This thread's been eating at me, so... A lot of people on this list have seen a lot of live shows and I'd be one of them. After much contemplation, two things spring to mind as to what makes a great live show: (a.) music dynamics, and (b.) audience dynamics.
I'm guessing from your (Beat Maker's) comments that the music you're performing is more electronic than rock because of your comment about loops. Given that you're looking for a rock dynamic, do the live performances of the songs reach a climax? How is the climax represented? Whether it's a chorus or an unexpected change or a build (ie a bridge) it should get a little bit louder, a little bit hookier, and/or a little bit faster. If it's a key musical passage, the other instruments pulling back a little as the synth (or whatever) plows into its line.
If you're using, say, the MOTM with a MIDI/CV converter and a controller keyboard, you might tie a VCA control voltage to a slider or foot pedal and amp it up a little. It doesn't take much (and it shouldn't be too much) to cue the passive part of the audience that this is the part to which to dance/bounce/head-bob. Alternatively, you could tie the control to filter resonance, add/subtract some delay time, etc.
The audience dynamic is harder. I've seen a number of shows that were subpar in a technical sense, but held the audience enthralled with banter. I saw an EBM band play the other weekend that kept its dancefloor contingent going with boundless energy, even though they had no musical dynamics. A friend of mine's rock band uses visual cues among the members to tighten song changes, and when they're into it the audience picks up on these and responds accordingly. Looking like you're loving it, that you're rocking out to the song on the thousandth time you're hearing it (or, if you're all goth/electro, looking like you're just sad/bored that you're alive at all), is something that can radiate from the stage.
With a modular, though, I think that rebuilding a patch between songs is only a few steps above watching the guitarist retune for anyone but a synthhead. Even then, if I can't identify, say, the envelope generator from across the bar, I can't say I'd want to watch it be done either. I agree, though, that if it's facing the audience, it's certainly an interesting bit of sculpture on the stage. Maybe a MIDI-controlled patchbay if the patch changes are frequent and complicated? Unfortunately, my imagination fails me if the panels are to face the audience, so are you, *and* you need to make a lot of adjustments intra-song.
Obviously all of this depends on the audience (real and target), the style of music, and the type of the space you're playing. In any event, lots of musicians I've known have intentionally "spiced up" songs for live situations where nuances might be a lost. This was a bit long... all apologies for those who haven't yet hit delete and are bored, I should've bounced around a little more.
cheers,
eric f
nutrafx <nutrafx@...> wrote:
I think it's important for people to see the synthesizer is just as
live an instrument as a guitar
playing electronic instruments aggressively can help, but can lead to
broken keys - and permanently screwing things up
i would highly recommend the doepfer ribbon controller for live use..
you can do pitched theremin type stuff with a physical playing
surface or crazy chaotic noise. i used one live once and it really
freaked people out
using a modular and physically changing patches live could help add a
feeling of something going on
and if your using a tape backing track why not place a reel to reel
where a drummer would be like early human league & depeche mode?
--- In motm@yahoogroups.com, "THE_BEAT_MAKER" <the_beat_maker@y...>
wrote:
>
> I want to start doing some more gigs soon! BUT! When I was in
> Australia I performed but found it difficult to put on a good show.
> I know it's about the way you sound and not the way you act but?
> How can I (An electronic Muso) have as much stage energy as a Rock
> band? I want to sound better but also represent heaps of dance
energy!
>
> I renember doing a gig in a competition, and at the end the judges
> said: "Excellent use of the tape recorder" Not realising it was a
> hardware sequencer that I spent MONTHS AND MONTHS PROGRAMING!
>
> How do we prove that we worked hard to build our compositions? and
> not just copied loops.
>
> If you watch a good Jazz band you know they have practised because
> you can see them playing there instruments. I feel the majority of
> audiences don't understand what goes into an Electronic
performance.
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>
> I want to represent my music better.
> If anyone can suggest something It would be good to know.
> Cheers.