It’s been a minute since we’ve been on here – a change in day jobs is mostly to blame with partial responsibility lending itself to a desire for a more analogue life. Which, as a sentence and sentiment, has surprised me in it’s appropriateness as a segway in to what we wanted to share.
Coming out of period where live modular music was for the avant-garde composers, modular setups are now on the rise again. In the right hands their compositions are commonly crossing over in to what fans of electronic music want: unique sonic experiences and something more than an Apple logo to appreciate visually.
This shift is good news. I’m easily reminded of the days on NTS when this was still outsider music. Or Bass Clef’s incredible offering to Boiler Room under his Some Truths guise which at the time garnered blank expressions.
But in recent years it seems that a new wave of producers who began on accessible production software have self-graduated to modular synthesis in the search for their own sound. The ease of use of laptops birthed so many great producers and careers, but for the dedicated among them they seem to be searching past the used presets, in to the world of live sound crafting that modular performances offer.
If you’re in search of a primer I’d recommend taking a look at an article Ian McQuaid penned for The Ransom Note, A Short History Of The Future: 50 Years Of Modular Synths: https://www.theransomnote.com/music/articles/a-short-history-of-the-future-50-years-of-modular-synths/
The reason we bring all this up is to talk about one such journey from a producer who you need to be on top of. Late Night Gardener (LNG) is alias of one Robin Dunkerley, who’s also been known as Elek previously. With roots in reggae, drum ‘n’ bass and dubstep / post-dubstep – including a track on an Exit Records LP as Elek – LNG’s emerged in the last 12 months as one of the rare breed to bridge the gap between studio modular and live performance.
Feeling something lacking while clicking around in Logic, Robin found inspiration watching live uploads from modular techno master Steevio. After spending about three years educating himself in the complicated (and expensive) world of modular setups he had an idea of how he wanted his system to work: an entire ensemble to groove with, making a track on the spot improvised live.
“I decided to take the plunge and start buying some semi-modular synths and then later bought a Eurorack case and some basic modules. I had learnt a lot from YouTube in the years before I purchased anything so it really didn’t take me long to get up started. I even taught myself how to solder and started making DIY modules from kits to save money.”
And so Late Night Gardener was born. Since May this year we’ve seen regular posting on the LNG instagram account – latenightgardenermodular – as well as the surfacing of a live set recorded from his performance at Brighton Modular Sessions x Brighton Modular Meet in July.
With more live shows to London and back in the pipeline, an ever-growing setup (“they call it Eurocrack for a reason”) and a desire to play out as much as possible it’s time to get locked in to what he’s doing.