It’s campy horror sounds, remixed into digital music — the perfect way to celebrate the holiday! From our friend TRASH_AUDIO’s Surachai, who’s on the compilation:

We have teamed up with Cock Rock Disco to compile a horrific compilation of the very best campy 80’s horror movies ever made, remixed by some of the greatest digital grind, metal, breakcore, and electro artists from around the world. Artists including Silon Fist, Terminal 11, Vytear , The Teknoist, Sgure, Toecutter, Duran Duran Duran, Eustachian, Bong-Ra, Captain Ahab, Surachai, Dead Noise, DJ Floorclearer, Droon.
Enjoy the ride into hell, because this will be your last!

Happy Halloween – Free Compilation [TRASH_AUDIO]

Here’s another mix — thanks, Kempton!
http://kemptonmooney.com/audio.html

I actually hadn’t had time to watch my tech RSS feeds yesterday when I said I “lost half an hour dreaming of my new lounge-style studio where I adjust envelope breakpoints from a giant aluminum sphere like the one in Sleeper.”

But, anyway – wish granted!

*Disclaimer: The following video, while demonstrating some insanely cool tech, may bore you to tears. In response to reader requests, we feel it’s important to warn you.

Microsoft’s multi-touch Sphere plays crazy Pong [Boing Boing Gadgets]

Now, of course, researchers being researchers, Microsoft R&D has taken a massive sphere controller and turned it into a mind-achingly dull slide show. I, on the other hand, could imagine kinky sci-fi electronica being made with massive hand gestures, particles spinning through space representing sonic grains, and the like. Microsoft, if you’re looking to hire someone to do something interesting with your giant sphere, I’m sure I or any one of the readers of this site can make something that couldn’t be replicated with a Flickr account, a toy bouncy ball, and a projector. This is the power of musicians. You try to make something absurd useful, but not really. We make the absurdly useless awesome. (Case in point: modular synthesis. Hey, is anyone using these giant telephone switchboards? Mind if we invent a new kind of party and welcome aliens to our planet?)

That said, let’s talk about just how much this is like Woody Allen’s sci-fi parody classic Sleeper.

Woody Allen, tech visionary that he was, clearly foresaw rubbing giant balls as a major future breakthrough in interface design. (For what it’s worth, the same film also predicted the 180 in fad diets that would exonerate protein and fat.)

Not only did Woody Allen’s character get strangely high with a large sphere, but the movie even suggested how to productize a more portable version of the sphere, as seen at right. Microsoft Sphere Nano, anyone?

In the classic manner of the future aging, then becoming hip and retro again, I’m not the only one now coveting a Sleeper sphere. It seems none other than Kanye West is gathering lots of nude models and, in elaborate choreography for his stage show, having them enact a giant be-in with their spheres, inspired again by Woody Allen. See some photos on Flickr, not quite safe for work, depending on where you work. (Oddly, I think this now means Woody Allen and Kanye West have exactly the same fantasy.)

And it’s back to the future in other ways, too.

The classic Keracolor TV has come back into fashion, and (as of last summer, at least) was being remade in a new edition. You probably can’t afford one, but it would look great with the Orion synth you can’t afford – and notice that its hull is more properly rounded. (At least one reader yesterday complained the Orion wasn’t as rounded as it could be.)

Ironically, I think these 1968 designs look far more stylish and futuristic than Microsoft’s Sphere.

So, sorry, Microsoft. The future just isn’t what it used to be. Even Woody Allen’s future. And he was kidding.

The faux-Pan Am logo. The sleek, mod, curved white casing. The elegant controls. Yes, this is indeed a synth that would look at home in the space station in Kubrick’s 2001. Technically not the future so much as the 1960’s version of the future – but surely we’re getting around to reshaping our future to look more like that, right? At least for synths?

The synth in question is the Omega 8, a “luggable” 20-pound, 8-voice analog synth with individual stereo pairs for each voice. It’s really, truly, old-school analog, with discrete analog oscillators, voltage-controlled filters of the 24dB and 12dB variety, multi-stage envelopes, and all the extras. In the “new-school” category, though, it is MIDI savvy, with MIDI destinations for just about everything (including the envelope breakpoints) and even breath controller support. How do I know this? Why, off the top of my head, of course; I’ve got three. Erm. Okay, I read it on the old Omega 8 page, then lost half an hour dreaming of my new lounge-style studio where I adjust envelope breakpoints from a giant aluminum sphere like the one in Sleeper.

