On the Road with Baseshot Scenario
On the Road with Baseshot Scenario
The only live PA act on Van's Warped Tour, Baseshot Scenario was also distinguished by a streamlined setup consisting of Reason, Live, and an Evolution controller.
The only live PA act on Van's Warped Tour, Baseshot Scenario was also distinguished by a streamlined setup consisting of Reason, Live, and an Evolution controller.
As thousands of die-hard fans braved the heat, dirt and endless port-a-potty lines to get down with over 160 bands at the 10th Annual Vans Warped Tour, Baseshot Scenario provided a refreshingly clean, streamlined approach to performance. The only live PA act on the grueling 57-day tour, electronic music/visual art producer Baseshot Scenario took the stage with only a laptop running Propellerhead Reason and Ableton Live, M-Audio’s FireWire 410 interface, Evolution UC-33e controller and a pair of turntables.
Rooted in the Chicago electronic music scene since the early ‘90s, Baseshot Scenario (a.k.a. Brandon Ross) has undergone a dramatic evolution in gear and mindset over the last decade. When starting out as a bass player in local hip hop/funk/jazz bands, Ross used to carry his MIDI gear around in a custom case weighing approximately 150 pounds. But now, using his laptop with Ableton Live and control surfaces like the Evolution UC-33e, Ross has been able to go on a tour with nothing more than a backpack full of gear and a crate of records.
“Playing shows used to be such a hassle,” says Ross. “But now it feels like I'm getting a point with this gear and these software tools where I can fully maximize my creative energy. The FireWire 410 and Evolution UC-33e will never leave my rig because they dramatically changed my sets. I run the turntables through Ableton Live and its wonderful effects, and am able to filter out unwanted frequencies from records leaving only the vocals (or whatever I chose to keep in the mix). The UC-33e affords me tactile control over Live and Reason, which is key for keeping quick control over multiple audio channels and virtual instruments.”
While traveling from coast to coast on the Warped Tour, Ross became an M-Audio evangelist, speaking with hip hop crews, DJs, and producers from virtually every scene in North America. Though most had heard of M-Audio, it was the first time many had witnessed the technology firsthand. Thanks to a box of Live demo CDs, Ross was able to give everyone a taste of the future of DJing.
“I turned many people on to creating all original ‘live remixes’ of my own material using a portable setup featuring an Apple PowerBook and software,” says Ross. “Holding down the Code of the Cutz Hip Hop Performance area of the tour was quite a challenge. I worked Ableton Live to its max and produced improvisational hip hop-flavored electronic music to fit the varying moods and vibes of each and every tour stop.”
The action hasn’t stopped since Ross returned to Chicago after the tour. Between a variety of fall shows in Italy with clothing company Law and Order, a follow-up record to “Beats Over Coffee,” local Chicago gigs with side project BROBOT (featuring DJ CHIP CHOP), appearances with guerilla street show crew MFchicago, and plans to produce songs for the new DJ Addverse solo record (Code of the Cutz), life at home may prove to be as hectic as life on the road. At least his gear has gotten simpler!
“My home studio is a mix of all sorts of gear,” explains Ross. “I've been producing electronic music and avidly buying gear for 12 years so I have all kinds of stuff. The M-Audio gear for sure is the least dusty of all my toys—I just love that UC33e! And with the combo of Reason and Live in the mix, my vintage synths, drum machines and samplers are just collecting dust. I plan on checking out those new M-Audio mics and reference monitors soon too for use on the new Baseshot and BROBOT albums.”
For more information about Brandon Ross and his projects, please visit:
www.baseshot.com
www.mfchicago.com
www.laworder.biz
www.codeofthacutz.com
www.allpurposeindustries.com
www.selectorservice.com
Rooted in the Chicago electronic music scene since the early ‘90s, Baseshot Scenario (a.k.a. Brandon Ross) has undergone a dramatic evolution in gear and mindset over the last decade. When starting out as a bass player in local hip hop/funk/jazz bands, Ross used to carry his MIDI gear around in a custom case weighing approximately 150 pounds. But now, using his laptop with Ableton Live and control surfaces like the Evolution UC-33e, Ross has been able to go on a tour with nothing more than a backpack full of gear and a crate of records.
“Playing shows used to be such a hassle,” says Ross. “But now it feels like I'm getting a point with this gear and these software tools where I can fully maximize my creative energy. The FireWire 410 and Evolution UC-33e will never leave my rig because they dramatically changed my sets. I run the turntables through Ableton Live and its wonderful effects, and am able to filter out unwanted frequencies from records leaving only the vocals (or whatever I chose to keep in the mix). The UC-33e affords me tactile control over Live and Reason, which is key for keeping quick control over multiple audio channels and virtual instruments.”
While traveling from coast to coast on the Warped Tour, Ross became an M-Audio evangelist, speaking with hip hop crews, DJs, and producers from virtually every scene in North America. Though most had heard of M-Audio, it was the first time many had witnessed the technology firsthand. Thanks to a box of Live demo CDs, Ross was able to give everyone a taste of the future of DJing.
“I turned many people on to creating all original ‘live remixes’ of my own material using a portable setup featuring an Apple PowerBook and software,” says Ross. “Holding down the Code of the Cutz Hip Hop Performance area of the tour was quite a challenge. I worked Ableton Live to its max and produced improvisational hip hop-flavored electronic music to fit the varying moods and vibes of each and every tour stop.”
The action hasn’t stopped since Ross returned to Chicago after the tour. Between a variety of fall shows in Italy with clothing company Law and Order, a follow-up record to “Beats Over Coffee,” local Chicago gigs with side project BROBOT (featuring DJ CHIP CHOP), appearances with guerilla street show crew MFchicago, and plans to produce songs for the new DJ Addverse solo record (Code of the Cutz), life at home may prove to be as hectic as life on the road. At least his gear has gotten simpler!
“My home studio is a mix of all sorts of gear,” explains Ross. “I've been producing electronic music and avidly buying gear for 12 years so I have all kinds of stuff. The M-Audio gear for sure is the least dusty of all my toys—I just love that UC33e! And with the combo of Reason and Live in the mix, my vintage synths, drum machines and samplers are just collecting dust. I plan on checking out those new M-Audio mics and reference monitors soon too for use on the new Baseshot and BROBOT albums.”
For more information about Brandon Ross and his projects, please visit:
www.baseshot.com
www.mfchicago.com
www.laworder.biz
www.codeofthacutz.com
www.allpurposeindustries.com
www.selectorservice.com
