This track developed from a demo of the Intellijel Rubicon - what started out as a simple little patch demo soon morphed into something resembling a "proper tune". 
For those of you interested in hearing the Rubicon parts more clearly, a "Synths Only" version can be found here: http://matttechmodulardemos.bandcamp.com/track/rubicon-demo-02-synths-only
Various other Rubicon demos can be found here: 
http://matttechmodulardemos.bandcamp.com/album/intellijel-rubicon

The aim of the original demo recording was to try out some more imaginative patching, with an emphasis on Osc Sync sounds and FM. 


Patch Details:

Initial Patch

1 - A Dixie bassline is sequenced in Silent Way. Saw and Sine outs are used to provide two different Sub Bass recordings - Saw at start, Sine for rest of track. 
2 - The Dixie's Square output sent to Rubicon Hard Sync input
3 - A randomly clocked Moskwa sequence is sent - via Maths slew limiter - into the Rubicon's 1v/oct input. The Rubicon's Sine and Double Saw outputs are used, synced to Dixie bassline. 
4 - The Rubicon's outputs are sent out via a VCA, which is controlled by cycling PEG envelope. The PEG envelope is modulated by a149-1 random source, producing erratic rhythms.

As the track progresses, TZFM is brought in. The patch is fairly complex, but I'll do my best to explain it!

1 - A Makenoise DPO is used as the FM source. OscB is sequenced to the bassline, with OscA synced to OscB internally. 
2 - Various controls are then manipulated on the DPO during the recording, with OscA initially set to Follow OscB, but then gradually this is removed, and OscA is instead Exponentially FM'd by OscB. 
3 - Finally the same Moskwa sequence that is producing the higher Rubicon part is used to control the pitch of the DPO's synced OscA. So basically, the DPO is FM-ing the Rubicon, but the DPO itself is undergoing various Sync and modulation procedures. This keeps the whole patch from becoming too random and dissonant. 
4 - On the Rubicon, the TZFM is being indexed by a random output from the a149-1, sent through a slew limiter.
5 - Towards the end, the Symmetry is manipulated manually.


Production Notes: 

Audio Damage Vapor (chorus) used on Sine Sub and main Rubicon parts. 
Various volume and FX automation is applied (mainly reverb and delay sends). 
EQ and compression applied to both Rubicon and Dixie parts, with some mild saturation used. 
Multiband Limiting applied to main Rubicon part, and Exciter applied to Dixie sub to bring out mid-range frequencies before hitting the chorus. 


Sink Estate

Well....here ya go! I was commissioned by http://www.tooths.com.au to put together a 2 hour journey through the weird and wonderful world of Spite Zoo thus far, including alternative or edited versions of previous tracks, along with interesting layering of several track over the top of one another - "mixing", if you will!
Hope you enjoy it.....it is pretty nice to put on in the background whilst pottering around the house...or for drifting off to sleep!

Any feedback welcome!!

The version of the highly-rhythmic "Homo-Erraticism", melded with the deeply ambient "You Were My Blood"/ "Lost To The Trees" is particularly interesting, and takes the end result into almost Autechre territory.

The full feature can be found here: http://www.tooths.com.au/takeaway-009-spite-zoo/#more-7

PLEASE NOTE: THE ORIGINAL, FULL VERSIONS OF THESE TRACKS - PLUS A TON OF OTHER TUNES - ARE NO LONGER AVAILABLE SEPARATELY ON THIS SOUNDCLOUD PAGE (DUE TO LIMITED MINUTES SINCE DOWNGRADING MY ACCOUNT). WILL LIKELY BE RE-UPLOADING ELSEWHERE SOON.

TRACKLIST

01 – Memories and Clues (00.00.00)
02 – The Dream Sequencer (00.02.32)
03 – A Rock and a Dig (00.18.06)
04 – Too Much Chatter (00.28.57)
05 – Terrorpad (00.39.24)
06 – Wogglebuggery (00.44.50)
07 – Down in Derker (00.48.03)
08 – Homo-Erraticism/ You Were My Blood/ Lost to the Trees (00.54.07)
09 – The Chiming Coil (01.07.37)
10 – The Cycle of Life (01.18.26)
11 – Machine Elves (01.26.09)
12 – Below Passgate (01.33.31)
13 – Switch It Up (01.41.47)

Spite Zoo - The Story So Far (2 Hour Mix with exclusive tracks)

This is a track which came about whilst producing a suite of commissioned demos utilising the wonderful WMD Phase Displacement Oscillator (PDO) mk.2 and Triple Bipolar VCA. I wanted to do demos that pretty much only comprised the various outputs of the PDO, showing what can be achieved with one instance of this module. I purposefully kept the riffs on these demos pretty simple, so that the sound manipulation becomes the primary focus. The only other synth part you will hear is a deep saw wave bass sound from Native Instruments Kore that was used to underpin the main riff at points (it enters at around 02.17). Everything else is a single recording of the PDO. It actually turned into something approaching a finished track, which was nice! 