All of that luxury will set you back US$4700. (If you can do with fewer voices, you can get down to a more Earth-bound US$1679. But that’s only 10 pounds, so it must make half as much sound.) But normally, the Omega ships in a pedestrian-looking synth case, like every other synth. Enter the Orion rendition.

2008: An Orion Odyssey Teaser Page

Studio Electronics News

As the manufacturers say:

what is this? it is art. it is light. it is glorious design brought to life by Antoine Argentieres, the man, who sagely let his fondness for Stanley Kubrick’s past century enigmatic odyssian vision of the future (and re-visioning of pivotal past events) inspire a house fit for the majestic voice and verve of the Omega8––a cathedral of transformation; the great work of the synth; a mind before matter mystical alignment of awareness: light and sound waves that reveal the ORION GALAXY, expanding and growing and luminous.

I’m not sure it’s art, but it is spectacularly groovy. Studio Electronics also promises a special sound bank befitting its forward-looking body.

I’ve heard varying answers to what availability will be from “I can’t conceive how expensive this is” to “rumors say it’s a one-off.” For their part, SE says it’s

available now for those who "have the greatest enthusiasm and confidence in the mission.

There you have it. You just have to believe. You have to think really, really hard about how you want it, and believe in why it matters, and you’ll own it.

Okay, it must be really, really, really, really expensive.

But I do believe in the mission. Steampunk’s over, folks. So is arbitrarily sticking cheap knobs into a cardboard box and rendering a “polished aluminum sheen” on the case by using duct tape. Let’s get back to the future with our synth designs. (I’m encouraged by the fact that our friend Nostromo found this for us on the SDIY list, by way of the music bar list.)

You still have time to do something for 2010.

See also: Music thing (hmmm, Tom got the jump on me, so maybe I shouldn’t have gotten so lost in that reverie of owning the thing…)

Update: Music thing also points to some artistic inspiration in the same vein.

A major highlight of the party CDM held last weekend with our friends at TRASH_AUDIO and VJKungFu.tv: a live remix of The Karate Kid. Momo the Monster mangled the video while Shane Hazelton and Stephan Vankov did music. The whole event was powered by some clever MIDI sync that managed to wrangle the gear — enough hardware that it seemed like the crew had just raided a Guitar Center — and sync up the video.

Sure, the remix may sound silly — and it was. (Deliciously so.) But the interplay between the three, punctuated by ridiculous live vocals by Shane, really put it over the top. Adding some MIDI intelligence to your digital trio could help all kinds of performances, not just this one We’ll have to get Momo to share what he did.

Momo has more over on Create Digital Motion, complete with technical details:

Karate Kid AV Remix

But this clip should give you an idea of just how live the vocals were — in a moment that captures, shall we say, the brutish masculine power of the film:

Karate Kid live remixing music performance from Create Digital Media on Vimeo.

There are synthesists, and then there are people like Phil Dodds. He’s perhaps best-known as the man who wrangled the (real) ARP 2500 synthesizer in the movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind so that it could perform an elaborate jam session for (fictional) aliens. But he left an extensive legacy of achievements that helped make music technology more than science fiction.

Our friend Yann Seznec (aka The Amazing Rolo) writes:

You’ve mentioned Phil Dodds on your site before, the guy who played the ARP 2500 in Close Encounters of the Third Kind. He was VP of Engineering at ARP, he wrote all of their service manuals and schematics and helped design and build many ARP synths, from the 2600 to the Chroma. He then went on to work for Kurzweil, developing digital piano systems. He was even involved in the creation of the MIDI standard. He also happened to be my uncle. I thought you might be interested to know that he died last weekend.

Our condolences to Yann and all of Phil’s friends and colleagues. There’s some really moving commentary at the Aviation Industry CBT Committee blog (really, because after all of his work in synthesis, he also was a driving force behind a distributed online learning initiative for the Department of Defense):

“What are we saying to each other?”

