The Solaris at N.A.M.M.

Every year in January, the National Association of Music Manufacturers has a big bash down in Anaheim. For someone like me whose joie de vivre is heavily entwined with making electronic music as well as the tools of the trade, this tradeshow is like the ultimate "Disneyland for geeks".

My friend and neighbor, John Bowen, is putting the finishing touches on what to me is the ultimate music synthesizer, The Solaris. Last year I helped demo this amazing device to all and sundry while simultaneously falling in love with its beautiful sound and deep programability. My experiences at N.A.M.M. were enhanced by the fact that I was finally able to meet some long-standing online friends in person and share some laughter and swap stories.

The Solaris has a richness of tone I'm not used to hearing from a digital instrument and the design is beautifull as well as relatively easy-to-use despite the fact that there are over 800 programmable parameters.

While working on my soon-to-be-released album, Shadow, I was graciously allowed the use of a Solaris prototype. What a wondeerful experience!

For the curious, more information is available at http://www.johnbowen.com

This year, I returned to N.A.M.M. as a spectator and shot a few pics of this beautiful instrument:







Here's what John Bowen himself has to say: