Father Abraham has many things to share on you

UPDATE 072010: flyer now edited with more accurate set time...

Mon, 19 Jul 2010 12:14:00 -0400

UPDATE 072010: flyer now edited with more accurate set time info

Thursday August 5! Father Abraham with a live band @ EMF! The Force! Art created using my childhood baseball card collection! Drinks courtesy of Naragasett!

You need very few more details than this. I will provide these details in due time.

Laurie Anderson is my new favorite rapper.

Thu, 15 Jul 2010 16:41:39 -0400

Laurie Anderson is my new favorite rapper.

Felix and Volcano!

Tue, 13 Jul 2010 16:23:00 -0400

Felix and Volcano!:

Considering that I produced their new Grow Rich EP, My official bump of Felix and Volcano! is way past due. Without further delay, here it is:

Felix and Volcano! is a synth-pop outfit from Dover, New Hampshire, fronted by Sam Ueda (above, right) and a used Boss DR-202 Dr. Groove beat machine. Sam works the Dr. Groove like he wrote the software himself - as a synth junkie, I love it when people as intimately close with their gear as Sam was to this little piece of plastic. Say what you want about synths - wait, don’t - but when someone takes the time to play their synth like an instrument, beautiful things can happen. Check out Shaadows, my personal favorite from the EP:

Felix and Volcano! - Shaadows

Sam also writes clean, concise, and direct pop songs that come so naturally to him that we had a hard time paring his catalog of prospective songs down to EP-length. I really enjoyed taking Sam’s material and running it through my analog gear. The Dr. Groove was already really warm for a digital instrument (it even had its own digital tape-hiss!)

Please go to Felix’s bandcamp page and purchase the entire Grow Rich EP. In a landscape full of bullshit remixes, overzealous digital programming, and naked ambition poorly disguised as music, these five songs are a song for sore ears. No doubt you will appreciate the elegant simplicity of the arrangements, the humility of Sam’s voice, the uncanny patience of a nineteen year-old, and (okay, I’m going to plug myself here) the unusual and pleasant sonic depth of the whole affair.

Oh. And it’s a whole lot of goddamned fun.

Just in case you don’t believe me, check the reviews (yep, Sam’s a whiz at getting the word out, too):

Be Bop Kids

Boston Band Crush (love these guys!)

Byte.fm (in German, but it looks positive)

Disco Naivete

Eye Gin High Sin

Kick Kick Snare

Listen Before You Buy

The 405

The Recommender

Vacay Vitamins

Boston Phoenix picks Revere Beach for Weekly Download

Thu, 08 Jul 2010 19:44:52 -0400

Boston Phoenix picks Revere Beach for Weekly Download:

My face was in print media this morning. How pretty. Click the link to see Chris Faraone’s quick writeup of the song.

This is sort of in the wrong order. Check the previous post for video of Quiet D Episode 24, and enjoy yourself.

Check out Quiet Desperation Episode 24, featuring a rendition of...

Thu, 08 Jul 2010 19:37:57 -0400

Check out Quiet Desperation Episode 24, featuring a rendition of “Revere Beach” and some light acting by yours truly. Enjoy!

Revere Beach

Wed, 30 Jun 2010 07:59:40 -0400

Click below for your summer jam:

Revere Beach (Father Abraham RMX)

Revere Beach (Father Abraham RMX Radio Edit)

And for good measure, in case any of you North Shorers want to cut your own cheese:

Revere Beach (Father Abraham RMX Instrumental)

I did this piece for Quiet Desperation, an internet reality sitcom based in Allston and fronted by local public intellectual Rob Potylo. There is a whole backstory involved and you will have to watch some early episodes to understand with your heart what I am saying with my synthesizers, but I was basically given two guiding principles, which I will list below

Guiding Principles of Revere Beach RMX

1. Sucking and fucking

2. Ay ay ay.

, and I was let loose.

Rob delegates well, no?

The short story is: We are Tin Tin Buffet, we are a local rap group, and we are coming 4 yr children so RUN RUN RUN RUN. I even made us a logo from a picture that I downloaded from the internet and re-posted:

Check out the show at quietd.com. I will post the relevant episode to this site shortly.