PATCH DETAILS: 

1.	The Moskwa sequencer is providing a sequence to the PDO via its 1v/oct input. 
2.	Outputs 1 and 2 of the PDO (both set to sines) are sent to mixer A, with outputs 3 and 4 (saws or similarly biting waves) being sent to a mixer B 
3.	Mixer A is recorded direct, and provides a nice rounded bass part - Channel 1 of the PDO is modulating Channel 2, via an envelope-controlled channel of the Triple Bipolar VCA. This has the effect of adding harmonics to the sound, taking it away from being simply a couple of sines. A nice rounded bass tone is produced, and the added harmonics make it easier to hear on smaller speakers - unlike pure sines, which can "disappear" somewhat. Phase Modulation (PM) is very similar to FM in a lot of ways, but without any pitch instabilities. 
4.	Mixer B - which contains the more "fizzy", trebly waves on channels 3 and 4 - is sent via the Pittsburgh Filter (In Highpass mode), and then on to the Modcan Dual Delay. This is so that the more "fizzy" sounds appear to be a second, distinct layer to the overall sound, due to their effects processing and delayed timing. 
5.	The Dual Delay's delay time and mix are both modulated by the vermona FOURmulator, which is producing slow sines wave LFOs. 
6.	As the recording develops the various controls on the TBVCA are manipulated, causing ever more interaction between the different channels of the PDO, eventually making the whole patch pretty gnarly.

For further Synth Module-specific Demos visit: http://matttechmodulardemos.bandcamp.com/
For interesting Modular Synth patches visit: http://matttechoffcuts.bandcamp.com/

The Beach Comber

This is another tune that originated from the WMD PDO mk.2 demo sessions. I wanted to produce slightly more traditional synth tones, with various outputs of the PDO used layer up and embellish a simple repeated riff, but without things becoming too gnarly and noise-like (although this does inevitably happen at points, due to some enjoyably over-zealous knob twiddling!). The only synth sounds heard come from a single jam, using the multiple outputs of a single PDO. There are a couple of "special effects" sweeps that appear here and there (eg: at around 02.30, in the background), but that is it. 

PATCH DETAILS: 

1.	The basic patch is similar setup to Demo 01 in some ways - two channels (1 and 2) of the PDO are centered around producing soft, rounded bass tones based on sines - whereas other channels are more searing and chaotic. 
2.	Channel 3 is sent via the Schippmann VCF02 to add further modulation to it, and to tame some of the harshness. 
3.	Channel 4 is probably the most savage of them all - possibly due to the build up of phase modulation in the TBVCA, as each channel feeds into the next. This was sent to a VCA and gated at points. 
4.	The SUM output was also used earlier on, with a similar gated VCA approach applied to it. 
5.	The 4ms PEG is providing much of the modulation, with one side being modulated by a slow z8000 4 step sequence to produce predictable(-ish) varied rhythms. This side's EOR trigger is sent to ping the other side of the PEG, and this is set to a different division, so that it mirrors the first envelope, but at a slower speed. 
6.	The PEG's two channels are used to modulate the TBVCA's CV inputs (which control the amount of Phase Modulation applied by each channel of the PDO to the next), and also to the Schippman filter. 
7.	Various different filter modes are used at different points during the recording. 
8.	Towards the end some Linear FM is brought in from a Dixie, via a VCA controlled by Maths. I manually tweak the RISE time on the envelope until the FM takes over the PDO patch. After that I switch to exponential FM 
9.	As you'd imagine, this is where things get pretty chaotic!

For further Synth Module-specific Demos visit: http://matttechmodulardemos.bandcamp.com/ 
For interesting Modular Synth patches visit: http://matttechoffcuts.bandcamp.com/

Whomp!!

Another track emanating from the WMD PDO demo sessions. On this demo I concentrated on short, choppy sounds controlled by sharp, attacking envelopes. The SYNC on the PDO is also used at points, creating a lovely "phasey" sound, and external oscillators are used to modulate the PDO via the TBVCA instead of merely utilising the internal routing. The only other sound heard is a synth pad from the FXpansion DCAM Synth Squad Amber plugin, which plays the chordal beds which appear every now and then. 

