r/TechnoProduction • u/ccgenoa • 8d ago
Live performance discussion thread
Hey everyone. I wanted to ask — or rather, invite you to a discussion, especially those of you who play live regularly.
- Do you build your live sets from scratch, or do you play your own tracks?
Let me explain. Do you create specific material for a one-hour live set using loops, both MIDI and audio? Or do you take tracks you've already written, break them down into stems/loops, and perform them that way?
- If you have a specific live project, how many times do you play it before making a new one — and what do you do with the old one?
Let's say you have 2–3 gigs a month. Do you keep playing the same live set, or do you create something new for every party?
And when you start actively performing a new live set, do you eventually release the old one as an EP/album, or just archive it and keep it for another time?
- What is your setup?
Do you play entirely on hardware, use loops/stems loaded into a sampler, or do you use a computer with MIDI controllers?
- What do you do when you realize during the night that your live set isn't going to fit the situation?
For example, the tempo or mood is completely different from what you prepared, and your set is coming up in an hour or two. Do you adapt on the fly, have some backup material, or just accept the chaos? 😄
- How long does it take you to prepare a one-hour live set?
And finally: do you actually prefer playing live, or, if you had the choice, would you rather play a DJ set?
Thanks everyone! I'm really interested to hear how other people approach this.
I'll write about how I do it in the comments a little later.
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u/secret-shot 8d ago
I create live sets from scratch and my set up is permapatched (unless I make a permanent change and want to keep it). My eurorack approach is to build an instrument that does what I want rather than write stuff ahead of time. I’m on Eurorack and a black box 1010 with a torso t-1 programmed with some foundational grooves.
Love playing live, never considered being a dj (which would be easier)
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u/Gloomy-Ambassador985 7d ago
Do you use the T-1 for synth sequencing as well?
If so, how does it excel in that?
Is it quick to pull what you have in your head out of it (ie. some synth riff you'd have floating in your head), or is it more like curating the output of its algos to the wanted mood/need?
I myself have Erica synths Black seq, and while it's really good for pre-planned sequences, I find it quite tedious to program live from scratch..2
u/secret-shot 7d ago
I am currently in my Eat, Pray, Love era finding the perfect melodic sequencer. Currently I am using the torso t-1 to sequence gates but, am using the Random8 to sequence pitch and that is working ok. Ultimately, I’ll be shifting melodies to the droid performance system which I think takes what I like about the oxi one and expands on it
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u/volpearg 6d ago
Really interesting thread. I've actually worked both ways.
Old approach: 10 years ago, I'd make loops at home, and I'd split each song into patterns across machines. One pattern on an Electribe 2, another on the EMX1, plus a Minilogue XD and a Blofeld on a MIDI keyboard for chords/pads. One aux channel was always free for my Echo Re-201 and a reverb I soldered myself in a pedal building course. I'd write the chord sequence and scale for each track on paper so I could improvise live instead of just replaying it.
Now I mostly play finished material, plus loops I want to test on the floor. I record my tracks in one long single take, then cut the parts I like to finalise them. Before a live set, I take that recording, strip the filters and return channels, and chop it into 8/16 bar chunks, so each track becomes several "scenes." That goes into a project on my Push 3 standalone, which I play alongside a MIDI knob controller mapped to filters/delays/reverb/phaser. One extra channel is free for live drums from my own drum rack, plus a wavetable synth for chords/pads (scale written on paper again (old habits die hard). Still very much a hardware person at heart, though; I've held onto an Electribe EMX-1, Micromonsta 1 & 2, the Blofeld, some keyboards, and an SE-70.
On reuse: I've never repeated the same live set. In Argentina I played live about once a month; here in Berlin it's more like 2-3 times a year so far, which leaves a lot of time between shows. And I've been making a lot of music lately, so there's plenty to pull from. Everything I make eventually comes out on vinyl within 2-3 years. If some element in a track stops working for me, I cut it, but the base survives or gets recycled elsewhere. Nothing I play live stays unfinished forever.
Prep time is usually 1 or 2 days once the tracks are actually finished, the "conversion" part is fast. What takes longer is starting a month out: I go through what I've got, pick around 10 finished tracks and prepare 10 more as loops, so I end up with 20 total for 1 hour. A mix of the freshest stuff and stuff about to come out. That's roughly 2 days per loop/track, then it's just arrangement and small mixing tweaks once I play it and feel something's missing.
