Following the same theme as Lucidity, Envision, and Beloved, Manifest promises to be a celebration of co-creation and community, taking place over the summer solstice weekend of June 21-23. This, compounded with a full moon, means that some serious wildness will be going down. Kaminanda, the shaman of dub, will be presiding over the full moon ceremony with his world infused groovy bass that uplifts the soul and taps the chakras.

BoomBox’s funky basslines are deeply influenced by classic rock with a generous helping of psychadelia and funky house. Their sets are always off the cuff and super groovy: perfect for a summer night.

The Polish Ambassador is no stranger to the festival circuit, and his complex, indefinable beats see him floating through glitchy, groovy, dreamy, funky deliciousness.

One of the mainstays in the Bay Area’s bass scene, ill.Gates seems to have no trouble getting the dance floor shaking, whether it’s with his own productions or high energy bass driven remixes of iconic tracks such as Rage Against the Machine’s “Killing in the Name Of.”

Love and Light deliver what their name promises. With rave hearts raised high in pure joy and exuberance, along with their bouncy, whompy beats sets crowds on fire.

Those who lean to the side of live music won’t be disappointed with the likes of the Dead Winter Carpenters, Afromassive, and the Jugtown Pirates performing.

After a night of raging, you can reenergize with a morning yoga session to the sounds of Bob Marley and The Grateful Dead. After some rejuvenating downward dogs, make your way over to one of the various co-creation opportunities, be it finger painting or mandala making. Then head off for a nap in your tent in the shade of the tall trees that the Sierra Nevada is known for.

Manifest is an intimate gathering with ticket sales capped at 2,000. Limited early bird tickets are on sale for $123.

You can visit the Manifest website for additional details.

BUY TICKETS

RSVP ON FACEBOOK

FEATURING:

• BoomBox • The Polish Ambassador • ill.Gates • Love and Light • Andreilien (Heyoka) • Phutureprimitive • ill-esha • Russ Liquid • Thriftworks • Kaminanda • AfroMassive • Lafa Taylor • God’s Robots • The Human Experience • Youssoupha Sidibe • Joseph Israel and the Jerusalem Band • Dead Winter Carpenters • Knowa Lusion • DJ Dragonfly • Ayla Nereo • MiHKAL • NVO • Chum – A Tribute to Phish • The Pilot • Jugtown Pirates • Lonesome Locomotive • Dubvirus • Jef Stott • Dr Knobz • Mister Boyfriend • VITAMINDEVO • VNDMG • Swallow Key • DJ Dane • Organik Time Machine • Kramer • Renee Leah • Lux Moderna • DJedi • Alvaro • Fractal Dragon • Apartment H • Sierra Drifters • Biomigrant • ADAMiT •

• More TBA!!! •

The post Manifest Festival 2013 Preview appeared first on LostinSound.org.

The start of west coast festival season began with Lucidity Festival in the gorgeous mountains outside of Santa Barbara, California. Santa Ynez and the Live Oak Campground, which hosted the inaugural Lucidity as well as Lunacy festivals, provided a spectacular backdrop and fluid festival setting that proved to be a unique and memorable weekend of music, art, and workshops. Friday found festival goers land searching for the perfect spot to camp and greeting each other excitedly. Large oak trees and foliage provided a welcome respite from the sun, something lacking from many hot summer events.

The grounds were divided into five areas: The Trixter’s Playground - home to the Alive Stage, featuring much of the weekend’s live instrumental and hip hop talent, Warrior’s Way - featuring workshops and designated areas for performers and dancers of all types, The Healing Sanctuary - home to the healing dome and an unprecedented collection of healers blessing festival goers with their medicine and energy, The Nomad’s Nook - featuring a large house stage alongside the well designed Audiowaska Stage (also home to the silent disco for the late night partiers), and finally The Lucid City featuring the Lucid Stage, where the headliners kept our booties moving all weekend long.

Everyone in attendance seemed to be there for the same reasons: to heal, commune, dance, and enjoy life together. Smiles adorned everyone’s faces as they attended workshops and found music spontaneously throughout the weekend. Sound healers bathed participants in ancient frequencies with the aid of singing bowls, gongs, and didgeridoos, cleansing their fields of negative energy and leaving even onlookers in a better state.

A collective from Ojai brought bushels of Ojai Oranges and fresh produce, provided freshly squeezed juice for many. Our good friend Docta Nick and his Conscious Bartending crew shared essential oil infused drinks, teas, and well designed potions to uplift the mind and spirit. The gathering was full of such thoughtful and gracious offerings, as many things were available by gift, trade, or donation.

