Ambient/Post-Rock/Textural bass playing thread

[monsterthompson]

What Make noise stand alone module would you consider the “best” or most versatile for creating sound, textures etc......??

Strega.
Invalid Link Removed
In objective terms, Strega is a standalone, semi-modular synthesizer with the same form factor as the 0-Coast and 0-CTRL. Unlike these instruments, though, Strega does not explicitly borrow inspiration from the techniques of West Coast synthesis. Instead, it surfaces a darker, wilder, and noisier sound, and presents a workflow that encourages experimentation and rewards careful listening and intentional sonic manipulation. It can function as a standalone drone machine, a synth voice to pair with your 0-CTRL, or even as a processor for external signals.

• Features an intricate normalled signal path, with the option to play either with or without patch cables

• Touchplate interface for momentary signal routing and experimental modulation tactics

• Internal Interference generator allows for chaotic modulation throughout the system

• Time / Filter Experiment: a delay / filter / noise generator that turns any sound into a swirling, murky abyss of distant churning and howling tones

• Time, Absorb, Decay, and Filter controls alter the behavior of the delay line

 

[dukeorock]

@dukeorock
What Make noise stand alone module would you consider the “best” or most versatile for creating sound, textures etc......??
Could be any brand btw, I use whatever works.
It would be used as a stand alone for live and for sampling.

I use lots of asynchronous loops in my stuff lately.

Any other suggestions would be appreciated.
Will start RTFM with the MicroFreak, just need a little more time off from it.

Currently using lot’s of synth and contact mic samples as my main sources.
I want to add Colors, textures, brushes etc from my sound tool box.
Monotony is to be avoided at all costs.

I enjoyed the 0Coast while I had it, but had to look at a lot of patching tips tutorials to figure out how to make the most of it. Did a few jams where I’d find a cool sound, dump it into the Octatrack, then make another patch, sample it, etc, until I got enough usable elements for a piece of music. I liked it, but these days I just use my eurorack to build up sample food stuff and overall I do NOT recommend getting into eurorack! Such a money pit and never feels ‘finished.’ Gotta get one more module to make it right, then another, then another...
I would think the Strega would be cool for live/improv situations. Not sure about ‘most versatile’ though. Putting together a live rig is pretty personal. I’ve never really even figured it out for myself beyond a bass, some cool pedals and an Octatrack. I just need to get faster/better at using that combo

 

[ugly_bassplayer]

I enjoyed the 0Coast while I had it, but had to look at a lot of patching tips tutorials to figure out how to make the most of it. Did a few jams where I’d find a cool sound, dump it into the Octatrack, then make another patch, sample it, etc, until I got enough usable elements for a piece of music. I liked it, but these days I just use my eurorack to build up sample food stuff and overall I do NOT recommend getting into eurorack! Such a money pit and never feels ‘finished.’ Gotta get one more module to make it right, then another, then another...
I would think the Strega would be cool for live/improv situations. Not sure about ‘most versatile’ though. Putting together a live rig is pretty personal. I’ve never really even figured it out for myself beyond a bass, some cool pedals and an Octatrack. I just need to get faster/better at using that combo

Sample food would be an excellent way of putting it.
Looking for other sound sources do broaden my sonic colors textures etc.....

And ,no I have zero intentions of going into eurorack.

Thanks for the reply,

 

[JES]

What don’t you like about the Microfreak? The architecture of the make noise units is different of course, but maybe the same thing might frustrate you?

PS my guts says Strega over 0-Coast for you.

 

[ugly_bassplayer]

What don’t you like about the Microfreak? The architecture of the make noise units is different of course, but maybe the same thing might frustrate you?

PS my guts says Strega over 0-Coast for you.

The Microfreak is awesome.
I just didn't create or record anything with it in the past 3 months.
Thought it was a good idea to let it go for a few weeks then come back with a fresh perspective on it.

As I previously mentioned, looking for more colors. I don't want to stagnate.

As of now I have about 2h worth of material recorded.
Very different approach from my previous stuff.

All bangers I tell ya.

 

[steubig]

The Microfreak is awesome.
I just didn't create or record anything with it in the past 3 months.
Thought it was a good idea to let it go for a few weeks then come back with a fresh perspective on it.

i know it may not be your thing, but a tutorial vid, or even the loopop takedown of it, might be useful to give you the ins and outs of it.

 

[lordradish]

Meanwhile, in domestic bass news, I talked with the builder today and he said that stain has no effect on tone. He recommended very thin urethane over it. And my colour consultant (aka wife aka drummer) decided we were being too conservative and now a sort of raspberry/red/fuscia sort of thing appears to be in the lead.

I wouldn't think that a clear stain would have any effect whatsoever on tone... glad I wasn't wrong.

 

[ugly_bassplayer]

i know it may not be your thing, but a tutorial vid, or even the loopop takedown of it, might be useful to give you the ins and outs of it.

Already checked out few.
Picked up a few neat things.

 

[emjazz]

Finally getting to check out a couple of records with our own @steubig .....he mentioned these to me a while back, because it's with one of my favorite drummers....I totally forgot to check them out until the conversation popped back up on Facebook again. Really glad I am now. Great, great stuff.
Antipodes by Billy Mintz, Steuart Liebig & Vinny Golia

No Train by Billy Mintz, Steuart Liebig & Vinny Golia

 

[steubig]

shucks. thanks @emjazz

 

[ugly_bassplayer]

shucks. thanks @emjazz

Links are for apple store....any bandcamp links of those??

 

[Feral Feline]

DHL is hands down the worst carrier I've dealt with, far worse than the USPS. They bat zero percent, yes, ZERO, getting anything to my house. Every single item ever shipped to me via DHL mysteriously never showed up at my door. If given any choice at all I go with anyone else. Just my personal experience.