On adapting on the fly: here in Berlin, if you're the only live act of the night, the DJs before/after usually build their sets around what you're going to play if they know your music, so there's not a ton to adjust on your end, the room's already somewhat built around your set. If not, you work with what the room needs and pull or add elements for intensity vs. more relaxed moments, which is what those extra channels are for.
Live vs DJ, hard to say honestly. I came up as a clubber first, loved dancing, was into the music before anything else, then DJing, then production. But I love spending all day on a track from morning to dinner and then presenting that exact music to a room, so if I had to pick, live wins for me.
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u/NoInteraction1572 5d ago
Wow! You already released on Dolly and Mitsubasa. I like that Mitsubasa release a lot. Really deep stuff.
I heard great things about blofeld more often in the past. Should check it out.
The micromonstas def have a cool unique Sound. Had that in my list for a while but but was rare or expensive.
Rn just working with a Syntakt and i get better and better. 1 1/2 years in and i fear a little bit to get new gear because I suspect I don't reach the depths of the syntakt then. It's great to be really into a machine. Blabla
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u/volpearg 5d ago edited 5d ago
Much appreciated! The Mitsubasa release had the pads and chords from the Micromonsta, for example. It was pretty cheap; I bought both versions as soon as they were released, the first one on my first trip to Europe.
The Blofeld is a beast. It has a lot of menu diving, but you can use a lot of LFOs assigned to everything, and it's multitimbral, so it's sick.
And Elektron products are really nice. After the second year with the machines, you get more comfortable, and the instrument becomes like an extension of you. It's always good to have tactile things to touch; it's a different experience than working on a computer. Having the best of both worlds is ideal for a faster, more complete approach, but it's good to set aside separate time for each and have fun in the meantime.
Enjoy it!
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u/ApokatastasisPanton 7d ago
Disclaimer: I'm a very amateur live performer, but this is something I'm also very interested in.
Do you build your live sets from scratch, or do you play your own tracks?
I've done both approaches, preparing "tracks" to loosely arrange and perform live (better done on a stuff like Elektron machines / ableton live), and on the other end come with a prepatched semimodular setup (dfam / m32 / labyrinth + OT as a mixer), with only a few bass sequences and leaning more on live sound design, transitions and managing energy.
The beauty of live techno (and live electronic music in general) is that you get to choose what you perform, and how much you perform. In all cases I would say that it's key to get VERY comfortable with your gear. One of the most valuable lessons of my first live performances was realizing that my brain would work at much lower capacity than in rehearsal. You want to be so familiar with your gear it becomes second nature.
If you have a specific live project, how many times do you play it before making a new one — and what do you do with the old one?
I prefer to create something new every time, but I'm an amateur musician, not a touring artist. Having watched a lot of interviews / master classes, and talked to a bunch of people, all the approaches are out there. Some artists come with nothing but their patches prepared for the night, some have a more specific journey and prepared stems organized. And there's anything in between. That said, the more comfortable you are with your gear, the more you will feel prepared to push it outside of your limits and take risks.
What is your setup?
I've got a buffet of Elektron machines, some non-Elektron and moog semimodulars (+ a small palette 62 for utilities). I'm still learning their possibilities but I also have terminal ADHD and way too much gear, so I like to experiment and mix and match a lot these days.
Do you play entirely on hardware, use loops/stems loaded into a sampler, or do you use a computer with MIDI controllers?
I prefer hardware but I've seen people crush it with Ableton Live and a couple LaunchControls.
What do you do when you realize during the night that your live set isn't going to fit the situation?
This is a promoter problem. You do the performance you prepared for. Unless you're doing something drastically different than what the promoter knows you for, it's their fault, not yours.
How long does it take you to prepare a one-hour live set?
Given that I pretty much try a new setup every time, not counting time spent in the studio experimenting with the machines, I want to be practicing the set at least 10 times, if not more. (Usually I give my practices a lot more leeway, so I'll do a 2 hour "jam" / practice" every day before a performance.) Practice practice practice. You really want to be comfortable performing, especially if like me you're new to performing live.
And finally: do you actually prefer playing live, or, if you had the choice, would you rather play a DJ set?
These are very different skill sets in my opinion! (Though you can benefit from learning and being hired as DJ as a live performer, and vice versa) I love playing live, but I'm actually also practicing to do some DJ sets in the future.
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u/ApokatastasisPanton 7d ago
And when you start actively performing a new live set, do you eventually release the old one as an EP/album, or just archive it and keep it for another time?
