Ambient/Post-Rock/Textural bass playing thread

[Spectrum]

I actually also bought Probe 6-8 today too (most recently released EP) - earliest (Electronic Meditation) and most recent releases - I'm into both! Some people complain about the stuff since Edgar Froese died, but I like the most recent stuff much more than the 80s stuff for example...

Yes, the current lineup is kind of a throwback to 70s TD with some of the less cheesy 80s influence thrown in. Froese was never one for standing still and he always embraced the newest trends and tech, plus he started getting the band involved in soundtracks for film in the 80s, all of which resulted in some pretty cheesy stuff, alongside a few gems like Love on a Real Train. There is one album from the late 80s, Optical Race, which can be considered cheesy depending on the mood I'm in, but I still listen to it from time to time because at the time it came out in 88 it sounded futuristic and brings back some good memories of what I was doing in those days.

I saw TD in Philly in 2012 and got to shake Edgar Froese's hand after the show, it was a fairly small club venue and a good time. I'm glad his bandmates decided to keep the project alive after his passing.

 

[Bob_Ross]

I've mostly been planning for our next self-imposed exile to Arizona, determined to not spend yet another few weeks or months without enough musical equipment to make a righteous noise. So I've been figuring out what will make the most compact-yet-effective rig for bass playing/noise making and recording, and then packing up and shipping those items out to the desert in advance of our arrival Feb 1. Gonna have one bass, the mini pedalboard (minus the Flashback, replaced by the Chase Bliss Blooper) plus one or two extra stombboxes, and the SOMA Cosmos which ostensibly ships to me next week. A laptop, a USB audio interface, headphones. Two microphones. The smallest amp that I can A) trust to handle any gig I might possibly get, and B) affordably ship across country -- so, a tc electronic BQ500 head and a Flite Sound 115B cabinet. And that's it...supposed to last me until May, unless my wife's employer inexplicably decides to call everyone back to the office before then.

Also, I've been playing regularly with the RMA Trio, but that feels bittersweet: Since everyone knows I'm going away at the end of this month it's hard to get them to focus on setting goals or learning new material, so we've mostly been improvising together. Not that there's anything wrong with that...

 

[Spectrum]

I wish I could arrange to disappear to the desert for a while. I'd load my truck up with music and photography gear and vanish in Utah for a couple of months, one of my favorite places for hiking and inspiration.

I suppose I have enough vacation saved up to do it for 2 or 3 weeks. Need to find a cheap place to stay I guess...[gears turning in head]

 

[hieronymous]

I have a weird liking for Optical Race even though it's cheesy as anything. Maybe it's nostalgia. But each time I play it I have two or three of the songs stuck in my head for the next week or so.

Exit is probably my favorite overall because it was the first one I bought and I've listened to it a million times.

I haven't really checked out any of their newer stuff -- maybe I should

I love Exit! Hyperborea not so much. Never listened to Optical Race - the opening chords remind me of "Watcher of the Skies" by Genesis. Yeah, the sounds of the '80s bug me for the most part - because that's when I was a teenager looking back to the '60s & '70s. But I also totally get it when the first thing you listen to holds a special place.

The recent TD album that really got me is Quantum Gate:



This was Edgar Froese's new vision - he died while it was being conceptualized, I think that they used some of the things he recorded.

Yes, the current lineup is kind of a throwback to 70s TD with some of the less cheesy 80s influence thrown in. Froese was never one for standing still and he always embraced the newest trends and tech, plus he started getting the band involved in soundtracks for film in the 80s, all of which resulted in some pretty cheesy stuff, alongside a few gems like Love on a Real Train. There is one album from the late 80s, Optical Race, which can be considered cheesy depending on the mood I'm in, but I still listen to it from time to time because at the time it came out in 88 it sounded futuristic and brings back some good memories of what I was doing in those days.

I saw TD in Philly in 2012 and got to shake Edgar Froese's hand after the show, it was a fairly small club venue and a good time. I'm glad his bandmates decided to keep the project alive after his passing.

