Watch this engineer demonstrate perhaps the purest live techno performance yet

by: Will McCarthy Nov 20, 2015

In the realm of electronic music, the notion of the “live performance” often proves to be particularly contentious. Setting aside the myriad of technical disputes between different mixing tools (eg. Turntables v. CDJs) that pervades the DJing world, there are a number of criteria that arise in debates regarding the validity of so-called live performances. For example, whether or not a predetermined set loaded into Ableton with a number of “live edits” interspersed throughout should be considered a live performance in the same way as a band with “actual instruments” a la Win Butler.

Enter Graham Dunning, a mechanically-deft experimental musician whose method of performance is indisputably organic. Combining a unique orchestra of layered vinyl, analog synthesizers, and other machine-driven tools, Dunning produces and performs sophisticated techno in real time. Dunning’s live performance adheres to a more traditional musical performance not only in terms of his instrumental techniques, but also in its innate draw toward improvisation. He comments, “The chance elements and unpredictable aspects lead to compositions I would never think to deliberately make.”

Check out the above video for a demonstration of how Dunning’s process operates, and the video below to see his industrial orchestra in action.