thing (thought I was recording a mono line, and accidentally recorded some pleasing polyphony) and, thanks to the hands-on filter control and its reverb, got me a lot of movement. For the second voice, I thought I'd demonstrate the less polite side of the MM2, and I love how huge the bass sound is. I only wish the MM2 were more readily available for those who want it!

Together, this little setup gives me four voices of synths, drums, effects, sidechaining to the kick, and some performance options. It was a great reminder of why I fell in love with grooveboxes, and why I love hardware in general.

Thanks for listening.

Novation Circuit Tracks - two synths, four drums, effects, mixing
Audiothingies MicroMonsta 2 - two synths with effects, routed into the Circuit Tracks

Performed and recorded live to a stereo output, with EQ, compression, and limiting on the master.

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"

Ambient analog jam w/ Prophet Rev2, Deckard's Dream, Moog Minitaur, Mother 32

video upload by Jay Hosking

"A live synthesizer jam performed entirely on hardware.

It had been a while since I had a bunch of synths on the table all at once. This one took a few different approaches before I got it. In particular, I spent a lot of time trying to find the right sequencer. I thought this would be a semi-generative piece, and tried a couple of hardware sequencers to that effect, but ultimately I found myself wanting more control. With much more time spent playing piano these days, maybe my days of generative sequencers are slowing down?

So in the end, with only a day before I was heading out of town, I decided to compose a piece in my DAW instead. And you know what? It was the right choice. Sometimes working in the box is the better way to go.

The other obstacle was my arpeggio synth. At first I had the MSW810, which is a sort-of SH-101 clone. But ultimately it was either too bright or too dull, and I couldn't get the envelopes right. I put the Mother 32 on the table and was immediately struck with how beautiful and perfect the sound of this synth is. It's such a beauty for arpeggios, and struck that perfect balance for filter and envelope, brightness and darkness. I just love the Mother 32.

Ultimately this came out sounding like a remix of the theme song for an 8-bit video game, which makes sense since that music fostered my love of synths.

Thanks for listening.

Sequential Prophet Rev2 module into Kinotone Ribbons - Pad
Moog Minitaur into Strymon BigSky - Bass
Black Corporation Deckard's Dream into Walrus Slöer - Melody
Moog Mother 32 into Meris Polymoon - Arpeggio

Performed and recorded live, with EQ, compression, and limiting on the master.

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"

Live jam with the Polyend Tracker Mini

video upload by Jay Hosking

"A live synthesizer jam performed entirely on hardware.

I'm going to just say it: the Polyend Tracker Mini (or maybe Tracker+) is currently the best all-in-one groovebox going. Eight stereo sample tracks, eight voices of internal synths across three timbres, up to eight MIDI tracks, great onboard effects, battery powered, very portable, USB multitrack audio recording, and fantastic performance effects. This thing rules.

To celebrate the 2.0 software release, which brings the Mini and + to parity, minus the differences in hardware, I put together this piece. I'm very, very happy with the results. The Tracker is an extremely inspiring platform for me.

There are shortcomings to the Tracker platform, namely bugs and promised features that haven't been implemented yet; seriously, Polyend, you gotta get those performance effects for the Play+ synths if you're going to promise them to users, let alone the Tracker+ and Tracker Mini! But the bugs, while annoying if you don't know about them, are manageable once you do know about them, and I tend not to buy devices like the Mini for its potential firmware updates. When I bought the Mini, it was a stereo sampler, and now it's a stereo sampler with eight voices of internal synth polyphony, so Polyend is offering amazing updates. I just try not to think of what a thing is missing.

Anyway, thanks for listening.

Recorded to multitrack audio via USB (what a feature!), with a little treatment to the synths (as noted in the video), and with EQ/compression/limiting on the master.

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"

Ambient jam with Novation AFX Station, Vongon Replay, Empress Zoia

video upload by Jay Hosking

"Please support my work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/jayhosking
A live, semi-improvised synthesizer jam performed entirely on hardware.

I'm on an island taking a bit of time to relax and recharge, and have been spending most of my days doing anything but music: reading, swimming, hiking, and so on. I keep the Novation AFX Station up on the island because it's small and because, well, I have more than one mono synth.

But I think I have to bring this thing home with me. The AFX Station (i.e. the Bass Station II) is just such a remarkable synth, maybe the most underrated synth I can think of. A phenomenal sound with two filters and two drives, it can produce a wider variety of timbres than most mono synths, while also having a fantastic layout for patch design, a pretty unique sequencer/arpeggiator that introduces rhythms, a great portable size, and all the other bells and whistles people love (AFX mode, paraphony, etc.). The only thing I wish it had was a "set sound to panel settings" mode. Otherwise, I am regularly impressed with the AFX Station.