That was a single line, spoken by the sound engineer at the end of Close Encounters of a Third Kind, as he played chords and a friendly alien spaceship played music back.

The Passing of Philip V.W. Dodds

… and more on Wikipedia:

Phil Dodds

We talk a lot about tools, of course, but that question of “what are we saying to each other” couldn’t have deeper resonance for what we do. And if aliens do show up, thanks to Phil Dodds, I think we might put on a great show.

It’s easier being green than you thought. Dig the fantastic green sharp and flat keys on this Casio EP-30, a kid-friendly variant on the legendary (okay, maybe just infamous) Casio SK-1 sampling keyboard. Our friend Bohus Blahut covered this on Retro Thing, but I missed it during various travels. It’s worth repeating here for one reason and one reason alone: it should inspire you to paint the keys on your MIDI keyboard. (Speaking of which, anyone got some good tips for that? Sounds like a tutorial wants to happen there. Nothing worse than peeling painted keys.)

As a keyboard, otherwise, this is nothing special: basic sampling, which is fun, and the awe-inspiringly blippy power of the SK-1, but minus the fills. Check the full write-up on Retro Thing:

Kermit The Frog – SK-1 Sampling Keyboard

Now, back to painting your keyboards. I suggest purple keys, and a giant, manga-style illustration of Gonzo. Plus, of course, a big, fuzzy Camilla as a hood ornament.

Get back or the chicken gets it!

Sophisticated new instrument from researchers at an academic institution? Straight out of the skunkworks at a major Asian electronics company? Nope. Just some people dressed up in embarrassing outfits waggling their fingers, actually.

Gnarly. Air Guitar Nation gets its wide US release in March 2007. Via Axehole.

(PS, I think you can cancel that whole New Interfaces for Musical Expression conference. This looks like a lot less work.)

Are visual pairings with music the wave of the future? With video production costs getting cheaper by the day and modes of digital expression expanding, they offer a compelling alternative to the somewhat slackened interest in CDs. And it seems indie musicians are next in line. The one stumbling block there to me is services like YouTube. Sure, they offer wide compatibility and free distribution . . . but the fidelity is crap. Then again, that’s how MP3s started out.

Certainly, musicians are becoming more interested in crossing from aural to visual media, not only in videos but live visuals, as well. (And yes, CDM will be revisiting those topics soon.) For just an indication, take a look here:

CDM tag: VJ
CDM tag: visual

Speaking of YouTube, those videos have been all over the Music thing blog lately, including fantastic Fairlight CMI and Kraftwerk videos. (What I notice about the Kraftwerk video: this once exotic kind of performance doesn’t really seem at all strange any more. Pity they never got the musical lapels working, though. Bet you can one-up them. Click through for other neat Kraftwerk YouTube videos.)

Got a favorite music video (independent or otherwise)? Produced one yourself? Let us know. I want my music television.

Enjoy!

Look Around You: Music [QuickTime video, DevilyDucky.com]

1895 Edison “Kinetophone” Test, shot by William Dickson [Internet Archive]

The restoration is a story in itself, employing the collaborative efforts not only of Mr. Murch, but the Library of Congress, the Edison National Historic Site, the incredible sonic restoration capabilities of the Rogers and Hammerstein Archive of Recorded Sound at Lincoln Center, and Skywalker Sound and Industrial Light & Magic. Most strikingly, the archive was able to repair and re-record the broken cylinder, while Murch managed to perfectly sync the sound with the video. Edison’s experiment worked, only just over a century later than anticipated.

The film itself is a surreal dance with violin accompaniment, dwarfed by the giant cone used for recording. Since Mr. Murch and Sean Cullen donated the film to the Internet Archive, it’s also Creative Commons-licensed, meaning you can create your own audiovisual experiments with the footage. I expect the fully remixed version in my inbox within the week.

A playback note: the MPEG2 I downloaded didn’t properly reproduce sound in QuickTime 7, ironically enough. In the open source MPlayer (Mac; also on Linux and VLC (cross-platform) players, I had no trouble.