Yeah, I go on and on about independent audio software developers. But really, the stuff they’ve made it possible for us to do is just incredible. I won’t get into a whole diatribe about piracy or the ethics. But there are a lot of very forward thinking individuals that deserve support for helping us accomplishing stuff in our own homes and studios that was prohibitively expensive 10 years ago, and all but impossible 30 years ago.

Of course, there are many levels of operation with these developers and companies, from one-man operations to powerful name brands. Of course I’m partial to those visionaries that are operating out there on there own. But, let’s face, Native Instruments and Stienberg aren’t exactly Exxon. But the alternatives and options for all budgets are plentiful. Decide what you can afford and do so enthusiastically, be it donating to a freeware developer or getting a great deal on boxed software. (I’d stay from Waves for ethical and financial reasons, but that’s just me.)

If you have any, uh, demo audio software. Delete it. Wipe it out. If you can’t live without it, well, then it’s time to figure out how you can actually, you know, buy it. Do you really need every Kontakt Commercial instrument ever produced, or are you collection them like baseball cards? Go on name some synth that you think is over-priced, and I’ll show you an equal synth that will be <$100.

Come on, fess up.

And, to all my dev homies, have a good weekend, get away from a computer.

I was going to try and do some link collage of products I endorse (hee, hee) but it's just too much work for the end of a working day. So, if for some weird reason, you don't have anything on you shopping list, check out my del.icio.us Audio Production feed.

Album:
Calexico

Artist:
Feast of Wire

Lable/Year:
Quarterstick Records, 2003

How I Came by It/Why I Purchased It:
Surprisingly, I came late to Calexico, since I was a huge Giant Sand fan. I mean huge: my collection of Giant Sand CDs, many of which were difficult to track down, was complete up to 5 years ago, along with side projects, singles and a few compilations; and since I was in NYC during this time, I saw them so many time the bassist Joe Burns began to recognize me. I even had a copy Burns’ demo tape, a project at the time called Spoke. (This was to become the first Calexico album.) But the first time someone mentioned Calexico to me, I had no idea that it was Burns (now singing and playing primarily guitar) and Giant Sand drummer John Convertino, with a roster of guest musicians. To be honest, I was kind of over Giant Sand at that point (go figure), but when I finally put the two together and began paying attention. When visiting England I became aware of just how huge they were in Europe. No really, they’re really big in Europe.
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No, not really.

I won’t even get into the whole debate about whether or not tape is possible to recreate with our current DSP technology. Nevertheless there is definitely use to adding effects that mess with harmonics and saturation. All of those tube and tape emulators. Whether what they’re doing is what they say in the manual is almost immaterial. Adding certain forms of subtle distortion is a pretty sure-fire way to make a track more, well, analog.

I rely mostly on VintageWarmer (v.1), digitalfishphones, a few freeware plugs, and lately the jb plugs and the Cakewalk VintageChannel 64. Used in moderation you can really make a digitally assembled track feel a lot more, well, gelled. (It’s really hard to talk about this without slipping into that producer speak that seems so subjective.) And if you’re really going for that Campfire Headphase feel (yeah, I’ll admit, I’d love to do something that sounds that good) you can really use such effects to advantage.

Anyway…

Here’s a trick I discovered using two Audio Damage plugins, the 914 fixed frequency filter and the newly released Liquid. (Also a nice chance to give props the 914; not the most gee-wiz, sexy plug in the AD line but a great tool itself for imparting a certain ineffable warmth, say, EQing a particularly digital-sounding synth, or blurring a lot of minor edits to sound less disjointed.)

Simple enough: Use the two in a chain; I put the 914 before Liquid but decide what works best for you. Basically I’m using Liquid as a really short delay. You can nudge up a small amount of depth and rate if you want to create a little movement but I prefer tinkering with the Offset and Manual until I get a balance I like.

