Recently I had the honor of having a a feature written about my Isomer Transition project, as well as an exclusive live performance featured on Percussion Lab. The live performance was recorded in the summer of 2009 at the wonderful, albeit short-lived outdoor Saturday daytime party called Jet-Lag, hosed by NY’s Backseat Buzz. Jet-Lag was the place you could show up at 4:00 pm on a Saturday afternoon, have a beer & a burger (not that I eat meat any longer), and hang-out in the sun with your closest friend that you just met.

The set was performed using an ailing G4 PowerBook (you can hear it glitch a few times in the set), Elektron Machinedrum (for all beats), several hardware effects (Moog ringmod, Line6 delay & Roland reverb) and a portable Behringer mixer, hence the noise. I am really happy with the laid back chilled out vibe of the set. What made it even better was it was that my parents and cousin were there for the performance. The link to the set and article are here.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Percussion Lab it is one of the best places on the internet to hear and download electronic music live performances, as well as dj sets from some of today’s best and brightest producers and DJs. The content on the site is of higher quality than most set download sites due to the curatorial hand that guides all of the content on the site.

Praveen Sharma, who runs Percussion Lab, is one of NY’s unsung electronic music heros, and his passion for music goes far beyond promoting other people’s music. An NYU graduate, accomplished musician, DJ, producer and composer in his own rite (boomkat xlr8r) Praveen is a modern day Digital-Futurist man who’s contributions to the tapestry of the electronic music scene reaches far beyond NYC.

Percussion Lab continues to evolve monthly with new content and new technologies. With Soundcloud integration recently completed, as well as plans for integration with other undisclosed music-forward technologies on the horizon, Percussion Lab has created a space for itself in the all-too-crowded online music universe that is viable, future-enabled and unbeatable. We are continually inspired by what he has done not for himself, but for the community at large.

Please visit Percussion Lab and experience all the wonderful sets that it has to offer.

Isomer Transition: New York State Of Mind – Live Set

Isomer Transition: New York State Of Mind – Blog Post

RICHARD J. VALEO

For this musical exploration, entitled Days, I decided to strip my composition processes and production methods down to the bare minimum.

To begin with I limited the amount of time that I would spend on each composition. This forced me to under-think everything, thusly creating music that had immediacy to it. I wanted the compositions to have a naiveté to them. I wanted the compositions to impart the memory and feelings that a person has when they hear a new melody for the first time.

To add more depth to the project I used this as an opportunity to re-explore music composition without the aid of complicated sequencing tricks. It was all just playing of melodies and rhythms into a midi sequencer.

I kept the initial musical idea of each composition in mind during the entire production cycle for each piece. This prevented me from getting bored and loosing the initial excitement that was created when I first played the music. By doing so I was able to work quickly and complete the composition at an accelerated rate.

Another aspect of the project was that improvisation was used as a central part of the compositional structure. The general form for each song was created using a MIDI sequencer, but the final recorded version was a combination of improvised performance and structured composition. It was this paring of improvisation and composition that allowed this series of compositions to stay fresh and novel.

In addition to the compositional parameters, I operated under a strict set of sound source and production constraints. The following is the list of those limitations.

The Rules

1. Limited and constant sound sources are to be used in each composition.

- Allen & Heath 16 channel mixing board
- Clavia Nordlead 2
- Elektron Machinedrum
- Yamaha TX81X
- Line6 Delay pedal
- Alesis Midiverb 4
- Alesis Bitterman pedal
- Korg Monopoly

2. Once all hardware sound sources are used, additional computer-based sources are allowed, with the stipulation that they are treated as hardware sources.This means they are used on individual inputs and outputs from the computer’s sound card and mixed in the analog mixer as audio.

3. If a sample is needed a software sampler can be used. See rule #2 for stipulations.

4. Once a composition is started it has to be completed before starting a new one.

5. To complete the composition each song will be performed live and a 2 track recording will be captured in the computer.

