Analog Devices Take Us Back

We live in an analog world, but much of what we experience is in the process of being digitised – our music, our films, our social networks. Fortunately, there are still plenty of analog fans out there, and we can still go backwards…

Analog Heart, Digital Mind

Tara Busch runs a music blog that is full of analog gear, but also full of interesting music made with analog gear and an analog voice. If you are a fan of vintage synths and keyboards, then Analogsuicide is well worth a visit.

On the video page there is a section which unashamedly declares its linkbait status – she has created a set of viral videos “designed specifically to ignite the sweet galaxies of the internet”. The first of these is an interesting version of what may well be the most popular song of all time…

Analog Or Digital Reverse?

Backwards singing requires quite a lot of practise, but certainly can be put to good use with a bit of imagination. If you’re looking for something slightly more accessible, a backwards reverb or delay is a common effect that can be very, well, effective. Spiritualized use it quite often, where the reverb tailback precedes the vocal, emerging from nothing and swelling up to meet the first syllable.

This can be done on analog devices with a bit of effort, but in the digital domain, creating this effect is relatively straightforward. To wit, first you reverse the vocal that you want to treat. Then you apply your reverb or delay to the reversed vocal. Then, you bounce the vocal with reverb to disc. Finally, you put that bounced track back in the mix and reverse it again. Now your vocal is the right way around, but the effect is backwards…voila!