Ableton Forum

Live is an instrument.

I'm a template kinda guy, i got loads of different templates for jamming and a nice bunch of controllers to have physical control over my sound.
A custom controller is something for after an album or tour or something

The set i'm currently working on is a fun thing to play with.
It's a groovebox made in Live. Made out of weird routings and dummy clips.
I'll showcase that one when the time is ripe.

The synth section still needs a lot of work (program changes for operator and automat would help)
But thanks to Audiorealism i got a synth that'll blow people away (and it has program changes )
All the controls of that synth fit in one BCR 2000 preset. You gotta love that.

Combined. It'll be a kickass set to play. (which is also being designed )
Because i'll have control over every single sound. Or over none....

Follow actions, dummy clips, midi weirdness and more buttons then i have hair on my back. (that ratio is changing though. I'll need more buttons )

Hehehehe Eheheheh (eviL laugh *Live*)

....one more bloody week of exams.... then it's back to the lab
And i'm not coming out till i see some damn birds and bees getting it on.

You're starting to sound like a twisted mad scientist.

hoffman2k wrote:And i'm not coming out till i see some damn birds and bees getting it on.

See the bird, BE the bee.

hide your women, hoffman's got that look in his eye again...

mostly rock/folk/singer-songwriter/band stuff. Guitars, bass, vocals, harmonica, old plastic chord organ,etc. http://www.soundclick.com/gradynickel

DeadlyKungFu wrote: hide your women, hoffman's got that look in his eye again...

Sometimes I'll say I don't care where the sounds are coming from.
But sometimes they are rare, and coming from a special place near me.
To level this equation is part of my "music".

// C

I think there is alot of everything going on in here.

This is all good to hear. I've read so many posts about dance music and clicked on a few peoples tracks...

... lets just say I'm not a fan of 'house', although I'm not sure if it has the same definition in Australia. I'm not a fan of music without some sort of groove or hook or something that gives it soul. I know that a lot of dance music that gets played in clubs in Melbourne is quite soulless and completely uninspiring (admittedly I'll dance to it if I'm in the right state of erm.... intoxication?) and I've heard a few tracks from here that unfortunately I'd put into that category.

Don't get me wrong, I like dance music.... I saw Fat Boy Slim and Roger Sanchez a few weeks ago (OK, well my girlfriend took me to that festival, but I still went)... I've also seen Faithless, Chemical Brothers, Liam from the Prodigy and more that I've forgotten right now.

Hmmm. I'm sick of not being able to jam with Live!!! Firebox's cost around $650 in Australia, and I could import one for about $470 (this is all in Australian dollars). Is it worth spending the extra $170 for warranty and peace of mind?

I personally would not buy electronic gear internationally. Think about it...you may save some money, but if there's anything wrong with it, you have NO RECOURSE.

We just bought a 42 inch DLP TV, and I bought it locally, even though I could have saved $200 by buying online. When it was delivered from the local store, the TC had brown spots on the inside of the screen. Needless to say, we refused acceptance, and got a new TV the next day. Had I bought it online and had the same issue, the $200 would have evaporated in shipping charges alone. And that's not the mention the fact that I actually COULD return it at all...if you buy internationally, you never know what you'll get. Get local, and have the piece of mind.

As for house music not having any soul...HAVE YOU EVER BEEN TO A GAY CLUB? Seriously, house music can be repetitive, but the soul lies inside the grooves. I think that trance was a response to house needing hooks and emotion, but then look how cheezed out that got...really fast. Beat driven music can have a lot of soul...just need the soul put in it.

And then on the flip side you've got psytrance, which someone keenly described as "music that sounds like computers having sex".

I use Live to record my own live drum loops, I have a full kit miced up in the basement... It's awesome for cutting up and mixing my own acoustic beats

nebulae wrote:As for house music not having any soul...HAVE YOU EVER BEEN TO A GAY CLUB? Seriously, house music can be repetitive, but the soul lies inside the grooves. I think that trance was a response to house needing hooks and emotion, but then look how cheezed out that got...really fast. Beat driven music can have a lot of soul...just need the soul put in it.

And then on the flip side you've got psytrance, which someone keenly described as "music that sounds like computers having sex".

'House' in Australia may have a different meaning to 'house' elsewhere. The kind of house I'm referring to is the type that has 'one beat', is quite percussive and sparse, often uses femail vocal hooks and is, well, uninspired. I may be imparting the blandness of the 'popular' Melbourne dance scene unfairly on the genre. Maybe there's better stuff out there. Can you give me some artists/DJs to listen to?

I think I'll take your advice on the buying local thing. The price on Fireboxes dropped to $300 in the US, but the AU price of $650 is still anchored on the old US price of $500... hopefully soon enough the price drop will come through here, and I'll be able to get one for more like $500 (I understand that the price drop also included a margin drop, so I can't expect a linear price drop).

edit: and as for being in a gay club; I've had a guy come on to me at a 'gay hot spot' in Melbourne, while my girlfriend was one metre away from me! I didn't know what to say! A large portion of the "gay dance scene" fits in with the "hot blondes with fashion accessories scene" here, and most of them take a shite load of drugs.... never underestimate the ability of party drugs to make mundane music sound interesting or moving.

Live, or any sequencer for that matter, is just a tool. Albeit a very powerful one. I usually throw a little bit of everything into a composition. A drum loop here, a (real)acoustic rhythm guitar there, a vocal sample here, a virtual trumpet solo, etc., etc. The possibilities are limitless. I employ a fusion of canned sounds, virtual instruments, and your so-called 'real' instruments. Why the hell have all these instruments at our disposal and not use them? As a result, lately my music has evolved into a hybrid World music of sorts ... I think

Anubis wrote:lately my music has evolved into a hybrid World music of sorts ... I think

That's the best you can hope for, you're ahead of yourself.

forgie wrote:Is there anyone recording predominantly real instruments in Live?

I do. Usually guitar, tenor sax and alto traverse flute. If I perform with other musicians their "real" instruments are also going into Live to be mangled. When playing live gigs I stay away from "pre composed songs" as much as I can and play instrumental music by improvisation. No particular "style" except for the attitude being "experimental". I recently played a gig at a Folk Singers NIght (!) at a local beer bar and to my surprise people liked it. Here's a typical audio example (solo flute performance): http://www.looproom.com/audio/mobjam4mix.mp3

My day job is playing saxophone and I put sax or flute on pretty much everything I do. It's what I am, really.

I find Live refreshing and it does all that my simple needs require.

Right now, I'm just using an Ozone as a soundcard. It's working out pretty well.

Regards,

Kenfen

Per Boysen wrote:Here's a typical audio example (solo flute performance): http://www.looproom.com/audio/mobjam4mix.mp3

Great stuff, Per.
And interesting, when you don't see the performer, the acuostic and electronic sides of it melt together all the more.

// C