Noisegate Sessions: Harvey Sutherland feat. The Moog Spectravox & Labyrinth

In this series we visit inspiring local Australian artists, bringing both new and vintage music gear, to discover the unique and creative ways they produce music. It’s a chance to see what they are doing in the moment and capture some of that exciting music making using gear that might be familiar or take them out of their comfort zone.

In this session, we visit Melbourne local Harvey Sutherland. Describing his music as ‘Neurotic Funk’ Harvey is a hometown favorite spreading his talents between DJing, producing records, and playing in bands. With his fusion of jazzy melodies, funky basslines, and electronic beats, Harvey Sutherland’s music is perfect for both introspective listening and energetic dance floors.

He did not disappoint…

Funky Chord Stabs with the DFAM & Spectravox

First thing Harvey showed us was these infectious chord stabs he had made. Using the TAL -U-NO-LX Juno 60 emulation as a base to play some chord pads, he then passed it through the DFAM using the sequencer and filter to chop up the pad into stabs.

Spectravox is used on another aux send to filter and process the stabs create phaser and flanger type effects. He also re-routes different bands to modulate the filter effect even more.

“But as a little bit of extra sauce, the Spectravox is great for that…”

Making a Bass Line with the Labyrinth.

Next step is using the dual-generative sequencers on Labyrinth to create an evolving bass line. While the sequencers can be completely random, Harvey decided to send a root pitch note to it via the in-built patch bay using the Moog Matriarch. Then using the corrupt control to start randomly changing the sequencer pattern and playing around with the pitch using the Matriarch, Harvey has his bass line.

Texturally, Labyrinth gives you a voltage-controlled wave folder amongst other features to design unique tones and quite fat bass sounds. In no time at all, Harvey had a pulsing bass line that suited the chords he had been working on. After dropping a beat underneath it all he had the beginnings of a track.