I recently purchased this little synth from DOEPFER Musikelektronik and thought I would give a run down of my initial thoughts on it.
The DOEPFER Dark Energy is a 100% analogue semi-modular monophonic synthesizer. What is very handy about this little unit is that is also has a MIDI/CV converter built right into it! The MIDI/CV converter can also run over USB, so essentially we have a completely analogue synth the can be controlled dircetly from your PC or Mac.
At first glance this is a fairly simple synth. 1 oscillator, 1 low-pass filter, 2 LFO's, 1 ADSR envelope, and ofcourse the VCA. However it has a few little tricks up it's sleeve that you might not expect. For example, the LFO's have a "Low/Medium/High" switch for LFO frequencies that extend right up into the audio range and right down to over a minute at their lowest setting.
While some might be put off by the fact that this synth only has one oscillator, let me assure you it sounds HUGE. Not only that, but the pluse width modulation on this synth sounds great. By modulating the pulse width on the oscillator you can achive a much richer sound characteristic, similer to a unison type effect.
Another little trick is that by turning the filter resonance up completely (into self oscillation) you can achive a sine wave oscillator. It takes some careful tuning of the filter cutoff frecquency, but thanks to the included note tracking it is possible to use this a lovely tonaly playable sine wave sound.
One feature I would really have liked to see on this synth however is portamento. It is possible that by patching the CV2 output (MIDI pitch bend) into the VCO F front panel socket pitch bending can be achieved. However in most cases this is not an entirely workable substitue for portamento.
Overall this is a great sounding synthesiser for it's price (398 EU). The single oscillator (and the PWM) sounds great, the filter is amazing, and extra features like filter FM, ultra fast/long LFO and envelope settings, and external audio input make this a worthwhile and unique synth.
Here is a short little track I made using the Dark Engery. All tracks are raw Dark Energy - Except the kick drum (it's a sample) and one of the synth lines has a slight ammount of delay on it. No compression or EQ was used.
This month I have decided to do a special extended version of the list of songs I'm currently into. Hence, not only have I listed the current tracks I am enamored with, but also included a sound clip of the track and also a breif description of why I am so captivated by them. I decided to choose just 5 songs instead of the usual 10, so as to not take up too much of your time =)
Trentemoller - Always Something Better (Trentemoller Remix) To me this is the perfect Dark Electro sound, a somber track that also seems to drag you onto the dancefloor. That is a very difficult balance to master and Trentemoller does it perfectly in this remix. His one-of-a-kind soundscapes carried out with pristine production skills are awe inspiring. However it's the brilliant melodic and lyrical content that connect with something deeper. "We're not going anywhere like this, so would you rather clench your fists and fight it out?"
Virgin Prunes - Pagan Lovesong (Vibeakimbo)
This is an excellent extended mix of the Virgin Prunes' classic track. I've been giving this version quite a bit of attention in PA speakers around the city recently. Great dancey post-punk!
Fever Ray - Triangle Walks (Rex The Dog Remix) I absolutely love The Knife/Fever Ray and am convinced that they are this era's Skinny Puppy (you know, back when Skinny Puppy were good... '84 - '92). The original mix of this track has a really strong Japan/Sylvian/Sakamoto vibe and I love how this mix keeps part of that feeling through the lead synth line but turns it into a great modern dance track. As always, Karin's voice is stunning.
Moonbootica feat. IAMX - Pretty Little Angel Even though I'm a great fan of IAMX's new sound, I do find I miss the synth-pop/electro flavour of 2004's Kiss+Swallow. Hence I was really happy when I recently found this solid little electro track with Chris' vocals. It makes me eager to hear some good remixes from Kingdom of Welcome Addiction.
The Chameleons - In Shreds I was introduced to The Chameleons by a DJ I met in Paris, when I first heard them I couldn't believe how they remained such an obscure band. They deserve much more attention. This is by far the most aggressive track I have heard of theirs and really shows their diversity. Somebody made an interesting comment about this on the youtube page saying the end of the track sounds like the birth of grunge. I had never thought about it that way but it really does! This band were certainly ahead of their time.
Note: This DJ Chart is not confined to a particular genre. A wide variety of musical styles are covered here.
01 : GPKISM - Strages (Noir du'Soleil Remix) 02 : The Smiths - Pretty Girls Make Graves 03 : Din [A] Tod - Tragic Blue 04 : Booka Shade - In White Rooms 05 : Aural Vampire - Economical Animal Superstar 06 : Absolute Body Control - Is There an Exit? 07 : No More - Suicide Commando 08 : Killing Joke - Love Like Blood 09 : Stray - Intoxicate (B mix) 10 : Public Image Ltd. - Banging the Door
Note: This DJ Chart is not confined to a particular genre. A wide variety of musical styles are covered here.
