burningbusch Posted August 17, 2003 Share Posted August 17, 2003 I'm curious if others see two main camps in today's music for synths, their sounds and usage. Yes, no? Too simplistic? Camp A: Sound: full, wide, deep low bass, wide pads, wormy portamento leads. Music: R&B, hip hop, smooth jazz, soul, traces back to '70s R&B/funk. Black American music. Synths: Minimoog, other Moogs, Oberheims, Studio Electronics, Novation (maybe), Atmosphere. Genesis Synth: Minimoog Camp B: (I admit I don't know this music well) Sound: Agressive, edgy, distorted, gated rhythms, evolving textures. Music: Electronic, Techno, Trance (help me out here) Synths: European VAs, Sunsyn... Genesis Synth: TB303? Busch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slowly Posted August 17, 2003 Share Posted August 17, 2003 I think Gospel dance style would fit me. I guess that makes me camp A. Kcbass "Let It Be!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steadyb Posted August 17, 2003 Share Posted August 17, 2003 I hear there's a great synth camp in upstate New York called Camp Wanna Anna Log (I think that's the Indian name). Activities include: *Hiking along the Signal Path *Climbing the Attack Slope *Fishing for waveforms *Hang Gliding with instructor Zack Portamento *Drifting down Outtatune Creek (without a paddle) And, if you want to write a letter to your folks, they provide free envelopes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pim Posted August 17, 2003 Share Posted August 17, 2003 You're driving me into an identity crisis! I don't belong to any camp... My Music I always wondered what happened after the fade out? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philip OKeefe Posted August 17, 2003 Share Posted August 17, 2003 You left off at least one "camp". What about rockers who are using the things for keyboard emulations (B3, pianos, Rhodes, Wurli's, etc.) as well as for other synth parts, pad textures, strings, brass, etc. ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RABid Posted August 17, 2003 Share Posted August 17, 2003 At first I was confused because many of my synths did not fit either catagory, but then I noticed that the definition of "today's music" is very narrow. There is a lot more out there than hip hop and techno. Sometimes I think those two forms of music is too grounded in synth sounds from the 70's and 80's. Anyway, I guess you can find Emu, Roland, Korg and Yamaha in many songs from group A and B. Robert This post edited for speling. My Sweetwater Gear Exchange Page Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veracohr Posted August 18, 2003 Share Posted August 18, 2003 I make electronic/techno/trance stuff, and I would LOVE to have a Minimoog and Oberheim. Especially an Oberheim. So I'm not sure I could agree with your assessment. "And then you have these thoughts in the back of your mind like 'Why am I doing this? Or is this a figment of my imagination?'" http://www.veracohr.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
burningbusch Posted August 18, 2003 Author Share Posted August 18, 2003 Originally posted by Philip O'Keefe: You left off at least one "camp". What about rockers who are using the things for keyboard emulations (B3, pianos, Rhodes, Wurli's, etc.) as well as for other synth parts, pad textures, strings, brass, etc. ?I should have been more specific: analog synths or virtual analog synths ONLY. No ROMplers, samples, electro-mechanicals, etc. This is referring to, at times, some fairly subtle differences; other times it's not so subtle. I've just noticed that what people are looking for in these synths can vary quite a bit depending upon the music they play, eventhough they might use similar terms like fat, big bottom, etc. Busch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tusker Posted August 18, 2003 Share Posted August 18, 2003 Originally posted by burningbusch: I'm curious if others see two main camps in today's music for synths, their sounds and usage. Yes, no? Too simplistic? Camp A: Sound: full, wide, deep low bass, wide pads, wormy portamento leads. Music: R&B, hip hop, smooth jazz, soul, traces back to '70s R&B/funk. Black American music. Synths: Minimoog, other Moogs, Oberheims, Studio Electronics, Novation (maybe), Atmosphere. Genesis Synth: Minimoog Camp B: (I admit I don't know this music well) Sound: Agressive, edgy, distorted, gated rhythms, evolving textures. Music: Electronic, Techno, Trance (help me out here) Synths: European VAs, Sunsyn... Genesis Synth: TB303? Busch.I think you are wrong on both counts. Genesis never used a minimoog or a TB303. Tony Banks used Arps. Oh, thats what you mean ... Actually I see it as a good description of the divide myself. But there are people who are in the middle, I'm sure. But I see this dichotomy in the way some people rate the novations and nords particularly. The camp A guys like the Novations and are somewhat ho-hum about Nords. The camp B guys think the Novations are weak and the Nords rule. (Though I know some camp A guys who like Nords.) Jerry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RABid Posted August 18, 2003 Share Posted August 18, 2003 A lot of Novation synths are used for trance. Robert This post edited for speling. My Sweetwater Gear Exchange Page Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