6. Once a composition is completed it can not be gone back to. The exception is that an edit can be done in post production.

7. If the mix is incorrect or needs to be fixed, this too should be done in post production.

8. The composition title is the name and time of the day on which the composition is created. Notes and annotations are allowed in titles.

9. Once a composition is completed the patches and settings on the hardware will be erased.

Over the course of 2 and a half weeks I completed 4 compositions, totaling approximately 20 minutes of music.

The song titles in this series are as follows, and are in the order that they were completed. On some of the songs there is extended ’silence’ before the song starts. This is intentional and is supposed to be there.

1. Saturday Morning (5:26)
2. Tues, Wed, Thurs, Fri [Sunday edit] (4:41)
3. Wed / Thurs [dk moon] (6:29)
4. Monday Night (3:32)

Days EP by rjvaleo

For these compositions I draw inspiration from the concepts and compositions first explored by like of Eric Satie, John Cage, Luigi Russolo, Brian Eno, Steve Reich, as well as countless other current luminaries of the sonorous arts

I really love soundcloud. If you have never heard if it before, just pop on over and you’ll see what it is all about. It is one of those services that changes they way you think about social media, and it just so happens to be focused on playing and sharing audio files.

To listen to what I have up there just use the players below.
Releases by rjvaleo

Unreleased tracks, and works in process. by rjvaleo

To send me a file just click on the badge below.

Send me your track

The Future Is Beautiful, in association with AUF and 319 Scholes present:

“Romulo and Runar are in Brooklyn”
Schematic / Hljodaklettar / TFIB / AUF / 319 Scholes / Oct 10 / Brooklyn
October 10, 2009
319 Scholes, Brooklyn NY
8pm – 6am / $10 / RSVP Required

For this edition of The Future Is Beautiful we have teamed up with AUF and 319 Scholes Art Space to bring you a night of ‘Experimental Relations’.  As you know, we are committed to bringing you exceptional outsider music and art, and this month’s first edition is no exception. With a focus on the experimental, coupled with a love of all things BASS how could we possibly go wrong?

We simply can’t.

To start things off Brooklyn’s own Unjust will set the mood with an eclectic mix of Ambient, Experimental, Minimalisms, IDM and Electro. A Brooklyn resident and Miami Ex-pat, Unjust is a newish older-comer to the NYC electronic music scene. Around since the days of Tonic and the original Bunker (remember when there were only 15 people there on some Fridays?) Unjust is just recently DJing in YC again. With musical tastes that range from Meat Beat Manifesto and Electro, to Soul Oddity, Steve Reich, and Move D, coupled with impecable mixing skills Unjust’s sets are sure to enthrall. Anticipate the unexpected and you will be correct in your assumptions.

Following Unjust’s DJ set we have a live performance by NYC Legend David Linton, performing his legendary “Bicamera” project. The “Bicameral Research Sound & Projection System” is an audio/video performance setup consisting entirely of hardware. This is quite the unique treat these days, especially with all the lap-toppery that has become standard in the A/V performance arena. David Linton has been involved in the NYC electronic music scene since the mid ’80’s, so expect to be schooled at Scholes. Serious electronic music here.

Following Linton’s AV performance we are proud to present Runar Magnusson in his debut performance at 319 Scholes. Hailing from Denmark, Runar is a celebrated university trained noise musician currently on his first tour in the US. Utilizing his laptop along with a unique blend of guitar pedals and effects, Runar’s style of noise is best described as “Doom drone ambient”. Examples of his sonic mayhem can be found on his Myspace page, link below.

After the noisy onslaught of Runar, TFIB resident Isomer Transition will perform a live set, using a combination of hardware and software. Pivotal to the sonic and rhythmic axises of the evening, Isomer Transition’s deep and dubby live techno pa will bridge the gap between the noise and the rhythm, transforming the night and providing the rhythmic framework on which the rest of the evening will build.

