Ambient synth jam with Dreadbox Nymphes, Erebus, Kinotone Ribbons, Chase Bliss Mood MkII

Please support my work on Patreon: / jayhosking
A live, semi-improvised synthesizer jam performed entirely on hardware.
I recently bought the Kinotone Ribbons, and a member of my Patreon community wisely suggested that I run the Dreadbox Nymphes through it. He was very right (thanks, Robbie!): the Nymphes already has tons of analog synth character, but the Ribbons' stereo reverb plus its tape effects really made the perfect ambient sound.
I played around on the Keystep until I found some chords I liked, sequenced the chord progression on the Keystep, and then went searching for a second synth to complement the Nymphes & Ribbons.
I settled on the Erebus because it's small, sounds fantastic, and has lots of hands-on control. To add some character of its own, I used the Mood MkII to add some sample-reduced tape, plus some of its own reverb. It ended up lo-fi in its own way, and quite different from the Nymphes & Ribbons combo.
At first I thought I might play the Erebus separately, but the slow pace, plus wanting to keep it meditative, made me try something different instead. Here, I sent the same sequencing data to both synths. However, since the Erebus was in mono mode, it had to choose a single note from the polyphony of the chords, leading to a sort of melody line of its own. It was a happy accident, and a peaceful finished song.
Dreadbox Nymphes into Kinotone Ribbons - chords
Dreadbox Erebus into Chase Bliss Mood MkII - lead
Arturia Keystep 37 - sequencing
Thanks for listening.
jayhosking.bandcamp.com

[@parristaylor]

The faster attack on the Erebus makes this duet so satisfying

[@EricRaymondSF]

What a creative idea, pushing the same MIDI note data for the polysynth into the mono. Really enjoyed this.

[@ToyKeeper]

It also works well to send two or more different midi tracks to the same monosynth, and watch as it flips between notes. It's important to make sure the note-off events are performed with varying timing though, since those will have a big impact on the resulting notes the monosynth plays. Or instead of a regular mono patch, use an arp patch with the same technique... auto-arping across the notes the rest of the song uses. Super easy way to get background texture that stays in tune.

[@excitationofstereocilia2103]

@@ToyKeeperIs there an explanation on how to hook up what you mention somewhere? Thank you

[@ToyKeeper]

@@excitationofstereocilia2103Midi record two or more different parts which harmonize. Then on your sequencer, set them to the same output and same channel. Very simple.

[@jonathanulery1610]

As always ....Like 1st then listen I've said it before and I'll say it again and again and Again.....Dude, you are the BEST synth composer in the Universe no one has ever came close in the past and I don't see anyone doing it anytime soon...THANK YOU for sharing ...your work is food for the soul ...THANKS AGAIN!!!

[@MikkelGrumBovin]

Ill second that

[@IDontTalkToCops]

Cool comment 👍

[@christianpilz7165]

wow.. love the underlying rhythm composed through swell and a kind of negative room in it. much love. rise up

[@classicaudioadventures]

I love the diversity in your compositions, and your ability to create intrigue with relatively small setups. It drives home the idea that in a lot of cases less is more.

[@SpikesStudio3]

In a nice touch of accompaniment, the magpies in my backyard joined in to this little piece of heaven. Kudos Jay.👍

[@synthsamuraiproductions]

This is absolutely beautiful brother. The ribbons pedal looks cool Ill have to deep dive.

[@llcoolpete]

I was not prepared for this level of inspiration today

[@Eleth]

Sipping my coffee, listening to this, enjoying it madly. Heck, it looks so simple, and it sounds so good. Very inspiring.

[@Krilin84]

Hauntingly beautiful Jay. You make these synths sound acoustic or even borderline human the way you bring out their expressiveness through your brilliant use of modulation. The simplicity of the arrangement is just perfect for this piece. Less is definitely more when the synths themselves sound so alive and sophisticated. You leave me with a serious itch to get this exact hardware setup, create a simple chord progression and just sit and turn the knobs for hours, in pure bliss and delight of the sounds. Bravo!

[@JayHosking]

Considering the amazing work I've heard of yours (still have Som in rotation), I have no doubt you could do great work with these!

[@wrobelsparrow]

Love it - always so rich and moody. Bladerunner vibes all all along :)

[@yourcitysleeps]

Absolutely beautiful

[@Kumie]

So beautiful. When the Erebus came in, goosebumps. Great work, as always!

[@MarkMcCubbin]

Cool to see a couple of Minneapolis made pedals featured!

