“You could say that Vangelis was trying to evoke a bleak future with his Blade Runner score, and Glove and Ghost does its best to conjure up a paranoid past. It’s almost like the antithesis of vaporwave’s blurry VCR–era nostalgia”- The Georgia Straight (Album of the Week)
On January 4th of 2019 I released my debut EP as Glove and Ghost. The responses so far have been heartwarming and overwhelming to say the least.
Since the EP’s release it has been nominated for Album of the Week by the local weekly paper newspaper for Vancouver, The Georgia Straight.
I had a fantastic time working on this collection of tracks. I am really proud of the work and am so thrilled to finally share some music with you.
You can find the latest Glove and Ghost EP on all the mainstream streaming sites and download sites. Some of the places you can find Glove and Ghost’s, Dead Drop are as follows:
Here it is…my ultimate synthesizer hero strikes again! This time with another delicious expansion on the much revered Mopho monophonic synthesizer, but with 4 voice polyphony, a 16 x 4 step sequencer and lots of other delicious treats, I’m sure many will enjoy.
It’s a polyphonic Mopho!
Mopho x4 is the newest addition to DSI’s revered line of analog subtractive synthesizers. Building upon the same award winning voice architecture of the Mopho and Mopho Keyboard, the Mopho x4 boasts huge sound and 4 voice polyphony in an ideally sized, portable, and elegantly designed package. Use it to create huge unison basses, creamy leads, maniacal sequences, and ethereal pads.
4 times the voice 4 your pleasure
Each of Mopho x4’s four voices is composed of two analog oscillators, two sub octave generators, selectable 2- or 4-pole famed Curtis low-pass filter, three 5-stage envelope generators, four LFOs, a re-latchable arpeggiator, and a 16 x 4 step sequencer. Its voice also comes packed with 20 modulation sources and almost 50 destinations!
FM the filter to create metallic bell-like sounds and use the feedback path to add subtle or destructive harmonic content to your sound. Mopho x4’s 100% analog signal path is powerful, monstrous, and sonically dynamic!
Work less, play more
Mopho x4 is intuitive and inviting. Every parameter is fully programmable and editable from the front panel. The controls are logically laid out, lending themselves to quick access so you can tweak knobs without missing a beat.
The x4’s full sized 44-note semi-weighted keyboard has aftertouch and velocity sensitivity. The sturdy full sized pitch and mod wheels are freely assignable and sport smooth reliable action.
It grows with you
Expand Mopho x4’s polyphony using it’s Poly Chain port. Mopho, Tetra, and Prophet ’08 can all be connected to the x4 to increase its voice count. You can Poly Chain up to three Tetras with Mopho x4 to create a 16 voice analog super synth!
The Mopho x4!
Dave Smith Instruments is the only company pioneering and producing fully programmable polyphonic analog synthesizers. In fact Dave’s been at it for 35 years!
Designed and manufactured in San Francisco, Mopho x4 has the high quality sound and build for which DSI is renowned. From its feature packed analog voices and unmatched sonic versatility to its refined design and engaging interface, you won’t find a polyphonic analog synthesizer like this anywhere else.
Fresh off of the Ohpeewon.com forums, here is a nice video tutorial for newbies to the Teenage Engineering OP-1.
Like the Akai MPC forums, it’s the users and community around instruments and products that make it all worthwhile and engaging. I’m new to the Ohpeewon community, but always good to see such support from the people that really matter. Kudos to DJ Thomas White for putting this together.
Also, I’ve got my finger on the purchase trigger for the recently unveiled OpLab interface. This all in one interface to sync your CV, MIDI and Sync 24 devices is quite appealing. Yes, 2012 is sizing up to be a year filled with gear purchases for some or all of us!
Technical Specifications:
USB IN and OUT x 2. Plus one Micro USB. Oplab can act as Host unit.
CV IN or any Analogue INPUT
CV OUT or any Analogue OUTPUT
MIDI IN
MIDI OUT + SYNC OUT or MIDI THRU
Program selection switch
I was on http://casiomusicgear.com and decided to wait the couple of minutes left on their countdown. The synthfiend in me wanted to see something. I was hoping my patience would pay off. The clock wound down and then nothing. No link, no pictures, no video…nada…zilch. Absolutely nothing! What gives Casio?!?! Well, looks like someone in the web department didn’t get their act together. Luckily for me and you, the folks over at Synthopia have a bit of information for us.
Specs for the Casio XW-P1 synth:
-The XW-P1 is a hybrid Lead and Groove Synth;
-Mono solo section with up to six oscillators: two virtual analog, two PCM, noise, and external audio;
-Poly section with ‘a wide variety of gig- ready sounds’;
-Drawbar organ mode;
-Thirteen-track step sequencer with dedicated drum track.
