Live Looping Electronic Music for the First Time!

Live Looping Electronic Music for the First Time!
Using a looper is something I've been really wanting to add to my live rig for the past couple of months, and I'm so glad I finally got to give one a go with the Sheeran Looper X. However, it's a completely different experience than I was expecting, and I need some practice! Unlike playing straight through, where the imperfections in a human performance can ebb and flow the musician's playing, in a live loop those imperfections are magnified exponentially. Major respect to anyone out there performing with loopers, it's a lot harder than it looks, and I can't wait to keep practicing. Enjoy the video :)
My favorite gear in one list, courtesy of zZounds.com:
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GEAR IN THIS VIDEO
Sheeran Looper X: t.ly/nECcm
Roland SPD-SX: amzn.to/43c3Dbb
Roland SP-404MKII: amzn.to/438DJoS
1010 Nanobox Fireball: amzn.to/48HbLBX
Arturia Keystep: amzn.to/43a6UIc
Zoom F2-BT (lav mic): amzn.to/437heAP
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[@ndguardian]

I've said it before and I'll keep on saying it - stuff like this is why I enjoy your content so much. You show a very human element in the videos that you put out, in that not everything is perfect, and there is a struggle that has to be overcome to understand your gear and make it work for you. Not everything is going to be polished out of the box, and you embrace that. Nice work!

[@FreeBeat]

Thanks as always! Glad to be able to show off my failures and successes on here haha.

[@crocholiday]

I had the same experience lol. I saw Ed Sheran on Austin City Limits and thought "I can do that!" , grabbed the looper that I use to dial in tones / effects and was surprised by how hard it was. I'm a bass player and my time is rock solid so I expected it to be easy but man... I could not get a 4 bar loop that didn't feel like a record skipping to save my life. I finally figured out that my foot was contacting the pedal on the 1 but was actually engaging the switch a millisecond or two late. It was just a matter of getting my brain trained to drop my foot a millisecond or two early which is hard because you feel like you're rushing the beat. I gotta give props to guys like Sheran who make it look so simple. It's way harder than it looks.

[@FreeBeat]

Absolutely, thanks for watching!

[@jantuitman]

It is so amazing to see how open and positive you take the humbling experience of things not working out immediately while you expected it wouldn’t be a problem. Awesome video, and I am sure you will get very good at it!

[@FreeBeat]

Thanks so much! Absolutely a humbling experience haha.

[@Stadsjaap]

The humility is so refreshing. Seeing failure as an opportunity to learn is a sorely lacking approach in the world today. Thanks mate!

[@FreeBeat]

Thanks so much! Wish more people would cover the learning process.

[@resetreboot]

Glad to see I'm not the only one struggling with loopers. I added a simple one to my guitar pedalboard and geeze... that thing is merciless!

[@FreeBeat]

Yeah it's definitely a whole different skill!

[@BenCoeMusic]

Lol I almost quit music the first time I tried a loop pedal. I thought everyone my whole life was lying to me about how well I could keep time. Definitely a humbling new instrument/experience. Glad you’re getting on with it, looking forward to hearing more!

[@FreeBeat]

Yeah it's pretty wild how different it is to playing continuously with other musicians! Thanks for watching :)

[@scorpionleader1967]

I started out as a drummer many many years ago and play all instruments now, but getting the looping timing was bad for me too. 🤪Thanks for the nostalgia. I haven't thought about this for years.🥰 Anytime you learn a new instrument or style your timing doesn't translate at first. Some instruments/styles are easier than others. You're not alone. My transition into piano was the worst for me.💩

[@FreeBeat]

Yeah I'm really so surprised how different the timing is compared to playing with other musicians haha. Pretty wild, but I'm excited to learn! Thanks for watching :)

[@DavidDeLuge]

Great video. Ed Sheeran is a living legend here in the UK and I saw him live using a looper and he was incredible. Your progress, in such a short time, is very impressive and so I’m looking forward to a full set from you 😀👍🏻

[@FreeBeat]

Yeah LFB took me to see him before we started dating and the music definitely wasn't my thing, but the performance was pretty incredible. Thanks!

