On a recent trip to Nashville, we here at Reverb had a chance to stop by singer and producer extraordinaire Jamie Lidell's studio to learn a few unconventional music-making techniques you can use to make unique sounds and compositions. Over the coming weeks, we'll be releasing a small series of videos with Jamie highlighting his inventive tricks.
For the first episode, Jamie shares an Ableton Live patch he created called the Needle Drop. Much like what happens when you drop a record player's needle onto a random groove of your vinyl, the Needle Drop patch chooses a song (and a portion of a song) at random from a playlist you've created in iTunes.
To use the patch, you simply enter the name of your playlist into one of 12 open spots in the patch and press play. The patch then automatically creates a series of random, chopped-up samples that you can play directly in Ableton Live or map onto your controller for hands-on experimentation. "It's just a way of stopping that blank slate phenomenon, getting a new way [to find inspiration]. Just be careful of the copyrights—don't blame me!"
Be sure to watch the full video above. You can also check out his podcast, Hanging Out With Audiophiles, and check back here at Reverb next week, to learn more unique recording techniques. The Needle Drop is available as a free download on Reverb now.
