Studio Tour: Meet my Synths

I am now taking a chance to show you around my studio. Without a doubt the most interesting features here are the synths that I would like to introduce to you now. Let's start to my right...

There we have got a vintage polyphonic Korg. This is an EX-800, the keyboardless version of the Poly-800. Launched in 1983 this was meant to be Korg's competition of the Roland Juno series. Digital oscillators supply a stable sound and analogue filters add the vintage beauty. However, regardless of this aleged stability of its DCOs, this one is detuned - badly. Anyway, with a few tweaks in master tune, fine tune and the pitch bend of the controller keyboard I managed to bring this one back to its old grandeur. Unfortunately, of all the MIDI compatible synths in my set up this one does not want to communicate with my PC. You have to sometimes compromise when dealing with old machines like that but on a positive note it's fully programmable  otherwise. Classy synth-pop sounds, 80s Billy Idol type keys and a bit of Van Halen style charisma are this synth's strengths. Gorgeous!

Up next we have got a Yamaha duo, a DX21 (top) and an AN1X (bottom). The former is the legendary DX7's little sister. So, while the DX7 has got 6 FM operators, this one has got 4. That fact makes it slightly "weaker". However I have managed to get some brutal noises out of this 1985 synth, especially in monophonic mode. Since programming FM synths is a task that makes most synthesists surrender I am happy enough with four operators rather than six.

The AN1X was my first hardware synth. It was made in 1997 and works rather well with dance music of its time. Anyway, it is fully programmable from simple saw or pulse waves to beastly 2 DCO/unison mayhem. Everything about it is digital but it uses virtual analogue synthesis and sounds excellent, it can be an enrichment to any genre. Programming it is quite easy, and there are plenty of parameters to play with.

To my left is a Volca Keys, one of 3 affordable new synths from Korg. Fully analogue, MIDI syncable, great for bass and leads, switchable between unison, octave, fifth and (pseudo-) poly modes, a couple of ring modulated varieties are there too. Being an analogue Korg it's obviously got a great filter too. I have not got my head around its sequencer yet as I use it in my MIDI set up so it gets its sequences from the host. Anyway, good machine, cheap as chips and very compact. Just don't try to play it using it's ribbon keyboard!

Further to the left we are going back in time. Back to the 70s! Mid you, these veneered antiquities were the backbone of some historically meaningful recordings.

On top is the little Korg Micro Preset, the staple of early OMD records. This fact alone makes it a legendary synth. It works with presets with limited tweakability. These presets are Synthe 1, Synthe 2, Brass, Wood, Wind and Voice, plus white and pink noise (as used for "drums" in OMDs "Electricity". It has got a very primitive arpeggiator (the "Repeat" function) and lets you control filter cut-off (called "Traveller"), LFO speed/depth (aka "Travel Vibrato"), and the portamento (which is great fun especially in stratospheric theremin style leads), that's about it. Anyway, this was one of the first affordable synths and was made in 1977. It's almost as old as I am and it still works!

Below is the Yamaha SK10 string synth which is from 1979, it reminds me of the old Joy Division keyboards on tracks like "Love will tear us apart". It appears limited at first but then it's got a cool fully functional drawbar organ with the necessary vibrato, wonderful analogue strings and 2 registers of "brass" that certainly (and thankfully) don't sound like it. A filter would have been nice but that was only introduced with the SK20 that came out later, but hey, I still managed to purchase the oldest, yet most original of the SK series and it sounds absolutely great, the bottom C is hanging but that's an easy fix actually, otherwise this one is fully working in its full polyphony and... it's definitely my heaviest piece of gear.

So, my little collection is pretty decent for quite a rich, multi-facetted sound and offers a bit of a journey through time as well. But, then there is more, the substitutes that hardly ever play:

So further, there are a Yamaha SY35, a Roland D-5 and a Casio MT-68.  So, to the right of that pedal board on the photo is the SY35... I dunno... maybe Jean Michel Jarre might have liked that one at its time, or maybe not! Well, I don't know what to make of this "Vector Synth". It's got a joystick that mixes 4 sound sources, mostly lush (for my tastes rather useless) pads and bells... The bells are sort of all right I recollect but, erm, yeah. Ok, let me move on... 

Then there's the Roland D-5. It's quite crap by default, you must hate yourself a lot if you dare programming this keyboard but never mind... it is now so knackered that every patch sounds like the synth is gargling, a blessing in disguise, as that malfunction makes it quite a unique and rather interesting piece of gear after all! The novelty does wear off but at least it's good for something, so the "Ghost in the Machine" has risen in a good way! 

The last one (next to the old cassette-deck)  is the Casio MT-68. Needless to say, it's got the character of an alarm clock, just what you expect from a Casio keyboard its size. It's not a synth strictly speaking but it does have a few surprises, mainly in the accompaniment section. The preset bass and key lines can be quite quirky and I have considered using them to add a bit of trash to my sound (not that I ever did to be honest...) and then there's the drum machine... It expectedly only plays "dum-dee-dee-dum-dee" presets but that drummy is actually analogue! So I did end up recording and chopping it up so I got its isolated kick, snare and hi-hat and I have got to say they did become really useful in the software-sampler and it's always good to have some quirky analogue old drums. There you go!

ZING HAO's new track "Kein Job" now on Soundcloud

This new track shows a different side of Zing Hao. "Kein Job" is the story of a random unemployed man in urban Germany and his nostalgic observations of his grim environment. 
"Eine Geschichte die das Leben schrieb, oder auch nicht." 
Unlike "Nowhere Somewhere" this one is a bit more "Kraut", but then it still fits the concept of Zing Hao, just takes it somewhere else.

Listen and download "Kein Job"

HERE

Kein Job

Er hatte sich die Zeitung von gestern aus einem Papierkorb geholt.
Yesterday's News, aber es lag ihm nichts dran.
Er wollte nicht wissen, ob ein neuer Krieg begonnen wurde.
Er wollte nicht wissen, ob die Börsenkurse mal wieder im Keller sind.
Er wollte nur wissen, was der Kleinanzeigenmarkt so mit sich bringt.
Er hatte mal wieder keinen Job.
Keinen Job, no Job.

Er kam aus dem Bahnhof heraus vorbei an der Ecke wo früher die Trinkhalle stand.
Die gibt es schon lange nicht mehr.
Vorbei ist auch der Geruch von kaltem Rauch und Pisse,
der die ganze Gegend wie eine Wolke umklammerte.

Was soll's. Manche Dinge ändern sich nie.
Wenn auch die meisten lange nicht mehr so sind wie sie mal waren.
Aber ansonsten, tief innendrin, tief innendrin ist alles beim alten!
Die Zeiten haben sich geändert, die Welt hat sich verändert, er hat sich nicht verändert.
Nichts, aber auch rein garnichts hat sich geändert. Eine Katastrophe!

Kein Job, kein Job, no Job.

Die Rolltreppe geht hoch, die Rolltreppe geht runter. Eine Alternative gibt es nicht.

Kein Job, kein Job.
Kein Job, no job.

No Job

He had taken yesterday's paper out of a dustbin.

Yesterday's news, but he could not care less.

He didn't want to know if someone had started a new war.

He didn't want to know if the stock market was down again.

He only wanted to know what the classifieds would have.

Once more, he had no job.

No job, no job.

He came out of the railway station past the corner where there used to be the "Trinkhalle".

That has been gone for a long time.

Gone too is the smell of cold smoke and piss

that used to embrace the whole area like a thick cloud.

Whatever, some things will never change.

Even though most of them have ceased to be the way they were.

But otherwise, deep within, deep within everything is the way it used to be!

Times have changed, the world has changed, he has not changed.

Nothing, absolutely nothing has changed! A catastrophe!

No job, no job, no job.

The escalator is going up, the escalator is going down. There is no such thing like an alternative.

No job, no job.

No job, no job.

(c) 2015 Martin Kinz

NEW SINGLE "NOWHERE SOMEWHERE" AVAILABLE SOON - PREVIEW ON SOUNDCLOUD!

Download the brand new Zing Hao track "Nowhere Somewhere" as a radio friendly edit. The original 6 minute version will be physically released soon, along with a remix of the same that clocks in at 9 1/2 minutes!

NOWHERE SOMEWHERE 

(words and music by Martin Kinz)

Blue and grey

Are the colours of today

Tomorrow - oblivion

Regardless of the rain

Nowhere somewhere

Whatever the weather

Leather, lace or feather

You will be my morning dew

In the dead of night

Nowhere somewhere

Savour the lust

Before it turns to dust

In my wildest paradise

The driving force is you

Nowhere somewhere

(c) 2015 Martin Kinz

That's how I made it to the Movies

In the millennium year of 2000 I went on a trip to India on my own. That was still before I made real friends in India and decided to settle in Bangalore for a significant time of my life. Travelling on my own was a proof to myself rather than real joy as I like to be with friends. It rather was that “how experienced a new age traveller am I” kind of situation. Well, I was 12 years younger than now.

I was on a train from Delhi to Mumbai, reportedly the most notorious train in India, frequently used by gundas, muggers, petty criminals and Uttar Pradesh mafia on their way to Mumbai. I have to say that I still saw life in all the beautiful colours of the rainbow, unreasonably ignorant about warnings, and this time I paid the price, well… fortunately, given the priceless experience that followed.

What happened was that during my 26 hour train journey across the subcontinent, I was joined by all those nice, friendly, curious businessmen. I answered all their curious questions, which always seemed to boil down to the same ones. “Which country?”, “What is your good-name?”, “Are you married?”, in hindsight some of the most boring conversations one can have. However, all that is part of the traveller’s experience. I accepted their kind food offerings, ate the oranges of the orange farmer, while he was trying to make me believe his daughter was a suitable match for me. No danger, no, they are all random strangers but very nice people, of course! The last leg of the journey was overnight to Mumbai. So, after my bed-time sweet, a “Britannia Elaichi Biscuit”  (a double biscuit with a cardamom cream filling) which was generously offered by a very nice man in a filthy checkered shirt, a fierce moustache and otherwise of unshaven appearance, I went into a deep, deep sleep…

I was woken up by the conductor and Mumbai Police, as I was the last passenger left on the train that was peacefully resting in VT station.