[@michaelszelwis8302]

Thanks for such great and honest video! Wrapping my head around looping has been a struggle - and still is - but hearing your view and interpretation of why this might be, is an inspiration. Thanks again!

[@hankpiece]

Your problem was to start drumming on the 1. If you can change the settings to a 2-bar countin and play for an extra measure before the loop starts, it will be easier to keep time.

[@Mildawg1]

Thanks for sharing your journey good and bad. Enjoy your constructive approach to hurdles. Lot of YTers only show us the perfect cuts, but your ernest approach is so much more relatable, and thus inspirational🤘🏻

[@FreeBeat]

Thanks! I'm really not sure why more folks don't cover the learning process, it's super valuable :)

[@blakesaupe129]

Thank you for making this! This makes me feel a lot more human. I loop with a single track looper and it is so difficult. I've heard so many people shame people like Ed Sheeran and even go as far to say that he uses backing tracks. I don't think those people realize how hard it would be to fake it. At that point just do it for real. Anyways, I wish you luck on your journey through this humbling experience 😂

[@scottieat767]

Thanks for this transparent take.

[@Jazman342]

As a guitarist/vocalist I've been using a TC Halicon VL3x for years. I found it a great practice tool, especially when learning to sing while playing. I could record the guitar part and then get used to hearing myself sing at the same time. Headphones save annoyed neighbours. You are getting one thing right though. There is nothing worse than waiting 5 mins for someone to set up a loop for a 3 min song. It's all in the planning. I was interested to see your layout. Ergonomics are very important. I'm hoping to set up something similar, but based around MPC or Force with, if possible, foot switching. Have an old FCB1010 but have yet to try it with MPC/Force. One complication when singing is seeing everything without coming off the mic.

[@FreeBeat]

Yeah I really want to avoid making the audience sit through a 3 minute buildup lol. Thanks for watching!

[@johnbertotti8815]

Got my Looper X a week ago. I suck. Everything I have ever noodles out has been based on me and one instrument and keeping it interesting. This has me rethinking and practicing like crazy! I do not for one minute regret buying it but dog gone it truly is humbling. Now I’ll just let my family make fun of me until I get better! Thanks for the video!

[@wiggesobk]

I feel you haha. I had the same problem but wirh beatboxing. Great jam at the end!

[@FreeBeat]

Thanks!

[@smalltown2223]

You have good energy. I like your videos.

[@FreeBeat]

Thanks so much!

[@makemistakestv]

It's OK to Make Mistakes! :D - As I mentioned in the Patreon Discord, coming to terms that there is still so much to learn, even in fields you're quite familiar and coupling that realization with a positive and excited attitude is really important. Cheers, FB! Thanks for sharing this with us.

[@unseenjungle5386]

keep it up man! I felt the same when i started first time working with a dedicated looper. - i blame Minus the Bear for making me loosing braincells over using live loops in sets :D

[@FreeBeat]

Thanks!

[@joshuamorganmusic]

Nice work bro! Keep at it, I’ve been live looping for about 13 years now and feel like I just got it about a year and a half ago. Fastest way to Carnegie hall…practice 😂

[@FreeBeat]

Oh man I've got a long way to go hahaha, thanks buddy!

[@tonywharton5220]

The bigger the pedal the better Mr Freebeat ✌️ Sounds pretty good to me ✌️ You will definitely get used to it.

[@FreeBeat]

Thanks as always!

[@patrickm.4469]

awesome video love your channel :) I had never seen your face! Stay awesome!!

[@FreeBeat]

I show my face in lots of videos now haha, thanks for watching!

