My lsdsng files are usually just tons and tons of brief ideas in one-phrase chains, all decked out all over the screen, to be triggered in any combination I want (yes, if the bpm is fast enough, this is stressful as fuck but I like it that way). I describe my song files as "skeleton files" because when you load them up, you don't really get a song, just a bunch of bare bones snippets of beats/basslines/etc that kinda have to be arranged live or there's no song (or if I start live-moding and leave it on, it'll just loop the same 2 seconds forever which is basically still having no song)
PULSELOOPER wrote:Dire Hit wrote:It also sucks when the performer doesn't look like they're having all that much fun, and live mode takes a lot of concentration.
Some people comment that I'm "too serious" at my gigs. That's right, 'cos I'm really concentrated. But for me that's where all the fun dwells: using live mode in lsdj/lgpt, tweaking the synth modules, mutting/solo channels etc et al.
My body is far away from a sabrepulse performance, but my brain and soul are completely tripped out.
Most of my practice at home goes into being able to know the ins and outs of live mode timing and shit, so I've gotten good enough that I can be physically active and thrash around on the floor and shit and not really fuck up. I just finished a tour where I was playing basements with 1xLSDJ, crawling around on the floor on my stomach through the crowds and moshing into people and stuff while still triggering shit/soloing stuff/changing parameters on time in live mode.
It is possible to be physically engaged while you *bill oreilly voice* DO IT LIVE but it definitely takes some practice getting good at your timing. You have to be counting shit out in your head and keeping an eye on the screen to make sure your button-presses are on-point (worst/most common failures during my sets on tour: falling over backwards onto my ass and not realizing I hit 'left or 'right' twice instead of once and triggering stuff in channels too early).
If you've got a good hang of it (I do sorta) you can also drop shit into empty phrases during songs (Solo one or two channels while you mentally count out beats/recall notation and program in the new stuff in the other channel/s and then trigger the chains when they're ready to go). Memorize which instruments you've made do what, along with basic scales and the rhythmic timing of the 16-step phrases, and you'll be able to add new stuff to your song with some confidence.
tl;dr:
LSDJ can be pretty damned live if you compose your files to be demanding enough. Also practicing at home before shows = being able to a.) be live and b.) get physically involved while doing so.