Following Isomer, TFIB & Auf are proud to present, DJing for the first time in NYC, Phoenicia’s own Romulo Del Castillo. (Perhaps) best known as half of the brilliant team that runs the Miami based Schematic Records, Phoenicia, Romulo is an exceptional producer and DJ that has been involved in the electronic music scene since the early ’90s. First as Soul Oddity (on Warp) and then as Phoenicia (considered by the heads to be Miami’s answer to Autechre, ), Del Castollo’s work as left an indelible mark on face of electronic music. For this evening he will be representing Miami proper with a DJ set as eclectic and divers as his own unique musical career.

After Romulo has properly melted you mind four times over, AUF and 319 residents Igal Nassima (of LESS fame) and Taylan Yilmaz (AUF) will bring the sun up with a heady blend of deep, dub, techno, minimal, house, and just about anything else that grabs their fancy. Expect a DJ set the likes of which you have never heard from these dymanic and well-seasoned artists.

As usual with TFIB events we have the wonderful ChiKa providing the visual atmosphere. This edition has a special guest visualist, 319’s own Igal Nassima will be provide us with a very special visual performance for the evening.

Lineup:

Unjust
( Schematic | the Ranch, NYC )

David Linton
(The Bicameral Research Sound & Projection System, NYC ) Live
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/davidlinton

Runar Magnusson Live
(Hljodaklettar, Denmark ) Live
http://www.myspace.com/runarmagnusson

Isomer Transition Live
(Archipel / TFIB / Io Records, Brooklyn)
http://www.transelectronic.net

Romulo Del Castillo
(Phoenecia / Schematic, Miami)
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/romulod