The rumored price for the Casio XW-P1 is $699.
The nine track step sequencer sounds appealing at least. Look forward to learning more.
It’s been a long time since Casio played in synth game, but they’re back and they claim its “the beginning of a new era.”
I picked up a Casio CZ-1000 for $80 a couple of years back. Phase distortion being the reason why I purchased it. However, oddly, this new synthesizer doesn’t seem to have it. I’m sure there will be some grumbling and the truth is, I’m kind of wondering why no phase distortion myself.
Casio XW-G1 Monophonic Synthesizer
Hey online marketers, when you figure it out, send us a link so we can get excited like the rest of your R&D department.
I’m currently reading all about Daniel Miller in a book I recently purchased called Just Can’t Get Enough by Simon Spence. I stumbled onto this quick little video of John Richards showing Mute Records founder-Daniel Miller how to operate the awesome little Mute Synth. For a nice little write-up on this, go to The Quietus here.
The Mute Synth: Dirty Electronics
Just in case you haven’t purchased one of these little lovely synths, you can get one here. To learn more about the great things Dirty Electronics is up to go here.
I just found out about this, but looks like some new updates to the Teenage Engineering OP-1 firmware. Upon closer inspection, looks like some much needed bug fixes, the LFO gets a boost in functionality, and a bunch of other little goodies in the current OS too. Well, now I know what I will be doing this weekend. For more information on the new updates go here.
EDIT: The original video was removed. So, in the meantime here is another one.
OS Update
The new updates:
Added Edit Hold using shift for Drums, nice when sequencers are running.
Negative LFO Amount enabled.
Higher resolution on LFO Amount knob.
Mic gain +10dB added, +40dB removed.
Better visualization around loop points in the Drum and Synth Sampler.
Enable Tape Rew & FF in the Mixer screen.
Battery Low indication could be triggered incorrectly. Fixed.
When receiving external MIDI and changing patch a error message could be triggered. Fixed.
In Ctrl Mode the VU Leds could be active. Fixed.
There could be missing text in the presetbrowser. Fixed.
Added Defragmenter for changed files in Disc Mode.
External processing of the Tape files should now be doable. We are using the REGN chunk format for the Clips, if the REGN data is kept consistent editing is possible.
The lowest bit sent to the codec was not output correctly. Fixed.
Suppressed noise further under conditions when having a USB ground loop.
Added a switch in Com->Opt to disable USB charging for use if experiencing ground loop noise.
If the OP-1 turns off due to an empty battery the switch will be reset to Charging. In Power Off mode with USB connected the OP-1 will charge regardless of this switch.
Dropping a Clip past the end of the Tape would trigger a error message. Fixed.
The modular synthesizer started off as the only way to create a synthesized sound back in the 1960’s. It became less prominent as affordability, compact size and digital control reached critical mass. However, its existence has seen a new resurgence. Even though for some it never went away.
There is a new and wider interest amongst developers to build, as well as buyers for the modular synthesizer. There is a clear objective to continue building them. There are also thousands of musicians interested in getting back to routing patch cables in complex new ways, as well as working with discrete circuitry. So, you can imagine the excitement of hearing about a new documentary called- Modular: The Documentary.
Their Facebook page details the production of a new documentary film on the history, demise and rebirth of a technological marvel that changed music history: the modular synthesizer. For more information and lots of pictures on the documentary visit their Facebook page here.
Here is a teaser video for you:
From Youtube:
MODULAR: a new documentary about the history, decline and rebirth of an iconic instrument that changed music forever: the modular synthesizer.
The teasers have been popping up on my Korg iElectribe & iMS-20 splash page for a few days now. However, the leak is starting to spread across the web. The note says April 6th, but already the news is spreading like wildfire and we thought we’d let you in! Looks like we have an analogue little beast with what looks like a step sequencer and a similar ribbon style keypad to the Korg Monotron. Also looks you will be able to create some type of noise, analog bass drums, snares, hi-hats and of course the legendary Korg MS-20 resonant filter. Doesn’t look like we’re talking about an Electribe, but rather something completely analog. Nice! We’ll tell you more about the specifications once we learn more about the Korg Monotribe (Analogue Ribbon Station).
My birthday present this year was an Oberheim SEM. Had to wait for it for a while. It was well worth the wait though. Thank you Mr. Oberheim.
This is the new SEM. It’s the NEW! Tom Oberheim SEM-Pro.
The SEM-PRO comes with MIDI to CV Converter and integrated Patchpanel. This version combines the features of the MIDI to CV version, with a 21-jack patchpanel and is personally autographed by me. The U.S. price is $1199. For more go to… http://www.tomoberheim.com
The Synthesizer Book 