Lux

Released: May 2020

Equipment: Modal Argon 8 synthesizer, Arturia BeatStep Pro sequencer

Listen:

Having gotten to grips with the Argon 8 while recording Intempate I was feeling much more confident with it and this album came out just two months later. The more slimmed down arrangements continued but I was starting to play around with song structures again. Most of the tracks used echo to generate syncopation or overlaying of the sequencer patters, a technique I regularly return to.

Reichian motion uses a series of syncopated patterns with fairly light additions on top. The name is a nod to composer Steve Reich, who's minimalist compositions provided some inspiration, and Brownian motion, the incessant jostling of particles by their invisible surroundings.

Slipstreaming has another syncopated pattern at its core. The bass line is provided by a second sequencer line being fed into the same synth and using the same sound. A nice driving feel and a nice transition into the 'chorus', along with some of my more succesful keyboard drumming.

Tinkertoy is a nice little pop tune, tight & compact. Another of my favourites.

Lockdown came out of working (& living) in isolation, adopting & adapting to new patterns and seeing these change from week to week.

Pulsar takes a simple sequence and then adds another on top, flipping the start point in the process.

Reciprocating engine uses echo to double up the central sequencer line and blur the direction the notes are taking. The nearest thing to a 'train song' that I've produced, I'm very pleased with the chord sequence and the development of the arrangement, especially the transition into & out of the middle eight.

Tau space was an attempt to write a piece that didn't 'go' anywhere, where the structure & progression had no obvious destination. I like its ambiguous quality.

Fitful was another piece written during lockdown and mirrors the disjointed feeling of life at that time.