PATCH DETAILS: 

1.	The Vermona FOURmulator quad LFO is used to CV the Triple Bipolar VCA (connected into the PDO) - several different LFOs are combined in a mixer for this purpose. 
2.	The input into the TBVCA is coming from the Rubicon, and both that and a Dixie are following a sequence from the Moskwa sequencer. 
3.	An a151 Sequential Switch is used so that every few bars the Dixie is let through to the SYNC input on the PDO, causing it to lock into a more identifiable "riff". The rest of the time its Phase Modulation is responding to a high frequency version of the same sequence, coming from the Rubicon, and controlled by the FOURmulator 
4.	The Rubicon's double Sine is fed back into the TZFM input, and the TZFM INDEX is swept up and down by Maths, adding more interest to the PDO's Phase Modulation source. 
5.	The PDO's Staircase output is also used in this patch, and is sent via my trusty Tiptop z2040 filter. The filter's cutoff is heavily modulated, and random gates trigger an envelope which controls the z2040's GAIN. 
6.	At points I increase the z2040's resonance into self-oscillation, which only appears when the input GAIN is not being boosted by the envelope. 
7.	The z2040 is sent via the Modcan Dual Delay, and various controls on both the z2040 and the delay are manipulated throughout. 
8.	Towards the end all oscillators' pitches are experimented with, and much strangeness occurs!

On Salvia Bridges

This track evolved from my recent Doepfer renaissance - which basically involves spending lots of money on modules again...obviously. I wanted to make the a154/a155 sequencing combo do some chaotic, haphazard moves - as opposed to the traditional repeating 8-step bleepy sequence vibe that it's oh-so-easy to get sucked into. The a155 - with the addition of the a154 Sequencer Controller - just begs to be abused in such ways, as you can modulate pretty much everything you can think of. I didn't keep any notes on this one, but I think it's plain to see that the clock was being heavily modulated, along with the mode and probably a ton of other things. The glide can be sequenced on and off, which seems to be happening here at points, and all manner of chaos can ensue pretty quickly. The sound source for the sequenced parts was the Intellijel Rubicon, with all 4 of the recorded tracks ending up in the lovely Craig Lee (CLEE) Quad VC Resonant Gate (Lowpass Gate). Various other processing is used in addition to the CLEE: One track goes into the CLEE, then into the Modcan Dual Delay; another goes into the demented a196 Phase-Locked Loop, then into the CLEE and finally into the Vermona Retroverb Lancet for filtering and Spring Reverb; a third goes into the a196, then into the a115 Audio Divider, on to the CLEE, and then ends up in the Makenoise Echophon; and the final one is simply a fat triangle wave from the RUbicon straight into the CLEE for low bass notes. Clearly a fair amount of modulation - of many parameters - is taking place, but I'm not being commissioned to produce this track so I'm gonna be lazy and leave it at that!

Basically, there's a load of lowpass gates being "pinged" all over the shop, and then being mangled further in a variety of ways..

Today I decided to put some time into mastering the a198 RIbbon Controller, and it was a lot of fun. I set up a patch where Mutable Instruments Braids was set to "CSaw", and fed into the Pittsburgh Filter, then into a VCA, and finally into the Modcan Dual Delay's first input. A second feed was taken from the Lowpass output of the FIlter into the a115 Audio Divider (i know.....a strange idea.....), then into the CLEE Lowpass Gate, and finally into the second input of the Modcan Dual Delay. Various modulation was set up from the  Ribbon Controller so that - when the Pressure was applied - the sound of the two signals would filter sweep in opposing directions (one starting off all bright and buzzy, but then becoming muted when pressure was applied, while the other started off all dull and lowpass filtered, with a nice rounded filter swell - bothe cutoff and resonance increasing with the pressure applied). It worked really well, and allowed a great deal of control over the mood of the sound. The pressure Gate output of the s198 triggered two z4000 ADSRs - one of which controlled the level of one signal path, and the other controlling the second. The Pressure CV output was fed through a lot of Slew Limiting (Makenoise Function) in order to smooth out the rather wiggly voltage that you get from this output. It really is  LOT of fun once you master where the notes are on the ribbon - something that confused me a lot at first, as - being an ex-Cellist - I kept expecting higher notes to be closer together than low ones, but they obviously aren't! 

One single jam was undertaken, and used without edits. Various automation of the different tracks was applied in Logic, and some additional EQ automation/ filtering was employed to further separate the tracks. I tried to get a nice, wide "3-D" soundstage, using some pretty extravagant Mid/Side techniques, along with perhaps the strangest Impulse-Response Reverb on the Bass notes - it's actually taken from the inside of a Toy Drum, and makes things sound really displaced from the rest of the mix...almost as if they are in the next room. Cool beans!