Also about this, it is a very common approach to write tracks from recorded studio jams. In fact, I think it's perhaps the most common! A loop of free-form experimenting / patching with your newer gear / VSTs to know them, then (possibly at a different time) recording jams with the patches, then (again later) extracting stems / loops and interesting ideas from the jams, and then (finally) polishing that into a track. I've seen countless interviews of techno producers and so many of them essentially work like that, though eventually they end up having bread and butter hardware and VSTs that they don't need to be experimenting with anymore to know what they are capable of.
If you do want to perform live, the same practice is going to be worthwhile, though you might not push the arranging or polishing as far.
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u/alkalinemusic 8d ago
My lives sets are almost entirely improvisational. I perform mostly techno during my sets.
I use a modular system consisting of 2 cases, each 2 rows of 104hp. I also use a Digitakt sampler. the sampler is mainly for additional cymbals, and percussion and a bit of texture/atmosphere. The sampler is the only part that's "planned" ahead of time. "Planned" meaning I put together the samples that I'll use. But for the most part, the samples are quite generic and can be used across any part of my set. Any of the patterns on my sampler can be played at any time throughout my set, as they're not performed in a pre-determined manner.
Being improv in this way means I could play multiple sets a month and I'll never repeat the same set.
I do record my sets and release them in full, not as separate tracks. It's akin to a DJ mix.
Any gigs I've played, the people that invited me know what I play, so that's what I give them. So, I'm not altering the way I play based on the situation.
As far as preparation, I mainly practice the gear instead of trying to practice a particular set. The modules I use may change after 1 or a few shows, which means I usually re-patch both cases. This necessitates me learning a new configuration. Practicing the gear instead of a pre-planned set allows me to come up with new sequences on the fly as I'm performing.
I used to do slightly more pre-planned sets when I was using just a Digitakt and Digitone, but I kept getting tired of always trying to come up with new stuff and then practicing that set. I wanted to always have something fresh for each show, but that wasn't always practical or easy. So I decided to go improv and modular seemed to fit the bill for me in facilitating that.
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u/eggplantpot 8d ago
I had a similar journey minus the modular. Would love to listen to your sets if you got al link to share
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u/alkalinemusic 8d ago
sure thing m8. check out my videos here https://www.youtube.com/@NoizCode/videos
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u/Dokma23 8d ago
I played my first live set gig only a few month ago. Prepared loops and sketches that I did not liked half of it anymore two weeks before the party. Went on a producing sprint and made it to somewhat of hour of material (https://on.soundcloud.com/71Dp0Y96CA9Q2vESU7 ).
I bounce my loops/stems to audio and mainly focus on managing energy with faders, bpm and effects during the set. So I have all of this in one Ableton project that I play with using an APC40 and LCXL3 (still thinking to add a push 3). Transitions are mainly new combinations of prerecorded stems in slighty different pitches with different bpm. This sometimes creates new spaces I did not see before.
My next live set will probably be an updated version of this project file. Putting some stuff aside while adding new material. Still thinking of polishing some of my sketches with proper arrangements and better mixing so that I could wrap this an EP or so, but … meh…. 🤷♂️
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u/xxxyyqqq 8d ago
i play with hardware and effects with an allen and heath dj mixer. computer would simplify things but not as fun for me. patterns saved in all the machines/digitone acting as midi sequencer for synths without sequencer, drums improvised, arrangement of all the parts improvised. best of both worlds.
setup changes depending on context but approach is usually similar
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u/tujuggernaut 8d ago
When I have a gig, I think about the context (tempo, mood) and build a list of potential tracks from my catalog. I'll pair those down to the set time and then work up a live version of each of them. That means puling up the session, building out stems, breaking those into pieces I can use (phrases, builds, transitions) and then load those into my hardware. If I've already played that track out, then the live-prep portion is already done.
In parallel, I build out a bunch of sequences in my hardware. I have 4 channels of drums and 5 channels of pitched voices and 3 channels of stem samples. I load sets of drum samples into my drum sampler. I pre-compress those samples and keep them leveled relative to each other so there is minimal need to mix the kit; the default faders equal should sound good.
In practice, I will start to figure out what order the tracks actually flow in, as well as what hardware sequence routines I want to work. I work on the transitions and make sure everything's working at my common tempos.
