“On Pro Tools, GarageBand, And Pitch Correction: Lovespirals’ Ryan Lum And Anji Bee”
by Patrick Ogle of Thanatos
Ryan Lum has been making electronic based music for a decade and a half. First working with Suzanne Perry in shoegazer/ambient/electronica band, Love Spirals Downwards, and now in the successor project, Lovespirals, with new vocalist Anji Bee.
Lum’s music has ranged from the beautiful, meandering, shoegazing of Love Spirals Downwards to the new project’s fusion of downtempo and electronic jazz. Between the two bands Lum has released 9 full length releases and one single. Yet despite this electronica pedigree, Lum and Bee often eschew the electronic cutting edge for what some might consider old-fashioned [musical values]. Lum especially eschews the over-use of plug-ins.
“Two big reasons I don’t go crazy with audio plug ins and all: first, my computer is a bit old and a bit too slow and outdated for going nuts with that stuff.” says Lum “Second, I don’t really need them beyond basic stuff like compressors. I’d rather use a good rackmount reverb than a plug-in. Plus, some plug-ins just sound horrible.”
Lum has used ProTools 24 TDM hardware since 1999 with his Apple Tower and a three year old copy of ProTools 6.
“It’d be nice to get a new TDM system, but you need around $10,000 to make it happen so that’s the main reason why I’ve kept what I have,” says Lum. “But honestly, there’s no real need to upgrade though they try to make you believe you need to. The only real thing I’m missing out on is that the newer systems have way more power and can run tons more plug-ins.”
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