Besides the abundance of healing and workshop options, the music was top notch throughout the festival, projected in pristine clarity through Funktion One speakers. Kaminanda started things off Friday night as the sun went down and really sparked the energy for the entire festival.

That night saw some of the best sets of the weekend from the duo of kLL sMTH and Atomic Reactor, 2NUTZ, as well as diverse mastermind ill.Gates. 2NUTZ threw down some artfully aggressive beats, ultra-glitched lamentations of the tortured cyborg soul, unleashing tracks off their album Bi-Tetral Inadvertancies and their forthcoming project. Ill.Gates closed the night with fast rap and hip hop remixes, dub infused beats, and fan favorites that made us all want to keep dancing into the night.

One of the best parts of a small, intimate festival like this is the discovery of new workshops and fantastic renegade stage setups. One highlight was San Diego’s Camp Ego Trip, located near the Alive Stage, which started the party back up at 9 am with quality bass music, featuring Kaminanda, Traveler, JoBOT, and west coast favorites Squama and GRiDWORK. Alongside the beats was freshly made sangria, served up cold to keep the dancing bodies movin’.

Saturday featured more impressive music from such names as DJedi and Dubvirus, Auditory Canvas, Wala, MiKHAL, ChrisB, and Digital Rust. GRiDWORK brought his Los Angeles infused trip-hop inspired melodic beats to the masses that flowed seamlessly into MiKHAL’s tribal, bassy set, reminiscent of his Fractal Nation performances in the past. Spin Cycle‘s renegade stage sucked us into spontaneous dance parties all weekend long, adding to the musical choices.

Painters known and unknown created amazing works of art, feeding off the vibes of the music and the energy of the crowd. Some of the best work we have seen in a long time was created this weekend by the visionary artists in attendance. There was a familiar art gallery showcasing some old favorites and new original work from many well known artists, surrounded by sculptures, live music, and a crystal shrine hosting ceremonial tea parties throughout the weekend.

As the festival came to a close on Sunday, many participants wore their dust-covered, weary faces with pride, showing no signs of slowing down, as the music began in the early evening. Seventh Swami brought flowing beats and whomps to get the evening started, delivering a stellar set that had room to move for some of the best dancing the festival goers had to offer. A great Bluetech set transitioned us from day to night, filled with emotion, new tracks and classics:

KiloWatts brought it as usual, with a glitch-hop set filled with toned-down bass lines and subtle melodies. Itching for some hip-hop, we headed to check out Zion I‘s set on the Alive Stage, as ill-esha started her set. Zion I brought an explosive performance with producer Amp Live, getting the crowd in the mood with a quickly evolving mix of familiar hip-hop and soul music.

Hypnotech brought a well-done set of many favorite songs remixed with his signature touch, originals and tracks from such artists as Tipper and Opiuo, getting the crowd in the dancing spirit. Digital Rust impressed as well in the set-up spot; his production has reached a critical level and it’s time to pay attention. Phutureprimitive closed out the festival with a similar set to the one he played last year, with select tracks from his new album Searching for Beauty in the Darkest Places, Pt. 1.

Lucidity has quickly become one of the summer’s no-brainers when it comes to transformational music festivals. Tickets have sold out both years now, and all in attendance had amazing experiences that will be with them for a long time. The emphasis was not on raging (there wasn’t even alcohol sold), but on connecting and learning, and it turned out to be a vibrant and healthy way to kick off the season.

Despite the midnight music curfew, we would like to see the festival continue at Live Oak for years to come. The layout was perfect, the lineup stellar, and the collection of people, healers, and education make this one of the best festivals we have been to.

The post Lucidity Festival 2013 – Review, Photos, & Videos appeared first on LostinSound.org.

Cosmal is a relatively new (he started performing in 2010), up-and-coming musician who specializes in a mix of world/trance/fusion. His live show consists of layering loops which brings to mind such jam scene luminaries like Keller Williams and Zach Deputy. Unlike these two, Cosmal has a more electronic sound to his work. He recently released Part 1 of his three part album, entitled Cosmalogy 101. Like most albums that come in multiple installments, this album is short, only consisting of five tracks. Yet each of the tracks packs quite a wallop. From the entrancing synth chords which open “Energiko I,” to the guitar lick of “Kundalini Shine,” the whole album clearly has many influences. One can hear Santana’s sound in the guitar chords of this album, as well as the vibe of early STS9, EOTO, and Lotus. Ryan (a.k.a. Cosmal) has dubbed it as “Conscious Minded Music for Conscious Minded People.”

