Following a gruelling audition process, one solo worm was hand selected to perform its own music, without proviso, upon a specially adapted and destabilised FM synthesis circuit disembowelled from a Yamaha PSS-470. For one day, this worm was treated like royalty; whisked around London’s swankiest mud spas and hermaphrodite clubs, before spending an evening at the very best hotel (whatever it’s called, I dunno). Ah, what a star…

Posted to YouTube by ashfordaisyak. Thanks to PAgent of PAgent’s Progress for the link.

Ninbento is a modification of the classic Nintendo Entertainment System that acts as a music visualization system. Using a custom-built circuit and a practice known as “circuit bending,” the modified NES will “listen” to music and generate chaotic and colorful displays to the beat.

Video by apleasantnoise. Thanks to PAgent of PAgent’s Progress for another great find.

Part of getbent.

In this weekend projects video, Bre Pettis and Justin Gerardy hack into a speak and spell and an omnichord.

The video is hosted at blip.tv. Thanks to glitch of worshiptheglitch for emailing me the link.

Part of getbent.

I learned about the Pikaremin while reading Kotaku yesterday. The artist, Kaseo Shacho, has a flickr gallery of himself performing with 12 circuit-bent Pikachus. Too bad there isn’t some video of that.

Part of Get Bent.

“We send probes into deep space to listen to alien worlds. But alien world’s aren’t always that far away.” – Reed Ghazala

I recently finished reading Circuit-Bending: Build Your Own Alien Instruments. This is probably the easiest, and quickest way to get you up to speed in the field of Circuit-Bending. Reed Ghazala, the internationally recognized “Father of Circuit-Bending,” provides a concise compendium of most issues that will arise during your alien spelunking adventures.

Is this book for you?

Depends. For myself, the book was absolutely worth it. My background is mostly digital. The text introduced me to very rudimentary skills required to build these instruments. Skills such as: soldering, quasi-electronics, drilling, painting, etc… If you can already do these things, even on a basic level, you might not get much from these chapters.

Where this book truly excels is Ghazala’s personal insight and experience. His writing is candid, humorous at times, and allows the reader to get a glimpse of how his thought process works. In many ways, this book is more than just a DIY guide. It is also about composing through the process of electronic experimentation.

In other words, good stuff.

Part of Get Bent.

Circuit Bending: The Spin Brother

time lapse video of real life circuit bending, edited to sounds made by the real circuit bent toy.

The scene of the crime

I bent my first circuit this Saturday, with limited success.

The victim was a cheap-o $5 keyboard from walmart. Opening it up was as easy as removing the screws. What I found inside was very little in terms of electronic components. There were two long narrow boards that acted as the controllers for the buttons and keys. And then there was this tiny little square where all the “stuff” happened.

Connecting the limited set of dots I had to work with, I found three distinct circuit bending functions: The sound stopped, a popping sound came out of the speaker (which is bad), and the rate at which the samples played back increased by ten-fold. So I soldered a toggle to the only pair of interesting dots on the board. The end. Being useless, I’ll go back and reclaim my toggle.

What did I learn? Uninteresting toys can make for uninteresting bent instruments. Newer toys are probably much more efficient in design, thus having fewer circuits to bend. Don’t touch the hot part of a soldering iron.

Part of Get Bent

K-2 circuit bending in their after school enrichment program

Part of Get Bent

This Short/Preview for the Circuit Bending Documentary by Derek Sajbel (http://absurdity.biz) features Q.R. Ghazala, Nebula Girl, The Shinths, Daedelus, Dave Wright, Cynthia and music by Venetian Snares

Part of Get Bent

Ghazala’s website, www.anti-theory.com, is a haven for the odd and strange in the electronic arts. Besides Circuit-Bending, Ghazala has also involved himself with the visual arts. My favorite is his work with polaroids. Be sure to read up on the man himself.

If you are interested in giving circuit-bending a try, then the first thing you should read is Ghazala’s 19 page primer. This is more than enough (but not too much) information to get anyone started. If you want to dive even further into his world, Ghazala has written a book, Circuit-Bending: Build Your Own Alien Instruments. I’ve already ordered my copy.

Part of Get Bent