Feb 2022 industrial synth 4-track cassette analog four-person-collab
4-track cassette collaboration, mailed through the US mail to each of the FAWMers who added one track at a time. This one was recorded with a sync click so that the first three people could sync their synths/gear to the same beat (the 4th was on their own). ;)
US Tape 7 (electronic - 2X)
1: @elesimo - Volca Bass
2: @standup - Reverb tank, modular synth, Korg Arp, various radio chatter
3: @zecoop - Yamaha PSS 470 (bells), Volca Bass, Volca Beats
4: @guatecoop - Five different midi patches, played live
It got a little complicated to keep straight, so Rob and I (@zecoop) mapped it out. Obviously the Robots didn't want us breaking their secret plot wide open... You've all been warned.
@adnama17 Mar 2022
Obviously not. Skynet has a plan, and there's not much we can do about it. Best just to assimilate.
This is indeed interesting. Whatever is repeating in the background, stage left, has me quite unsettled for some reason. The whole thing drips with tension. I dig it!
@tunecat Mar 2022
Very interesting- I haven’t heard much experimental music on FAWM till now. I like the different mindsets that go into different genres. As a collab this is even more special. I can hear those amazing sounds coming a going in a really intentional sounding way. Glad I stopped by. I just read down and zannimagine all those kids getting totally blown away by the track and where it sends us in our imaginations ? Liking the fact that it settles into a groovy heat). Awesome work guys!!
@dugganensis Mar 2022
Tasty sounds. I won't even try to figure out who did what; it all melds extremely well. It has a bit of a John Carpenter retro darkness going on. The beat dropping halfway in is a surprise! Loving this listen on headphones.
@ductapeguy Feb 2022
Hello: It is Mr. McGaughey. I listened with my Grade 3/4 Music class. They were dancing in their chairs while we listened. Here are their comments:
K: I was closing my eyes and it felt like I was in a horror movie.
J: It sounded like techno music with aliens kind of.
M:: It sounded electronic and really cool.
M: It sounded like when I went to Snow Valley.
S: It was a fun song to dance to.
G: It reminded me of Nasa videos.
P: It sounded like aliens with electric guitars.
S: I felt like I was in a different dimension when I closed my eyes.
S: It sounded like robot aliens were going to crash any second.
L: It sounded like I was on a cruise ship when the horn honked.
G: Whenever I closed my eyes there was one monster I kept seeing.
B: I reminded me of Detective Picachu .
A: It makes me calm and stuff.
E: It was really cool and it did sound like aliens destroying a planet.
C: You should put it in an alien movie.
@lishie5000 Feb 2022
i half expect a TARDIS to crash through my roof! yasssss
@siebass Feb 2022
Came for the title, stayed for the music. Squishy spring reverb and weird electronic textures. Those robots are definitely planning something ominous. I, for one, fear and respect our future robot overlords. Really enjoyed when the drums/kick came in around 2:30, gave it the head-bob groove I was craving.
@andygetch Feb 2022
Wow this is epic. Multiple music pieces on three analog tracks is super impressive. track This soundtrack reminds me of one of those B sci-fi movies I watched on TV except the sounds are way better. I really like that this was mapped out. Super cool 4-track collab!
@jamesstaubes Feb 2022
This is so cinematic. Sounds like the opening music for a movie: sci-fi, alien invasion, or something. The main driving synth sounds are massive sounding.
@nancycunning Feb 2022
Wow. I'm right back in the back row with a Station Wagon full of neighbor kids at Close Encounters of the Third Kind because Star Wars was sold out. Transfixed by all this stuff....Duck!
@papaooo Feb 2022
I was doing pretty well, tapering off my meds, and things were...ok.
Then I heard this song. The sounds, the voices...the lights in the ER...
Anyway, long story short, back on the full regimen, and my vocal cords are recovering from, you know, the screaming.
So, yeah, cool song. No, seriously, way cool. Very...effective.
@toms Feb 2022
Yah just a little complicated. I very much appreciate the graphic!!! :) Subotnik would love this.
@guatecoop Feb 2022
This was a really cool one to be a part of! The mixing was a little challenging to get everything represented, but I really like how it turned out. Well done to everyone!
@emkaydeebee Feb 2022
There is some wizardry at work here… what a stunning collab this is, phenomenal end result!
@yarimurray Feb 2022
Nicely done weaving the various elements together and making the piece evolve and grow. I love seeing the notes and the juxtaposition of digital technology presented through an analog format. Truly takes you to an alien atmosphere that is both dystopian and hopeful at the same time. Nice job all around!
@unkept Feb 2022
This would go well in the "Beyond Good and Evil" video game I think. Really loved when those drums slipped in, super cool sound choices all around and what a great final product. Great job to everyone!
