STRATEGIC GLITCH LOCATIONS

So, now that you’ve put together some version of the layered Beat Repeat Rack, it needs some performance control to make it a bit more dynamic (and useful on stage!). If you’re new to working with the Chain Selector, you might want to read this tip first. Here’s how I’ve set mine up so far: […]

RACK OF REPEATS

So, now that you’ve checked out how to make a Beat Repeat insert silence into a sound, what to do with it? Well, what I’m experimenting with is layering and offsetting several Beat Repeats set up in this fashion. Use the Group command to put the Beat Repeat into a Rack, then Duplicate the Chain […]

BEAT REPEAT: THE SILENCER

I’m working on a new glitcher/beat masher for my upcoming gigs, and I had the idea to flip the Beat Repeat on its head. What if, instead of having it generate tons of repeated hits, I used it to generate lots of silence. Check it out: Decay is set to 100%. This means that the […]

SELECTING THE RIGHT WARP MODE, pt 2

When you’re changing the tempo of a song and you need to keep the pitch the same, your best bet is to pick the warp mode on a case by case basis. If you’re going to be both slowing down and speeding up a song, make sure to listen to it faster and slower. In […]

SELECTING THE RIGHT WARP MODE

People sometimes ask me what warp mode I use for warping entire songs. My answer: all of them. A little bit frustrating if you’re looking for an easy answer, but over time I’ve found it to be the only right one. The problem with answering this question is that there are, of course, many different […]

CROP AND COLLECT

A lot of the preparation for my upcoming Austin gig is happening remotely, so there’s a lot of sending files back and forth. In particular, we’re sending Live projects containing audio loops. Sometimes these loops are short and homemade, and sometimes they are loops taken from entire songs. Unfortunately, this remote collaboration sometimes has to […]

A LITTLE MORE BUZZED

The interesting thing about setting loops in Simpler is that the Loop parameter is specified as a percentage of the sample’s Length. In other words, if Loop is set to 20%, you’ll always be looping the last 20% of the sample regardless of what Length is set to. This means that adjusting Length adjusts both […]

A LITTLE BUZZED

Here’s a simple trick to get a little glitch into your sampled drums. Set up Simpler like this: What you’re seeing here is a snare hit with a short loop at the end. Instead of having a natural decay, the hit will buzz at the end. First, make sure that the Loop switch is turned […]

GRAIN DELAY: PRETTY GLITCHER

Hey folks! There’s a new Hobotech EP available today for FREE download. Just because we love you. It’s got a crazy accordion-fueled lady gaga remix, some midtempo west coast hobofunk, a serious fiddle/laptop cagematch and some old tyme sexual confusion. Dig it! You can grab it on the facebook fan page (and “Like” us while […]

SLICE THE INSANITY

Another way to start having fun with some audio madness is to slice it into a Drum Rack using the Slice to New MIDI Track command: When you’re using this command to slice up a drum loop, you can often use Transient as your slicing mode (see below), but with longer samples this will usually […]