realtrance Posted August 18, 2003 Share Posted August 18, 2003 I think the hype and fetishism has gone so wild on all this stuff that it's basically pointless to characterize. I'd say your divide is good, for the kind of amateur music-making that is predominant now, and that the synths you describe come with presets that serve one or the other camp (thick fat mellow vs. thin edgy aggressive) well. Any of the listed synths can do great stuff for either camp if you know how to use them. But, that's old-school; when you get tired of one camp, just sell your synth for a new collection of presets on the other side... until you get tired of that one, then sell and buy again. Korg and Roland will love you. Oh and of course Clavia and Access. rt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magpel Posted August 18, 2003 Share Posted August 18, 2003 Well, I think it's a nice formulation, though I'm not well equipped to elaborate on it. On one level, it almost seems to me that A = analog and B = digital, though I know some of the revered old analogs are coveted for their grit and edge, not "warmth." It just seems that things like like gated and synced textures, evolving sounds, etc., are more the forte of the digital/VA era, more a function of the hyper-programmability of modeled synths, whereas the adjectives used to describe camp A attempt to name those elusive (an inimitable) properties of tone--warmth, size, width--associated with "real" analog components. Not what the machine lets you do, but what it just is. I dunno. Check out the Sweet Clementines CD at bandcamp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan South Posted August 18, 2003 Share Posted August 18, 2003 Originally posted by burningbusch: I'm curious if others see two main camps in today's music for synths, their sounds and usage. Yes, no? Too simplistic? Camp A: Sound: full, wide, deep low bass, wide pads, wormy portamento leads. Music: R&B, hip hop, smooth jazz, soul, traces back to '70s R&B/funk. Black American music. Synths: Minimoog, other Moogs, Oberheims, Studio Electronics, Novation (maybe), Atmosphere. Genesis Synth: Minimoog Camp B: (I admit I don't know this music well) Sound: Agressive, edgy, distorted, gated rhythms, evolving textures. Music: Electronic, Techno, Trance (help me out here) Synths: European VAs, Sunsyn... Genesis Synth: TB303? Busch.I think of the TB303 as an extension of the Arp 2600 category - cutting, "effecty", in your face. The 2600 category also featured the Prophet 5 and later the TB303. Moog is like a sumo wrestler - soft, massive, overwhelmingly powerful. Arp is like Bruce Lee - cut, fast, astonishingly effective. I might suggest some additional categories: Category 3 (Quirky) - OSCar, Wasp, EMS3, Mellotron, Wavestation. Category 4 (Bright Digital) - Fairlight, PPG, Synclavier, Absynth. Category 5 (Warm Digital) - Yamaha FM, ROMplers, Analog Modelers. The Black Knight always triumphs! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeon Posted August 18, 2003 Share Posted August 18, 2003 I think the concept sounded good at first consideration, so to test it I applied it to a few dozen of the synth-based/electronic-oriented CDs I have purchased over the last couple of years. What I found on average is that for every time it worked, there were two times it did not, and this was coming from a group of artists who were by-and-large based in the UK and Europe, with a small few from Japan and North America. cheers, aeon Go tell someone you love that you love them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
realtrance Posted August 18, 2003 Share Posted August 18, 2003 The OSCar brings to mind, let's see.... Bill the Cat. rt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
burlingame2 Posted August 19, 2003 Share Posted August 19, 2003 OSCAR and the Odssey are woefully underplayed. Although their aesthetic appeal seems to have drawn people in, as well as may from their good uses. Shit, I give up posting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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