Cosmal’s live shows are also spectacular. Each event features a live painter and a unique light show. All of Cosmal’s sets are LIVE sets, and like the album, they are nothing short of amazing, consisting of the consisting of the layering and looping of electric guitar, keyboards, and finger drum pads.

Download Cosmal’s new album here:

Bandcamp

Facebook

SoundCloud

Cosmal – “Reality” [11.09.12 w/ Big Gigantic]

The post Cosmal – ‘Cosmalogy 101′ Review appeared first on LostinSound.org.

Photo courtesy of Margaret HUNTER

His career groped its way forward, progressing by trial and error, streaming through a multiplicity of avenues and efforts, reaching out in various directions as he searched for a breakthrough: the next level in the evolution of his soul’s endeavors. Ecozoic is a leap forward in the evolution of David Sugalski’s musical consciousness. The Polish Ambassador makes a statement with this album, an obvious ascension in sound. The original nature of his works holds pure, while a growing organic reconnection from far away galaxies to Mother Earth and her beauty bind this collection to what is sacred.

This sonic spirituality resonates true in “Inside a Dream” featuring Ayla Nereo. Warping angelic elements bleed into ice cold melodies with the thick glowing voice of Ayla, which manifests a viscous moving haunt to the track. Ayla graces two other songs in the collection, one being “Conversations Between.” The vibrant fabric of Ayla’s voice is strewn across this confessional of understanding love. Ethereal lows bounce under a simple clap while playful hollow mallets provide a sweet innocence to the story.

Doing what The Polish mastered pre-Ecozoic is shown in the maturity heard in “New Funk Millennium” and “Invisible Frontiers,” where entheogenic grooves, layered strings, and tight vocal samples create a progressive soundscape which ripple sexual vibrations across the dance floor.

Through proper intention, Ecozoic is able to encompass a mutually enhancing relationship with past efforts and the newly acquired connections to Earth, reverberating outward the evolution of electronic music.

All of TPA’s music is readily available for download:

The Polish Ambassador Website

The Polish Ambassador SoundCloud

The Polish Ambassador Bandcamp

The post The Polish Ambassador – ‘Ecozoic’ Review appeared first on LostinSound.org.

It just so happens that next week LostinSound.org will be teaming up with one of the city’s most talked about electronic acts, Wobblesauce, to throw a party celebrating the band’s new EP, Galactic Cannibalism. The trio has been putting the finishing touches on this release and working to get the tracks ready for festival stages. Follow the LiS SoundCloud for the exclusive release over the next week. Leave it on Stage (L.I.O.S.) will be shaking the show up with their own brand of bumping live dance music instrumentation. Don Fochi will be moving the crowd between sets with some various House stylings, perfect for mingling. Also, one of Boston’s freshest MC’s, Waters, will be hosting our soiree and hopefully throwing out a few rhymes while he’s at it. Oh, and don’t forget to wish Wobble bassist and local celebrity, Jake Boynton, a happy birthday!

Thursday May 16th

Wobblesauce EP Release Party w/ Leave It On Stage + Don Fochi + Hosted by Waters

(JAKE’S BIRTHDAY!)

Church Boston

Tickets $8
Buy your tickets HERE
Doors at 8pm
Music 9pm-1am
21+

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*** LostinSound.org is giving away a VIP Experience for 2 people ***

- 2 guestlist spots

- ”Gonzo-style” party bus to the show – cocktails and snacks with the bands and their families/friends

- Backstage viewing experience during the show

- Free Wobblesauce t-shirt and CD

- More surprises!

*** To enter the contest, like our Facebook Page, follow our Twitter, and send us an email to LostinSoundorg@gmail.com with “Wobblesauce VIP Contest” in the subject line and your full name in the body of the email ***

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Album artwork by Ryan Donelan

Galactic Cannibalism was produced and recorded by Jason Petrin of STR!PE, read LostinSound.org’s STR!PE artist spotlight here.

Wobblesauce Website

Wobblesauce Facebook

Wobblesauce SoundCloud

The post LostinSound.org Presents – Together Festival Wobblesauce EP Release Party – VIP Ticket Giveaway Contest appeared first on LostinSound.org.