Strung Out On Doepf

This track stemmed from the sessions I recorded whilst putting together a set of demos for the Frequency Central Raging Bull VCF/ VCA - a clone of the Moog Taurus VCF/ VCA. 

On this recording I decided to concentrate on the self-oscillation of the filter, to see if I could create something interesting from that alone. Obviously one use of an oscillating filter is to create kick drum-like sounds, so that is where I started. I also wanted a variety of other textures to come in at various points, but also for everything in the mix to be produced from one recording of the Raging Bull's oscillation alone. 

	1.	Firstly, a snappy Maths envelope was set up in order to create the "kick". It was set to trigger on each beat, with a second slower Maths envelope subtly modulating its FALL time.
	2.	The 4MS Rotating Clock Divider was then used to produce a number of different divisions, which were all fed into an a151 Quad Sequential Switch. This was randomly stepped through, with the resulting rhythm providing triggers for a second envelope - the a171-2 VCS clone.
	3.	The a171-2 was patched into a VCA containing the output of an e350 wavetable oscillator. The pitch of the e350 was controlled by a random voltage from the a149-1 "Source of Uncertainty", with another of the a149-1's outputs modulating the wavetables. 
	4.	The a171-2's RISE and FALL times were modulated by further a149-1 random voltages, so that they changed from snappy "zaps" to softer "swooshes". As these were applied to the VCA containing the e350's output, the result was an ever-changing series of rhythmic oscillator "FM stabs".
	5.	The e350 VCA's output was fed into a mixer, along with the Maths "kick" envelope, and the second slower Maths envelope which was brought in to add movement to the low end of the self-oscillation, providing a bendy "bassline" drone.
	6.	The output of this mixer was fed into the Raging Bull's Cutoff CV input, so that  - by the end of all this patching - the filter was modulated by a mix of "kicks", bendy bass drones and e350 "FM stabs". 
	7.	The Raging Bull's output was recorded dry, and also processed by the Modcan Dual Delay, set to "stereo".
	8.	The Dual Delay's internal Lowpass Filter was modulated by the SUM output of the Vulcan Modulator - and its various Delay time and Feedback CV inputs were modulated by another output from the a149-1.
	9.	During recording virtually all the available controls were manually tweaked: the levels of the various cutoff modulation sources; the rates of the Maths envelopes (which were pushed into cycling at audio rates towards the end); the Raging Bull's main Cutoff; the Dual Delay's feedback and filter cutoff; ....and probably more things I've forgotten about!


It's all a bit erratic, but was an interesting exercise in seeing how much material can be generated from a self-oscillating filter alone...and also demonstrates how well the filter will FM and respond to CV sources. It will also do a pretty good job at creating a kick drum! Bear in mind that you will need some decent monitoring to even be able to HEAR some of the sub-bass in this recording..

Rumbles

Well this track took a while to finish! (understatement)

Originally planned as a kind of tribute to Colourbox (from their "Looks like we're Shy One Horse / Shootout" blissed-out dub era), this went off into a long & protracted gestation as the length of the track increased. I've actually had quite a long sabbatical from uploading tracks since starting the Matttech Modular Eurorack store due to being CRAZILY busy, so it's nice to finally stick something up again!

It may not be "perfect", but I'm at a point where I think it's worth uploading these tracks, even if I haven't gone to the nth degree fine-tuning them...or nobody will ever hear them! (I have literally tons of jams & ideas recorded...but it's finding the time to actually finish and upload them whilst buried in orders, accounting etc..)

Hope you enjoy it - I have no patch notes for this tune, but the track names give some idea what modules & gear was used, and they include the following:
Synthesis Technology e350
Livewire AFG
Flight of Harmony Plague Bearer
Make Noise DPO
Make Noise Echophon
Electro-Harmonix Memory Boy Deluxe

More tracks uploaded soon!

Dove Holes

Eurorack Module Demos:
http://matttechmodulardemos.bandcamp.com/
Eurorack Patches & Jams:
http://matttechoffcuts.bandcamp.com/music
Non-Modular Tracks & Ideas (as Blue Light Fever):
https://soundcloud.com/blue-light-fever
Commercial Releases (as Blue Light Fever):
https://music.apple.com/us/artist/blue-light-fever/56544605
https://www.discogs.com/artist/124042-Blue-Light-Fever

Spite Zoo

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