When DJs first approach the production of their own tracks, they often use a loop-based model. Sections of an existing song, in time with the original beat, are cut from a track and programmed to loop in exactly the right rhythm. This can be a great way to create a [...]
It may sound somewhat familiar, perhaps even dated now, but in 1994 there was very little frame of reference for music such as was heard on Portishead’s debut album. From the opening strains of the kick-off track, “Mysterons” with its turntable scratches, B-movie Theremin and down-tempo break beat, Dummy was [...]
Every manufacture that produces a DAW application claims that theirs is the only one you’ll ever need. But what if you disagree? One package might contain your favourite synth plug-ins, but you may feel you can get the best results from another application’s mixing and mastering effects. You can move [...]
Trip-hop was an atmospheric but soulful, downtempo genre of electronic music that sprang from the English port city of Bristol and went on to enjoy major UK chart success in the mid-90s. A handful of the more prominent trip-hop acts even made waves in America, after being carried over by [...]
I was two years old when New Order released Power, Corruption & Lies, but it’s one of those musical moments that makes me wish I’d been around to appreciate it. Ian Curtis, frontman of Joy Division, had killed himself three short years earlier and the remaining members had regrouped to [...]
The late 60s saw the arrival of some of music’s great innovators. Hendrix, The Beatles, and Zappa all used dramatic new effects to manipulate their traditional instruments. Newly available electronic devices from Electro Harmonix, Jim Dunlop and MXR allowed them to create weird new textures and evolving environments. These original [...]
RCA Cable Problems RCA cable problems are relatively common with Technics SL-1200 turntables. Despite being the first name in DJ turntables for more than a quarter century, 1200s are renown for having shoddy factory RCA cables. Problems with the plug ends and shorts along the cable’s length occur [...]
Following up the legendary releases of the previous year such as Notorious B.I.G.’s Ready to Die, Nas’s Illmatic, and Outkast’s Southernplaylisticadillacmuzik, 1995 held its own special place in Hip Hop history with albums like 2Pac’s Me Against the World, Raekwon’s Only Built 4 Cuban Linx, and Goodie Mob’s [...]
Every one of us has been to club night or a live show where the sound wasn’t up to scratch. Piercing snares and muffled kicks can rob a great set of much of its dynamics and drama. People don’t dance to music that sounds bad. Instead of the writhing sweaty [...]
French duo Air’s Moon Safari is a downtempo retro space age masterpiece that was greeted as something of an instant classic even when it first came out in January 1998. Although the album was released on Astralwerks records and was technically an electronica album, Moon Safari had in fact almost [...]