Zak Hoya, also known as producer/violist Plantrae, has been immersed in musical culture and the performing arts since the tender young age of 5. His musical talents consist of viola, guitar, mandolin, and piano composition, as well as numerous forms of drumming. After years of hard work, Zak became most accomplished at the viola, accumulating a long list of orchestras, performances, and even commercial work in the film industry. In the early 2000’s Zak discovered electronic music, this new found love allowed him to dive right in, and for the last 10 years has been experimenting with various modes of recording, production, arraignment, numerous electronic and acoustic band projects, as well as DJ’ing. In the spring of 2012 Zak Hoya launched Plantrae, and in a few short months has brought his signature sound to many eager ears, performing at numerous shows and festivals last season, including Human Nature and What The Festival in OR, Sonic Bloom in CO, and Cognitive Awakening in CA. Plantrae is a fresh, unique, and playful sound experience comprised of a funky, stretchy midtempo foundation and live viola improvisation that embodies the spirit of classical, swing, and folk. His immediate popularity goes to prove that the sphere of electronic music is constantly expanding and reminding listeners everywhere that real musical instruments are still a force to be reckoned with on the dance floor.

[LiS] You describe your musical style as “Midtempo Folkbass” – How would you describe that soundscape?

[Plantrae] A trio of wandering minstrels playing mandolin, lute, and a drum machine while strolling through a sentient forest of ancient subwoofers. How’s that for a soundscape? Haha, it’s basically a fusion of glitch and folk, primarily residing in the midtempo spectrum. It comes from the heavy bass elements from glitch hop, and the melodic, instrumental energy from folk.

Can you elaborate on this new and revolutionary style: folkbass music – uniting organic sounds with intricate electronics?

Well I think revolutionary is a big word, as there are many artists who have done this before me, but I think it’s totally limiting to reduce our sonic palette to only what can be generated by machines, when we have thousands of years of amazing acoustic music technology and culture behind us. To forget and ignore those is to really ignore our human ethos and connection with physical reality.

Where does your style originate from? Is it tied to any specific culture?

The only culture I can identify with is one of the Earth and of the the forests of Cascadia (the Pacific Northwest), where I’ve lived my whole life. That being said, my music is an amalgamation of every sound, musical and otherwise, that I’ve ever heard, so there are a lot of subtle influences that emerge. For example I listened to a lot of bluegrass as a young child, and while it may not be obvious, that is a part of my musical identity and is reflected in the music I write.

Something about your musical style is exhilarating yet meditative, playful yet hauntingly beautiful – How do you do it?

Ha, I really have absolutely no idea! Although I have a hunch it has to do with combining electronic elements with acoustic ones. A big focus for me musically is integrating different intensity levels in music. So you might have an immense bassline, wave-like in power, and then a delicate harp melody floating over the top, and maybe some bouncy, acoustic drum fills blending the two together. This creates a balance musically and emotionally where it’s vibrant and energetic but not overwhelming. The viola helps a lot to balance this equation.

How long have you been playing the viola?

Since I was 5. So I guess about 19 years, although I have taken breaks here and there. I really didn’t get passionate with it until I discovered I could combine it with electronics.

Who are your biggest musical influences and inspirations?

Electronically I would say Beats Antique, Tipper, Ott, and Bassnectar’s early works. Although there are countless others. Russ Liquid started out in my hometown so that was big too, seeing him play the trumpet over a long line of subs. Acoustically I was definitely influenced by classical as that was how I learned viola, but also bluegrass, reggae, flamenco, metal, swing, and folk. And by folk I don’t mean “American” folk, I mean the music of indigenous cultures around the world.

What is your vision, both musically and spiritually, and how do you plan to spread your message?

I would like to see humyns living with the Earth instead of on it. And I have no delusions that I’m going to “change the world,” but the reality is that humyns need to change or we will destroy this planet and ourselves, and we can obviously already see this happening all around us. My goal with music is to induce people to have an emotional reaction, which will motivate them to actively work towards having a healthy relationship with the Earth. I’ve learned that you can’t tell people what to do, but I can put forth information or “signposts” in my travels throughout the world, and it is up to the individual to decide whether or not they think that information is valid, and follow those signs or not.

What is the most united compassionate, selfless community movement you have been a part of?

I would definitely say the radical anarchist community here in Cascadia (the Pacific Northwest) and beyond. I had a pretty hardcore “alternative” life growing up and I found it very difficult to integrate with the standard roles that are presented in modern urban capitalism. I found that those who identify with anarchy were able to accept who I was with all my faults and help me grow into a functional humyn with a realistic understanding of the world. Anarchy is an idea based on organic social organization that reflects the way biotic systems function. A biotic system is made up of living components of a community. So in a given ecosystem you have certain species that play certain roles, or niches, in their biosphere, but no one assigns each species to a “job” the way humyns do, they just naturally evolve into a balance that works for the whole of the ecosystem. In this same way, humyns can have a social arrangement that mimics this process, where each individual is free to develop the best way for them to interact with the overall social organism. Many indigenous cultures throughout the world have utilized this model successfully for thousands of years and some still do to this day.

