No Chance - a synthpop jam on the OP-Z

Published on Mar 21, 2020 Payton Carter

"I've been stuck in the house all week, so I needed to make something a little upbeat today. Here's a happy synthpop jam on the Teenage Engineering OP-Z. The arpeggio track doesn't have an LFO, so I pretty much just noodle with the filter cutoff the entire time. Hope you enjoy!"

Novation Circuit - Facade

Payton Carter

"Get my Circuit pack for free/pay-what-you-want: https://gumroad.com/l/MIDqA

A few weeks ago, I released a pack for the Novation Circuit (link above). This is the first "finished" track I've made with it.

Maybe it's a drum and bass type track? I don't know, I'm not good with genres. Definitely the fastest bpm I've ever tried.

100% made on the Circuit, with some mastering in Ozone Elements. Check out my music here - https://paytoncarter.bandcamp.com/"

Epsilon - Minimal techno on the Teenage Engineering OP-Z

Published on Mar 21, 2020 Payton Carter

"Check out my music here - https://paytoncarter.bandcamp.com/

Not much to say on this one. Wanted to do some kind of minimal techno type thing (is this even techno? I don't know, I'm so bad with my electronic genres), and this is where I ended up. I think I'm gonna use the "Cluster" sound engine on every single one of my tracks because it's just so dreamy."

Novation Circuit - Conquest

Payton Carter

"Hey y'all, it's time for another Circuit video! After going through half a dozen other instruments, I find that I really just gel with the Circuit. There's something about the simplicity in its workflow. It just makes songwriting fast and fun. I'll never be able to give it up!

Between a new baby and prime mountain biking season here in the desert, there's been little time for music making, so it felt good to finally get something recorded. This track uses the blankfor.ms Circuit pack. There are some awesome atmospheric synth patches in this pack. I also really enjoyed using the unconventional samples, mostly noise and foley-ish bits. Please excuse the multiple cuts in the video; transitions between sessions weren't sounding quite right, so I patched them together manually in post."

OP-Z // Immerse

video by Payton Carter

"A darker electronic track on the Teenage Engineering OP-Z."

Unstoppable - a Krautrock inspired jam on the OP-Z

Published on Mar 19, 2020 Payton Carter

"Check out my music here - https://paytoncarter.bandcamp.com/

I started this jam trying to make something in the vein of Tangerine Dream. I'm not quite sure if it ended up sounded anything like them, but there's definitely some Krautrock influence here.

I'm loving the OP-Z. I'm used to manually changing patterns and sessions on the Novation Circuit, so I thought I would give myself a break and just chain everything together for mostly automatic playing. The workflow on the OP-Z can be a little frustrating at times (especially when trying to work with anything longer than 16 steps), but I think it's best suited to quickly get ideas down and not worry too much about the details. It's lightning fast in that regard.

The new reverb engine is loads better for atmospheric/ambient sounds, which I tend to utilize more. I also really like the new "Analog" sound engine. I'm using it on the arp track here. The only problem is that the two new sound engines each take up a spot in the engine selection, which means if you allow all 8 engines on a track, you only have two spaces for user samples. Surely there's space to allow for plenty more, especially with that (unutilized?) 1GB chip. Please TE, help us out here!"

Novation Circuit Chillstep Jam

video by Gabe Miller Music

A chillstep jam on the Novation circuit, made using these three packs:
My $5 sample pack: https://gumroad.com/l/gabeoneshots
Payton Carter's pack: https://gumroad.com/l/MIDqA
The Force Truly Evil pack: https://isotonikstudios.com/product/b...

Synthstrom Deluge - Nova

Payton Carter

"Deluge track #3! Was trying to go for a subdued and hazy sound at the beginning. I'm really starting to appreciate the built-in synth engine. It has a nice character that lends itself to some really pleasant tones. All synth patches here (except the bass and one of the arps) are self-made. Drums are from one of the stock kits.

Check out my music here - https://paytoncarter.bandcamp.com/"

Teenage Engineering OP-Z // Try

video upload by Payton Carter

Depeche Mode's "Enjoy the Silence" performed (almost) entirely on the Novation Circuit

Published on Mar 3, 2020 Payton Carter

"Download my music here - https://paytoncarter.bandcamp.com

While I was growing up, my parents always had the 80's new wave radio playing in the house, so I got to know bands like The Cure, New Order, Talking Heads, Tears for Fears, and so on. Depeche Mode has always been one of my favorites, and I think their music has been a huge inspiration and influence for me. I thought it might be fun to try and recreate one of their tracks on the Novation Circuit.

Everything except for the guitar is coming from the Circuit. I overdubbed the guitar after recording the Circuit part. The synth patches are from Cuckoo's complete Circuit pack, and the drum samples are from the Post-Industrial Punch pack available from Novation. I also sampled chords from the Fairlight "Sarrar" sound (the choir sound) on Arturia's Analog Lab, which are playing on drum track 4. Audio was recorded into Reaper and mastered with Ozone Elements."

Novation Circuit + Elektron Analog Keys - Confidence

Payton Carter

"A jam with lots of arpeggios. Analog Keys is doing bass, the two randomish arpeggios, and the solo. Circuit is doing drums and the two repeating arpeggios. This was honestly a lot of fun to write. I usually have a hard time combining gear because my brain only likes to focus on one thing at a time, but I think the digital character of the Circuit's Nova engine really complements the analog pedigree of the Keys. Let me tell you how difficult it is to change encoders on both instruments at the same time, though; the Circuit's have a linear response to speed, and the Keys' have an exponential response (I much prefer the Circuit's).


I don't know what's going on with the hand wiggling during the solo. I think I'm trying to send good vibratos to the Keys? Haha. Recording this made me remember how much I hate playing live. Ten takes later, and the first take is still the best one somehow.


The Circuit is being routed through the Analog Keys' input, and everything's recorded over USB through Overbridge in Reaper. The Analog Keys can actually function as a 2 input audio interface, which is basically what I'm doing here. Some mixing in post, and mastering in Ozone Elements.


Check out my music here - https://paytoncarter.bandcamp.com/"