Elektron Analog RYTM Drum Computer and Sequencer

Buying a drum machine was not an easy thing to do. It was clearly going to shake things up in the studio, and making sure that it worked with my workflow rather than against it was crucial. There are a lot of machines out there that, in concept, all do the same thing, they go 'dmm, tssh'.

Everybody works in a different way, and needs their drums to do different things. I needed a drum machine that I could use for performance, and that had powerful analog engines.

 After briefly entertaining the Roland range I ended up in a tie between The Dave Smith Tempest and The Elektron Analog RYTM. Both sounded truly amazing!! Kid in a sweetshop kind of amazing! They were different in many ways but once beats were moving, both stood up wonderfully. I opted for The Analog RYTM. What tipped the balance for me were three main things: 

Firstly, The analog engines are incredible! They are very well thought out. They boom, thud, snap and crack in all the right places and sounds can be morphed into all kinds of wonderful noises. I've made basses, lead lines and something that could pass as a chordal pad when layered up over 3 or 4 channels.  

 Secondly, Parameter Locking. Effectively every single step of every single beat can have a completely new set of parameters, this means tuning, filtering, distortion and effects can be taken into a whole new realm and elevated in extraordinary detail, and I am all about the details!

Thirdly, Elektron's Overbridge software allows full integration between hardware and software. This gives the option of touching up performances if there are ever imperfections, as every single button press or dial turn is recorded. This also comes in handy when translating a studio production to the live stage, as the performance is saved as data and fed to any RYTM. Winner!

The new addition of the FM synth engine is a real treat for obtaining the off-world, elastic, rubbery drum textures.

I will write more as interesting things occur.