Skip to main content
Music Radar MusicRadar The No.1 website for musicians
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Artist news
  • Guitar Amps
  • Guitar Pedals
  • Synths
  • Guitars
  • Drums
  • Keyboards & Pianos
  • Controllers
  • Software & Apps
  • More
    • Recording
    • DJ Gear
    • Acoustic Guitars
    • Bass Guitars
    • Tech
    • Tutorials
    • Reviews
    • Buying Guides
    • About Us
More
  • EVH trance state
  • Antonoff on Please Please Please
  • “Mick looked peeved. The Beatles had upstaged him”
  • 95k+ free music samples

Recommended reading

Richie Hawtin
Artists “All my equipment kind of glowed and then shut down”: The weather event that shaped a Richie Hawtin classic
Lawrence Hart
Artists Watch UK electronic artist Lawrence Hart build a track from scratch in his hardware-stuffed studio
eats everything in his studio
Tech “Entrance Song is a massive 808 sub and a 909 kick. Those two shouldn’t work together - I’m not sure they were even in key”: Eats Everything on his ever-changing approach to production and DJing
Riva Starr
Artists “I have an original 909 – every time I use it I feel like I’m ruining it”: Riva Starr's studio essentials
Abbey Road Studio One
Studios Refurbished Abbey Road Studio One reopens with evening of "boundary-pushing expressive dance"
brian eno
Artists “Due to digital, music now has a terrible sort of housewifely tidiness”: Brian Eno on sonic perfectionism, Bowie and his new collaborative double album
lone
Computers Lone on how he creates his technicolour, rave-adjacent electronica
  1. Tech
  2. Recording
  3. Studios

In pictures: Bomb the Bass's stripped-back studio

News
By Future Music ( Future Music ) published 15 September 2009

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Step inside

Step inside

A key player on the nascent ‘80s dance music scene, Tim Simenon returned with a new Bomb The Bass album, Future Chaos, in 2008, and has just revealed that work has almost finished on its follow-up. Future Music magazine caught up with Tim in his Amsterdam studio, where he revealed that his approach to music making has changed radically over the years.

Page 1 of 6
Page 1 of 6
Software convert

Software convert

Tim used to be something of a hardware junkie but, having had it in storage for a few years and realising that he no longer needed it, he auctioned off most of his studio gear in 2003. “The money I made from selling it I reinvested into new gear - laptops and the desktop,” he says. “And that’s what I’ve been using ever since, aside from the Minimoog, which is on the new album a lot.”

Page 2 of 6
Page 2 of 6
Outboard

Outboard

He may now do most of his work in the box, but as you can see from the precariously balanced ‘rack’ above, Tim hasn’t completely abandoned his outboard. “I love the [Eventide] Eclipse, it has a fantastic sound and it’s appeared a lot on the new album, whereas I’m not sure the Empirical Labs Fatso featured much on this particular version of the album anyway - there have been three different versions of the album prior to this one.”

Page 3 of 6
Page 3 of 6
Moog lover

Moog lover

As well as his beloved Minimoog, which was used to create “90% of the synth sounds on the album”, Tim also has these classic Moogerfooger pedals. “We used a lot of real distortion too, sticking things through amps and through pedals - basic Boss distortion boxes. Nothing flash at all as they just did the trick.”

Page 4 of 6
Page 4 of 6
DAWs

DAWs

Tim’s a long-time Logic fan, having been using it since its Notator days. He also keeps Ableton Live on his hard drive, though, describing it as “the program I always go to for sketching out ideas”. However, it’s Apple’s software that still gets fired up most: “Logic is really the solid workhorse for me, which handles all my structuring, editing and mixing,” he says.

Page 5 of 6
Page 5 of 6
Going live

Going live

Naturally enough, Tim now uses a laptop-based setup when he heads out on the road - an Apple PowerBook running Ableton Live and hooked up to an M-Audio Trigger Finger. “I’m running everything on Ableton so basically what I’ve done is de-constructed all the tracks we’re playing, including some of the older tracks, and just grabbed bits from them, which I’ve then turned into clips in the Session view,” he explains.

Page 6 of 6
Page 6 of 6
Future Music
Future Music

Future Music is the number one magazine for today's producers. Packed with technique and technology we'll help you make great new music. All-access artist interviews, in-depth gear reviews, essential production tutorials and much more. Every marvellous monthly edition features reliable reviews of the latest and greatest hardware and software technology and techniques, unparalleled advice, in-depth interviews, sensational free samples and so much more to improve the experience and outcome of your music-making.

All-access artist interviews, in-depth gear reviews, essential production tutorials and much more. image
All-access artist interviews, in-depth gear reviews, essential production tutorials and much more.
Get the latest issue now!
More Info
Read more
Richie Hawtin
“All my equipment kind of glowed and then shut down”: The weather event that shaped a Richie Hawtin classic
Lawrence Hart
Watch UK electronic artist Lawrence Hart build a track from scratch in his hardware-stuffed studio
eats everything in his studio
“Entrance Song is a massive 808 sub and a 909 kick. Those two shouldn’t work together - I’m not sure they were even in key”: Eats Everything on his ever-changing approach to production and DJing
Riva Starr
“I have an original 909 – every time I use it I feel like I’m ruining it”: Riva Starr's studio essentials
Abbey Road Studio One
Refurbished Abbey Road Studio One reopens with evening of "boundary-pushing expressive dance"
brian eno
“Due to digital, music now has a terrible sort of housewifely tidiness”: Brian Eno on sonic perfectionism, Bowie and his new collaborative double album
Latest in Studios
Adam Audio H200
“A good all round headphone suited to recording, mixing and mastering”: Adam Audio H200 Headphones review
An Arturia KeyLab 88 MkII synthesizer on a blue background
I’ve looked through all 372 deals in the Thomann Easter Sale - these are the 5 deals I’d grab right now
Universal Audio Standard SD-1
“A versatile and durable dynamic microphone suitable for a range of applications”: Universal Audio SD-1 review
Universal Audio Standard SC-1
“Its robust construction, low self-noise, and ability to emulate a range of classic microphones make it a valuable asset”: Universal Audio SC-1 review
Abbey Road Studio One
Refurbished Abbey Road Studio One reopens with evening of "boundary-pushing expressive dance"
Billie Eilish
Billie Eilish’s mix engineers reveal the star's “favourite part” of her smash hit, Birds Of A Feather
Latest in News
Home studio
You don't need to be a music theory expert to make electronic music, but it helps - here's our guide to the basics
Ed Sheeran, Bob Dylan and Jimi Hendrix
How Ed Sheeran generated royalties for Bob Dylan by borrowing from Jimi Hendrix
Richie Hawtin
“All my equipment kind of glowed and then shut down”: The weather event that shaped a Richie Hawtin classic
Apple's new Automix
Sack The DJ: Apple launches its new feature that can mix tracks using AI
Deals of the week
MusicRadar deals of the week: My pick of Father's Day deals for musicians include $400 off the Polyend Play+, $200 off a Martin acoustic and so much more
pmt
"It’s been a tough few years": UK gear retailer PMT closes its doors, makes 96 staff redundant and sells £2.4m of stock to Gear4Music

MusicRadar is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

  • About Us
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers

© Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...