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To play "live" electronic music abroad, or indeed in the U.K. (a place I will
never play again) takes a small amount of event planning and plenty of
pre-programming and preparation (excuse the alliteration - I am obviously not a
lyricist).
In my case, the first priority was that I would not be using a DAT as backing. I
have done this once before and it simply does not work if you are trying to
create something exciting for people to listen/dance to. Consciously or
unconsciously, I believe most people in clubs know if something is being
sequenced live or is coming off a digital tape. The warmth simply isn't there
when played off DAT.
The second consideration was how to do my usual length set (about one hour) with
as small an amount of equipment as possible. As I usually use an Emax 2 Turbo
keyboard for recording my tracks, this was the first item that came to mind when
cutting down on luggage. Taking one of those to Japan, not to mention on trains
and in cars is no laughing matter.
This left me with the problem of losing many of my original drum sounds and
vocal-type pads, along with noises, samples etc. In stepped the EMU Morpheus,
Roland R8M and the Roland JV1080. The Morpheus has infinite possibilities for
sound creation and I spend many hours in alchemical frenzy conjuring new sounds
from the micro-world of the EMU chip. The power of this instrument never ceases
to amaze me.
Likewise, the JV1080 is a goldmine for sound designers. Also, its midi response
times are such that I can sequence many parts simultaneously and still keep the
timing rigid. Please note: not a House piano sound in sight ;->
Lastly, the R8M provides the CR78 percussion and all-important 808 kick drum
with four hour decay.....
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So, once my replacement drums and noises were programmed, I had to transfer my
sequences from Cubase 2.5 on the Apple Macintosh to my Roland MC50MkII hardware
sequencer (no, I'm not working for Roland. Nor am I sponsored by anyone!).
This involves saving each song as a multi-part midi file on a PC formatted disk,
for transfer, and then editing each track that appears on the MC50MkII so that
it is transmitted via the correct midi out socket on the unit. There are two
midi outputs. In my case, one sent data to the R8M first and then "thru" to the
Morpheus. The second dealt only with the JV1080. The difference in midi timing
between the Mac and the hardware sequencer is astounding. The Mac, remember, has
to redraw those lovely blocks and the song cursor as well as sending out midi
data. The MC50MkII is built for midi data delivery. Tight as.....something very
tight........
Problem
My set, I soon discovered, would not fit in its entirety onto one 720kb floppy
diskette.
Unfortunately, I had to use three floppies and have a cassette of noises/voices
to bridge the gaps during the short disk swaps. This worked out fine in the end
as I had been rehearsing my swapping technique for twelve weeks before the gigs.
O.K., I'm stretching the truth a little. It wasn't so bad, as it gave the crowd
a breather and added an extra bit of tension to the proceedings; the polite
Japanese audience were thinking....."are his machines going to work after this
or not?".
Thankfully, all went smoothly and the generators were soon chugging away nicely
again.
So, after quite a few heart-stopping moments (and several grey hairs) during
programming, I managed to pull the whole thing together. The reactions were
great and I made many new friends and contacts from the people who came.
My final list of gear which made it on the trip is: Roland R8M, Roland JV1080,
EMU Morpheus, Roland MC50MkII, Mackie 1202 mixer and Sony Pro Walkman with
noises from the Emax 2 Turbo (mostly transform-multiplexed sounds and voices).
Of course I also took many backup floppies of midi files and the entire memory
contents of the two synths in sysex format. The latter being dumped into the
hardware sequencer as sequences which could be played back into the synths in
the event of total memory loss.
The synths and R8M went in an SKB rack/case in the hold of the 747 and the mixer
and sequencer came with me as hand luggage. Risky, I know, but where's the fun
if there are no risks involved?
My only advice to anyone thinking of doing electronic
dance/techno/ambient/whatever music "LIVE" is plan your set carefully and think
about minimising your gear, where possible, so that you can carry it! Don't be
put off by idiots who don't know the work you've done. Think positive and go out
there and do it LOUD.
Thanks to DJ T23 for joining me (and playing some very heavy sounds) and to Toru
Yamanaka for organising the events.
email:
alagowski@electric-group.co.uk or 101723.1355@compuserve.com for more info on
forthcoming gigs/recordings etc.
CHECK OUT LAGOWSKI'S CHEWNS :
Current releases:
S.E.T.I. 'The Geometry of Night' cd album - incoming! inc!cd3310
Legion 'Leviathan' cd album - Side Effects DFX24
Forthcoming: Lagowski 'Ashita' cd album - Side Effects DFX20
Click here to go to Neurowaver's unofficial Lagowski Discography
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