“This will be our reply to violence: to make music more intensely, more beautifully, more devotedly than ever before.” – Leonard Bernstein

Due to the recent events in our hometown Boston, can you respond to this quote?

Yes, I wholeheartedly agree with Leonard, it is incredibly important that we continue to make music in all the ways he describes, both as a way to heal and inspire solutions. It’s also crucial that we recognize the ways in which our current lifestyles inherently rely on institutionalized violence simply to exist. Consider the myriad of ways this happens, for example in my bioregion, the salmon have been decimated in order to feed humyns that live in cities, or the wholesale destruction of the Niger delta and its indigenous population for oil extraction, or just this last winter, when 50% percent of all industrial beehives died from exposure to man-made pesticides. This recent event in Boston can be looked at as a mere drop in a sea of violence that our little “civilized” humyn boat is floating on. We need to seriously take a look at all the violence that is happening on this planet, whether it’s directed at plants or animals or soil or humyns, and really be honest about the root causes, which overwhelmingly turns out to be industrial urban society. Only then can we begin to eliminate the systemic violence and work towards a healthier lifeway.

Can you give me an overview of upcoming projects, tours, album releases, collaborations:

Well I just released an EP called Taproot with Street Ritual and finished my first tour of California, which went great, and I have a bit of a break until festival season starts which I guess is right around the corner.

So far I have been booked for a fair amount of festivals this summer, and I’ll name a few that stand out:

Sonic Bloom (CO) 6.13.13, Enchanted Forest (CA) 6.28.13, Firefly Festival (AZ) 6.29.13, Human Nature (OR) 6.30.13, Luminosity (B.C.), 
 
Photosynthesis, Six (WA) 7.19.13, Gratifly (SC) 7.27.13, Bass Mountain (CA) 8.13.13, Pacific Fire Gathering (OR) 9.13.13, Symbiosis (CA) 9.19.13.

I would definitely recommend folks check out Luminosity, it’s their first year and it’s an amazing crew up in northern Cascadia (B.C.) which is an incredibly beautiful land base.

I have also have a couple of collaborations in the works, I’ll be doing a track for an episode of The Bloom Series, as well as a compilation coming out in may called Mycelium Music Volume 2.

Mycelium Music is a music collective based out of Olympia, WA that incorporates educational elements in its offerings, specifically focused around mycoremediation technologies, using fungus to clean up oil spills and break down toxic pollution.

Plantrae Facebook

Plantrae Bandcamp

The post Plantrae – Exclusive Interview appeared first on LostinSound.org.

The good folks at Together Festival have put together 3 days of official demos, workshops, and seminars on some of today’s most cutting edge and widely accepted music technology products from Steinberg, iZotope, and Ableton. If you’re into music production and sound design or you just want to learn more about it, you’d be wise to check out some of these workshops offered Wednesday – Friday the week of Together. Not to mention, some of which feature an array of the area’s most talented producers and DJ’s (like Soul Clap for example!). Follow the links below to find out more about each individual workshop and go get your learn on!

Wednesday [5.15] – Steinberg

Steinberg Demo: Vocal Tracks

Steinberg Demo: Creating The Perfect Beat

Steinberg Demo: Mastering with Wavelab

Steinberg Demo: Using Chord Track for Composing Songs – Cubase 7

Thursday [5.16] – iZotope

iZotope Demo: Mastering Class

iZotope Demo: Stutter Edit Master Class    

Friday [5.17] – Ableton

Ableton Workshop: Collaboration Possibilities in Ableton Live w/ Soul Clap

Ableton Demo: Live 9 w/ Ben Cantil

Ableton Demo: Push w/ Loudon Sterns

Ableton Demo: Max for Live & Audio Reactive Visuals w/ Synnack & 0xf8

Ableton Demo: Taming Basslines in Ableton Live 9 w/ Leon J

Ableton Seminar: Advanced Sound Design in Ableton Live w/ Wiggz

The post Together Festival 2013 Official Music Technology Demos & Workshops appeared first on LostinSound.org.

I thought it might be interesting for today’s producers to read a few stories about some of the things we did back in the 1990’s to make sounds and effects, for which the ease of achieving by today’s standards is often taken for granted. My infatuation with hardware began as a pre-teen when I put a quarter into a Galaxian machine and a genetic mutation took place - I have never been the same.

