February 21, 2016

Playlist Week of 2016-02-20


* Imaginary Landscapes: New Electronic Music (Elektra/Nonesuch CD)
* Ornette Coleman: New York Is Now (Blue Note CD)
* Air: Air Lore (Arista/Novus LP)
* David Murray: Live At The Lower Manhattan Ocean Club Vol.1 (India Navigation LP)
* Billy Cobham: Spectrum (Atlantic LP)
* Billy Cobham: Total Eclipse (Atlantic LP)
* Pat Martino: Consciousness (Muse LP)
* Pat Martino: Joyous Lake (Warner Bros. LP)
* Pat Martino: Exit (Muse LP)
* David Torn Prezens: Saalfelden, Austria 2007-08-24 (FM CDR)
* David Torn Prezens: Barcelona 2008-01-09 (AUD CDR)
* David Torn Prezens: The Vortex, London 2008-01-14 (FM CDR)
* David Torn: Only Sky (ECM CD)
* Unconscious Collective: Unconscious Collective (Tofu Carnage 2LP)
* Unconscious Collective: Pleistocene Moon (Tofu Carnage 2LP)
* Möller + Knutsson: Latitudes Crossing (Atrium CD)
* Grateful Dead: Civic Center, Hartford, CT 1980-05-10 II (d.1) (SBD 2CDR)
* Grateful Dead: Uptown Theatre, Chicago, IL 1981-02-27 (d.2) (SBD3 CDR)
* The United States of America: The United States of America (Columbia/Sundazed LP)
* Can: Saw Delight (Spoon SACD)
* Neu!: Neu! (Astralwerks CD)
* Neu!: 2 (Astralwerks CD)
* Neu!: 3 (Astralwerks CD)
* Le Orme: Felona E Sorona (Philips LP)
* Ethos: (Ardour) (Capitol LP)
* Steve Roach: Fever Dreams (Projekt CD)
* Japan: Quiet Life (Hansa/Carrere LP)
* Yo La Tengo: Stuff Like That There (Matador LP)
* Lambchop: Mr. M (Merge CD)
* Wilco: Star Wars (Anti- LP)
* Tortoise: The Catastrophist (Thrill Jockey LP)
* Sleep: Vol.1 (Very Small/Tupelo LP)
* Opeth: Deliverance & Damnation (Music For Nations/Sony 2CD/2DVD)
* Expo 70: Kinetic Tones (Oaken Palace LP)
* Kadavar: Berlin (Nuclear Blast 2LP)

=iPod/iTunes
=car


Commentary:

Well, I have gone down the wormhole...

The only thing really lacking on the Moog Sub 37 is any kind of onboard effects -- and, of course, it would be absurd to expect them in an analog mono synth. But, boy, do those wonderful sounds cry out for further tweaking.

Well, what do you know? Moog also provides full line of Moogerfooger all-analog effects boxes, all with the added benefit of built-in low-frequency oscillators (LFOs) and extensive control voltage (CV) connectivity. Combined with a CP-251 Control Processor, they could potentially turn my Sub 37 into a semi-modular monster synth!

So, obviously, this is where I'm headed...down the wormhole.

I've started out with two essentials: The MF-102 Ring Modulator and MF-104M Analog Delay. Beautiful hand-built instruments, these things are built like tanks, with deliciously solid switches and knobs that feel so good in the hand. But it's the sound they make -- oh my god, the sound!

The ring modulator produces everything from gentle tremolo to clangorous noise, with the LFO and CV-connections adding to the available chaos, just perfect for what I'm after. The analog delay, though, is an absolute beast! No longer being produced, I had to resort to eBay to get ahold of one --but, dang, it was worth every penny. There is just nothing like that old-fashioned "bucket-brigade" delay, which sounds gritty, dark, and downright lo-fi compared to modern, pristine, digital delays. Add in some of that variable waveform LFO and, heck, I can listen to it self-oscillate for hours.

Although visually impressive (and a joy to use), the Moogerfooger's extra-large form factor means they take up considerable space. Should I ever have a full complement, I will have to seriously re-configure my tiny studio. Well, that's part of the fun, too -- but it's the sound that matters.

Stay tuned for further wormhole adventures!

1 comment:

Sam said...

The sound file you sent me of your early Moog experiments is fantastic. Can't wait to hear more!

Here are my lists from last week (sorry a bit late):

Playlist 2016-02-22:

*Anthony Braxton: The Complete Arista Recordings of Anthony Braxton (discs 5, 6)
*Anthony Braxton: 23 Standards (Quartet) 2003 (disc 4)
*Anthony Braxton: Anthony Braxton Quartet [Sao Paulo 2014]
*Peter Brötzmann Trio: For Adolphe Sax
*John Coltrane Quartet: 1962-11-22 Copenhagen (CDR) (disc 2)
*Kris Davis Trio: Waiting for You to Grow
*Ingrid Laubrock Anti-House: Roulette of the Cradle
*New Ting Ting Loft: 2015-11-23 “Doll Arm in Limbo Threshold” (wav)
*Soft Heap: Soft Heap (side 1)
*Sun Ra: The Sub-Dwellers (side 1)
*Sun Ra: Cosmo Earth Fantasy: Sub Underground Series Vol. 1 & 2 (Art Yard) (selections)
*Sun Ra and His Astro-Solar Infinity Arkestra: My Brother the Wind Volume 1
*Sun Ra and His Mythic Science Arkestra: The Paris Tapes: Live at le Theatre du Chatelet 1971 (disc 1)
*Sun Ra: Calling Planet Earth (2015 ORG Music LP) (side 2)
*Sun Ra: God Is More than Love Can Ever Be!
*Sun Ra and His Arkestra: Omniverse
*Sun Ra: Disco 3000: The Complete Milan Concert 1978 (Art Yard) (disc 1)
*Sun Ra and His Arkestra: Paris 1983
*Cecil Taylor Unit: Live in Bolgna (side 1)
*Beatles: On Air: Live at the BBC Volume 2 (disc 1)
*Bob Dylan: The Cutting Edge 1965-1966: The Bootleg Series Volume 12 (discs 3, 4)
*Funkadelic: First Ya Gotta Shake the Gate (disc 1)
*Grand Funk Railroad: On Time (selections)
*High Llamas: Here Come the Rattling Trees
*Little Feat: Waiting for Columbus (disc 1)
*Yani Martinelli: Bubble Station
*Nova: Vimana (side 1)
*Brian Wilson: No Pier Pressure (side 4)
*XTC: Apple Venus
*Zombies: The BBC Radio Sessions (side 1)

Reading List 2016-02-22:

*Kondo, Marie. The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up (started)
*Le Carré, John. The Russia House (started)
*Taylor, Gary. “The Canon and Chronology of Shakespeare’s Plays,” in Stanley Wells, et al. William Shakespeare: A Textual Companion (started)
*Kushner, Rachel. The Flamethrowers (finished)
*Taylor, Gary. “General Introduction,” in Stanley Wells, et al. William Shakespeare: A Textual Companion (finished)
*Ashbery, John. Self-Portrait in a Convex Mirror (in progress)
*Geerken, Hartmut, et al. Omniverse Sun Ra [Expanded and revised 2nd ed.] (in progress)