The Strange Agency » Blog

MegaCurtis FREE

lucas — Fri, 04 May 2012 19:28:06 +0000

They said it was only a matter of time. They were right. The Curtis saga continues with the release of MegaCurtis FREE. This version brings the MegaCurtis multi-voice, audio-paste, longer-recording, dynamic-keyboard glory to your iPhone 3GS, 4, and 4S for nothing!

But wait, there’s more: Curtis Heavy has been transmogrified into MegaCurtis FREE, so those of you that already own Curtis Heavy need only update to get this slew of new features. (Did we mention slew? There’s now portamento in every copy!) Also, to keep change-averse Curtis Heavy customers from getting grumpy, both the free and paid versions of MegaCurtis now also get a pitch-control mode (optionally activated in the settings panel in the paid version) that mimics the horizontal-swipe-to-pitch (i.e. grain size) mapping of Curtis Heavy. We hope this makes everyone feel that they’ve only gained!

Switching to the paid version gives you these added features:

• MIDI input
• Performance recording (record and share your MegaCurtis jams)
• Modal Scales (cool keyboard presets)
• Low-pass filter
• Echo
• Position modulation
• Position jitter
• Unique wave keyboard mode (play keys while touching the recording)
• Grain jitter
• Grain overlap control with modulation

Strange MIDI in HyperSpace

lucas — Wed, 02 May 2012 16:40:58 +0000

HyperSpace 1.1 was just released, adding MIDI input and VGA output. Now you can control HyperSpace with your MIDI keyboard or DAW, and you can send just the visualization graphics to a TV or projector. It’s an instant VJ setup! Just add an Apple VGA output cable. Both MIDI and VGA support are new to us, so please comment away below with your feature requests and suggestions. A map of MIDI parameters can be found on the HyperSpace page. Portamento (slew or glide to some of you) has also been added for a more smoothed-out sci-fi sound. See it in action:

Mega Update, MegaCurtis 1.3

lucas — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 16:45:29 +0000

The latest MegaCurtis update has gone live at the App Store. It adds a slew of new features, making the app more fun, more playable, and more strange. There are now selectable scales and modes, a fat key option for those of us with fat fingers, and there’s a new wave keyboard overlay mode that lets you play by touching the wave, selecting pitch and granulation position simultaneously, with four-voice multi-touch. Check out the video below to see it in action!

MegaCurtis v 1.3 from strange agency on Vimeo.

Selectable keyboard scales for easier jams
All new keyboard overlay mode
Fat keys option for easier keyboard playing
Fixes voice assignment glitch
Fixes occasional deallocation of source sound
Adds some default sounds
Activates iTunes file sharing

MegaCurtis, more Mega

lucas — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 02:23:55 +0000

Version 1.2 of MegaCurtis just dropped at the App Store. The previous update gave us iPhone 3GS (and iPad) compatibility as well as a vocoder-like live granulation mode. Now MegaCurtis adds new visuals and an improved control interface. A single touch will control granulation position and filter cutoff, while a second touch lets you drag position modulation rate and depth settings. This setup is far more expressive than that of the previous version, but do drop a note below if you’d like to see a different control scheme.

Introducing MegaCurtis for iPhone 4 and 4s

lucas — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 22:38:02 +0000

Today we launch the latest iteration of the Curtis granular synth series, MegaCurtis for the iPhone. The app was completely rewritten for better performance, longer recording time, session recording, polyphony, Retina display and more! We’ve added jitter, LFOs, amp envelope control, and even a proper keyboard.

See it in action at http://www.youtube.com/thestrangeagency

More awesome features are on their way to the app store as free updates, but the launch version is only $.99 for a limited time. So, save a few bucks and get your tweak started early.

If you haven’t yet, grab Curtis Heavy for free to get a taste of the sound. Record vocals, drums, guitar, or even your cats, and turn them into synthesizers!

Strange Solstice

lucas — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 02:30:46 +0000

In desperate love with our iPads, we left the iPhone apps languishing unmaintained. They don’t copy or paste, they don’t play well with others, they’re all still rocking 3G. Yet, they still tweak sounds quite strangely, and so gentle(ladies and)men, we will rebuild them!

This holiday season we’re cooking up a whole new series of strange toys for the iPhone, and when we launch in the months to come, the current crop will have to go. As of today, the free sample versions of our paid iPhone apps have been axed.

How can you get some strange samples, you ask? We’ve made the paid apps free!

Slice beat-juggling freakout is free!
Curtis Heavy granular glitchfest is free!
Sound Scope Space wave sculpting is free!
Spoke rhythm massage is free!

See you next year

Fluid Grinder

lucas — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 17:42:31 +0000

Version 1.5 of CP 1919 is live today, adding a new oscillator tuning mode. Check out this video of the additive organ-like sounds.

CP 1919 Tutorial Videos

lucas — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 17:27:30 +0000

Five new CP 1919 tutorial videos are up. Unearth the hidden power. Unleash your curiosity. Check ‘em:

1 – Harp Effect Tutorial
2 – Frozen Fluid Tutorial
3 – Keyboard Tutorial
4 – Flowing Fluid Tutorial
5 – Chord Insanity Tutorial

Keep it rollin’

lucas — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 14:28:26 +0000

There’s a fresh new Donut update today. Version 1.1 adds file loading, audio Copy/Paste, and Dropbox support.

Since loading files was in such high demand, Donut will even load multiple files at the same time. Rather than mix them however, the files are interleaved for maximal glitch. You can even record while a file is being loaded, to interleave your live recording with the file.

See it in action here:

Happy Tweaking

lucas — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 15:45:29 +0000

All new versions of Curtis and CP 1919 have hit the app store. These include stability improvements for Curtis along with Dropbox support for CP 1919. Update away!