I also brought the Vongon Replay with me because it's quite portable and very immediate in its setup. Yes, I know all its flaws quite well, but a small polysynth that sounds good, has everything I need already on the panel, and has a latchable arpeggiator is quite handy. Once I had a sound on the AFX Station, I played an arp, and the song was basically there.

And for effects on the whole thing, the Empress Zoia came through. I also keep this one on the island because it can be whatever effects I need it to be, and because it's extremely flexible with how you set it up for routing. Here, I've set it to have to mono audio signals coming in, and sending a stereo effected signal out, something that most pedals can't do. Plus, Empress makes great effects, and having their delay and reverb at the same time is awesome.

All in all, a very inspiring setup with great results.

Thanks for listening.

Novation AFX Station - Melody/bass mono synth
Vongon Replay - Latched arpeggio with slow attack
Empress Zoia - Reverb, delay, and special sauce on both synths

Performed and recorded live to a stereo input, with EQ, compression, and limiting on the master.

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"

Dark jam with the Ableton Push 3 Standalone and Novation AFX Station

video upload by Jay Hosking

"A live synthesizer jam performed entirely on hardware.

This is the fourth track I've made specifically for the Push 3, and the first where I've used Ableton Live to make the entirety of the song. Some of Live 12's new features, like the generative sequencer tools, can be a fun way to get quickly inspired. I still miss many aspects of Reason when working in Live, but it's fun to change things up.

Kudos to the amazing Novation AFX Station. This synth has a fantastic panel, is a great size (not too big, not too small), two levels of drive/distortion, two filter options, great either clean or gritty, excellent resonance on the filter, etc. The more I use it, the more I love it. It's been around for 11 years, and there are more expensive mono synths, but I'd reach for this one before most for something dark and interesting.

I'm either 40 or 50 percent through this particular album/set and really happy with the music so far. The Push 3 really allows me to create songs in a way that no other setup has allowed. And while there are many features I wish it had (especially more on the side of performance), I'm finding myself happier and happier thinking of it as my live-set device. Can't wait to take these songs on the road.

Ableton Push 3 — most sounds, effects, and performance
Novation AFX Station — mono synth melody/lead thing

Performed and recorded live, with EQ, compression, and limiting on the master.

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"

Dark jam with Ableton Push 3, PWM Malevolent, and Hologram Chroma Console

video upload by Jay Hosking

"A live synthesizer jam performed entirely on hardware.

This is the third track I've made specifically for the Push 3, and I'm having a better and better time as I go. There are a few behind-the-scenes videos about this particular setup over on my Patreon.

The idea is that the set/album is playable live without requiring too much mental juggling, but since I'm only presenting them as individual songs, I thought I'd add in the PWM Malevolent for fun. The Malevolent adds well to the overall feeling I'm going for in these songs, and the Chroma Console helps shape the sound even more. Makes me wonder what I could add next time for fun!

Looking forward to playing these all as a set. Hopefully soon!

Thanks for listening.

Reason 12 (behind the scenes) — a lot of the songwriting and structuring
Ableton Push 3 — most sounds, effects, and performance
PWM Malevolent through Hologram Chroma Console — gritty synth bass thing

Performed and recorded live, with EQ, compression, and limiting on the master.

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"

Uptempo jam with Midicake ARP, Dreadbox Nymphes, Moog Minitaur, Mother 32, MSW-810, DrumBrute Impact

video upload by Jay Hosking

"A live synthesizer jam performed entirely on hardware.

I've had this chord progression kicking around for a little while, the product of a voice-leading exercise I was doing. I was super happy with it but never able to incorporate it into a larger arrangement. Recently, I realized I could just run the chord progression through the Midicake ARP and get some inspiration on the song arrangement, and sure enough, that was all it took (along with a few amazing synthesizers and effects). Really happy with where this one ended up.

Full disclosure: I cut and paste a previous drum fill to the outro drum fill, because I felt the outro drum fill didn't match the quality of the earlier one. Seemed a more judicious approach than recording the whole thing again.

Thanks for listening.

Dirtywave M8 - chord progression sequence
Midicake ARP - four-part sequencing arranger for the chord progression
Kenton MIDI Thru - MIDI Thru out to five devices
DrumBrute Impact through Empress EchoSystem - Drums
Moog Mother 32 through Kinotone Ribbons - Slower mono synth
Michigan Synth Works MSW-810 through Hologram Chroma Console - Faster mono synth
Moog Minitaur through Boss DM-101 - Bass synth
Dreadbox Nymphes through Empress Reverb - Pad synth

Performed and recorded live (minus that small drum edit) to a multitrack recording, with EQ, compression, and limiting on the master.

