Setaoc Mass creates a rolling techno rhythm

Berlin-based Brit Sam Coates, aka Setaoc Mass, is known for his rolling, percussive take on techno. For our Sample Challenge, he loops and slices his way to a grooving, bass-heavy techno riff.

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Sam starts with the drum one-shots. For a classic rumbling techno kick/bass, he resamples the 808 and 909 kicks through the Elektron Analog Heat to add grit. He records the audio back in and layers it with the original 909 Kick, low-passed. He runs the 808 tail through a convolution reverb and records it back in.

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Alongside the kicks, Sam uses the Bongo sample, pitched down 21 semitones in Ableton Live’s Simpler to make it a bass sound. Heavy low-pass filtering is used on the top end, and the sound is programmed to work around the kicks. A single Fretless Bass hit loop adds an extra bass stab for a techno-style groove.

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Next he uses the Cabassa sound to sit as a hi-hat on the offbeats. He trims the attack portion off in Simpler and applies automated envelope modulation for a little movement. To join this, Sam cuts another hi-hat from the Vinyl Break loop to add a little more top-end.

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From the Drum Loop sample, Sam slices a snare and programs it onto the offbeats with a little delay to give a rolling feeling. Again, automation of the envelope decay adds movement to the new loop. Another slice of the Vinyl Break is used in a similar way – playing once per bar to add a little groove, with subtle attack and decay automation.

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To create some textures, Sam resamples the Birdsong audio through Max For Live’s Granulator as well as the Analog Heat. That then gets looped up to create a 16th-note groove. The Grill Pan sample is stretched to twice its normal length and looped to create another rhythmic groove.

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To add a melodic Element, Sam slices the Open Up Your Eyes vocal and pitches it up considerably. Delay is added to add space to the sound and make it sound more like a synth part. Added to this, the FX Weapon sample is sequenced using the Melodic Steps Max device to make another looping groove.