Igal Nassima
(AUF / Brooklyn)
http://www.319scholes.org

Taylan Sinan Yilmaz
(Living Records, AUF / Brooklyn)
http://www.aufny.com

Evening’s visual atmosphere by: ChiKa & Igal Nassima

10.10.2009 // 8pm – 06am // 10$
@
319 Scholes Art & Event Space

~~~~

RSVP REQUIRED!
Rsvp@319scholes.org

319 Scholes St. Brooklyn, Ny 11206
www.thefutureisbeautiful.com
www.319scholes.org
www.aufny.com

I thought that since this track has been included on Claude VonStroke’s Fabic 46 mix I’d make it available for download for a limited amount of time. How long you ask? Not really sure. Probably until the next posting.

Until then, enjoy the streaming and downloading.

Downtime In The Hangar by rjvaleo

Early in 2008 I started working on launching a non-proft organization dedicated to promoting the electronic arts.

The non-profit’s launch was scheduled to be in October of 2008, kicking-off with a 3 day festival, along with a cutting edge website. While the festival didn’t happen, and neither did the website, the organization itself still exists as a spiritual base that fuels all of my current artistic and professional endeavors.

The simple story is that we were 2 months out and we didn’t have a venue (although we did have an amazing lineup), we didn’t have any PR, we didn’t have a team, and, we didn’t have a website. I know when something just isn’t going to work, so I pulled the plug on the whole thing. It was fairly obvious (in retrospect) that it was an extremely ambitions plan that was far too complex for me to pull off alone. I had a partner who was willing to fund things (to an extent), but the for the most part I was on my own in this one.

A year later I see how these ideas have, even though the festival and website never happened, had an impact on the people involved in the festival here in NYC. For one, The Gestalt Festival caused Bryan ‘Spinoza’ Kassinik to think bigger than just a weekly event, helping to push him to decide to turn ‘The Bunker” into the monthly that it is now. Countless other people and organizations were touched by the ideas and have launched their own programs and events based on the ideas put forth by The Gestalt Foundation.

I still believe in the mission of The Gestalt Foundation, and have modified these idea to work for me on a more personal level. I have realigned my professional, personal and artistic lives so that I have the time and funding to follow my artistic vision. I don’t have the energy to take on creating a full-blown non-profit organization, but I am more than happy to share these ideas with the general public in the hopes that they inspire others to think outside the box and to follow their dreams.

The Gestalt Manifesto

The Gestalt Foundation was formed in the spring of 2008 in order to promote and support emerging digital and electronic artists and art organizations through innovative uses of technology. Our mission is to enable artists to create sustainable lifestyles from their art. We actualize this through a latticework of avenues, including online web-based programs and initiatives, as well curated annual new music and digital art festivals.

We are a non-proft organization whose constituents both support and guide the organization towards it’s reoccurring annual goals of promotion, support, stewardship, and invigoration of emerging digital and electronic art forms.

We are, in a sense, a meta-organization that encourages artists and other art organizations to fulfill their creative potential in new, unique and innovative ways.

We believe in the arts.

The arts have shaped the world throughout all of history. They have been the source from which new thoughts and ideas have sprung. They are an invaluable resource, without which the world would be a much less rich and wondrous place. All too often modern artists are relegated to having their art on the side and having ‘the day job’ front and center in their lives. This isn’t how artists should live, and it certainly isn’t how the best art gets created. We feel that the current societal mechanisms don’t do enough to support the arts and artists, and there aren’t enough tools available to artists to help them turn their creation into financial assets that they can leverage and control for their own benefit.

We believe in a level playing field.

Artists should be able to derive meaningful and sustainable incomes from their art and we are here to help make that happen. By creating and sharing an open-source platform that artists can use for their web presence we create not only a promotional network, but a virtual market-place that artists can use to sell their works. The tools we provide integrate with all of the latest social medias, and can accommodate new ones as they become available. Our platform is simple to use, because, we understand that most artists don’t want to spend time learning how to use the latest technologies, they want to create art.

We believe in technology as a tool.

Technology provides new ways to promote the arts, and can be leveraged to help create sustainable incomes for artists. Be it the latest in music services (such as soundcloud or bandcamp) the classic music services (iTunes, last.fm), or the social media sites (twitter, facebook and myspace), The Gestalt Foundation’s set of core services (called The Gestalt Engine ©) offer a unified experience from these disparate sites. By tying all of these services together into a single unified experience The Gestalt Engine © allows for a single, beautifully designed, easily skinned, portable front end that is hooked into the heartbeat of the internet. No longer will artists need to have 12 different links in their promotions for prospective fans to find all their information, now a single interface will offer it all beautifully.

We believe in promotion and opportunity.

The Gestalt Foundation has a multi-disciplinary approach to supporting the arts, utilizing both the virtual and physical worlds in order to create vibrant programs that are alive year round. By utilizing our internally produced web technologies, artists are able to create and maintain global audiences. At our annual festival, and year round events, artists and audiences are able to come together and interact in the real world. The Gestalt Foundation’s goals go far beyond curating and producing a simple festival or website, our goal is to create a vibrant community based around art, supplying artists with the exposure and tools they need in order to help promote and monetize their work.

