NAMGLA, Day One...

I know, it’s actually Day Two of the North American Man/Gear Love Association (NAMGLA, and unfortunately I didn’t think of that; my friend Carl did. But I’m using it from now on, and it’ll eventually get credited to me, and I’m fine with that.) But it was day one for me, and what a day it was. I only saw a small fraction of the actual show, because most of my time today was spent catching up with friends. But the highlights of my first day, which you can file under “fucking duh…”

1. Elektron Octatrack. This motherfucker is the BOMB. I was initially somewhat reticent, although I’ve purchased everything Elektron ever made, and there’s no particular reason not to continue that trend. But now that I’ve spent a little time with the box, I’m quite impressed. This thing is the pinacle of the Elektron style of sequencing, which is more or less unique to them. (Although, their method has always heavily reminded me of the Sequential Studio 440, fwiw.) Chock full of features that you can read all about elsewhere. It looks and feels more advanced than the MachineDrum/MonoMachine, and it’s obvious that a lot of thought has gone in to it. I give this one a strong Buy. Obviously worth the money, if it’s the sort of thing that can fit in to your workflow in the first place.

2. DSI Tempest. Forget about it. The tits, plain and simple. I’ll be getting one, no question about it. There simply has never been another drum machine so thoroughly designed for what I need in such a box. Another strong Buy. I’m going to spend some quality time with it tomorrow morning, so my post tomorrow will some more comprehensive impressions.

3. Eventide Space. I know you’re thinking “well, fuck, it’s reverb. In a pedal. So what?” It’s really hard to describe how cool this is. It is, for want of a better term, playable. I personally use a lot of ’verb, but I tend to use it in a static fashion. I don’t think I’ve ever automated a ’verb plug or hardware in my entire career. This thing, though, just begs to be cranked in real-time. A really nice selection of effects that are eminently tweakable. A very strong Buy on this one, and no mistake.

Anyhow, that was Day One. One thing I will say about NAMGLA is that you can lose your faith in humanity quick-fast, in a hurry. The vast majority of the attendees fall in to two camps: young and hopeful (and thus stupid) and old and burned out (and yet still hopeful, and thus really, really sad.) The former generally desperately needs to be punched in the face, and the latter is essentially a walking metaphor for stale cigarettes, flat beer, and video poker. I imagine, other than the fact that I have a bit of taste in my clothing and accessories, that I fall in to the latter camp. Which is causing a bit of an existential crisis right now.

That sound you hear is me softly sobbing in to my pillow.