That's great that you got to meet him! Wow, I wanted to go see them around 2010 maybe? Just couldn't get there. Ah well, there's plenty of bands that I have never and will never see (Hendrix etc.) and actually some amazing bands that I surprisingly was able to see (Deep Purple, Magma, Gong, Kraftwerk, etc.) so I'm happy.

 

[Spectrum]

I love Exit! Hyperborea not so much. Never listened to Optical Race - the opening chords remind me of "Watcher of the Skies" by Genesis. Yeah, the sounds of the '80s bug me for the most part - because that's when I was a teenager looking back to the '60s & '70s. But I also totally get it when the first thing you listen to holds a special place.

The recent TD album that really got me is Quantum Gate:



This was Edgar Froese's new vision - he died while it was being conceptualized, I think that they used some of the things he recorded.



That's great that you got to meet him! Wow, I wanted to go see them around 2010 maybe? Just couldn't get there. Ah well, there's plenty of bands that I have never and will never see (Hendrix etc.) and actually some amazing bands that I surprisingly was able to see (Deep Purple, Magma, Gong, Kraftwerk, etc.) so I'm happy.

At the 2012 tour Edgar mentioned to the audience that TD hadn't toured the US in something like 20 years at that point, so it was a pretty big deal to see them. I am familiar with some of the electronic music personalities in Philadelphia and most of them were in that room that night.

 

[Btbp]

I have a weird liking for Optical Race even though it's cheesy as anything. Maybe it's nostalgia. But each time I play it I have two or three of the songs stuck in my head for the next week or so.

Exit is probably my favorite overall because it was the first one I bought and I've listened to it a million times.

I haven't really checked out any of their newer stuff -- maybe I should

Exit is my go-to TD album, if it were vinyl (which I did have it in back in the day) it would be worn through.

I like parts of Optical Race and it's on my TD playlist which continues to get a lot of action, but it is a TD of a different era in Electronic Music, where the equipment and recording techniques started getting more sophisticated than that of Exit. And to some degree, more plastic. But plastic was cool then.

I still like a lot of 80s music, but a lot of the fashion from then has not traveled well.....

TD is one of those groups that despite my following them for ~40 years there is about as much of their stuff I've yet to hear as I've heard.

 

[dukeorock]

Kinda dark, kinda ambient

 

[JES]

you mean a different way to control the modular stuff or a different poly? (just idle curiosity)

i just thought it was an interesting perk.

Agreed it's a great perk. I put in a pre-order for an Udo Super 6 desktop. I'm still not 100% that it's the right choice (how could I be without playing one?) but I think I am getting something like a Prophet with more options for modulation and waveforms. Which could be good or bad. Part of me thinks I should just go for a 4-voice Doepfer system as a sort of Perfourmer on steroids.

 

[JES]

Kinda dark, kinda ambient

Really good FMy sounds in that one!

 

[steubig]

Agreed it's a great perk. I put in a pre-order for an Udo Super 6 desktop. I'm still not 100% that it's the right choice (how could I be without playing one?) but I think I am getting something like a Prophet with more options for modulation and waveforms. Which could be good or bad. Part of me thinks I should just go for a 4-voice Doepfer system as a sort of Perfourmer on steroids.

isn’t the udo based on roland stuff?

 

[Btbp]

I liked Quantum Key and TANGERINE DREAM - HANSEATIC HARBOUR LIGHTS more than 9:55PM Session from the Sessions album, which is all new to me. I will give Quantum more time to get more familiar with it, and it has Froese so has his touch on it.

While I would like these on their own, the sound is not really my idea of TD, it's a little too Techno and frenetic and feels dated to me.

Having said that not sure any of these are relevant for what I think this thread is about but I think ok for a digression. I was about to post about a couple other things that are similar but realize there's no bass in them. Then again I haven't been back to this thread in a long time so my understanding of it may be off.

