walkman Archives - Martin Yam Møller

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

I’m in love with the “repetition” knob (in French on the device) of my Redson EC25. It turns most chord progressions into space travel. The result can be extremely soft, with ethereal echoes, or very violent with destructive feedback. I use this (very lofi and cheap by the way) echo chamber as an instrument in its own right.

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

I don’t have ONE perfect kit, I like to navigate between my different devices. I will consider a perfect kit for one week before using another exclusive for the next. That’s what I like and that makes me never get bored.

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

I like to travel with the Arturia Microfreak because it is small, light and runs on usb battery. And when my children give me permission, I use their Nintendo 3DS with the Korg DSN12 program, which is a surprising emulation of the Korg MS10. I also bring a Sony TCM200 tape recorder to play with the different playback speeds. And of course on my Zoom H5 to record.

Nintendo 3DS with the Korg DSN12 program and a Sony TCM200 tape recorder

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

I would love to have the equivalent of Arturia’s “Fragments” plugin in pedal format. It’s a very inspiring granular processor, which can totally change a drum beat or a synth pad. I don’t use it as much as I would like because the computer is almost completely absent from my creative process now.

On the other hand, I haven’t found an echo plugin as dirty as my Redson EC25, all the space echo emulations that I have tested sound much too clean, even with an old tape simulation. So I would say a cheap tape echo plugin.

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

I have a love-hate relationship with the Arturia Minibrute (MKI), which I’ve bought, sold and repurchased several times. So I would say it is perfect to answer the 2 questions haha.

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

It’s hard to choose between my Fostex X14, which introduced me to the world of tape looping, and between the Arturia microfreak which allows me to compose outdoors, whether in the forest or on the top of a mountain.

I have the Fostex for 18 years, and the Microfreak for 2 months. This makes me happy because I think there are always new things to discover and explore.

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

I think I would take a Mac and a UAD interface directly. I lost too much time with the computer, with my current system I almost forget it.

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

Except my computer, nothing bothers me yet !

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

I recently discovered that with a tape multitrack recorder like my Fostex I could play tapes recorded on normal devices in reverse mode. Combined with the different tape speeds, it’s pure happiness !

Artist or Band name?

Stegonaute

Genre?

Euuuh… Lofi, Trip Hop, Ambient ?

Selfie?

Where are you from?

I live in a small village in the south east of France

How did you get into music?

I started at the age of 12 with the bass, then with the guitar.

What still drives you to make music?

I like exploring new sounds, traveling and letting myself be carried away. It’s my main way of expressing myself.

How do you most often start a new track?

I start most of the time on my acoustic piano, even if I don’t know how to play it. I like the fact that there’s no need to turn it on, it’s even faster than plug and play!

How do you know when a track is finished?

NEVER ! I stop working on it at some point in order to move on. Releasing EPs on the platforms allows me to say to myself “it’s over, I’m not touching it anymore!”. Otherwise I’ll still be working on it…

Show us your current studio

Best creative advice that you’ve ever heard?

Put your phone in airplane mode.

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

Instagram @Stegonaute

Here is my latest EP : https://stegonaute.bandcamp.com/album/freefall

and my YouTube Channel

[Editor: There are affiliate links to the relevant gear throughout the articles. It helps to support this blog. In fact, should you be needing some patch cables or guitar strings. Then clicking on one of the above links and buying any product that you prefer, will help the blog… doesn’t even have to be the ones in the link. Thx]

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

DIY varispeed knob on a walkman cassette

This is my favorite knob, there is something about making something yourself and peeking behind the curtain that is so magical.

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

I always go back to this delay, it’s simple and effective and has room to evolve with the toneprint stuff, although I haven’t messed with that yet. I wish the looper had more options, but I think the “X4” one has wayyy more looper options.

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

iPad with Mood iOS Model D app and cassette tape

Vacation? Holiday? What are those lol? When we’re able to travel again, I’ll probably do something simple like an ipad and a cassette recorder. There’s a lot of untapped power in the ipad world that needs to be explored.

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

I guess I wish ableton had more specific controllers, like an operator specific physical controller. I know push offers some control but it would be cool to have all the settings at your fingertips. Honestly though we’ve entered the age where software is like 95% there in my opinion, VST’s and modelers are good enough for me 🙂

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

I regret buying the volca modular, if you don’t have any modular this is a cool synth to see if you’re interested and there’s some great sounds in this box, but overall I never clicked with it. I would have rather gotten another volca fm or maybe a module.

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

Hands down the guitar, acoustic or electric. It’s the instrument I learned music on and it will always be my number one!

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

I would do it just how I started, a guitar, a DAW, a mic or 2. I think a DAW should be the centerpiece of every musician’s setup along with their “main” instrument.

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

Nothing really annoys me that much honestly. I don’t really like mixing/mastering and that is always a big road block between me and releasing music. I should just hire someone to do that stuff but I don’t have the funds to justify it.

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

My FAVORITE thing right now is a maxforlive randomizer. I use it on everything, hardware, software, effects, arps, everything. I found myself in a rut and I was creating similar stuff too often but the randomizer has opened the floodgates on what is possible with gear. I think generally we underestimate the power that things have. Like the randomizer on a microkorg will give you a lifetime supply of sounds and effects that will consistently surprise you.

Artist or Band name?

Gemini Horror

Genre?

Currently ambient but really I’d say a hot mess

Selfie?

Where are you from?

Florida

How did you get into music?

I took classical guitar lessons in middle and high school along with piano, music theory, and orchestra.

What still drives you to make music?

I’m not sure right now, I think it’s something I have to do to maintain myself and it’s my creative outlet. Without it I think I might die from boredom.

How do you most often start a new track?

There is no one way. Sometimes it’s something I can’t stop playing on guitar and other times it’s an instagram post I liked.

How do you know when a track is finished?

Hahah, tracks are never finished, but they have to leave you at some point.

Show us your current studio

Best creative advice that you’ve ever heard?

Just do it

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

Nothing really to promote right now, but check me out on spotify and instagram 🙂

https://www.instagram.com/gemini.horror/

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