Hologram Microcosm @RobinRimbaudScanner

Uploaded June 2021 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago

The Hologram Electronics Microcosm EFX pedal arrived this week, and this is a little exploration after switching it on for an hour. I've still to discover the greater depths of this very inspiring machine. The Microcosm rearranges and reinterprets sound in new and fun ways using a variety of granular sampling, delay, and looping techniques. It offers many sonic possibilities and here is but one of them.

$Sensel Morph + Madrona Labs Aalto A little improvisation on a rainy Saturday morning, as grey skies hang heavily over the mood of the day. I love such simple set ups as this, using the Sensel Morph - a tablet-sized pressure sensor - with Madrona Labs Aalto software. The Morph offers such a playful and sensitive way of approaching performance, where every little twist and turn of your fingers can affect the sound, very much like a traditional instrument like a piano. Here Im using one of their overlays which emulates the design and functionality of the Buchla Thunder controller, and at a fraction of the price! Aalto is one of my favourite pieces of software, a semi-modular software synthesizer with an innovative, patchable interface, and here Im using a patch that Randy, the developer himself, created. So this took all of 30 seconds to set up and play. Happy listening.$

Erik Satie: Gnossienne No 1 (Buchla Music Easel)

Scanner & Stephen Vitiello at Knitting Factory NYC, 1999