Live Setup Thread

[Pulsedream3]

What's your guys' live set up look like right now? Curious as to how everyone runs their ableton when they're playing live. I've got the Push right now but I'm having some trouble utilizing it in a creative way right now. Basically, I just use the "consolidate time to new scene" function and create little loops of every part of the song. So I'm pressing play on the scenes and messing with filters and effects. Also working on adding my ms20 to the mix and messing with automation live, but is it stupid to just have it sitting there even though the push would be connected to it?

[cyclopian]

sornorey was posting some 'advent calender production tips' stuff in a thread recently, lots of interesting ideas/tips in there for live setups iirc

[fragments]

Synth, sampler, drum machine, few pedals, project mixer

[Pulsedream3]

sornorey was posting some 'advent calender production tips' stuff in a thread recently, lots of interesting ideas/tips in there for live setups iirc

Sick I'll have to check it out then. Keep posting everyone!

[cyclopian]

Its also cool when someone spends weeks in the studio on a beat, sends it out for mastering, then it gets pressed to wax or even just wav, and then you can play a really good tune thats fully developed for people to dance to in the club instead of looping various drum loops and bass loops. And then you play another record that's equally as good afterward and keep that up for about an hour or so.

Not trying to hate really, I just dont understand the fascination with 'live' sets. Can you throw together an amazing tune in 5 minutes in your bedroom? Why do you think it can work on the dancefloor?

I can count on one hand where I've seen a 'live' set and actually been floored (and even some of the standout ones would've honestly been better as a DJ set). The other 100+ live sets I've seen have extremely lackluster, I enjoy the mindset tbh, but the actual result will almost never hold a candle to a record/finished tune.

Spend your time making beats at home, perfect them, then bring them to the dance imo

[R0]

Its also cool when someone spends weeks in the studio on a beat, sends it out for mastering, then it gets pressed to wax or even just wav, and then you can play a really good tune thats fully developed for people to dance to in the club instead of looping various drum loops and bass loops. And then you play another record that's equally as good afterward and keep that up for about an hour or so.

Not trying to hate really, I just dont understand the fascination with 'live' sets. Can you throw together an amazing tune in 5 minutes in your bedroom? Why do you think it can work on the dancefloor?

I can count on one hand where I've seen a 'live' set and actually been floored (and even some of the standout ones would've honestly been better as a DJ set). The other 100+ live sets I've seen have extremely lackluster, I enjoy the mindset tbh, but the actual result will almost never hold a candle to a record/finished tune.

Spend your time making beats at home, perfect them, then bring them to the dance imo

I think that if it can be done better as a dj set then do it as a dj set, 100%. However if you can create something interesting and improvised and engaging live it has another quality to it. The thing is it doesnt seem that stemming out tracks and playing them 'live' doesnt seem to really work well, you need to create an effective performance setup that works with your strengths and build stuff for that - at least thats how I see it.

[soronery]

live sets get a bad name because too many producers think it means just using a laptop to trigger their loops

[fragments]

Live also doesn't have to mean improvised. But yea...I've mostly been disappointed by Live PA's myself. I think the key is to keep it simple. I've seen lot of cool videos in the Techno world the last couple years with people doing heavily hardware, heavily analog (this one doesn't matter so much IMO) sets that are pretty good. You've got to plan something, unless you are an absolute bad ass. A lot of those Machine Love articles from RA have been about duo's doing these performances.

Also, I think certain genres lend themselves better to being "live". Techno is one good example. Dubstep, DnB...not so much...

It is a give and take...from the audience's perspective...if I'm just there to dance and party in the end I'd rather just have a good DJ set.

[Pulsedream3]

Yeah idk, I guess the main thing with me is that I don't consider myself as a DJ and don't really want to be assumed as one. The way I see it, the live set (for me) is to reimagine my tracks as one storyline. Obviously I want there to be parts for the dance floor but I also want to encourage people to think rather than mindlessly feel. I hope that makes sense

[Pulsedream3]

And personally, I just think it looks better when people are playing gear live.

[Pulsedream3]

Sorry, not talking shit on DJ's or anything - I enjoy a good DJ, but I guess I'm sort of looking at it through a different lense. I couldn't get into techno music until I discovered Throbbing Gristle and the like. Their live experimentation really made me appreciate it more

[cyclopian]

Fair play man, like I said im not fully trying to hate on live sets either. Good luck!

