Andy Stott Slowed Heavy Half-Time
Genre: Techno, Downtempo · Tempo: 118 BPM · Time signature: 4/4 · Length: 16 steps · Style: Andy Stott's own description of his sound as a marriage of dubstep, dub, techno, dark minimal and chillwave, built by pushing hardware effects to their limits and pulling the result back into something usable, with heavy bitcrushing and compression over a slowed, old-tape-feeling ambience
Open this pattern in the interactive Patchpad (with playback)
The pattern
| Instrument | Steps (1 = start of the bar) | Velocity | Timing and chance |
|---|
| kick | 1, 11 | 55-100 | step 11: early by about 12% of a step, plays 50% of the time |
| sub | 1 | 95 | on the grid, always plays |
| hat-closed | 5, 13 | 28-30 | step 5: early by about 17% of a step, plays 60% of the time; step 13: early by about 17% of a step, plays 55% of the time |
| snare | 9 | 85 | step 9: late by about 8% of a step |
| fx | 9, 15 | 40-45 | step 9: plays 80% of the time; step 15: plays 65% of the time |
Digitakt II
Tracks
- T1: kick
- T2: snare
- T3: hat-closed
- T5: sub
- T6: fx (dub delay throw / bitcrushed texture)
Settings
- Kick and snare (T1/T2): FX page BR (bit reduction) set moderately high (~40-50) and SRR (sample rate reduction) engaged lightly on both, for the sourced heavy bitcrushing rather than a clean hit
- Half-time backbone: kick on step 1 only (with a soft, sparse secondary hit at step 11, PROB 50%), snare/main hit on step 9 (beat 3) not beat 2 or 4 - the classic half-time placement giving the pattern its slow, weighty feel rather than a normal four-on-the-floor pulse
- FX/delay texture (T6, steps 9/15): FX page DEL send high (~90) with a long, dub-style repeat feel, REV also raised for the sourced 'slowed down old tape' ambience
- Hat-closed (T3, steps 5/13): VEL kept very low (28-30) and PROB reduced (55-60%) so it barely registers - a faint, distant texture rather than a driving pulse, in keeping with the overall heavy, slowed character
- All tracks: SRC page LEV pushed hard into FX page OVER (overdrive) at a moderate amount, then pulled back with output gain-staged down - simulating the sourced technique of pushing effects to their limit and bringing the result back to something usable
Digitone II
Tracks
- T1: kick (ALGO 4, low RATIO C)
- T2: snare (moderate-FDBK FM noise)
- T3: hat-closed (high-FDBK FM noise)
- T5: sub (ALGO 1, very low RATIO C)
- T6: fx (high-FDBK noise, long FX-page delay/reverb send)
Settings
- Kick (T1, step 1) and sub (T5, step 1): SYN page 1 ALGO 4/ALGO 1 respectively, RATIO C very low (0.25-0.40); AMP page REL extended for a long, heavy decay rather than a tight, punchy hit
- Half-time backbone: kick's main hit on step 1 only (soft secondary at step 11, PROB 50%), snare's main hit on step 9 (beat 3) rather than beat 2 or 4 - half-time placement
- Snare and kick (T1/T2): FX page distortion-equivalent (high SYN page 1 FDBK plus a hard FLTR page 1 TYPE HP cut) pushed further than a normal hit would need, then AMP page VOL pulled back down, per the sourced 'push it to the limits, then bring it back' approach
- FX/texture (T6, steps 9/15): FX page REV and DEL sends both raised high (~85-90) for a long, slowed, tape-like ambience
- Hat-closed (T3, steps 5/13): AMP page VOL kept very low (28-30) with PROB reduced (55-60%), a faint, distant texture rather than a driving element
Syntakt
Tracks
- T9: kick (BD PLASTIC)
- T10: snare (SD HARD)
- T12: hat-closed (CH CLASSIC)
- T1: sub (SY RAW, sine-like low tone)
- T11: fx (SY CHIP, bitcrushed texture)
Settings
- Kick (T9, BD PLASTIC - chosen for its harder, more processed-sounding character) and sub (T1): both on step 1 only, with OVER (overdrive) pushed high on the kick for a driven, compressed low end
- Half-time backbone: kick's main hit on step 1, snare's (T10) main hit on step 9 (beat 3) rather than a normal beat-2/4 backbeat - the half-time placement that defines the pattern's weight
- Snare and kick: FX page SRR (sample-rate reduction, on tracks that support it) or the machine's own built-in distortion pushed hard, then output level pulled back, per the sourced push-to-the-limit-then-rein-in technique
- FX/texture (T11, SY CHIP, steps 9/15): a noisy digital tone with FX page DEL and REV sends both raised high for a slowed, dubby, tape-like ambience
- Hat-closed (T12, CH CLASSIC, steps 5/13): VOL kept very low with PROB reduced (55-60%), barely audible rather than driving
Notes
A slow, heavy half-time skeleton - kick on beat 1, the main hit landing on beat 3 rather than a normal backbeat - with every element pushed through distortion/bitcrushing toward its limit and then pulled back to something usable, plus long dub-style delay and reverb for a slowed, old-tape ambience, per Andy Stott's own description of his production approach. An original pattern in that spirit, not a transcription of any specific track.
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