[@midicakemidi]

I loved the interplay due to the different attacks. Nice work!

[@daviddechamps8840]

Thanks, Jay. Always a pleasure to hear your music. In particular the ambient pieces, my favorites. The other day I went running and listened to your album on Spotify. I could almost recognise all the instruments from your videos... Key the music coming ! All the best.

[@hoagy_ytfc]

Delightfully Eno-esque.

[@AndreVibrations]

This is beautiful ❤

[@Mosneig]

gorgeous, as always

[@stujay]

Gorgeous

[@c-historia]

thank you so much for the new video, this is great!! 🎥

[@Bender2323]

Wow! So good! Blown me away again

[@synthebo]

Bellísimo!!❤

[@slipziq]

beautiful

[@lfabinou5198]

Bravo Jay. Mesmerizing harmony and sound

[@pixelplayground]

So simple and so moving. Beautiful.

[@JamesGiannoni]

Simply gorgeous. Bravo.

[@michaelkonomos]

This is just so gorgeous. Listening again. Really amazing.

[@fattyboombatty7736]

Awesome.... so much feel from a simple setup

[@Winterdagen]

This just made my day ❤

[@SteveMc870]

Somehow missed this one when you put it out. Love it, so moody and beautiful.

[@SHVNE]

It's amazing what movement can accomplish. Thanks again, man.

[@Colesey]

Maaaaaan. Another wonderful song. You’re a master.

[@streetdoghanoi]

This is totally fucking inspirational. Thank you.

[@MIssSarahKB]

Love this. 🙂

[@_s.d.s._]

I love this.

[@krystiankrewniak]

Beautiful❤

[@2MinuteWarning]

Beautiful, relaxing and very creative (using only the Keystep to sequence the whole track and same notes to play a poly synth + mono synth...) 🥰 Also hadn't really heard of the Kinotone Ribbons till now I think 😊 seems a be a cool pedal!

[@JayHosking]

I think the addition of the reverb, plus all the special modes (even a Basinski-esque degradation!) give it a lot of bang for buck. And thanks!

[@2MinuteWarning]

@@JayHosking Thanks Jay, really seems to be an interesting pedal 🤩

[@DAFTBONCHKOOPA]

Wow. Just wow ❤

[@valentinegonsalves7322]

Love the LFO and the octave change. Absolutely beautiful composition. That Erebus is pure love.

[@chrisleeramsden2077]

Nice chord sequence. I found myself singing along with 'Song for the Siren' - This Mortal Coil. Thanks for that; Jay! (Although I doubt the neighbours will have appreciated my take on Liz Fraser's vocals...)

[@joesweeney6262]

❤ I remember the first time I heard Elizabeth Fraser sing that. Blew my mind. Still haunts me all these decades later. And yes, this track has This Mortal Coil vibes.

[@moonandmelodies]

I didn’t know the Nymphes , really impressive ! Great sound ! 👍

[@alexandermontagnet3361]

This is magical. I love it. I think this might be my first time actually hearing the Erebus. I've only lightly explored the Dreadbox line. This is beautiful. Thank you.

[@lukasmidub]

Very nice ❤

[@sbrocos]

I have been moved listen this song and it’s sounds… thanks

[@s3nd3r5]

This was mesmerizing!!! 55 minutes too short :)

[@josephwright5921]

Epic! 🎉

[@BukkakeTuesdays]

Amazing, wow…

[@watchaddicts1213]

Top shelf! I own Nymphes…no Erebus, sadly. I do have a Typhon. You’re spot on-buckets of Character!! Chase Bliss also killer-great people at that company. Thanks for the Sonics!

[@JayHosking]

The Typhon is also fantastic, and I love the combination of its effects and presets. Thanks so much!

[@watchaddicts1213]

@@JayHosking welcome! Agreed. I think Sinevibes also has done User OSC for the Minilogue XD. I have a XD and love it S well. I want a Summit so badly right now I could scream. I’d have to sell all the above to help fund it. Maybe the better plan is to earn more money… Also, Tim Shoebridge’s software bundle for Nymphes really opens it up! I can’t help thinking: selling Nymphes would be a bonehead move

[@MikkelGrumBovin]

@@watchaddicts1213 dont EVER Sell a DreadBox ....its going to be legendary synths in the future ... Theyre do Moog' Better Than Moog's 😉

[@watchaddicts1213]

@@MikkelGrumBovin Was delirious there for a sec. I think, when I was a child I had a fever. Solid now.

