A couple of months ago I built a modular synthesiser. A Doepfer LC6 Eurorack case with a mixture of parts from Doepfer, Mutable Instruments, Siam Modular, and modular newcomers Behringer. It's a work in process - most recently I've added a TAKAAB 2LPG low pass gate - and here's what it looks like in its almost-completed state:
There's a stereotype whereby a man builds a modular synthesiser - or woman - whereby a man or woman builds a modular synthesiser, or buys their dream motorcycle, or spends a fortune on an actual Les Paul, or an expensive record player, or a collection of something, and then he or she - or they, this is 2021 - or they never actually do anything with it.
A middle-aged man with a wall of guitars that he never plays. Or a project car that he never drives. Or a dog that no longer excites him, or children he can't stand. I'm painfully aware of this stereotyped so I resolved to sit and down actually make some music, viz the track at the top, which ironically uses only a tiny fraction of my modular synthesiser's raw musical power, but you can't be 105% all the time.
It's essentially an experiment in reverb. The entire track is a simple sequence played with an Arturia BeatStep step sequencer, fed through a stereo panner. It's supposed to evoke the sound of a satellite orbiting the Earth. The background wash is a mixture of Korg ARP Odyssey and Plaits playing essentially the same sequence, but fed through a Strymon BigSky reverb unit so that it becomes a formless wash of sound.
What of the Sousse Palace? Back in 2011 I had a holiday in Tunisia, just after the Arab Spring. That's why the rooms are unlit. Judging by TripAdvisor it still exists; the hotel that I stayed in does not. I mean, the building is still there but it's not a hotel any more. I miss that place and perhaps one day I'll go back.
