Brainium Sounds Off

Continuing the seemingly endless list of keyboards and related equipment such as tone generators and keyboard controllers. And more. Because it's seemingly endless. But there won't be a Part 3. At least, not unless we get more stuff.

Brainium famously (or infamously) has only two guys: a guitarist and a keyboardist. While one guitar ("The Strat") has consistently spanned our catalog, lots of different keyboards have come and gone. Let's talk about some of them. And hear them, too!

Playing in a band is a lot of fun but can also be a lot of work, especially for a small, local band. Hear what's involved, especially as it was back in Brainium's (first) heyday. Plus, Thom tells stories!

Wow, we made it through two whole years! Kudos to our sponsors. And our listener(s), of course. In this episode, we do a (relatively) quick recap of all the episodes we published in year #2. A couple of them we even remember!

Another Brainium song from the archives; this is one of Thom's favourites. We have a recording that predates Brainium (just keyboards), a studio version, and a "live" Basement Brainium version that you can hear in its entirety. Enjoy! 

We've covered Brainium instruments guitar, bass, keyboards, and drums. One more main instrument to cover: the voice. This one presents some unique challenges, especially live (and without a dedicated sound person). 

We're back with another episode on microtonal math rock band Anjine de Poitrine. Last time, we talked about how they use looping to build their sound. Now it's time to talk about the "microtonal" part of their music. Fun stuff!

The band Angine de Poitrine has exploded onto the music scene this year with a musical style described as "microtonal math rock" and funky, interesting costumes and visuals. They make use of "digital looping" to create complex music far beyond what you'd expect from two players. So how does that looping work? The boys of Brainium try to explain it. 

This episode was recorded away from the "studio" so the sound quality is...fascinating? Remember, Brainium recorded lots of their music live directly to cassette tape. Lo-fi rules!

Keeping time is usually pretty important when playing music. Help is available, for practice or live performances. From early metronomes to modern annotated click tracks, we Sound Off. 

Back in Brainium's early years, circa 1988, bands sent their music to record companies in an effort to secure a recording contract. Younger listeners may have no idea what that means. That's OK...we barely knew either. But we're here to talk about our experience and how it differs from bands today. (Hint: a lot.)