The thing I bring to this forum is a focus on "user friendliness" and have an emphasis on end-customers of synth work, namely myself. Like most people out there, and unlike many of you, I have no real knowledge of synths, what makes them different from others, how they work, how to play them, etc. I can only really focus on how they sound, and in particular, how they are used and when they are used well in recordings to the extent that I might really like them. Hence, the topic at hand.

I first began to hear the power of synths played well when I heard on a high-end car stereo "When You're A Free Man" by Mike Pinder of the Moody Blues. (Somebody tell me, was that on a Moog?) Powerful and expansive sound, yet more subtle and less aggressive than, say, early Genesis. That was the beginning of my appreciation of synths. If I understand correctly, Pinder was also the one whose earlier Mellotron playing in Nights In White Satin caught the world by storm and got the attention of the Beatles, who then used the Mellotron for the first minute of "Strawberry Fields Forever". If they were impressed with Pinder, so am I. (There's other songs which also illustrate the same abilities and his use of synths to great effects; listen to "Isn't Life Strange", "You Can Never Go Home", "My Song", etc.)

There needs to be a good melody in there, and preferably lyrics, otherwise it seems (usually) to come off excessively experimental, electronic, and sommetimes common, sounding even lazy, or at best, meant for meditation and spacing out, as good ambient stuff seems to aim for. I have just bought a dozen of the very best ambient CDs I could find (such as Aphex Twin - SAW 2), yet I think ambient represents only one end of the musical spectrum I am trying to discover.

I am also searching for the "best techno CDs, preferably danceable techno" as well - and I'm open to suggestions - but again, there's not much lyrics there either, and even less subtlety. So with that my quest is still not over with.

I dunno if I am making any sense here but I thought I would explain the path I have been taking and the music I haven't found yet.

tooclassy@aol.com