Changing projects 'live' - work arounds

[molotov]

Can people share their tips for changing projects in a live scenario?

Currently I've been using the T in combo with an octatrack to achieve transitions across projects. To be honest it's pretty overkill and I'd like to just have the T and minimal extra boxes when playing live..

It's a shame you can't 'cue' load a project up, so it starts in sync with the last beat ending..

[John the Savage]

You could always trigger an autonomous sample manually to cover the silence while you change projects.  Hell, you could do that with anything from a $79.xx MPX 8 to your smart phone.

You could also use a freeze echo or delay feedback to hold the last hit over.

That being said, sometimes a few seconds of silence is just the reprieve a set needs to set up the next big drop.

Cheers!

[molotov]

Cheers, yes I've tried the echo out approach for one gig, wasn't great.. I guess the type of music I perform lends itself to a continuous flow rather than a 'pause and applause' type of gig. Have you played live with the T? What approach do you use?
I guess I'll stick with Octatrack for the time being..

[LucidSFX]

Yeah keep the OT. Besides, using various samples helps fill out your tracks. You cant expect one machine to do it all but I feel you on trying to limiting your gear for live performances. I am thinking of just sampleing my beats into the OT and perform off the OT.

[John the Savage]

Have you played live with the T? What approach do you use?

Yes, I'm a full-time touring musician and recording artist, and the Tempest is one of my main instruments, both on the road and in the studio.  I work in all capacities as a solo artist, session player, sound designer, engineer, and producer.  Onstage, I'm often physically playing the Tempest and improvising sequences on-the-fly; but I also do EDM style gigs with prepared beats and sequences, so I do understand your plight.  When I'm travelling with minimal gear and I need to bridge the silence between tracks, loading new projects on the Tempest for instance, I use one of three tricks depending on what kit I have with me:

1) I manually trigger a sample on my SP-404SX while I change projects on the Tempest...
2) I capture a live loop on either the Octatrack or one of my Boomerang III looper pedals...
3) I ride the "infinite" feedback of a tape echo...

Of course the material will determine which of those techniques is going to work best.

Otherwise, when I'm travelling with a lot of boxes, I use the SND ACME-4, which sends four parallel MIDI clock signals; that way I can start, stop, subdivide, and offset the clock source for each device independently and always be in sync.

Honestly, when it comes to travelling light, it doesn't really get anymore concise and comprehensive than a Tempest/Octatrack combo.  If you were to ditch the Octatrack, but still hope to create transitions, you're only going to have to bring something else in its stead and suffer yet more limitations.  You'd be better off loading your Tempest beats into the Octatrack and just bringing that, as suggested above.  That's my two cents anyway...

Cheers!

*Edit: I've also been known to trigger an arp or sequence on a keyboard, or play a riff with my left hand while I change projects on the Tempest with my right.  So if you gig with keys, that's also an option.

[molotov]

Thanks again for the insight, really interesting to hear how others use it live..

I've been playing with the Tempest/Octatrack combo for a number of years and just got a bit fed up with the octatrack, as all the good stuff in terms of performance seems to come from the Tempest..

Something about those delicate little encoders on Elektron gear I find forces you to work in an unnatural way and make you look a bit like a manic chicken pecking at the knobs, whereas the Tempest is SO much more fluid and 'playable'!

Anyway, I started looking at the Octatrack purely as an FX box for the Tempest last night and I think I can breath some new life into it.. 

[clydehm]

I acquired an ERM MULTICLOCK for this famous change of project.

[LucidSFX]

not sure what clyde is about but I agree about the OT. It has it's uses. Think of the last 32 or 64 bars ending a track. You could use the OT to trigger sample
loops of the remaining bits of the song while you cue up the Tempest to a new track. Taking it a step further record the sampled loop in passes. For the full loop, then sample the same loop but with less and less elements until you just have a BD. tis way you can trigger variations of the outro while you cue up the T then begin to unmute sounds on the T as you trigger the outro loops from the OT. You are now essentially mixing decks this way.

[bobbyquine]

The ignorant approach: use the looper on the DJ mixer that the venue probably has somewhere. Probably a Pioneer DJM. One less piece of gear to carry...

[Paul Santangelo]

I acquired an ERM MULTICLOCK for this famous change of project.

So the Erm Multiclock can put the tempest in sync after you change the project?

[clydehm]

I acquired an ERM MULTICLOCK for this famous change of project.

So the Erm Multiclock can put the tempest in sync after you change the project?

yess

[Paul Santangelo]

I acquired an ERM MULTICLOCK for this famous change of project.

So the Erm Multiclock can put the tempest in sync after you change the project?

yess

I'm definetely gonna get one for live

[LucidSFX]

I am kind of at a loss here. So you load upa new project in T and some device is sending clock. Whats special about ERM that is specific to switching projects?

Edit: i watched the product demo. Now I get it. Cool!

[molotov]

This looks pretty cool and might do the job..

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Touchprone-Interrupt-Inline-Synced-MIDI-Start-Stop-/162014222558