“Sir, we think you have been mugged.”
“What?”
“Check your wallet!”

All I was left with were my plane tickets and my passport, fair gangsters as they gave me a chance to leave the country hassle-free. However, all my traveller cheques (back in the day the ultimate solution for cash free travel) - gone! My discman (a vintage Sony device to play CDs on) - gone! My 100 rupee counterfeit Canon camera - gone! All my books - gone! And myself - well, completely messed up trying to figure out the world around me while I was coming off an overdose of valium.

The police were friendly enough. They arranged me a taxi to the Salvation Army’s dormitory in Colaba. When I arrived I sold my shoes to a street boy to pay my taxi fare, and went to reception. After cancelling my travellers cheques I went to the dorm to sleep for another few hours.

I was the only one in the room, as the security guard woke me up.

“Saar! Good morning saar! Are you Mr Martin?”
“Right? What’s up?”
“Do you want to be part of a Bollywood fillim production?”
“Well, if you pay me, I do anything you ask me to.”
“Yes, full payment, free food and drinks. Thank you saar, tomorrow morning  9 sharp the car is coming to pick you up, shooting will start at 10 sharp on Marine Drive.”

Next morning we were picked up, there was another German and a Swedish guy who was an actor at Stockholm City Theatre but wanted to keep quiet about that. We arrived on the set in the Copa Cabana Bar. After a brief introduction to the director I was criticised regarding my footwear, as all I had left were my rubber chapals.

“You can’t work in these chapals, yaar! Go upstairs, there’s a shoe rack, and get yourself some decent shoes, man!”

I walked up to the mezzanine which was crowded with a good dozen of extras, beautiful dancers, sexed up to the max. Those production guys were well prepared for a scruffy gora like me, even having shoes on the set. Only thing, all those shoes were by far too large! My feet are size 10 and in India I am used to struggling finding shoes any larger than size 9. Surprisingly, all of these were 12!

I felt a bit comical in my massive clown shoes between all those well dressed professionals. However, the shooting commenced.

The first scene was chatting up an Italian girl in a bar scene. There was a Mexican theme to it, so I was made to wear a ridiculous sombrero. That was easy, chatting up a little then starting to dance raising our hands when we had to. It was fun.

The next one was a bar scene again. Me and the other two white guys had to sit on the bar and drink. Right, there is no alcohol free lager on Bollywood film sets. This was the real deal.

“Raj, give three draft beers, yaar! And you guys are drinking bottoms up to the beat of the music! Accha? Action!!!”

Well, action…

“Cut!!! This was shit guys! You must focus on the fucking music and take three large sips to bottoms up, and all that to the beat of the music, easy enough, hai naa? What kind of Germans are you? Do I have to tell you how to drink beer? Action!!!”

Take 2...

“Cut!!! I’m sure you can do better than that! Focus guys. Chalo! Action!!!

Take 3, 4...

“Cut!!! Very good, fellows! Can we do this again, and after bottoms up you slam your glass on the bar and raise your hands and shout, ‘Yeah!’ OK? Cheers guys! Action!!!”

Take 5… I was close to falling off my stool.

After getting forcibly hammered in the morning we were treated to a well deserved lunch of chapati, rice, dhal, sambhar, and vegetables. The director had a chat with us regarding the rest of the shoot.

“You two guys can go, the production manager will pay you but Martin, I need you for the rest of the day!”

Did I hear right? I had just proven the better actor than a Swedish professional? I was drunken and there was another scene to be shot with a skimpily dressed Polish girl which apart from holding a beer (luckily, this time I didn’t have to gulp it down) involved fiddling around with a remote control and jumping up and down as the dancers joined. It was bizarre!

I could have done the whole day for a 1000 rupees but I was completely smashed, and I had a flight to catch in the evening. However, I had earned 500, enough to afford a cab to the airport and pay the salvation army’s hostel.

It was a shame that was my last day in India, I couldn’t find out about the actual title of the production I worked for, as this was before my time as a long term resident when things were much easier to understand. I don’t think it was a great success either, as none of my Indian friends have seen me in that clip. That time India was still a complete mystery but I went home with such a vivid and outstanding experience.

If anyone of you will ever see me on youtube performing drunkenly in a Bollywood clip wearing enormous shoes, let me know.

Death of Capitalism

They come in the night to scrape off old posters and make room for new ones. For a few hours advertising is dead, a brief moment of peace in the tube station.

This post will be expanded.

The Garden

Tara in Kew Gardens, London

Accidental Art

This is a series of blurred images taken over the last 6 years. Most of them happened by pure accident, others were done on purpose. In all cases, the movement adds an interesting texture.