The 914 you of course tweek to taste. At first I was trying to run it as, I guess, an allpass filter but it’s more useful to directly shape the very malleable tone. Here is a straight beat from the SmartLoops library that used to come with Sonar (maybe it still does); first the uneffected loop, and then the processed loop. Of course, you may find the tone not to your liking; but really you need to tune the 914 to whatever you’re working on. Additionally you could always set it up as a send effect and mix in the original loop, or drop down the Wet knob in the 914. But I was using it on a pretty boring synth part I had been dicking around with and it helped it immensely. Not that the part is any better, but it’s got a great tone!

¹This post is not endorsed by Audio Damage, it’s parent companies or subsidiaries, or any affiliated parties.

Album:
Heart

Artist:
Starts

Lable/Year:
Arts & Crafts, 2003

How I Came by It/Why I Purchased It:
I’m not sure where I first heard a Stars song; probably on some music blog when I was still reading them with some degree of regularity. But I like it immensely. And from time to time these last few years I like to support an independent label and band, so I picked this up.
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Album:
Halfway Between the Gutter and the Stars

Artist:
Fat Boy Slim

Lable:
Astralwerks, 2000

How I Came by It/Why I Purchased It:
I picked it up used at a Going Out of Business sale at a mall CD store (I forget the name). This was before I began exploring what kinds of electronic music I might actually like, so I’m not entirely sure what inspired me to buy it other than it was cheap.
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Album:
The Dirty South

Artist:
The Drive-By Truckers

Lable/Year:
New West

How I Came by It/Why I Purchased It:
I grew up, mostly, in New Hampshire, mostly in the 70s. Lynyrd Skynyrd figured pretty prominently in the soundtrack of my youth. (It’s a rural thing I’m sure; plus, NH gets more Southern the further north you go, if you get what I mean.) So I had to investigate The Drive-By Truckers’ Southern Rock Opera - a dual disc album exploring the Skynyrd legend and legacy. After one listen, as I’m sure I’ll write at some point, I was a fan. Each subsequent album improved upon the previous. So by the time this came out I had an ongoing interest in this band.

My Feeling at the Time of Acquisition:
Wow.
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Album:
Profane

Artist:
Couch

Lable/Year:
Matador, 2001

How I Came by It/Why I Purchased It:
I think I bought it through amazon.com after hearing one of their songs on an internet radio station or an MP3 on the Matador site.
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Album:
Let Us Play

Artist:
Coldcut

Lable/Year:
Ninja Tune, 1997

How I Came by It/Why I Purchased It:
I bought this cheap from my friend Michael a few years ago when he was divesting his CD collection in order to hit the road. He got it back in 1997 when he was way out ahead of me on the whole electronic/dj music front. At that time, when I was still listening to the last vestiges of alt/indie/college rock he was proving an easy mark for the clerks at Other Music. So I picked up a bunch of his old titles hoping to broaden my scope now that I was, you know, making the stuff.
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As I confessed here (see the Zebra 2 “Transmission” bit) and here, as much as I love working with Zebra 2 it can be a daunting task. It’s easy to make this thing sound like ass. But I’m getting more used to it, and have been building my own patches, trying some tricks and getting away with it.

Helpfully a user over on the u-he forum at KvR has done a re-skinning job on the already classy Zebra 2 interface that has completely changed the way I’m working with the synth. Ta da: Unempty Dark Horse. Known on KvR as dln (check out his virb.com site; great music. Unempty is his project name I guess), he obviously has some design skills. Basically, he tweaked the color and interface on the individual modules, giving each their own distinct look, while keep the overall flavor of Zebra 2. You can download it from the KvR thread. It’s really, really well done.

Highly Recommended. Thanks d.

Album:
Ride the Fader

Artist:
Chavez

Lable/Year:
Matador, 1996

How I Came by It/Why I Purchased It:
Deep into my 2nd phase indie rock fandom, a Matador release was a pretty safe bet. (Not sure if I got this or Gone Glimmering first, but one led to the other.)
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