Re: Working with a style

[Leonardo Cavallo <cavallo@dada.it>]

At 12.35 09/09/98 +0100, you wrote:
>Has anyone on this list heard of Hallucinogen (the band, not the drug)?  I
had their first album a while back, and recently heard The Lone Derranger,
their latest album.
>
>They do some fantastically intricate stuff, and I was wondering how much 
>of
it would have been loop/FX based, and how much of it would have been MIDI 
based?
>
>Another thing; I have cubase and a MIDI keyboard, and every time I try to
do some drum work, no matter how hard I try, it always sounds basic and
repetitive (the best way I can describe it is an empty beat).  Does anyone
have tips on how to write good lively beats (especially jungle) with just
Cubase and a MIDI keyboard?

Hi Steve

making a living programming beats (and writing as journalist, too) I have a
little knowledge about this topic.

You wrote:  
>how to write good lively beats (especially jungle) with just Cubase and a
MIDI keyboard?

Do you mean to use Cubase only as a sequencer for the keyb internal sounds?
Well, I think it depends on the sounds available on th keyboard... Jungle 
is
not only about bpm speed but sounds too. It's not casual that d&b relies
heavily on breakbeats (whole sampled drum loops or part of them) and not
only on single drum sounds. I think the best approach is to combine the 2
methods, for that "lively beats" you're looking for.

Try to work directly with audio material (.wav with PC, .aiff with Mac) on
Cubase VST or using a sampler with an old Cubase, MIDI only, version. 

To program jungle beats with just some GM MIDI sounds and Cubase (not VST,
no audio capability) I think it's pretty hard.

let me know
ciao
leo