Gear Talk w/ @absis_mousedown

We caught up with Absis to get a peek at the machines behind his upcoming 'Found Ritual' EP. Out on May 7 (link in bio to pre-order).

ELEKTRON ANALOG RYTM
“This is by far what I used the most in the EP. It's the essential sound of 'Found Ritual'. What I like the most about it is the Dual VCO. I've made many sounds with it. Most of the synth sounds you hear in the record come from it. I also think the filter is incredible, and when you combine it with the LFO you get many possibilities. The effects are also amazing: overdrive, delay and reverb. I've used them a lot. Of course, I also used it as a drum machine for percussive sounds, especially hats, toms and kicks. The sound definition is just so good”.

ROLAND SH-101
“What I like about the 101 is that's so simple yet so powerful. The sequencer is so easy to use that many times I just get my sons to play some notes and you get these amazing simple sequences. I've used this 'trick' several times in the EP tracks, also with my partner Sara. What came out was always better than what I played. Most of the filtered melodies and textures you hear in the track's background are made with it. The 101 sound is just so good: so analog, warm and authentic. It's mind-boggling how much you can with such few elements. The LFO is so straightforward but also very powerful. I used the random LFO a lot. To me, there's no other synth like it”.

ROLAND ALPHA JUNO-2
“This is such a good synth for pads, especially string sounds. A simple string sound with a touch of the DT3000 controller sounds amazing. You don't have to do more, it sits perfectly in the mix. Usually, pads and strings tend to get lost in the mix, but they just stay in place with the Alpha Juno. Even if you just play one note. The majority of the pads in the EP are from this synth. I also used it for some textures”.

MODULAR SYSTEM
“What I like about modular is that you always end up making weird stuff that you can't make with other stuff. You get absolutely different sounds. In this case, I used it to create some weird noises and textures you can hear in the background. Just playing around until finding small interesting sounds”. ...

“The best thing for us is that we’re able to connect pretty easily with each other. We mostly go in the same direction and more or less like the same things. We’ve also known each other for so long that we’ve finally lost the fear of finishing a track in two hours, or two days. When it’s like that, you can really stick to an idea without fighting against the clock, which also makes you lose the ego”. INIT interviewed by Marc Piñol in 'No Sleep Since 2008', a publication that collects texts and conversations around subjects such as creativity, technology, design and running a label.

Both the publication and INIT's last album, 'Gravity', are available at hiverndiscs.com ...

NEW RELEASE: HVN059

Velmondo & Iro Aka – Les Illes del Cel

Five cuts of percussive psychedelic esoterism. Now available on Bandcamp. (Link in bio)

Music @arnauobiols @_iroaka_

Artwork @eenyakee ...