The Yamaha CS-5, which came out in 1979, was my first analog synthesizer, and it has left deep traces in my music creation. It was also Martin Gore’s first synthesizer and was widely used in Depeche Mode in the early 80’s. It has no hidden agendas or menus or anything that can be confusing, but… Read More »
Together with TR-606 Drumatix, it was launched as a small orchestra for lone troubadours. However, it did not turn out at all as Roland thought. Fate had something else in the binoculars. Instead of playing in the background, TB-303 came to play the main role in modern dance music for several years. An entire genre,… Read More »
Once you have acquired a new musical gadget, it is good to also acquire something that can change its tone. My choice when it comes to distorting, polluting or beautifying sounds is often a phaser, a type of power device that appeared about 40 years ago. The actual effect could be achieved even before the… Read More »
Wooden sides and sliders so that there is enough and is left over. Linndrum LM-2 dominated the 80’s top lists. One of the instruments that was heard on most hit records during the 80’s is the fantastic Linn LM-2 – a wonderfully beautiful digital drum machine that is large and heavy. It has nice wooden… Read More »
According to information from several sources, Kramer was the best-selling electric guitar brand in 1985 and 1986, but in December 1989, the company was declared bankrupt. That the crash occurred during the last trembling days of the 80’s is extremely symbolic. Few guitar brands were as associated with 80s hard rock as Kramer. Well known… Read More »
Maybe you have (or had) a mother-of-pearl DeLuxe from 1958, a red semi-acoustic Viking, Hagström’s flagship Swede or the later Super Swede? If you are younger, you have probably tested a new Hagström built after 2007, when the company re-emerged. We tested a Super Swede Tremar (Studio 1-2011) and gave it a good rating. The… Read More »
ME-5 is a hard-skinned multi-effect that was many guitarists’ dream gadget in the late 80’s. First out of Boss compact pedals was Boss overdrive / dist OD-1 and recently the number of power models passed 100. So with over ten million copies sold, you are in good company. Ten years after OD-1, in other words… Read More »
Arp Odyssey comes in several different versions, all equally good. Early in my career as a synth nerd, Arp Odyssey was a pretty unknown creation to me. I knew it was a competitor to Minimoogen, but I had never really seen one and it was extremely unusual in the circles in Karlstad that I hung… Read More »