A New Look At Hardware Sequencing!

Do you get screen-blindness when producing sometimes? Ready to write that killer track but every time you reach for the mouse, somehow all the ideas seem to fall out of your ears? Maybe a change in approach is needed. Ever tried writing on hardware?

Hardware sequencers have been around for the longest time; the iconic Alesis MMT-8 was a staple for artists such as Orbital and Moby straight from its release in 1987. (It also came in one of those quirky rhomboid boxes that Alesis used to love back in the 80's). They were solid, reliable, didn't crash and could be taken out on tour with no qualms. But look at that photo - those tiny little LCD displays, complete lack of controller knobs - it's no wonder everyone jumped onto software sequencing as soon as they got a decent computer. The flexibility and efficiency of computer MIDI editing is still the quickest way to get things done.

But that doesn't mean it's always the best way. Computers can also be subtly restrictive; with their grid formats you can find that you're always writing in 8's and 16's, and it's very easy to write what looks right - or what you think you should be doing - rather than what your head's actually telling you should happen.

This is where hardware sequencing can really come in useful. With the right techniques, you can come up with all sorts of different ideas, or feel the 'flow' of a track much better. The classic example is Akai's MPC controller. Assign drums to the pads on it, and you can jam out different beats far quicker than it would be to write each one into software; it's easy to play several notes together that you might not think of with a mouse, and with the velocity sensitive pads it suddenly becomes super simple to write fills that flow with the beat.

You can do the same with riffs - chop up a melody line in audio, assign different notes or hits to the pads, and replay it in different orders to create something new, far quicker than you could with a piano-roll editor.

Where hardware sequencers really come into their own however, is in arranging. It's so easy, with software, to track out a 6 minute stomp where parts are added and removed every 8 bars in a steady progression. But this can also be dull; listen to some of the classic tracks by legends like Theo Parrish or Kerri Chandler and you'll hear 12 bar sections, things repeating in threes, riffs just coming in for two bars at a time. It sounds more exciting, less predictable, and makes for better tunes as a result. Just set up channels on your sequencer, and jam it out; mute and unmute drums, bass, melodies and FX whenever you think the beat needs it, not when you see the marker hit the 64-bar point.

It's quick and easy to create build ups and breakdowns this way too, especially when you start assigning filters and delays to the knobs on your sequencer as well. It's also much more exciting, and helps you get into the vibe of the track more effectively. Instead of selecting, copying, pasting and dragging, you find yourself transported into the club, imagining how it will work on the dancefloor, and this energy can translate through to the track itself.

Classic 'step-sequencing' is also a lot of fun and can be inspirational too - anyone who's seen a 303 or 808 will know what it is, and understand that it's simply filling up a pattern with notes, but it's a different way of approaching programming, and can be blazingly fast too – witness the techno DJs who still use 909's on stage, programming them as they go along.

You might be thinking that it's all very well for those that can afford these fancy pieces of kit, but luckily, the last two or three years has seen a revolution in the world of controllers and sequencers. Since the advent of USB controllers for programs like Ableton, there is now a wide range of kit that can function as a controller for live work, but also as a sequencer for writing and arranging. Some of the most recent by companies like Livid also offer assignable step-sequencing to give you a full range of options. And now, many of these controllers are even available for the iPad at bargain prices too - so there are plenty of options even for those on a tight budget to get involved with hardware sequencing. And if you ever decide to get into live performance, you've got the hardware all ready to go.

So, why not make it a new year's resolution to try a new way of writing and arranging your tunes? It's worked for Underworld, DJ Shadow and many more - could it work for you too?