Institutional Support

Sun, 27 Jun 2010 18:01:00 -0400

I was cleaning up and going through some old things in preparation for the move when I came upon these two documents:

This first document represents the full institutional support that my alma mater offered to me after I made the decision that I wanted to pursue a career in music:

Among the highlights of this brochure were consecutive page numbering and the snazzy purple cover that you see here. I think that I can confidently state that if I had expressed any interest in ruining the world economy or advancing either a neoconservative or corporatist political agenda, the brochure would have come with a lollipop.

Luckily I had friends. Friends who thought I could use a PA system. Check the note below:

I promptly turned the PA system into a set of KRK monitors, which I have used for every song that I have ever made and which I will be taking to New Orleans with me in August.

It’s good to know good people.

Ensoniq ASR-X Sampler/Synthesizer - $200 SOLD

Wed, 19 May 2010 21:47:00 -0400

Ensoniq ASR-X Sampler/Synthesizer - $200 SOLD:

UPDATE 052810: Sold! And for only $180! Why did you wait so long? Why didn’t you make me an offer?

Somehow I never thought it would come to this. I’m selling my Ensoniq ASR-X. LAME. But you can have it. COOL.

[note: Tumblr isn’t into me posting pictures today, but here’s a look at the unit. Pic isn’t mine. I can provide a picture upon request.]

This is a fantastic instrument. Period. Back when it came out it was Ensoniq’s answer to the Akai MPC, and it never really caught on, since most Ensoniqheads were already making beats on their ASR-10s and didn’t see the need to double up. Well, I did. And now I’m halving down. The ASR-10 stays, and the ASR-X goes. And the DP/4 stays. And the SQ-80 is already gone. [Sniff.]

I couldn’t have been more productive with this goofy little box. The groove quantization is a little wonky, but it ran me into more happy accidents than I can even remember. One is helpmesaveme from I Am Not A Sailor I Am the Captain - check the glitch at around 0:44 - if I recall correctly everything but the flute lead came from the ASR-X). Apparently there is an updated OS floating around the internet that can tighten things up. The drums from Snake Oil, from week 40 of 52pickup, were also ASR-X drums. Check that deep distortion on the 808-style kick. Quite honestly, I programmed more drums on here than I can possibly remember, and when I wasn’t programming in the box, I was playing nastified sample drums into Pro Tools using this machine and sequencing using other software.

I’m convincing myself not to sell it. You might want to email me now, before I start writing the next paragraph.

If you’re an Ensoniq dork like me, you don’t need to be told that the ASR-X sounds beautiful. Ensoniq-beautiful. It has that round, grimy, 16-bit-digital sound that plays great in hip-hop and industrial genres. It breathes.

The ASR-X can also work overtime as an effects unit. I originally bought it (and the DP/4) because I feared that my ASR-10 would burn out and leave me bereft of my favorite digital effects. The ASR-X’s effects, while apparently the same, always seemed to me to be a bit brighter and more pronounced that the effects on the 10. But maybe that’s just me. The distortion patches alone are worth the price of admission.

The memory on this box has been maxed out, so sample time runs at 2+ minutes, which is good for an early-90s sampler. SCSI is installed (I never used it), so there is a possibility to expand.

Some issues with this unit: the audio outs are very weak. I always worked around this using a headphone splitter, and never had any problems. The value knob is finicky at times, too. This can be worked around via MIDI or simply finessed by the right pair of loving fingertips. I always chose the latter, and the ASR-X and I got along just fine.

Price is $200 OBO, down from $225. Email me and let’s get you happy.

Casio DG-10 Digital Guitar - $150

Tue, 18 May 2010 22:14:00 -0400

Casio DG-10 Digital Guitar - $150:

UPDATE 060810: Price drop! Turns out someone modded the output section. There is no longer an instrument out. Just a line out. Please take into consideration. Otherwise, the unit is in great condition. All pickups work.

The Super Synth Savings Spectacular continues. Apologies for the delay.

Next up we have the Casio DG-10 Digital Guitar. DG stands for Digital Guitar, I gather, so the full name of this item is the Casio Digital Guitar 10 Digital Guitar, which is appopriate, because it is indeed a digital guitar, so why not say it twice.

I bought this in mid-July of ‘09 and I regret to disclose that I used it only once during 52pickup, on Cruella de Ill/Donner Pass Tuxedo, my Week 37 entry. I had a blast using it, though - the drum samples and the mandolin lead both came directly from the DG-10 (dirtied up a bit during the mix, but you get the point). However, since I do not and cannot play guitar, I found little other use for it. It’s all over the record I just finished making with Felix and Volcano! - it worked really well with the band’s synthy style.