A second turning point occurred while I was watching a college band perform in Ithaca, NY. The drummer hit a rubber pad with a stick, and Harry Dean Stanton’s voice from the 1984 cult classic Repo Man spoke to me: “Ordinary fuckin’ people, I hate ‘em” and my aforementioned mutation began to flower in the shape of an AKAI S-950. Soon, all was to be lost… in sound of course.

A nail in the coffin of my desire to create with acoustic instruments was a mix tape by UK Hardcore DJ Nicky Blackmarket that I experienced circa 1991, as well as The Low End Theory from A Tribe Called Quest, Fear of a Black Planet from Public Enemy’s The Bomb Squad and obviously Paul’s Boutique by The Beastie Boys from The Dust Brothers. However the straw that broke the camel’s back was the production of DJ Premier and Pete Rock on the epic Nas debut Illmatic. At this moment in time, after 20 years as a percussionist, I sold my drum set in exchange for an AKAI MPC-3000. Resistance was futile.

Here are descriptions of two basic production techniques, including details on how I used to accomplish them in addition to the audio of my recorded work while implementing these techniques at the time.

1) Rendering a loop with effects

DJ Soul Slinger “Abducted” tube Paranormal Remix

These days if you want to modify and preserve the results of an effect on a timed segment of audio (for the purpose of example, we’ll say a beat – although it could be anything), all you have to do is change the plugins and re-render it repeatedly or maybe just apply a series of inserts on the channel and automate them, turning each one on and off as you please in nearly any combination. These possibilities have gotten so complex that you can even use a tool like Ableton’s Effects Rack with macro control, which I will not go into in this article.

When I started creating electronic music, there were no tools this powerful, but we did have MIDI with CC (Continuous Control) and there were expression pedals with sequencers to record their actions. If there was a click, drag, and play scenario to save the results of a modification, I was not using it. My first exposure to such power came later in the form of Sonic Foundry ACID and earlier versions of CuBase using a Digidesign AudioMedia 3 PCI Card.

We did have something called a DAT. Digital Audio Tape. Yes, T-A-P-E. I had a Panasonic SV-3700, and it had cost at least $1000. I had started to produce jungle music partly because my mind was blown by T-Power’s remix of DJ Soul Slinger’s epic “Abducted,” but mostly because someone told me I needed to use software to do it and would never be able to make that style with just a hardware MPC-3000. The guy I used to be was easily baited by such folly, and so I set forth as one of the few (if not only)  producers to do full on LIVE performances playing JUNGLE music with a HARDWARE based setup.

Why? I’m glad you asked. Because that is how I used to roll, and sometimes I still do but at least today I recognize it for the choice that it is. I am the guy who, when visited by a Mystic while sitting at the bottom of a mountain, would decline the keys to a Rolls Royce on a paved road to the top with Jiddu Krishnamurti riding shotgun in favor of a machete to manifest my own suffering (better perceived as spiritual growth) by cutting a new trail of Ascension way off the beaten path. My experience with romantic relationship displays this tendency perfectly… but I digress.

So yes, everything was arranged and mixed LIVE ON THE FLY using an Allen & Heath GL2 mixing console, the result recorded and captured forever on 2-track DAT. The awesomeness of arbitrary controllerism that we take for granted today was once a never ending search for the right combination of machines (I plan to discuss the history of these choices in a future article entitled – Music Machines: Known, Loved, and Lost.)

Syncro-mystically, a term I borrow from Adam Scott Miller from whom I licensed the cover art of my latest release Awake(n) - I was eventually asked to remix DJ Soul Slinger’s epic work “Abducted,” the very track which T-Power’s remix of had completely blown my mind. I wanted to render my drum loops with effects so that they could be further manipulated inside my precious Akai MPC-3000. Here is what I actually did to achieve the results:

1. Playback the programmed beats from my MPC-3000 into a Mesa Boogie V-Twin Pre Amp

2. Record the output to DAT

3. Resample from the DAT and edit the start/end points on the MPC

This process is much more time consuming than how just clicking render is today. Eventually I found tiny hardware phrase samplers like the Zoom Sample Track ST-224, which auto sets the loop length based upon BPM. My friends from We (tm) (DJ Olive and Lloop) used to figure the proper loop length using a calculator based upon sample rate and BPM. A We (tm) performance was actually done without the use of a sequencer or MIDI Clock; two producers would duel using only timed loops and sounds triggered by MIDI keyboard. I highly suggest finding a copy of their album Decentertainment on Liquid Sky Music‘s Home Entertainment imprint, and listening to the track “Out For Now.” And if that doesn’t feed your head then try The Square Root of Negative One.

