tory Machines Fig. 7
The bowls have an exotic sound in their own right. They are not tonal (or perhaps more accurately, they are aggressively multi-tonal). As such, there has been no attempt to arrange them on the keyboard using any sort of ascending pitch scheme. The samples are not looped but instead just offer a single cycle of attack (being struck) and decay (lasting up to a minute for the larger bowls).
A number of effects open up many additional sound possibilities. We have a filter, LFO, distortion, chorus, phaser, reverb, and so on. By themselves, the sounds are exotic, but they can be transformed into something that's other-worldly with the supplied modulators and effects. Significantly, one can define modulator/effect setups for the entire set or can define them individually for each bowl. Interference And now we get to the one that made me smile the most: Interference (Figure 7). The concept is simple: provide a source of all the kinds of noise that have been the bane of recording engineers since the dawn of recorded sound. We have: multiple kinds of hum, fan noise, several vinyl groove noises, crackle, hiss, and rumble. We can combine them in various combinations. That is, we can add hum and vinyl noises, but we only get one vinyl noise at a time, for example. But the fun doesn't stop there. In addition to authentic noises of legacy equipment, we can play around and create something completely different.
December 2011
For example, one can turn the pitch of the fan to its lowest setting. The result is a very ominous aural feel of a murky, sinister subterranean environment. While interference doesn't provide effects beyond some simple filtering, all kinds of additional possibilities open up when used with external effects. So, What's Next? The first MLM offering was released in February of 2011 and this is being written November. In addition to the seven instruments reviewed here, there have been two new MLM instruments released since I began writing this review. So, we've been seeing about one new MLM offering per month. I only hope that Hollow Sun will keep up the pace. I very much look forward to more of these delights being made available. As to what those will be, Hollow Sun would only say that they have numerous ideas kicking around but can't state for certain what those will be. Hmmm, sounds like they've embraced the philosophy of Indiana Jones, who famously said "I'm just makin' this up as I go along."
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