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"

Ambient doom with the Neutral Labs Elmyra 2 and Walrus Sloër

video upload by Jay Hosking

"Please support my work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/jayhosking
A live synthesizer jam performed entirely on hardware.

Neutral Labs sent over the Elmyra 2 for free. I was interested to try it because it has some of the spirit and playfulness of the Lyra 8, but much more control over pitch. It's also geared toward overdriven, saturated sounds, which is where my head is at these days. All of that was cool and amazing about the Elmyra, but I particularly fell in love with the sequencer, having four independent sequencer lines with differing lengths for the four voices.

I'll probably never use this thing's wavetables, but the basic oscillator sounds are nice. The filter options are fantastic. I really love the circuit-bending-style chips that change the drive option. And having oscillators that tune to semi-tones? Incredible. I wish all eurorack did that.

Anyway, along with the Walrus Sloër (doing some heavy lifting on pitched reverb), this was an unexpected song that came together quickly thanks to the extensive sequencer. I look forward to pairing this synth with some other simple devices and making some more ambient doom.

Neutral Labs Elmyra 2 - four synthesizer voices
Walrus Sloër - pitched reverb

Performed and recorded live, with EQ, compression, and limiting on the master.

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"

Dark jam with the Ableton Push 3 Standalone (live performance)

video upload by Jay Hosking

"A live synthesizer jam performed entirely on the Ableton Push 3 Standalone, recorded to a stereo audio out.

I'm hoping to play some more live shows this year, and that means I want to create another live set. I thought that if I were creating a new live set, I might as well create a bunch of new songs at the same time. And if I were creating new songs, I might as well try a completely different style/genre of music.

So here's my first attempt. The Push 3 Standalone is still the best choice for me, in terms of making a live set. It has its limitations and foibles for performance, but in terms of sheer number of tracks and effects, in terms of sequencing length and arrangement, and in terms of reducing the mental juggling necessary during a set, the Push 3 works well for me.

Many of the tracks were bounced down to audio, to increase the number of elements in the song. I may also eventually add a stereo effects loop with the Zen Delay, but that's for a future video. For now, I'm happy with this template, and looking forward to creating more like it.

Thanks for listening.

Ableton Push 3 Standalone - all sounds and effects and such
Many in-the-box sounds used as well, notably Tympo from Teletone Audio, which was used for the drum sounds

Recorded and performed live to a stereo channel, with EQ, compression, and limiting on the master.

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"

Ambient jam with the Sequential Prophet Rev2, Eurorack, Sloër, and Soma Cosmos

video upload by Jay Hosking

"Please support my work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/jayhosking
A live, semi-improvised synthesizer jam performed entirely on hardware.

I went to the store to try out the Sequential Prophet Rev2 for fun, but they didn't have it set up on the floor.

"You should just take it home," the rep said. "Bring it back within 30 days if you don't want it."

So here we are, with the Prophet Rev2 at home. I love having so many voices that so easily can be panned into a binaural sound. The keybed and layout are fantastic and I just like playing it. The sound is great except when it isn't; something about the full-open filter or resonance is displeasing in a mix, though I often don't mind it on its own. Here, I made a binaural patch, with the same synth sound hard panned to left and right sides, but slight variation in the DCOs and "slop" (terrible word) leading to a very rich stereo feeling. One of those rare beautiful things you can do with only some polysynths (and software, of course).

In short, the Prophet Rev2 is a wonderful synth to explore with something of a frumpy sound, for better and for worse.

I was noodling on some chords and wanted accompaniment, so I started with the Cosmos (for some asymmetrical looping), and then took out my melodic eurorack skiff. It's been a while since I had it on the table, so it was nice just to hear these sounds again. Eurorack just leads me to places and sounds I might not otherwise find.

Ultimately, this jam came together in a day, and I'm always a little worried about those ones, because you might not like them as much the next day. So far, though, I'm pretty happy with it.

Thanks for listening.

Sequential Prophet Rev2 - pads
Walrus Sloër - reverb for Rev2
Soma Cosmos - looping for Rev2
Eurorack:
Qu-Bit Chord V2 through Endorphines Squawk Dirty to Me - organ sort of sound
Frequency Central Product - droning analog voice
4ms Ensemble Oscillator through Make Noise QPAS - hyperspace organ
Effects are described in the video, and include Happy Nerding FX Aid XL, Noise Engineering Melotus Versio and Desmodus Versio, Intellijel Multi-FX 1U
ALM Busy Circuits Pamela's New Workout - modulation for all the voices

Performed and recorded live, with EQ, compression, and limiting on the master.

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"