With over 20 releases on some of electronic music’s most celebrated labels such as Bpitch Control, Ghostly International, Shitkatapult and Touchin’ Bass, Kero (Sohail Azad) has established himself as a leader within the growing pack of producers successfully infiltrating contemporary art circles worldwide. Recently he has shared the stage with Speedy J, Ken Ishii, Funkstorung and Flying Lotus and he brought his high-tech graphic visuals to Butthole Surfers North American concert tour. Kero is also continually working on his own critically acclaimed Detroit Underground Records, as well as Kerohand Records that he runs with Kelli Hand. Over the years, drawing on his experiences as a dual citizen of both Canada and the United States, Kero has established a reputation for his unrepentantly brash, yet cultivated compositions and unforgettable live performances. His innovative approach to music (which mixes genres from hip-hop to the most rarified of techno experiments) and visual design (which feeds on the detritus of popular electronic culture), makes Kero one of the most compelling audio-visual artists in the electro-cultural world today.

“I love how customizable the JazzMutant Lemur is,” says Kero. “Operating it feels like you are on the Millennium Falcon. It gives you the feeling of futuristic, next-level GUI. The Lemur is a progressive entry into a new decade for software companies that are transitioning to the OSC protocol. By taking advantage of the Lemur I can stay on the cutting edge of the technology with music and video production!”

Read the full interview with Kero to learn about how he used the Lemur on his tour with the Butthole Surfers band across North America. .

This month’s underground stars are the trio known as Ultimate Downhill Machines: Kingsbaby, JWreck and their mysterious third member, Keybot. With a collection of tools that includes turntables, drum pads, synths, vocoders and several JazzMutant Lemurs, Ultimate Downhill Machines play house music that can bring a crowd into a dancing frenzy or a chanting chorus. This Omaha, Nebraska group formed in July 2009 and since then they have consistently delivered a popular podcast and garnered a number one spot on Reverbnation.com just two months after they formed their crew. Kingsbaby has over 13 years of experience as a turntabalist, playing alongside Jam-Master Jay and Run DMC. More recently he has been collaborating on a track with the father of Electroclash, New York’s Larry Tee. JWreck is the scratch master and controller enthusiast of the group. Together, Ultimate Downhill Machines are the creators an exciting live show that Ableton and Serato have deemed worthy of sponsorship.

Read the full interview to learn the unlikely story of how they got their first Lemur and how they use it to keep their live show full of energy and exciting to watch.

Antonio Blanca blesses the Lemur community yet again with another phenomenal Reaktor template, the Lermized Grainstates SP. With Grainstates one can deconstruct a sample into short audio grains and the eight identical modules (scenes) each provide separate settings for controlling the playback parameters. Then one can step-sequence the modules or trigger them individually live using a Lemur.

Add this dynamic Grainstates audio effect to your audio toolset. Once setup, enjoy the ambient effect and utilize your own samples. The futuristic and elegant interface design by Antonio is worth a look at, itself!

Download the template here and get playing!