01 : Kate Bush - Hounds of Love 02 : IAMX - My Secret Friend (ft. Imogen Heap) 03 : Depehce Mode - The Things You Said 04 : Digital Punk ft. Balistic - Raw Material 05 : Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds - The Ship Song 06 : Die Haut and Nick Cave - Pleasure is the Boss 07 : IAMX - Spit it Out (Dirk Technic's Sandstorm Remix) 08 : Waldhaus - A Journey Through Time 09 : Ace Ventura - The Light (Zen Mechanics Remix) 10 : Fad Gadget - Ricky's Hand
Note: This DJ Chart is not confined to a particular genre. A wide variety of musical styles are covered here.
01 : Depeche Mode - Ghost 02 : Leonard Cohen - Famous Blue Raincoat 03 : Roland S. Howard - Shut Me Down 04 : Dir en Grey - Hotarubi THE NAME OF THE ROSE MIX 05 : The Human League - Louise 06 : Grinderman - No Pussy Blues (Midfield General Remix) 07 : A Plus D - Stardust Kids (David Bowie vs. MGMT) 08 : SHADooW - Vanity Love, Vanity Rose 09 : Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds - Lie Down Here (And Be My Girl) 10 : IAMX - Simple Girl
I am very excited to be able to release this news now! We have 2 songs coming out on the new BLAM HONEY memorial album [Providence of Decadence]. Each song features a different vocalist, with all the music/electronics/production by Noir du'Soleil. We worked with two very talented and different singers, Selia from Seileen and the famous DJ Chihiro... This arrangement was actually chosen by RYONAI!
BLAM HONEY were a big influence on me when I first started making my own electronic music, so to now be included on a release with them is a great honour!! Please don't miss out on your chance to get this amazing release~
BLAMHONEY has earned constant acclamation around the world for its original industrial sound and one-of-a-kind visual image that transcends gender boundaries. Their next release is a 3-disc memorial collection including previously unreleased songs, remixes, and videos created since the passing of TATSUYA! They will hold a one-day revival live to commemorate the memorial release on July 12 at Ikebukuro ROSA, during which the collection will be available for presale at the venue. Purchases made via the online shop will also include a demo recording as a bonus track. A portion of the album profits will be contributed to a donation fund. Due to this, please be aware that online orders will include an extra shipping charge. Industrial / Gothic / Electro
album [Providence of Decadence] July 12, 2009 Live & Online shop pre-sale August 26, 2009 In store Label: Darkest Labyrinth Disc number: DLBH-1 Distribution: Daiki Sound, Tainted Reality, CD baby, Code 7 Price: 50USD 2CD+DVD, Picture label, 12page booklet Limited: 1000copies
Playlist: [Disc:1 (Restoration-CD)] Providence of Decadence 01. ~Providence~ 02. ARTIFICIAL ANGEL 03. ~The end when it dies~ 04. LOVE-INFECT 05. ~Serenade~ 06. FRANTIC FRAME 07. ~The incomplete sky~ 08. MIND FRACTATION 09. ~To the truth~ 10. FASCINATE 11. ~Eternity~ 12. WITCH FLY IN THE AIR...
[Disc:2 (Remix＆Cover-CD)] 01. Providence (Cover / SUPPURATE SYSTEM) 02. SUSPECT (REMIX / KATARRHAKTES) 03. RINK (Cover / GOTHIKA) 04. Geneous Forture In The Garden (REMIX / Madam Luciel) 05. Changing Spout In My Head (Cover / CygnosiC feat MICAEL) 06. Deep Hole (REMIX / harshrealm) 07. RINK (Cover / Lesemajesty) 08. Geneous Forture In The Garden (Cover / Spectrum-X) 09. RINK (REMIX / DJ Lucie) 10. Hyper Aesthesia (Cover / Noir du'Soleil feat. DJ Chihiro) 11. NELUHUS VAGUS (Cover / SINO REBUILD PROJECTS feat. GPK) 12. Tranceperent Sky (Cover / Noir du'Soleil feat. Selia from Seileen) 13. RINK (Cover / GPKISM) 14. Myacthenia (REMIX / Tyler Wheeler) 15. NELUHUS VAGUS (Cover / KALM from ex-VELVET EDEN)
Sunday, March 7, 2010 at 10:45AM 