 

[Btbp]

Well, I'll post it anyway in case it's new to anyone, if you like TD you might like this:

 

[JES]

isn’t the udo based on roland stuff?

interface and appearance yes, but the sound, no. Filter is ssi 2144, which is probably closer to a Prophet. Of course I won’t really know how it sounds till I have it.

 

[JES]

Enjoying the TD talk. If I love Phaedra, what of the newer stuff should I check out? I stopped listening to them in the 80s.

 

[Btbp]

I and a couple others mentioned Exit, which is what I like best, but if you don't already know it, Froese's Stuntman is really good.

 

[Spectrum]

TD is one of those groups that despite my following them for ~40 years there is about as much of their stuff I've yet to hear as I've heard.

Their catalog is humongous. Especially when you add in all the soundtrack work and Froese's other projects. According to Wikipedia they have over 100 albums!

Enjoying the TD talk. If I love Phaedra, what of the newer stuff should I check out? I stopped listening to them in the 80s.

This is one of the newer pieces they put out, and which I bought and downloaded:

8.17pm Session - Triangle | Tangerine Dream (bandcamp.com)

 

[Spectrum]

Well, I'll post it anyway in case it's new to anyone, if you like TD you might like this:

That reminds me a bit of Jon Hopkins and some of the other chillout stuff I was into about 10 years ago.

 

[Btbp]

That reminds me a bit of Jon Hopkins and some of the other chillout stuff I was into about 10 years ago.

I liked that, though it reminds me more of the Morr collection of Blue Skied An' Clear



If you like this sort of thing, a guy I stumbled upon three years ago goes by Stellardrone (I have no idea how well known some of the things I listen to are), he does really good stuff, I bought a couple of his CDs off Amazon to suport him but he gives his stuff away for free.

What one commenter said:
The full name of the composer is Edgaras Žakevičius. A true musical genius, who creates his music for fun and not for profit. Not many people like him exist, and we thank him for creating this masterpiece of a musical album. It inspires awe and captures perfectly the fascination of the universe.

Anyone who likes TD would like this, to me it's on the same level:




He reminds me a bit of Global Communications, who are great but I guess everyone knows about them as this is a classic:


There's no way these guys weren't influenced by TD.
It sounds like

 

[dukeorock]

Agreed it's a great perk. I put in a pre-order for an Udo Super 6 desktop. I'm still not 100% that it's the right choice (how could I be without playing one?) but I think I am getting something like a Prophet with more options for modulation and waveforms. Which could be good or bad. Part of me thinks I should just go for a 4-voice Doepfer system as a sort of Perfourmer on steroids.

I’d love to get my hands on a Super Six!

Really good FMy sounds in that one!

Thanks! The FM engine in the M8 is my favorite on that machine

 

[steubig]

I've mostly been planning for our next self-imposed exile to Arizona, determined to not spend yet another few weeks or months without enough musical equipment to make a righteous noise. So I've been figuring out what will make the most compact-yet-effective rig for bass playing/noise making and recording, and then packing up and shipping those items out to the desert in advance of our arrival Feb 1. Gonna have one bass, the mini pedalboard (minus the Flashback, replaced by the Chase Bliss Blooper) plus one or two extra stombboxes, and the SOMA Cosmos which ostensibly ships to me next week. A laptop, a USB audio interface, headphones. Two microphones. The smallest amp that I can A) trust to handle any gig I might possibly get, and B) affordably ship across country -- so, a tc electronic BQ500 head and a Flite Sound 115B cabinet. And that's it...supposed to last me until May, unless my wife's employer inexplicably decides to call everyone back to the office before then.

Also, I've been playing regularly with the RMA Trio, but that feels bittersweet: Since everyone knows I'm going away at the end of this month it's hard to get them to focus on setting goals or learning new material, so we've mostly been improvising together. Not that there's anything wrong with that...

so the “exile” is self-imposed?

just staying away from nyc for covid’s sake?

i’ve also been thinking about desert life. or mexico. or berlin. or *somewhere*.

i’ve tried to figure out how many boxes i need to be mobile. maybe some clothes too.