Cntr Rndm – Christian Paga

1. Favourite knob/fader/switch on a piece of gear and why?

I really like the TYPE knob on my NTS-1, because it lets you browse through all the FX programs and oscillators you have installed… and this is what makes the NTS-1 such a valuable synth/FX unit: you can customize the living daylight out of it!

Korg NTS-1

2. Do you have an ‘almost’ perfect bit of kit? What would you change?

Ok, I really love the PO-128 Mega Man and it’s (almost) perfect in every way BUT it would be even more amazing if it had a backup function like the PO-33, the PO-32 or the PO-133! It’s so annoying when you have to delete a song or a pattern you were rather satisfied, with just because you want to make a new one.

PO-128 Mega Man

3. What setup do you bring on holiday/tour/commute etc.?

I have this thing called “the Krako” which is just a portmanteau word consisting of the German words “Krach” (noise) and “Koffer” (case). So it’s this super old hairdressing case I got off Ebay for a couple of bucks (way cheaper than an actual flight case) and it literally does what it says on the tin: it’s a case for little noise-makers, preferably pieces of gear that run on batteries or that don’t need batteries at all (like my crappy Kalimba). Usually, there are a bunch of pocket operators in there as well as my NTS-1, my Korg Volca Modular, my Korg Monotron Delay, and both my Koma Elektronik Field Kit and my Field Kit FX.

NTS-1, Korg Volca Modular, Korg Monotron Delay, Koma Elektronik Field Kit and Field Kit FX

4. What software do you wish was hardware and vice versa?

What a great question! Erm, I would love to see a hardware version of Airwindows’ Galactic which is one of my favorite plugins at the moment. It’s this super amazing “I will turn anything into an ambient atmosphere” monster of a plugin – and the best thing is, it’s freeware! I can’t think of a vice-versa-example so here’s another piece of
software I wish was hardware: Valhalla’s Supermassive! I mean, seriously, isn’t Supermassive just the best Reverb-Delay plugin out there? But hey, basically all Valhalla plugins are amazing – what a great company!

Airwindows’ Galactic

5. Is there anything you regret selling… or regret buying?

Puh, nah, not really! I know this is super boring, but I tend to research a lot before I buy stuff – so I keep my bad-buy-level to a minimum.
However, I have kind of a difficult relationship with my Korg Volca Modular. It’s weird because on paper, we should be BFFs but in reality, meh…

Korg Volca Modular

6. What gear has inspired you to produce the most music?

That’s an easy one…pocket operators! I just love pocket operators – they have completely changed the way I approach producing music. Thanks to pocket operators, I can make music EVERYWHERE!

Pocket Operator Office

7. If you had to start over, what would you get first?

Three words: Ableton Live Suite!

Ableton Live shining brightly

8. What’s the most annoying piece of gear you have, that you just can’t live without?

Well, I’ll go with the PO-133, as it’s so much fun, that it’s annoyingly hard to put it aside!

PO-133

9. Most surprising tip/trick/technique that you’ve discovered about a bit of kit?

My buddy Pete Prodoehl (@raster on IG) taught me this super awesome Korg Monotron Delay latching trick, hack, whatever you want to call it. So, if you want to create a hands-free drone sound with this tiny dirtbag of a synth, all you have to do is put a nut on the ribbon keyboard and wrap a rubber band around it. This way, the Monotron plays a constant tone and you can tweak the sound with both hands.

Korg Monotron Delay

Artist or Band name?

Controlled Randomness aka CNTR RNDM aka CR aka Uncle CR.

Genre?

Erm…

Selfie?

Kind of…

Christian Paga aka. Cntr Rndm

Where are you from?

Essen, Germany.

How did you get into music?

When I was 14, me and my mates wanted to start a rap group. We had the lyrical skills (nah, we didn’t), we had the looks (nah, we didn’t), we were cool AF (hell no) – the only thing that was missing were beats! So I got a copy of Magix Music Maker and I made the most amazing beats ever created (no, I certainly didn’t).

I decided to become a professional musician after I won a couple of really big remix contests – including Daft Punk’s Technologic remix contest (back in 2005 I think) which was also the door opener to getting a major record deal in the mid-noughties. This was really exciting and all, I really enjoyed this for a while but after some time I realized that there were too many people around me that wanted to have a piece of the pie; who wanted to tell me what music to make, what gigs to play and what clothes to wear (seriously!!!). I didn’t make the music I wanted to make and ultimately I didn’t care about all of this and all of a sudden, making music wasn’t fun anymore! I had lost both the spirit and myself along the way.

