Emu Square

I put the Emu Modular into a new hardwood cabinet - it matches the original 14U Emu cabinets from the 1970s. Woooo!

Zerotheque Tome One

For some reason I have never set up my ARP Odyssey and matching 1601 sequencer alongside the ARP2500, until now

They are very different sounding beasts. The 2500 is much sharper and more precise than the Odyssey, which feels noticeably soft and squidgy in comparison. Good combo though, especially with additional 16 step sequencer (which has quantised outputs). There is much to explore combining all the sequencing and gating options in the two systems

Jupiter On Acid

Look at this amazing artifact. It's a Roland Jupiter 6 (one of Roland's most interesting instruments) that was pimped up by UK space-rock pioneers HAWKWIND

The other day my Jupiter 6 broke down mid-arpeggiation. So I made the call to "Mr Fixer" (Keith), who suggested he could take my Jupiter in for repair and, most generously, lend me his Jupiter so that I could continue my very important arpeggiations

I was aware that Keith was actually a member of the aforementioned space-rock supergroup in the early 2000s, and to my amazement the Jupiter that we exchanged was one that had been transformed into the space-psych-acid-soaked-fire-licked-pimp-my-synth masterpiece that you see before you here

Apparently it was originally bought new by Ozric Tentacles who sold it to Hawkwind bassist Alan Davey and he did the paint-job, or maybe it was Alan Powell the drummer. Anyway Davey used to trigger the Jupiter by hitting it with the end of his bass guitar

Keith also mentioned that the presets programmed into the JP6 were done when he was on acid, and are therefore completely bonkers. Judge for yourself:

Logos

Look! I learnt how to make 3D things in Photoshop - here's a new Benge logo!

Watch and Listen

Hello. Here are some recent videos wot I made

Rolling

Merlin

2020 Sonics

2020 was a mad year wasn't it? Everyones plans were ruined by a random virus, so we all had to improvise our lives a bit more than ususal. I managed to survive, and even release some albums! Obviously some of these were were recorded and worked on prior to the randomness, but the extra time I had in the studio on my own meant that I could release a bit more than usual. Here are the full albums that came out in 2020, and I am especially proud of the collaboration albums (Blancmange, John Foxx & The Maths, and Wrangler), made with my true freinds and heroes and I cannot wait to be back in the studio here with them all as soon as possible

WRANGLER - A Situation

JOHN FOXX AND THE MATHS - Howl

WRANGLER - The Tourist

BLANCMANGE - Mindset

And here are my solo albums. These were all issued through my bandcamp page but are also on most other digital sites

Very PC

I've been look at buying an early PC to run my Synergy software from. It actually uses a Kaypro from the early 1980s for this task, and ebay has been very helpful. While reading up on the subject I found a good site that lists all the early systems in chronological order (oldcomputers.net). I find these things very attractive to look at. Some have great names too! Apple 3; Cannon Cat; Cromomco System 3; Fujitsu 3450; H89; IMB 5322; Intertec Superbrain; Kaypro 2; Apple Lisa; Commodore Pet; TRS80; Victor 9000