That's been my experience with DHL for a while, not the worst, but at getting things to the door.

DHL's "You were out..." notices are such BS. Our doorbell works, the phone is waiting to be called, and I AM AT HOME! Like so many, I "work" from home. DHL's Lightning Fast at delivering a notice that says you have to come to their depot to pick up your package. Notice how the italics make "Lightning Fast" look even "Faster"?


@ugly_bassplayer — My basses have the usual dents and dings, but not a lot. I don't need them to ooze slop, I do that all by myself with my *ahem* so-called "playing".

[I THOUGHT I'd already posted the above, but here it was greyed out when I revisited the thread...]

Nope, it didn't come.

S'ok, I rebuilt half of my deck today, and then got into the whiskey, so it's not like I'd be jammin' out much tonight on it, anyway.

AND IT HAS ARRIVED.

The Miezo finally came. In one piece. I'm sure I'll have more to say after playing it, all night, but some preliminary thoughts:

• Way lighter than I'd imagined
• Looks even better than it did in the photo
• Those Nordy Zen Blades are EXACTLY the sound I'm looking for, nice and punchy
  
• Gonna need to make a very short strap. I think, because of the short neck, I'll want to play this much higher on my body than a full-scale
• Has great action, not tense at all
• Works great with an e-bow
  
• I currently have it tuned ADGCFBb. I am going to mess around with F# and G tonight, as well as maybe experiment with some other tunings when I change the strings
  
• Certainly takes a bit to get used to. I think the whole spatial thing of the shorter neck is just gonna take some time to get used to. The strange thing is playing an open string and expecting something a lot lower.

Tolja so.

What I, personally, want to know about the whole dealio, is:

Which whiskey did you get into in the first instance, and...
Which whiskey did you get into to celebrate its arrival?


Congrats, it sure has a sexy backside!

 

[steubig]

Links are for apple store....any bandcamp links of those??

dunno. the record company musta put them up, i didn’t.

 

[lordradish]

That's been my experience with DHL for a while, not the worst, but at getting things to the door.

DHL's "You were out..." notices are such BS. Our doorbell works, the phone is waiting to be called, and I AM AT HOME! Like so many, I "work" from home. DHL's Lightning Fast at delivering a notice that says you have to come to their depot to pick up your package. Notice how the italics make "Lightning Fast" look even "Faster"?


@ugly_bassplayer — My basses have the usual dents and dings, but not a lot. I don't need them to ooze slop, I do that all by myself with my *ahem* so-called "playing".

[I THOUGHT I'd already posted the above, but here it was greyed out when I revisited the thread...]








Tolja so.

What I, personally, want to know about the whole dealio, is:

Which whiskey did you get into in the first instance, and...
Which whiskey did you get into to celebrate its arrival?


Congrats, it sure has a sexy backside!

It was all just a modest bottle of Makers 46.

 

[JES]

So when people are doing ambient/solo stuff, how much are you thinking about stereo? I'm thinking of stuff with bass, where lots of the pedals etc are mono, rather than synths, where it's more likely to be stereo from the beginning.

 

[monsterthompson]

So when people are doing ambient/solo stuff, how much are you thinking about stereo? I'm thinking of stuff with bass, where lots of the pedals etc are mono, rather than synths, where it's more likely to be stereo from the beginning.

I'm leaning into stereo. Either a stereo delay on the way into my mixer, and/or stereo effects in the Send/Return loop. I'm not really working with an amp these days, just a mixer and monitors.

 

[ugly_bassplayer]

So when people are doing ambient/solo stuff, how much are you thinking about stereo? I'm thinking of stuff with bass, where lots of the pedals etc are mono, rather than synths, where it's more likely to be stereo from the beginning.

Are you asking about a mono or stereo path for your solo touch instrument??

 

[Spectrum]

So when people are doing ambient/solo stuff, how much are you thinking about stereo? I'm thinking of stuff with bass, where lots of the pedals etc are mono, rather than synths, where it's more likely to be stereo from the beginning.

I try to use stereo all the time when practical. Both in terms of output from stereo pedals such as ping pong delay, and also in the mix when recording. For live performance the options are more limited, of course.

 

[steubig]

So when people are doing ambient/solo stuff, how much are you thinking about stereo? I'm thinking of stuff with bass, where lots of the pedals etc are mono, rather than synths, where it's more likely to be stereo from the beginning.

caveat: i don't really do true "ambient," i do more more soundscapey stuff (loosely) that's incorporated in multi-tracked recording or live improv of a slightly "electronic-ish" bent. . .

so, whether i'm doing a live or recorded project, the aesthetic holds true: i'm trying to place parts and textures in the stereo field. (i tend to think antiphonally, like orchestra parts complementing each other, etc.)

 

[JES]

Are you asking about a mono or stereo path for your solo touch instrument??

Yes, of course I'm asking for me--I just wanted to hear what others are doing. Well, the touch guitar is a plain old mono setup (not like some of the Chapman sticks or Warr guitars where it's stereo).

My deal is I've some amazing mono effects: Blooper, MF-101, Super Oscillo Fuzz, Wet, etc. And some great stereo stuff in the H9 and Ventris. Right now, I run mono into my amp, out the effects send to the volume pedal-->H9-->Blooper-->DittoX2-->efx return. If I want to record, I've got a mic hanging in front of the amp I can plug into a recorder.

I could conceivably put a mixer in there and go nuts on stereo effects. But then I lose the nice sound of the amp/speaker doing what they do to the effects. You're right that stereo would be nice for recording purposes, though. I could see some kind of stereo amp setup, or running my VT bass into the mixer and then cutting highs on the effects if I want when I mix it. It's all live improv.