[@Luap-ls3ix]

I legit got PTSD watching this video. My first introduction to live looping went exactly the same way 😂

[@dilankarun9172]

As someone who grew up playing drums & keyboards, during the pandemic I picked up the electric guitar, next thing I know I'm messing around looper's (The cheap stuff :-D ). I'm looking at the Boss 600 (Have the Boss 202) .The Shareen looper is temping. $1299 vs $599 (Boss). But I heard the Shareen looper has Headrush multi-effects. Will have to do some research on it. Btw, no issue's with your audio. You did great. Thanks 🙏

[@FreeBeat]

Thanks for watching!

[@jamespatterson4772]

hey man, your time is just human. It's easy to feel like crap about your sense of time when you work in a DAW and everything can be quantized perfectly, but small stutters like that are human and they give charm and character to the track

[@FreeBeat]

I actually almost never work in DAW's haha. This was more about how much different working with a looper is than live playing normally! After 2 decades of playing on stage and in studios, where the natural push and pull of human playing is encouraged and accepted, it was quite unexpected to use a looper and realize that it's a whole different timing set!

[@wibblewabblewoo6249]

I have such respect for Ed Sheeran for doing this consistently live. I once saw KT Tunstall (who I’m also a big fan of) go wrong on TV with a looper pedal & have to restart! Takes a lot of skill to master.

[@charliemartini2995]

Great video bro! Do you know if that looper comes with drum loops? I can’t find anything related to that.. you’re using an external drums wanna know if that comes with some loops..cheers!

[@oldunclemick]

Good video - better to show the difficulty rather than showing up all slick. I need to dust off my looper. I bet I'm so out of practice it will be like I've never touched one before! 😂

[@FreeBeat]

Haha all the more reason to take it out! Thanks for watching :)

[@88Fitzy88]

I found it so hard when I’ve been attempting it, on the E-4.. felt it helped a tiny bit when i had it synced with another Aira

[@FreeBeat]

Yeah it's definitely even harder on the E-4 haha, pretty cool that it has it though!

[@TrickmanTerry]

The Looper+ is even more difficult with it not having a click track or tempo setting on the unit. Also, no quantize. You have to get that timing right by guessing when to push the pedal to make a perfect loop. Its really hard to end the loop on time, which gets pretty frustrating (and yea, humbling to know my timing is so bad). I'm going to have to add an external metronome and/or MIDI source to help withe the timing. We'll see if that helps.

[@FreeBeat]

Yeah haha that's pretty difficult, it'll be all the more impressive when you get it down though!

[@hankpiece]

An external midi clock makes a big difference. I sync the sp404mk2 to the pigtrinix infinity 3 and it removes much of this stress. Honestly I don't see how a looper without midi sync is a useful tool.

[@GerenM63]

Like you said, it takes work and practice. It is a different skill. One thing that may help is a slight rearrangement at ground level. Having to turn away may be throwing your timing off a little. But yeah, it's a thing. Time will heal the ills, though.

[@FreeBeat]

Yeah I do plan on a little rearrangement down there once the last piece of the rig shows up!

[@PCFROMVCS]

I got a small looper for $20 on FB market place and had the EXACT same experience haha. Way harder than I was expecting

[@mindsetoff]

Hi, may ask you a question about the workflow? Is it possible to play the drums and synths at the same time and record drums on loop track 1 and synths on loop track 2 simultaniously? Or is it only possible to record loops one after the other, so each instrument individually? The manual is not really clear about that. Since we're looping, too, I'm looking for a hardware looper that allows me to record loops from different sources all at the same time to individual loop tracks. By the way, I didn't notice any sound issues, everything sounded fine to me. Keep rocking.

[@FreeBeat]

I don't think you can do that on the current firmware, but I do know they've got some major updates planned soon. Thanks for watching!

[@mindsetoff]

@@FreeBeat Thank you for the quick reply. Did you actually test it or do you assume that it's not possible (till maybe a new firmware comes out)?

[@michaelm1]

Yep. Looping is hard. Being just a middle-aged starting hobbyist wannabe musician, I eventually gave preference to a sampler instead. I'm just too incompetent to use a looper at this time.