@loveonamixtape Feb 2022
Wow, y'all, this is COOL. Agree with a lot of what others have said, the mix of analog tech with the spacey spooky sounds is so neat. The ambient beginning is really mesmerizing and love when that beat comes in. So many cool layers to this, incredible to believe y'all did this as a 4 track collab!
@fuzzy Feb 2022
Wow, a retro-futuristic tune made with antique technology!
Really nice build on this for sure.
Those indistinct voices add to the building tension.
Then it transforms into lovely robot dance music.
Totally enjoyed this.
Downloaded.
Excellent work, everyone.
@eargoggle Feb 2022
This is just terrifying and beautiful, I love all these sounds bouncing around! So thick...and when that hi hat comes in it's like YEEESSSSSSS.... or whatever yeeessss is in robot language
@bachelorb Feb 2022
This was wild. I really like when the percussion kicked in. It really turned from a bunch of spacey sounds into a dance tune.
I had to smile at the pic of the notes. I always have something like that around when doing these things, except it has tape counter numbers on it.
@mikeskliar Feb 2022
Wow that was a blast from another planet, where 4 track cassette recorders and synths seem to thrive! . What a blast!
@gilhari Feb 2022
I love this. It’s always amazing when music can create a mood and shape the response of the listener. Can’t believe you made this work on a cassette. Love the handwritten notes…
@vomvorton Feb 2022
Wow! This is so cool. Love the idea of the tape carrying the sync pulse around the country and letting you line up all of your gadgets. It has the unusual bonus of allowing a four-track collab to leave the beat out until later and then kick in with perfect timing - so awesome! Love the ambient intro and it just gets more and more sci-fi excellence layered in as it progresses.
@grenzgaengerin Feb 2022
A little scary, spooky - but on a good way. Because it takes away the atmosphere and takes you on a journey through space. The different synth sounds underline the mood. Very good work - I like it very much
@b3nut Feb 2022
That's a hell of a spaced-out ride...really well done!!!
@swampjaw Feb 2022
Absolutely pushing the limits. Retro cassette tape, to capture a future where we're enslaved by robots. Trippy, and lots of fun. I really like where the groove kicks in around 3:30, with an overdriven synth and the drum line.
@pfoo Feb 2022
Dang y'all, that's an amazing cassette collab. Need to do more of this in the future. I can't tell who contributed what, but it's awesome.
@kenmattsson Feb 2022
Wow, this was done on cassette?!?!? Tremendous job guys. This is at another level.
@nancyrost Feb 2022
This took me to another world. I got totally immersed in the layers and dimensions. Impressed with all of your creativity and coordination here!
@midwayfair Feb 2022
This was really cool sounding, good control building the sound of the track throughout. Really ambitious arrangement for something done by mail, too.
@gubna Feb 2022
This is cool! I've done some robot-talking pieces in the past. I thought that was what it was gonna be until the beat came in! OHH! It's like the music for some off world colony, like one of those ships that looks like a giant bike wheel with spokes. I think after the teaser videos posted in early January, I was more interested in these four-track collabs than ever before.
@dock Feb 2022
That was quite a journey! I found myself listening to it as if it were an orchestral piece. The constant changing of sounds against that wonderful beat was entrancing. The robot space force must be hypnotherapists.
@whispermouse Feb 2022
I LOVE how warm all these synths sound. This piece is an epic journey. AWESOME job building up such a complex song that has such a flow to it, especially since it was done one track at a time!
@bradbrubaker Feb 2022
I don't know what most of this is, but it kind of floated in like a zero gravity space age dream. The layer that comes in at 3:03 was a nice surprise.
@elesimo Feb 2022
Oh, wow, I love how this turned out! Great job on the radio chatter, @standup, it made the song very organic and alive. I'm happy @zecoop was able to add the Volca Beats, I love their sound despite all the hate they get. Knowing that this was done on cassette is mind-boggling, @guatecoop did a great job tying up everything together.
@standup Feb 2022
This is beautiful! I can't remember exactly what it sounded like when I had the tape, but this is fantastic.
@brisk Feb 2022
This is human-adjacent future music!. This isn't a genre I'm well versed in, but this is a stunning advertisement for it. Love the title. The sounds work really well together and it feels cohesive, and the build is slow and deliberate, each element getting its time to shine.
There's something really evocative about the radio chatter... there are people there, but the communication is indistinct and only one-way.
Some of these scrubbing, sawing, chewing synths are really lovely, though alien. This treads a really careful line. Really nice work.
The fact that it was done by tape just adds a whole other element of complexity to the undertaking. Hats off.