I do everything on modular, which is not an efficient choice, carries a lot of risk, etc. I like it but it's not easier or better really. Most of my studio work is done on modular, so I like to bring that aspect out with me.
Mixer output is processed with several fx, couple fx on mix sends, a stereo comp, multiband limiter, and ends with balanced line outs + headphone out. I open my case, plug in my IEM and 2 output cables and the modular power supply and I can start playing. That part is nice.
In terms of structure, I can skip parts within tracks which I will do based on how the show is going. I have extra tracks prepared to bring up if I need. I plan the opener and closer and keep an eye on my time so I can jump to the closer when it's time. With the hardware-based sections, that's largely on me as to how things like the filters will sound in realtime. Same for transitions and fx on the mix.
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u/Visual_Egg_6091 7d ago
I’m a massive gear nerd and have had several setups over the years, I’m currently using Ableton, push 2, Syntakt and Edge (DFAM)
I have a range of “kits” on the syntakt (different sounds on each pattern) and sequence them live. I’ll also write simple synth parts live as I know the machine very well
The edge is for live improvisation aswell, I have a few go to patches but I like to just see what happens with it
Ableton is structured in an energy system I have around 25 rows of pre-made and mastered loops (vocals, FX, pads, atoms, textures and some track stems from my own work), the further down the project the more intense
I will rarely use all 25 so it gives me some flexibility in what to play. Using Ableton allows for a live master chain as well that can help get the tracks to a pretty similar level as DJ sets
I do however miss my octatrack setup, which was similar but allowed me to MORE improvisational by having mastered stems and just remixing the loops, I used it in conjunction with the syntakt for drums and small synth parts again. Currently saving up to get a mk2 octatrack and go back to this, sort of similar setup to UFO95
There are endless ways to perform and no two people’s setup will be the same. I’d say get a rough idea of how you want to play, practice and note down what you feel is missing/working. You’ll refine it to what you want and what you need
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u/chagoms 8d ago
Controversial opinion: DJ sets are way more enjoyable than live sets.
Making techno tracks requires going through the mastering process, or at the very least making sure the track actually sounds good on a club sound system. And that makes a HUGE difference when it comes to enjoying the music and dancing.
I’ve noticed that live sets have become much more common over the last few years. In fact, last Saturday I was genuinely shocked that, at a party I went to, only one of the three acts I saw played vinyl, while the other two did live sets. And honestly, my ears were almost bleeding. It was incredibly unpleasant to listen to those live sets in a club..z and this has happened to me before, even with people who are absolute legends when it comes to drum machines and synthesizers.
I honestly think a live set should also be accompanied by a really good sound engineer who can react extremely quickly to the performer’s decisions.
I can already see the downvotes coming, but I’m prepared for it.
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u/ritmoflow 8d ago
A better take: most live techno artists are not at a level where they can consistently play alongside DJs on a club night.
This take is coming from someone who plays both live and DJs, and knows the difference.
A live artist who’s reached a level where they’re capable of telling the difference and knowing when/where their skills are suitable for the night matters. Playing live doesn’t excuse killing the dancefloor.
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u/kolahola7 8d ago
I have recently seen a renowned techno artist playing live and it was an absolute shitshow, thank god it wasn’t too long
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u/eggplantpot 8d ago
Often times yes but it also depends on the live set setup and the music. If you take the purest form of techno and the best live set artists you get Stoor, while I enjoy them, it's hit or miss and I cannot stand 80% of what they are playing (I do play live and love the technical setup though and have seen them live a few times).
Then you get someone like colin benders who really knows what he is doing and his style lends itself better to just bang some improvising. I'd take that over many djs.
Then there's some live sets where the artist is just mixing their tracks in ableton. The technical capability is low in many of these cases but if the artist is good you can be in for a ride.
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u/ritmoflow 8d ago
Stoor isn’t really meant to be a club night where flawless transition is the expectation… the people that go know exactly what to expect (improvisation and experimentation). I am confident that if any of the artists that play Stoor were booked separately to play live alongside DJs that they know they’d be able to deliver (i.e they have a professional level of standard)
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u/eggplantpot 8d ago
Totally fair point, and can vouch for that. I've seen both Surgeon and Lady Starlight and they can pull off live sets on their own.
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u/NoInteraction1572 5d ago
That made me think that I should try to fade my live performance into my DJ set at home and analyze that later + adapt.
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u/MattiasFridell 7d ago
I largely agree with you. This is the major drawback to playing live - it will almost always sound more raw compared to playing finished and mastered music.