Speaking of the mandolin patch: if you are perhaps interested in using the sounds that Flight of the Conchords use on “Boom,” then this is the piece for you. They use the DG-20, the DG-10’s younger brother who ate slightly less lead paint as a child.

Sonics aside, this piece should not be overlooked as a legitimately delicious piece of studio candy. It was made in 1986, is in fantastic cosmetic condition, and still has all of its original strings. I have it positioned in my studio so it is one of the first things that people see when they walk in. Clients inevitably gravitate toward it and love trying to find a place for it in their arrangements. It’s a great creative tool that I’m going to be sad to see go. But alas. You must purchase it.

That’s it. More pieces up soon. Email me if you’re interested, or jump over to my Craigslist post for this item and email me from there. Either way is fine.

Roland MC-307 - $150

Mon, 10 May 2010 11:06:00 -0400

Roland MC-307 - $150:

Another in my series of synths-for-sale-because-I’m-moving-to-New-Orleans: the Roland MC-307.

I bought this piece in Texas over Christmas after I was done with 52pickup because I was so impressed with the work that Tuck Digz does using his Roland MC-505. Tuck is one of those guys who has developed a full skill set on one synth - the guy makes immaculate arrangements using just the 505 drumbox. The drum patterns for Company Man, Spicy Topix, and Extraordinary Rendition, all late 52pickup songs, were all whipped up by Tuck on the MC-505. I especially like the distortion/destruction effect on the drums for Extraordinary Rendition.

The 307 is a little brother to the 505 with a few less options. Notably, it is missing the D-beam laser controller, which is a damn shame. It still sounds fantastic, though. Its sound is clean and crisp, in stark contrast to the rounder, fuzzier Ensoniq gear that I covet so much. I picked it up because I was floored by the depth of sound that Tucker was able to tease out of his 505, but alas, I was never able to incorporate it into my rig.

Known issue: The stop button on the tranport of this piece is not working, hence the price break. It might be fixable; I have not tried. Anyone with a base knowledge of MIDI can hook up a controller via the MIDI-in input and use an external transport.

If you’re interested, click on the link at the top of the post and contact me via Craigslist. Thanks!

Ensoniq SQ-80 - $300 - SOLD!

Wed, 05 May 2010 22:39:00 -0400

Ensoniq SQ-80 - $300 - SOLD!:

UPDATE 051010: Sold to a nice gentleman from Providence. Happy to give this one a good home.

It will come to news to a few of you that I am moving to New Orleans in the fall. I’m saving my long-winded explanation for another time, but restlessness, adventure, bounce rap, and a beautiful woman all are at play here.

Anyway, I’m selling a few things to finance the move and streamline my setup, and since streamlining one’s setup is basically an exercise in practicality, I’ll be selling some fantastic pieces in the next few months. If you’re slow to jump to conclusions, this means that I’ll be commemorating and advertising (commemoratizing, or even better, advermorating) my items-for-sale via blog.

First up is this little beauty, the Ensoniq SQ-80. I bought it about ninety percent of the way through production of I Am Not a Sailor I Am the Captain (yes, that’s a link to my store - moving is expensive!) and immediately used it for the synth lead on Asteroid Belt. I was attracted by the hybrid analog-digital design. The digital waveforms run through analog filters and VCOs, which de-cheeses the late 80s cheesiness of the samples to my great satisfaction. There is even a tape in jack for outboard filter use. I heard through the grapevine that noise folks like to use the drum patches as triggers to make the VCOs run wild, but I never got around to using that trick. I mostly used it for lush pads and the occasional synth trumpet. Oh, and it has the best key action and aftertouch of any of my synths, ever.

The SQ80 found a friend in Sam Ueda, braintrust of New Hampshire-based synthpop Felix and Volcano!, whose Grow Rich EP (produced by me!) is hitting the mastering room at New Alliance East in a a few days and hitting the streets soon thereafter. Check for it during the freakout section of Shaadows; Sam found some beautiful, blown-out sounds that really make the end of that song great.