After some time, I decided to quit making music for a while because I wasn’t feeling it anymore. Well, before I knew it, “a while” became 10 years and I only got back into making music when the first lockdown happened…and well, here I am, making music I really want to make; nowadays, after all these years, making music is fun again; and that’s why I strongly believe that music is all about experimenting, having fun, and community!

What still drives you to make music?

If I only knew 😂 but I guess I really love experimenting!

How do you most often start a new track?

It depends, really – if the song includes drums, I’ll probably start with the drums. If it’s an ambient piece, however, I’ll probably have a little piano jam, record it to tape, load it into Ableton and stretch the hell out of it 😁

How do you know when a track is finished?

Tracks are never finished – you just stop working on them 😂

Show us your current studio

I don’t have a studio anymore… just a “Krako” and a laptop 😎

“Krako”

Best creative advice that you’ve ever heard?

Do what you love!

Ok, then I’ll shamelessly plug my Partygate PO-33 kit on YouTube… it’s this little jam at the intersection of music and journalism, as it reveals the true (like so true) story behind Boris Johnson’s Partygate scandal 😂


Gabriel Vinuela – Viñu-Vinu


1. Favourite knob/fader/switch on a piece of gear and why?

White MoogerFooger RingMod

The knobs on my MoogerFooger RingMod are the best, I think. They have the good resistance, size and shape. They just feel right!

2. Do you have an ‘almost’ perfect bit of kit? What would you change?

Elektron Digitakt

The Elektron Digitakt is almost perfect for me. I love the workflow, its limitations, the sequencer, the size and the sound. That box sounds so good and has such unbelievable headroom! I guess I would like to have a slot for an SD card for more storage and easier sample transfers.

Digitakt and friends

3. What setup do you bring on holiday/tour/commute etc.?

I always bring my Zoom H4N everywhere to record field recordings which I really enjoy doing. For a minimal holiday setup, I would add to that my OP-1. Not super original here, but you can do so much on the OP-1 alone, it wins for a minimal setup!

OP1 and Zoom H4N

4. What software do you wish was hardware and vice versa?

I think having PaulXStretch in an effect pedal format would be pretty cool! Freeze, stretch the signal to immense drone with frequency shift, filters etc…
For a while, I was wishing for the Digitakt sequencer to be available as a software, but with overbridge it’s almost the case now. Also, Ableton 11 implementing randomisation in the sequencer totally fills that gap now for me.

Paul Stretch

5. Is there anything you regret selling… or regret buying?

I don’t really sell gear, cause I’m always afraid I’ll regret it later and that I might need it for a project. To be fair I’m also really cautious of the gear I buy and I don’t have a lot. I sold my first electric piano which was a Yamaha S90 a while back. I kind of regret selling now, because it had a pretty good keybed and I think I could use it now as master midi keyboard. Therefore, reinforcing that I should not sell gear! haha

Yamaha S90

6. What gear has inspired you to produce the most music?

I know it’s not a hardware piece, but I need to say Ableton Live. It’s definitely “the piece of kit” that got me started and I can still find endless inspiration within. I like that there’s so much different workflows possible, different ways of doing things and it’s such a modular environment to make music. No two person use it exactly in the same way!

Ableton

7. If you had to start over, what would you get first?

Something like the Minilogue I think. A synth with almost all the functions on the front panel is way better to start learning about synthesis.

Korg Minilogue

What’s the most annoying piece of gear you have, that you just can’t live without?

Cables!!! We absolutely need them, but there are too much cables around everywhere in the studio: xlr, 1/4, usb, dongles. It never ends OMG.

Cables

9. Most surprising tip/trick/technique that you’ve discovered about a bit of kit?

A surprising trick I learned watching a Dave Meck tutorial was that you can create FM tones by setting a really fast bpm multiply on the LFO and modulating the sample tune. Better to check it out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Wsu7CB1SSI

Digitakt FM tones

Artist or Band name?

Viñu-Vinu

Genre?

Electronic music, ambient, downtempo, experimental, melodic, beats (I guess??)

Selfie?

I’m cheating here… That’s a photo taken by my friend Mathieu Lalonde (Couleurves)

Gabriel Vinuela aka. Viñu-Vinu

Where are you from?

Montréal, Canada.

How did you get into music?

I started taking piano lessons when I was 10 years old and continued studying music and classical piano performance all through college and University. I completed a Bachelor degree in both classical and jazz piano performance at University of Montreal. Around 2013-14 a friend showed me Ableton and I started experimenting more with sounds and textures and started doing electronic music and music production more seriously around 2016. And here we are!