[fragments]

As long as everyone admits to their level of talent/competency (what they are actually doing) and the tunes are banging...I don't give a shit. If the DJ is just pushing play...I figure my entry fee covers the sound system, the facilities, the lights etc. I'm not into this whole DJ as rock star thing personally as I grew up on the whole "faceless DJ in the dark" thing...but once in a while I like to go out and get my groove on and I will take what I can get these days.

As for the whole thinking versus mindlessly feeling thing--for me that is largely dependent on what the event presents itself as. I don't want to go to a all night party party and have to interpret socio-politcal messages in music...but I'll got to a craft-beer pub or coffee house and fuxt with some neckbeard running a noise oscillator through a bunch of guitar pedals in protest of rape culture...as long as I know what I'm getting into.

Context is important.

[Pulsedream3]

As long as everyone admits to their level of talent/competency (what they are actually doing) and the tunes are banging...I don't give a shit. If the DJ is just pushing play...I figure my entry fee covers the sound system, the facilities, the lights etc. I'm not into this whole DJ as rock star thing personally as I grew up on the whole "faceless DJ in the dark" thing...but once in a while I like to go out and get my groove on and I will tagoodke what I can get these days.

As for the whole thinking versus mindlessly feeling thing--for me that is largely dependent on what the event presents itself as. I don't want to go to a all night party party and have to interpret socio-politcal messages in music...but I'll got to a craft-beer pub or coffee house and fuxt with some neckbeard running a noise oscillator through a bunch of guitar pedals in protest of rape culture...as long as I know what I'm getting into.

Context is important.

Yeah, good point. So what, I should just stand there live?

[fragments]

Not sure how you are extrapolating "So what, I should just stand there live?" from what I said...but no...that isn't what I'm getting at. What you are doing in Ableton sounds cool to me, as long as the tracks are good and everything sounds smooth etc.

I'm just saying...don't call what you do something it isn't. I'm not sure how what you do with Ableton is different than what someone does with two turn tables and a mixer. I'm not even sure what a DJ is anymore TBH. It is a brave new world, to use a cliche. To be perfectly honestly, most of what the "all vinyl DJs" do isn't terribly impressive and any shmo can learn to do it the basics of it.

At least 50% of what matters to me is track selection/taste anyway. I've heard all vinyl DJs who can do lots of "tricks" spin absolute shit and I'm totally uninterested.

But lets get this back to specifics...

What do you want to do with your MS20 in a live situation? Are you playing your own music or other peoples?

[soronery]

even if someone was just playing an ms20 in a live situation itd need to be something special to seperate it out as a live show

otherwise why not just play a dj set of your own tunes where you have used the ms20 in a studio environment

something like dorian concepts microkorg jam videos;

[+] Spoiler

for example of live play done well and unique

it shouldnt just be a case of dragging a live piece of hardware to the club just to show that you own it

ive seen terribly dull live techno sets where the artist has a number of elektron boxes on stage and just drudge drudge sounds coming out of them with a bit of parameter tweaking

[fragments]

^Absolutely. Unless you are really jamming out basslines or leads on the MS20 live the only other reason I can see for lugging it around is to use the filter on external sounds, but honestly that seems pretty pointless. Hardware, analog in particular and more in particular vintage analog, is very in right now. I think that is were some of this is coming from.

The whole deal with doing things live and bring lots of hardware/controllers/FX etc is you've only got two hands anyway.


EDIT: great video btw.

[Pulsedream3]

I'm playing my own tunes. Yeah idk, maybe it's because I alweays played in bands before producing my own tracks - I just always feel like I have to put on a show for people

[fragments]

I'm playing my own tunes. Yeah idk, maybe it's because I alweays played in bands before producing my own tracks - I just always feel like I have to put on a show for people

IMO if the DJ is doing his job I shouldn't even notice him/her, but be immersed in the total experience. I'm used to parties were people are looking in every direction and there is a lot of general milling around, not the whole crowd facing the stage expecting a visual show/visual cue from the DJ. I don't even know if there are parties like this anymore to be honest. This, of course, is not the Mega Festival expectation in the states. That's a rock n roll show that's expected to be a bit theatrical (using the term loosely here).

[Pulsedream3]

Haha I hate festivals and I'm not a huge fan of this EDM craze, but it definitely is an American thing to make your stage show look crazier than it actually is. That being said, I'm playing some shows coming up that really require me to have some kind of show. I may make complex music at home (and that in itself is much more complicated than any live band could know), but people are still disappointed and very dismissive if you sit up there with your desktop Mac (the only computer I own right now) and a push