[@SonicVibe]

Mood pedal sounds lush

[@gustavofarina2107]

muy lindo!!!!

[@tendingtropic7778]

never really took the arturia keystep seriously as a sequencer, but thanks for reminding me of the capabilities :)

[@JayHosking]

Yeah, I often neglect the work it can do, too. A useful tool!

[@XTINCTIONation]

This was beautiful, as I sat here, eating my dinner, alone in my apartment, I couldn’t help but reminisce on my failed relationship while this gorgeous piece threw the thoughts together like a film. Bravo as always 👏🏽🖤

[@MarkMcCubbin]

Love this. Do you have any more about it on your Patreon?

[@JayHosking]

Nothing on this one (my rationale was that both parts could be heard clearly), but I'm always happy to walk through gear or pedals when I receive a message there! There's also a walkthrough of the Erebus and exploring it when I first got it.

[@MarkMcCubbin]

@@JayHosking got it, thanks. I just happen to have all the gear you used in this one. I live in Minneapolis, so I'm a fan of Kinotone and Chase Bliss.

[@JayHosking]

@@MarkMcCubbin The Ribbons was a recommendation from a supporter of mine on Patreon. Really enjoying it!

[@brentsykes1220]

Beautiful composition. The same midi going through both synths works really well for this, but i was wondering do you ever use a keystep pro so you can create different tracks.

[@JayHosking]

Tried one, but the workflow wasn't for me. Heard some great stuff from others, though!

[@PayneSculptures]

This is SO beautiful! I have (and love) the Nymphes but I'm learning it slowly do to the confusing user interface. Do you feel that it's necessary to get the Erebus if I've got a Nymphes (and a Lifeforms SV-1 from Pittsburgh?)

[@JayHosking]

Definitely not necessary to get the Erebus, but the panel is a little more transparent / easier to learn than the Nymphes (with its "shift" system), and sounds good. And thanks!

[@user-fi4yd2kf6g]

Wow, this is brilliant sound, I love it! But where can one buy this Kinotone Ribbons? And also wanted to say that this sound you have achieved here and the chord progression made me think of one beautiful work by Aphex Twin. Will you guess which one?

[@JayHosking]

Ribbons is a direct order from Kinotone. Check out their website! I'm not sure which Aphex track you're thinking of, but if I had to guess, I'd guess Stone in Focus.

[@tendingtropic7778]

so awesome! is the ribbon mono or stereo?

[@JayHosking]

Stereo. Need to use stereo cables, though (single jack on each side). Here I'm going mono in to stereo out.

[@edmc2]

😎

[@Noiretranquility]

Is the high hiss the nymphes ?

[@JayHosking]

Not the Nymphes, itself, but I added in a little bit of tape hiss on the Ribbons' tape effect.

[@XTINCTIONation]

Can’t seem to find this on your Bandcamp?

[@JayHosking]

Hasn't made it onto a record yet. Got a collection of tracks that will eventually make sense as an ambient album, but not quite there yet.

[@XTINCTIONation]

@@JayHosking thanks for the reply! Can’t wait for this one. Great job again! 🙏🏽

[@MikkelGrumBovin]

❤ 😭 ...................

[@Ml-jb5xv]

There ist a compressor on IT?

[@JayHosking]

Yes, I usually have multi-band compression on the master, if that's what you mean.

[@LoVeAmBiEnT]

You literally have every new pedal and every new synthesizer that comes out so my question is at the end of the day you still make money? Lol. 😂. Great sounds though.

[@tailwindmechanics7454]

🤍

[@tede1092]

[@dimbus2000]

Where/which is the sequencer?

[@JayHosking]

The Keystep (thing with piano keys) is sequencing.

[@LoVeAmBiEnT]

Also, KZbin unsubscribed me automatically from your channel for some reason

[@elainemarieneis355]

First

[@PLA.net-DANTE]

Hey Jay, what do you think of the new erebus, compared to the v3? Is it better?

[@JayHosking]

I personally like it better, since I found the v3 a little more challenging to tune (esp. osc3). I also like its size/profile and sound a little better (it's based on the v2), but the v3 has a lot going for it as well.

[@MikkelGrumBovin]

@@JayHosking i have fallen in DeepLove with the NYX ,- that reverb is something.... magical ..... but as on the EBS v3 you gotta watch those knob's 🤨

[@PLA.net-DANTE]

​@@JayHoskingthanks for the answer. Yeah, I thought the same while I was listen to some demos from the new one. Awesome presentation as always, by the way. Thank you for sharing your music, always a inspiration ❤