
Scene: Arcologies – Ask the Stars

"Tracker’s workflow encourages me to create small and evolving changes throughout my tracks."
“When Polyend announced the Tracker, I knew it was going to be an instant purchase for me. I was nostalgic. I’d be able to continue to use the workflow I was so familiar with when I was making music back in the day with PlayerPRO on my PowerBook G3, but with a discrete hardware device! I enjoy using the computer to make music, and I’m a big fan of modern trackers like Renoise, but there’s something special about being able to use a hardware workstation instead of staring at a computer screen and a piano roll.”
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“The Tracker is easy to use, so I was able to familiarize myself with the workflow after a few hours. I realized almost immediately just how fast, intuitive, and elegant the Tracker is. The UI, fx, sound quality, song mode, beat slicing… just everything about it worked perfectly for me right out of the box. Lately, I find that I am more motivated to make music with the Tracker than I am with a laptop. It’s nice being able to just chill with it, and practice slicing and sequencing breaks and beats for hours.”
“For me, one of the best things about using the device is how it speaks to my personal music philosophy of keeping my songs simple. The tracker gives me 8 tracks, and while on paper that may seem to be limiting, once you learn how to use the tracker workflow and gather your sounds and samples, you’ll realize that it’s more than enough to put together a full song. I know this is cliche… but I like being limited, it encourages me to be as creative as possible and once you can resort to finding creative solutions for something, it becomes easier to break out of a loop trap or producer’s block.”
“Tracker’s workflow encourages me to create small and evolving changes throughout my tracks. I’ll create four or five break patterns and then dupe them and make small changes here and there… and while doing that, I’ll get an idea for something I want to change in a melodic element that I’m using. At the end of all of this, I’ll have like 20-25 unique patterns to work with. This is where the Tracker really shines: creating these changes using other hardware devices can feel like a chore… but it feels completely fluid on the Tracker.”
Arcologies
Is a technology analyst and music producer from the Chicago suburbs. Focuses on making ambient jungle, drum n’ bass, and other electronic music. Occasionally produces minimal techno, using an MPC and other hardware, under the name Vermillion Cloak.
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