Optigan.com has introduced two new sound discs for the vintage Optigan, Glitchdelica & Guitarscape.
Glitchdelica is an experimental rhythmic pattern generator. Forgoing the usual drums/chords/keys convention entirely, each button and key features a different loop, drawn from Optigan.com’s Pea Hicks’ archive of oddball instruments, electronics, and other sound sources.
SFX Rockers: Glitchedelics
Chord Buttons: Glitchedelics
Keys: Glitchedelics
Guitarscape is the first Optigan disc in 5/4.
The chord buttons feature bass guitar riffs, with drums on the SFX rockers. The keyboard scale features clean guitar tones, and like the other discs in their “scape” series, the notes are rhythmically articulated in a variety of syncopated patterns. This makes the scale generally more suited to chords than melodic playing, but both approaches produce nice effects, either forward or in reverse.
The bass patterns have been specifically written to allow for a maximum of complimentary chord button combinations, such that pressing certain buttons at the same time produces composite, complex bass patterns.
If 5/4 is a bit too odd for your needs, you can change chords on, say, every 4th beat, and you’ll get even more complex pattern cycles. All of these effects are demonstrated in this demo video.
SFX Rockers: drums
Chord Buttons: Bass
Keys: Guitar
Each of the discs is available for US 99.99.
Also, for a limited two-week time period only, through March 3rd 2016, they are making available any Orchestron and Optigan discs from their back catalog. See the site for details.
I actually like listening to the demo music.
This guy’s project is so obscure and psychotic that I can’t help but admire and maybe even love him. I also appreciate and commend Synthtopia for continuing to keep up with news in such an exceptionally niche but interesting musical topic.
I can’t imagine how many people that own one of the few working instruments that exist buy these, it’s clearly not for profit. It’s a weird art thing he’s doing. If I had one of these instruments yeah I’d be buying these discs, collecting insanely obscure stuff. I also would love to have one of those wax cylinder players and get ahold of all the “latest releases” on wax cylinder that some guy in the UK has been issuing recently. But this has got to be an extremely small niche and this guy has balls, obsession and most of all whimsy to do this.
I wouldn’t be surprised if existing copies of some of these are highly sought after and end up in a modern art museum in 50 years.
I have a working machine and am going with the guitar one.
I have an original disc and it’s pretty cool.
The instrument and disc were found at the dump.
Saved by a guy working there and brought home by some friends.