2) Automating Delay Time

“Let’s Get Mental” by tube

OK. Brace yourself as I make a bold statement - there was a time when electronic music was actually more electronic than it is today, and used something called CV-Gate.

Control Voltage, the “CV” in CV-Gate is a technology where a certain pitch (frequency) of an oscillator directly corresponds to a specified amount of voltage (electricity). There are two schools:

• Linear (one volt per octave) popularized by Bob Moog in the 1960’s, used by many synthesizers from manufacturers such as Roland, Moog, Sequential, Overheim, and ARP.

• Exponential (hertz per volt) one octave = double the voltage used by synthesizers from manufacturers like Korg and Yamaha.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CV/Gate

Gate is an electrical pulse which can trigger something. This is called a NOTE ON event in MIDI jargon today but CV-Gate does not have a NOTE OFF event therefore staged envelopes were used to shape a sound beginning with AR as well as ADSR, if a toggle enabled keyboard was involved. Gate has a couple of schools as well:

• V-Trigger (positive) Roland

• S-Trigger (negative) Moog Korg and Yamaha

To automate delay time: I programmed steady 16th notes using the “Timing Correct” button on my MPC. Then I sent that MIDI data to a CV-Gate converter which in turn sent a GATE signal on every 16th note to the Arp Sequencer’s “Gate In,” which would then advance by one step for each 16th note that passed. The Arp Sequencer voltage OUT was plugged into a delay unit’s voltage IN, and the audio signal of the beat was run directly through this delay unit while the result was recorded on DAT to be resampled.

Here is the equipment I used to do this for the track “Let’s Get Mental.” I have included an abstract definition describing the main purpose of each piece of equipment.

• Novation Bass Station Rack (MIDI to CV Converter)

• ARP Sequencer (Control Voltage Step Sequencer) receiving the GATE generated from each MIDI NOTE ON by the Bass Station

• Digitech RDS 7.6 (Voltage Controlled Delay Time) receiving CV from the ARP Sequencer and translating it to delay time

• SV-3700 DAT recording (please see Rendering a Loop with Effects above)

And thus it was so: the root movement by fourth in the breakbeat of “Let’s Get Mental” by tube was created by the sequenced delay time! With today’s tools this effect could be easily achieved by simply drawing with your mouse, and one could even have linear transitions between the pitches. Amazing.

These have been two examples confessions of how we (or at least I) did things back in the day. How useful it is to have more efficient tools like Ableton Live, though ironically efficiency may not always save time.

Watch for further contributions to Lost in Sound from @heissmusik!

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Written by Nicholas Mann

May 17th might be a good day to refresh the Coachella website to try to “get lucky” enough to purchase pre-sale tickets for 2014, especially if you’re willing to bet the $800-ish price of admission that Daft Punk will be there. Of course, if you’re really trying to see a 90′s legend re-invent themselves, May 17th would be a good day to be driving to the fifth annual Emissions West Coast Bass Culture Festival, ready to camp out instead.

“I don’t care if I get kicked out of every rich kid club on the planet… I will never sacrifice my integrity as a DJ,” tweeted DJ Shadow after famously getting kicked off the decks at the end of last year in Miami. After being told his set was “too future,” venues for the All Basses Covered 2013 Tour were curated with open mindedness. Fortunately for the West Coast, Emissions is the premier future bass showcase, with a soul-rending line-up of all-star wub magicians ready to rage all night and day.

Belden Town is a sleepy forest hamlet northeast of Chico, nestled in California’s Feather River Canyon. During the weekend of May 17-19, though, sleep won’t be a high priority. The headliners are so good that first-glancers may mistake the bill for an agency roster backed by rich corporate sponsors. Nothing could be further from the truth; the flagship outdoor festival of Camp Question Mark, whose trademark punctuation marks can usually be found standing up to dust storms amid the palpable onslaught of six-digit-wattage PK’s along Black Rock City‘s 2:00 avenue. Year-round, though, Camp Question Mark focuses on creating an inclusive community centered around septum-rattling bass and open-hearted good vibes.

Most exciting among the big names is hard working producer The Polish Ambassador, who wraps up his Spring 2013 tour this week. His upbeat and layered rhythms have consistently resulted in sold-out crowds nationwide, swimming in sexy-pants feelings. He’s supported by his VJ Liminus, and his endearing and thoughtful Facebook status updates from the road have only increased fan loyalty for the productive pair. Giving away every track he’s ever made for free doesn’t seem to be hurting his personal brand any, either.