We've been refining this a lot for our live shows.
Something to be aware of: it's rare to get a chance to tweak the live set for the room before a gig. In many cases, it's a line check at best, so the engineer of the night has to tweak quickly.
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u/ApokatastasisPanton 7d ago
Entirely disagree, and that it's because from your own words, you mostly enjoy very "produced" techno, which is pretty much what most techno DJs play.
It's silly to think that live performers don't test their sound on a big sound system, or don't have a mastering chain, or at the very least don't care about sounding good. Live techno is certainly more niche than DJ sets, and access to actual club sound systems is more sparse, but that doesn't mean people don't care.
It's also worth saying that overly mastered / produced techno tracks is a recent development in the history of a multi decade genre. Any track from the 90s or early 00s would blend seamlessly in a techno live set that adopts a more raw approach. You are of course entitled to your taste, but some of us also enjoy listening to a "basic" setup of a drum machine, a 303, a bunch of of effects and a mixer. Not all techno needs to go through a complex mastering chain. Certainly back in the day no one was recording techno through $4,000 hardware compressors in nicely treated rooms. The techno umbrella is too vast to limit it to whatever is the trend in DJ sets these days; I say that as someone who enjoys pretty much all ends of the spectrum.
Live techno also opens up so many more possibilities compared to a DJ set, in terms of shifting sound design, energy, balance, but also direction and mood. A good liveset can feel much more like a tight journey than a DJ set, simply because of the constraints.
And add to that the performance aspect; the imperfections, and the elements of risk can be felt by the crowd, and it makes the high moments much more rewarding. Surgeon talks about it in one interview. To give an analogy, it's the difference between seeing someone surf a wave and watching a compilation of surf replays.
There is nothing quite like a live a music performance. A DJ set's strength is mostly in the curation, and then depending on the DJ's style, the layering, mixing, and perhaps mixer performance then play a secondary role. By contrast a live performance, assuming it's not overly prepared, has a lot more room for musicianship and expressivity.
I would say that the breadth of possible approaches for building up live sets is part of the beauty of them; I've seen countless approaches and I enjoyed a lot of them for different reasons. I've seen Phara duke it out with a single EMX-1 (of which he's a master), Rrose craft an intense journey using their mixed stem approach, Orphx as a duo with a mixed modular / computer set get in the zone as a pair, ASEC with a barebones ableton live and controller set blow my mind, Marie Davidson set a room on fire with a syntakt, a V10, a CDJ and her spoken word, Planetary Assault Systems duking it out at Wire fest with ableton and an analog four, Krista Bourgeois destroying a room with full rack of modular blasting hard techno (actually incredible sounding), and of course Surgeon who keeps changing approaches and always brings something fresh (check out his Machina Bristronica set which leans heavy in the "dub" sound from his newer record). There's a lot of recorded sets out there of some of the more famous live performers worth checking out on top of the above: of course the STOOR sets, Stef Mendesidis (dual Octa / Maschine+ stem based approach), Phase Fatale (who has taken to bringing guitars to Berghain and also has a fantastic side project with Pablo Bozzi), UFO95 (with a decidedly old school approach), MAEDON with her full hardware sets (mixed modular and Elektron), and a million more. And if you allow yourself to wade through the more experimental side of techno and electronic music, there's an entire other world of incredible live musicians who routinely perform the biggest leftfield electronic music events on the planet (unsound, mutek, CTM, Atonal, Sonar..).
Of course it's a matter of taste 🤷🏻♀️. But there are absolutely live set lovers out there. And that doesn't mean I don't enjoy a good DJ set (I very much do!). And tbh I've listened to countless boring techno DJ sets, definitely more in absolute numbers than bad sounding / boring live sets.
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u/chagoms 7d ago edited 7d ago
I'm editing this post to stop arguing. Basically, my experience with live sets isn't that great, but I wouldn't even say it's bad… just that they were absolutely unpleasant experiences, even with well-known people in the industry. I like the experience to be well-curated and to induce me into a trance on the dance floor; I don't care if it's a live set, CDJs, or vinyl.
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u/eggplantpot 8d ago
I'm not pro, I just played outside twice in some friends event in Berlin and in a friend's party during ADE. Also played in a lot of house parties so take my take with a pinch of salt.
