Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Drum Machine Work Around

Just thinking out loud here. (you can skip this post, I'm just taking notes)

My drum machine is better than a toy, but not by much. If I keep a constant tempo and 4/4 time I can get it to do just about anything. If I need to change tempo mid song... well... I don't think it can. If I need to use a different time signature then I have to set it every time I start a new pattern. That includes when I set it, make a mistake, and then erase the mistake. In that instance the formatting (ie the new time signature) is erased and reset to the 4/4 default. Pain in the buttocks, as Forest might want to say.

So I have never gotten very... proggie with it. Never used 7/8 time, never had big tempo changes. Dynamic changes are possible but they sound a little cheesy. Or should I say, cheesier.

So what is a guy to do when he listens to too many Yes records during his drives to and from work and starts wanting to write a 20+ minute epic?

Probably nothing. But maybe a suit of short songs ala side two of The Beatles Abby Road might be doable. It could actually be simple. Write a series of 1-2 minute "songs". Label each one with a letter, A, B, or C. Program the drum machine for each separate piece. Record them each individually in the order you wish them to appear, for example ABACAB (for Genesis fans). Edit the "songs" together so that they play continuously. Wahlah, instant prog rock epic.

I feel retarded for not having done this before.

Duh.

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