Also featured at the top of the bill: future-funker Kill Paris, Rain’s Phutureprimitive project, and Ableton genius ill.Gates, neither of whom should be missed. Though Bassnectar dropping “California Dreamin’” in his sets helped a ton, Camp Question Mark certainly deserves some of the credit for launching Minnesota‘s career, so it’s only fitting to see his name between trill trapstyle star Luminox and lazer-wielding NastyNasty, who finish up the list of headliners. “I don’t play that track anymore,” he mentioned last December regarding The Mamas & The Papas remix, but if his set for his Altered States EP release party hosted by Camp Question Mark last November is any indication, he’s got some special surprises up his sleeve for his Burner family.

Having just released an EP with Minnesota earlier this week, G Jones leads the pack of California future bass producers, the ranks of which are too numerous to list here. Expect a lot from anyone signed to MalLabel, GruntWorthy, or Street Ritual. When I’m in the mood for voluntary synesthesia, I’ll be searching for that East Bay sound, hitting up TASO, Skulltrane, Indaskyes, Hypha, Lotus Drops, and VNDMG to name a few. Other well-kept California secrets include glitchy mix-master MiHKAL and the three-piece trappy world-beat innovators who make up Deep City Culture, fresh off an EP release.

Worried you won’t be able to wind down in between days? Have no fear, Austin native Trill Scott Heron will be there (not to be confused with Trill Murray, also spinning at Emissions) with his trademark “Future Screw” style, which sounds a little bit like Texas trap drowned in Houston-flavored cough syrup.

One more mention: You may not have heard of Stylust Beats yet, but I’ve been a die-hard fan since reuniting with my entire camp at Camp Question Mark for his sunrise set in 2011. His feel-good productions, infused with just the right amount of skater-dude-in-a-baseball-cap gangsta’ steez, are often instant classics. Check out his Emissions preview over at The Dankles. Noticing fellow Canadian Sara Tonin on the bill, I’m keeping my fingers crossed for a live collaboration like that at Decompression last year. Last time I saw Stylust was at a Camp Question Mark party hosted by ZeroDB on BART, and no renegade Bay Area Rapid Transit party would be complete without resurrecting those Dre bangers that defined the short-lived hyphy movement a decade ago.

With over 50 names on the support roster, there are enough lesser-known acts competing for ear-drum attention to keep your SoundCloud full until the Fall. Still, according to the event website, music is second to “the people” as a priority at this event. The language surrounding intentional creative communities can get a bit flowery for my taste sometimes, but the bona fides of this festival among the Summer music options cannot be understated. Though technically it’s a permitted event, complete with private security and places to pee, this is as close to an underground woodland rave as you can get without risking incarceration.

Julie Hanna Photography

By the time you’ve read this, you’re already mid-REM cycle on those tickets, which are even more limited than in years past. Both tiers of pre-sale tickets have sold out, and they’ve just added more GA tickets at $160, which is a steal for three days of music. People who can’t get off of work on Friday can save $10 by purchasing a 2-day pass instead, and those who have never been to REI but still want to get down can buy a one-day pass for Sunday at $75.

If this is your first year, bring camping gear in case you’d like to sleep, and be prepared to handle yourself like an adult. If you’ve been before, you may notice some more kush amenities this time around, including actual roads leading to the event and full RV hookups for $275. It’s a leave-no-trace event, meaning you need to leave room in your car for the trash you’re hauling home. There are legit EMT’s on staff, though I hope you don’t need one. Please leave your pets and renegade sound equipment at home. This festival is a special gift, so don’t do anything to screw it up. Don’t forget something to float on for the River Stage!

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Noisia are a big inspiration, always pushing the envelope. Have been enjoying their Devil May Cry game soundtrack. For us it’s always good to look outside the box. We’re not necessarily taking production tips, but sometimes it’s interesting to see how people approach music and the way it is presented. There’s inspiration wherever you look. At the moment, our plan is to work with as many talented artists as we can, and continue to build our own sound.

Check Dcypher out HERE

In SF with our “Deep, Dark, and Dangerous” night, we’re more hands on, deciding on lineups, promotion, etc. So for us, while we’re not taking much risk, we’re still very much involved!

As far as our sound is concerned, our aim is to be the best at what we do. We’ll definitely be working with artists who we haven’t done stuff with before, and keeping an open mind about the direction music is taking in general. US summer festivals are definitely in the cards. We played at SXSW, WMC, and Snowball in March, and have a few other things up our sleeves for later in the year including some Canadian festivals! We’re also planning two or three UK/EU tours, in addition to a NZ/Australia tour as well.

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