What still drives you to make music?

I think what still drives me is the infinite quest, exploration and learning experience that music is for me. I’m always looking for something new to make or to learn.

How do you most often start a new track?

Most of the time I fire Ableton Live and then it so much depends on the day! I generally like to establish and think about a process first. For example: explore this new plugin, today granular stuff, starting with a hardware synth, work with that new sequencer. The process gets me going at first and then I can go where ever from there and a new track or idea start emerging from that.

How do you know when a track is finished?

When it’s released and I’m listening to it on the Bandcamp or another platform stream. It’s really the only way you’re sure the track is fully finished… haha. Joke aside, that’s such a hard question to answer. For me it’s really a gut feeling, a sense that all the pieces of the puzzle are together, like I almost see the whole thing visually. Sometimes it happens really quickly and sometimes it takes for ever to get there.

Show us your current studio

Studio
Studio
Studio

Best creative advice that you’ve ever heard?

See your art as a practice and practice it everyday. Even for a really short amount of time. Blankfr.ms posted something in those lines a few days ago in an Instagram caption. It’s something that I always tell my piano student, but it kind of reaffirmed it for myself reading it. You’re better practicing 10 min a day, than an hour once in a while. Getting that sense of daily creation is such a good and rewarding feeling too.

Promote your latest thing… Go ahead, throw us a link.

I just released my new album Exilio Transitorio:
Vinyl + download:

Exilio Transitorio

https://vinu-vinu-music.bandcamp.com/album/exilio-transitorio

Streaming: https://album.link/i/1557425920


BoBeats – Treats from BobEats

1. Favourite knob or fader or switch on a piece of gear and why?

Since I am a poor keyboard player I really like the Digitakts buttons. Playing on them is for some reason easier to me than playing on regular keys. I guess its because they are just simple on/off buttons. Feels like typing on a keyboard. 

Elektron Digitakt buttons

2. Do you have an ‘almost’ perfect bit of kit? What would you change?

I would say that Maschine+ comes very close to perfect. Being in love with the Maschine workflow and now being able to use it without a computer. Its kinda dreamlike. 

Native Instruments Maschine+

3. What setup do you bring on holiday or tour or commute etc.?

It varies a lot. Next summer Maschine+ will 100% come with me to the cabin. Digitakt & Circuit is always nice too. I do like my grooveboxes. 

4. What software do you wish was hardware and vice versa?

Hardware that was software… Maybe a Subharmonicon VST? It is a unique synth and a software version could be pretty epic. Especially if you could play it polyphonically somehow… 

Moog Subharmonicon


Software in hardware form? I wouldn’t mind having an Ableton Push 3 be standalone! That’d be kinda cool having the Ableton Live DAW in hardware form.

[Editor: This too would be my wish]  

Ableton Push 2 (so close)

5. Is there anything you regret selling… or regret buying?

I regret selling my old Yamaha RM1X. 

Yamaha RM1X (photo:wikipedia)

6. What gear has inspired you to produce the most music?

Korg Minilogue. 

Korg Minilogue with custom knobs

7. If you had to start over, what would you get first?

A good audio interface. Something to grow into, with expandability (adat) and decent latency. 

8. What’s the most annoying piece of gear you have, that you just can’t live without?

Octatrack MK2. It is so good, yet at the same time so frustrating at times! 

9. Most surprising tip or trick or technique that you’ve discovered about a bit of kit?

I had a Digitakt beta unit and when I was playing with it I noticed it could make some epic synth sounds. Turning it into a groovebox and not just a drum machine.


Artist or Band name?

Bobeats

Genre?

Mostly electronic stuff, I’ll let others label it.

Selfie?

Nobody beats like BoBeats

Where are you from?

Sweden

How did you get into music?

I watched a friend make music on the Playstation ”game” Music.

What still drives you to make music?

It brings me joy.

How do you most often start a new track?

Usually by going thru sounds and finding something that click. That gets me interested.

How do you know when a track is finished?

You don’t. You have to decide that it is. You learn this from the experience of doing it many times. 

Show us your current studio

BoBeats Studio – Lots of grooveboxes and synths
BoBeats Studio – iMac and speakers
BoBeats Studio

Best creative advice that you’ve ever heard?

”What matters isnt what you do in life but that you do something you feel passionate about”.

Promote your latest thing… Go ahead, throw us a link.

Videos at https://www.youtube.com/bobeatsmusic


[Editor: Do you have a favorite tip, trick or way of working with any of the gear from this interview?
Then throw a comment below…
]