Also, let’s talk about how beautifully ugly this thing is. Its blue and red stripe pattern remind me for no good reason of these terrible Chicago White Sox uniforms from the 1980s. Samples are loaded via some sort of stupidly proprietary Atari-ish cartridge. The digital display is positively Speak N Read-esque. It simultenously looks amazing and looks like shit. You want to buy it.

I will be sad to see this big guy go. Unfortunately, it’s just not going to fit in the truck. Someone here can give it a good home. It’s in fantastic cosmetic condition and I encountered zero technical issues during the two years that I owned it. Contact me if you’re interested.

Good golly, look at this formatting. We’ll have to switch this up sometime soon.

UPDATE 5/4: I am trying to be a better salesperson. I really...

Mon, 03 May 2010 22:46:00 -0400

UPDATE 5/4: I am trying to be a better salesperson. I really am.

Just finished up a remix for Boston synthy outfit Streight Angular from the folks over at Polk Records. It’s pretty ~~harsh~~ raw in places. Sit with it for a while. I was trying for a heavier, more blown out sound. Maybe a ~~little too much~~ perfect amount of incidental digital distortion. Maybe a little ~~thick~~ astoundingly terrific on the electro-tom fill. ~~But we live and we learn and we improve.~~ We eat our young. More fun soon. And news.

Here’s a d/l link. Have at it.

Now is as good a time as any to announce that I spent the better...

Sat, 01 May 2010 23:04:00 -0400

Sam playing guitar

Matt doing something I don't know what.

Sam on guitar AGAIN OMG

My studio looks totally wild here.

More Sam

Me directing traffic.

Now is as good a time as any to announce that I spent the better part of these last three months working on a 5 song EP with New Hampshire synth-poppers Felix and Volcano! (exclamation theirs; the end of my sentence is right over here —>). I sent it over to mastering a few days ago.

The record is going to be called Grow Rich EP. It’s a wild little piece. Sam Ueda, the band’s frontman, writes really tight arrangements on a perpetually-about-to-fail Boss DR 202 Dr. Groove. We spent our basics sessions getting the arrangements out of the machine and into Pro Tools. Then we built and built and built.

Enough of that. I haven’t posted in a while, so I will write about the bits of news that seem relevant in short entries like this over the next few days, so as to slowly regain your internet-trust. And we’ll go from there.

Goldman Sachs are scum. Couldn’t have put it better...

Wed, 07 Apr 2010 15:19:55 -0400

Goldman Sachs are scum. Couldn’t have put it better myself.

Ugly, but needs to be seen. Please pass along: Wikileaks has...

Mon, 05 Apr 2010 21:10:19 -0400

Ugly, but needs to be seen. Please pass along:

Wikileaks has obtained and decrypted this previously unreleased video footage from a US Apache helicopter in 2007. It shows Reuters journalist Namir Noor-Eldeen, driver Saeed Chmagh, and several others as the Apache shoots and kills them in a public square in Eastern Baghdad. They are apparently assumed to be insurgents. After the initial shooting, an unarmed group of adults and children in a minivan arrives on the scene and attempts to transport the wounded. They are fired upon as well. The official statement on this incident initially listed all adults as insurgents and claimed the US military did not know how the deaths ocurred. Wikileaks released this video with transcripts and a package of supporting documents on April 5th 2010 on http://collateralmurder.com

Synth rack made from an old rolling Tektronics oscilloscope...

Mon, 22 Mar 2010 12:39:00 -0400

Synth rack made from an old rolling Tektronics oscilloscope rack. Turned it around, did some angle grinding, and jammed my rack pieces in there. No rack ears necessary.

Probably a lot more trouble than it was worth, but it looks pretty damn cool.

selling off extra gear: Kawai K1 Vintage Digital Synth

Fri, 05 Mar 2010 11:31:13 -0500

selling off extra gear: Kawai K1 Vintage Digital Synth:

See link above. Anyone interested?

52PICKEDUP

Thu, 14 Jan 2010 16:30:39 -0500

52PICKEDUP

Well, hello there

Thu, 14 Jan 2010 15:44:45 -0500

So this is my new blog place. It needs some work, but I think it makes sense to move here from 52pickup.us. I will do my best to keep content coming, so long as you do your best to keep visiting.

More soon.

52 Dance With You [123109]

Thu, 14 Jan 2010 15:33:06 -0500

52 Dance With You [123109]