[@FreeBeat]

Thanks for watching!

[@jaimeross7507]

Jeremy....I think you are supposed to hit the Looper with your Sticks.....And Red Means Recording on machine. 😊

[@zackadoodle7998]

10:49 Mmmm, delicious distortion

[@FreeBeat]

Lol mostly due to the H5 hating me!

[@Sadiquecat]

Could you have a extension pedal under your drumming "desk" or assign a SPD-SX pad to "stop looping" ? Surly you calling the end of the loop rather than having to imagine it from a click in surly is easier!

[@FreeBeat]

I actually have a pad mapped to it on the launchpad, but I'm just now starting to use it really. I'm sure I'll change some stuff around as the setup evolves though.

[@librasky]

As a BA$$ player , i feel i picked up looping quick because my mind is always searchering for the 1 You gotta be patient on the AND and wait for the 1

[@FreeBeat]

Yeah I'm fine hitting the pedals at the right time, it's adjusting my actual playing that's proving challenging haha.

[@librasky]

@@FreeBeat i struggle with too many layers , I will keep stacking loops until it's a mess 🤷 Keeping it simple is where the magic happens

[@michaelvarney.]

Start on your beat before the click finish the count in… if you try and jump straight in after the count in you will gallop.

[@FreeBeat]

A few weeks of practice and I'm good to go now haha.

[@martianearz1806]

🤟

[@FreeBeat]

Thanks!

[@fender4brad]

Forgive me for enjoying watching your struggle, but I’ve done a lot of questionable mumbling looping with my RC 20. I thought it was just my dismal sense of timing. I love the build of this pedal as well, but not the price. Curious to see honest opinions on the pedal.

[@krazywabbit]

Great message. Fun times ahead, even when there are bumps in the road.

[@FreeBeat]

Absolutely!

[@nsiivola]

Wait, you never tried Deluge for live looping? Not saying you should use it, just surprised you didn't try it for that purpose :)

[@FreeBeat]

I've used it before, but only with other synths on a tabletop setting. It's not really what I'm looking for in this setup though. Thanks for watching!

[@JohnPaulMusicUK]

We need to talk.. I’ll certainly come onto your channel and chat to me about looping. 👍🏻

[@FreeBeat]

Hey thanks for stopping by, I've checked out your videos before haha. Feel free to hit me up! [e-mail]

[@FRMTHREE]

Record quantize options?

[@FreeBeat]

I do have quantized recording turned on here, the issue I was describing in the video was my own playing, forcing myself to focus on playing tighter so the loop works better.

[@nigelreadon8381]

think most songs work the same you get the tune from the keyboard or guitar, then voice, then the tune again so its a loop in itself.

[@nigelreadon8381]

yes i got a looper to add voices to a song......but it's not strero....only mono.

[@FreeBeat]

Thanks for watching!

[@dustyaudio]

For inspiration, find any live El Ten Eleven performances. My personal looping idols right there, e-drums thru the bass players looper 🤯 kzbin.info/www/bejne/nHWVqYZvZrKcbpYsi=qYuT0sCbj2ArKYVv

[@FreeBeat]

That's so sick!!!!

[@dustyaudio]

@@FreeBeat agreed! That link is 14 years old, they have a lot of amazing albums to check out

[@MusicLabs234]

The quantize function is a complete mess on this looper. If you have it on then it's likely messing up your loops.

[@matthewdavis473]

Need an Octatrack

[@FreeBeat]

Care to elaborate? lol

[@matthewdavis473]

Oh yeah. It just makes quantized looping of external sources real easy.

[@FreeBeat]

Ah, so does the looper x. The issue I was talking about here was my own playing haha

[@matthewdavis473]

Yeah I love playing guitar with my looper. It really makes you think about the counting and rhythm

[@ericgabriel485]

Look up Matt Bolton, he uses a different looper but, lots to learn from him.

[@SonicVibe]

5 moons works great for looping 🔁 and its infinite loops 🔂