At our annual festival we will showcase well known artists side by side with emerging talent. The purpose of this format is to expose both audiences and artists alike to the diverse spectrum of digital artistry in order to encourage everyone to explore new artistic paths and inspire new creative ideas.

Here are some really great images of synths. the colors and styles of them make me want to break out some gear and start tweaking. Don’t you want to tweak?

Bad copy, cool pics. Check ‘em.

I have been studying many different ways to perform electronic music live over the years, and have tried just about all of them. I’ve done all hardware sets, all software software sets, full-on totally sequenced performances (those never worked out well) and totally improvised sets (those are great or totally suck) and have come to hard and fast rules for myself as far as what I will and will not do in a live set. It all comes down to the live aesthetic and integrity as an artist. I really believe in music as art rather then product, and a live musical performance is exactly that – a live performance. For me there is no difference between a live electronic music performance and a jazz band performance.

So, the rules. Some of these are ‘don’ts’ and some are ‘do’s’. The don’t are things that some people do and still consider it a ‘live performance’. Why don’t I consider it a live performance? Because when you do them in a set it really does feel like cheating. And, if it feels like cheating it has to be cheating. The do’s, well, when they happen right they just feel so right. With art I am all about the feel. That isn’t to say that I don’t have rules, because I certainly do, I just think that feel is perhaps the most important part of a live performance.

Ok, here we go.

#1 – No mixing of tracks into the live set.

Some people do it, none ever admit to it, and for me it is something I am just not interested in. It is so obvious when you hear a live set with tracks in them. I can think of several that I was in person for and several that friends (non-producers) turned me on to. They were so dense, and so layered and so composed that there is no way that it could all be live. Sorry, if you are playing tracks you aren’t performing live. This is called the milly vanilly.

#2 – No mixing of ’stems’ in the live set.

Stems are large parts of songs all arranged and laid out. If someone were to give you the ’stems’ of a song you could, if the stems were prepared properly, simply lay them out and get the original song. I am not interested in that, and again, with so much work pre-done for you it is hardly ‘live’. This is the sneaky cheat as the performance sounds really live, and you can do neat stuff with volume and what not, but it is rather hard to fuck-up playing a live set that is all stems.

#3 – There should be a mix of ‘improv’ and ‘composition performance’.

Just like a ‘real musician’ you should be able to perform you set 3 or 4 times and have it come out relatively similar. By the same token you should be able to improvise with your set and make new things up on the spot.

#4 – If the performer isn’t having fun, no one is having fun.

One of the most magical experiences of a live performance is when the performer is as caught up in the moment and is simply having fun doing what they do. When I am really into performing (or playing my gear, the same way a musician plays an instrument) I totally forget about the audience and just let go. Sometimes I almost fall over as I go to make a change on a sound, or drop the bass, or tweak the treble. That is how I know it is real, when I do something and almost loose my balance.

Use whatever tools you like to use so that you can have fun. Personally I like a lot of hardware and knobs to work with. I like a lot of tactile feedback when I make sounds, and I think it makes for a much more enjoyable viewing experience as well. You can see what I am doing as I am doing it. There is a one to one correlation between my actions and the sound. That is fun.

#5 – It is OK to make a mistake, it is LIVE!

While it IS best to be as good as humanly possible, a flawless performance, while desired, isn’t always the best performance. If you are trying to do a trick on a skateboard, and  you are in a competition, and you have your run and play it safe, you get an OK score. When you try to do something that is just outside of your reach, and you stretch yourself, sometimes you make it and sometimes you don’t. But, when you DO make it, it is really fantastic. When you don’t, well, just try to recover and see if you can pull it off again. That is how Tony Hawk did his famous ‘900′. Really, people are forgiving when the know you are doing your best to give them something special. Don’t we all love special?

#6 – Do it for yourself first and everyone else second.

By all means don’t be an idiot and try to scare the crowd away like some people do. But, do think about what you want to do for yourself and do exactly that. You do also need to keep the audience in mind, but, it really is all about you doing your thing and them being there to experience it. Assume that they know and understand that everything you are doing is live and that you are totally 100% in control of the music and you will really feel fantastic about it. Come on, they know it’s live.

#7  – Don’t listen to the recording.

Well, I am probably not going to be able to stop you from doing so, but if you do, and it doesn’t feel the same as when you played it, that is because it IS different. You aren’t in the space, you aren’t in front of the people, the sound system isn’t blaring at you. It is totally different. Once thing you can do to add some life to the recording is simulate the ‘club’ sound system. Add some compression, a little room verb, and if the system was shitty, add a little distortion to give it that edge that the cerwins had when you played.

So, that just about wraps up this rant on my feelings towards what a ‘real live performance’. This is all in reference to beat-based dance music. Other forms of live electronic music performance have their own unique set of rules. Perhaps that is another post for another time…