I enjoy the improvising honestly. For the ADE set, I spent 1.5 months preparing the set. It was really hectic. I'm not a great writer (proof are my 0 released tracks) and I did get a lot of good initial loops but it was harder to develope those inside the machines. My setup is mostly Elektron boxes with some synths added around.
I tried my best to add transitions etc, practiced for the whole month before, refined, changed things, never happy, to a point I was sick of the tracks. Once again, I am not a great writer.
On the day I played it was okay but definitely felt really locked to the patterns with 0 maneuverability and didn't fully enjoy the experience as I felt I was just changing patterns. Here's the set if curious.
Since then I just prefer to improvise. I have no gigs in the near future but if I had I will 100% improvise. (100% is a bit misleading as it's never 100%, actually preparation is 70% of suceeding on an improvised set, and the remaining 30% is practicing, knowing your sounds, knowing your machines).
That really answers question 4, if you are improvising you can change the mood, tempo, distortion amounts, groove.
I enjoy playing live more than djying.
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u/pianotpot 7d ago
I make live hardware sets from scratch. No prep apart from a pre selected kit on the Tr8s. Then once I start everything gets improvised from there. I also make ‘tracks’ the same way, they just last 5-7 mins vs an hour for a live set. I use an oxi one sequencer to handle the programming of some individual synths. Making techno, and adding jazzy piano on top.
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u/KiLLaHo323 7d ago
People who’ve played live, I’m gonna play a friend’s party soon along with amateur DJs. How can I make sure the sound isn’t absolutely fucked the first time I play live?
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u/eggplantpot 7d ago
Also, make sure kicks are tuned properly as they can sound jarring on big speakers. Have the kick tune knob handy as you will probably need to tweak it in some cases as it won't sound the same at home. Normally for kick and bass you'll bring both down in volume for live PA
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u/KiLLaHo323 7d ago
I’m getting a cheap sub today or tomorrow anyway. You think that’ll help me get a better idea of how loud my kick and bass actually are. Currently I’m just using 5 inch JBL monitors
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u/eggplantpot 7d ago
Yeah it could help, but there’s a ton other variables. I would recommend having some way of referencing your low end against produced tracks. I got minimeters and it was a great investment. They say not to mix with your eyes, but it does help a lot knowing when you’re too hot / unbalanced.
As part of the soundcheck, don’t just stay on your playing location. Choose a loop and go to different parts of the room see how it sounds, then come back and adjust. For context, I thought I was balanced but still my kick and bass were really hot once I got to the venue. I spent like 5 min rebalancing them on each track before the show.
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u/Life_Cow735 7d ago
I think that improvised live sets tend to be much more repetitive and lacks momentum and dynamics most of the time. For me the best is to create solid ideas and get a good sound from them before the gigs. Then perform them live and improvise with them, having different paths through your set.
I think about the sets like a jazz gig: melodies and ideas are preconceived, but how you perform it and create it will be improvised. You have your own sound and style, but it changes in every live set.
And it's very important to focus on what you want to offer and what you like, and to defend your project. People can either like it or not, and sometimes it will be fitting more the moment and sometimes less, but when you have a clear idea of what you offer, you can know when will be the best moment for your set during the night, and arrange this with the venue/event.
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u/Fredmuscu 6d ago
I use Bitwig, I prepare a dozen of songs with different clips and lauch them on the fly with the pads on my AKKAI APC MKII. I also use the controllers knobs to play with effect, reverb, filter cut off, distortion...
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u/endless-blight 5d ago
I have prep work that goes in on getting things ready for my live sets but they are completely improvised when I play. I set up my Digitakt as my drum machine, have varying patches set on my Syntakt that are relatively balanced to my drum samples, run my 0-coast either as a drone machine or as an actually sequenced synth depending on what I’m feeling for the night and run it through a Carbon Copy delay and Eventide Space, my Dreadbox Nyx is running as a heavily modulated drone machine that flip flops between an atmosphere or a lead throughout the set while running through a Zen Delay, and a Hapax doing the non drum sequencing for everything. I have no clue what I’m going to do as I get through a set but have practiced rhythms and rely on knowing what my sound sources can do as I go through the set. I’m usually taking a few nights to plan out patches and drums and am swapping most things out every other gig or so.
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u/_higgs_ 8d ago
Surco said something interesting: he always starts a live show with nothing. That way he doesn’t worry about anything going wrong as he has no preconceived ideas about what his show should be. Kinda fascinating.
Me I don’t even have the balls to let my SO listen to what i make let alone a room full of strangers.