This is Show Us Your Studio, a chance for our readers to show off their set-up, shout about their gear and invite the world into their home studio. This week's studio shot has been submitted by MusicRadar reader Kenneth Brown.
We have to applaud the ingenuity here - Kenneth has done an excellent job of utilizing the (rather limited) amount of space available to him by stuffing an impressive amount of gear into what's effectively a brightly lit cupboard. The overall effect is what Harry Potter's bedroom might have looked like if he ditched Hogwarts and got into producing drum 'n' bass instead.
Tell us a little about your studio set-up? What do you love about it?
"My “studio nook” is a hall cupboard 1m x 1.5m, so is somewhat cozy. It was an exercise in creating a small ergonomic workspace, with most of my gear to hand and patched to the mixer (which doubles as an audio interface for the DAW).
"It’s a step up from when I was working out of a writing bureau in the corner of a room with the inspiration-sapping hassle of dragging out and plumbing up whatever gear combination came to mind. Oh, and it can double as a tiny home cinema or sensory deprivation tank."
Tell us a little about your musical background and the music that you make in your studio?
"I’m self-taught with only a nodding acquaintance with music theory. I’m no spring chicken, so it was not long after the spark of Punk that I was inspired by the likes of Kraftwerk, early Human League and OMD to start dabbling with electronic music.
After a brief dalliance with trying to turn music into a full time career I settled into making fuzzy warbles on my own terms
"After a brief dalliance in the 80s with trying to turn music into a full time career (demo tapes, A&R people, band fights...) I settled into making fuzzy warbles on my own terms. My long-running project Alphabet Dust dabbles with ambient, drone, imaginary soundtracks and found sound."
What's your favourite piece of gear in your studio and why?
"At the moment it has to be the MicroFreak, it’s a ridiculous amount of synth for the money and Arturia’s free firmware updates have progressively expanded its capabilities. It also doubles as a surprisingly expressive CV controller for the modular rig."
What was the first bit of gear you ever owned?
"Strictly speaking it was a cheap Jazz Bass copy, but not long after that it was the Korg MS-20 that really lit the blue touch-paper. Umpteen hardware synths have come and gone but I still own the MS-20, although it lives on a high shelf awaiting the repairs I've promised it for years."
What dream piece of gear would you love to own if money was no object?
"The obvious answer would be a modular rack the size of a wardrobe, but given my lack of space I’ll settle for something small and quirky like an original (completely refurbished) EMS VCS3 Putney Mk1."
Visit Alphabet Dust's Bandcamp or listen to Actually No But Almost below.
Kenneth's gear list
- Korg Minilogue
- Soma LYRA-8
- Arturia MicroFreak
- Make Noise 0-Coast
- Korg NTS-1
- Koma Field Kit FX
- Korg Volca Modular
- Empress Zoia
- Soundcraft Signature 12
- Focusrite Scarlett 2i4
- PreSonus Studio One
Modular rig:
- Expert Sleepers Disting EX
- Expert Sleepers Disting Mk4
- Zlob Modular Skew-Fade LFO
- Tesseract Radioactive
- Mutable Instruments Warps
- Mutable Instruments Clouds
- Happy Nerding 6x Mix
- AMS Listen IO
If you'd like to be featured on Show Us Your Studio, email us today with a clear and well-lit picture of your studio space.
