Slope114 occupies an intriguing space in electronic music. The live duo comprise of vocalist and lyricist Elise Gargalikis and producer/DJ Dmitri SFC, with each taking stern ownership of their respective commitments as part of San Francisco’s much-loved music acts. House music veterans, vinyl aficionados, and committed to keeping the bayareasheritage of independent musicians alive.
Whilst the pair are fabled throughout their home city and beyond for their eccentric presence, their music is anything but quirky. Since forming, the pair have released a torrent of tough, soulful minimal house productions which have found a welcome home on labels such as Endless Flight, Situationism and Subplot.
Label owner and house legend, Doc Martin, offers his Subwarp Remixand provides a woozy low-end that resonates through a biting pitch-drifting soundscape, allowing the seductive vocal lines the perfect arena to thrive.
Arturia SQ 80 V
The plug-in synth I used on this was the SQ 80 V by Arturia. You can use this synth in many different ways. Everything from Synths to Basslines, Strings, Pads ect. I find the Arturia Synths to always be pretty dependable.
I used the Synth patch called Dark Bass for this particular project. I felt like I needed to create movement on the bottom end of the song. For my remix, I added a slight arpeggio to it to really create more movement against the track. Also, with this plug-in, you can view the keyboard in Synthesis mode, where you have 3 oscillators to make the sound more your own. It ended up driving the bottom end, and every time it comes in, the dance floor reacts.
I think just with this Synth you can do a whole song. I would take advantage of the synthesis mode, where you can truly create something soothing that’s yours. It also has built-in effects to even tweak it more.
Arturia Delay Tape 201
One of my go-to effects is the delay tape 201 once again by Arturia. This effect works more like a space echo(Tape Delay). You’re able to create Echos, Delays, and can even change a regular sound completely into a whole different sound. I used this on the pads of the original. It helped to give it a more dramatic, drawn-out effect on the original pads. Almost a tugging motion as a call, and respond to the other instruments.
I’ve found this to be very helpful to fill empty space in a track. You can use settings in Delay, Modulation, and Distortion to create your own sounds. I usually really take my time when it comes to effects. Highly recommended.
Steinber RoomWorks SE
On Elise’s vocals, I used the RoomWorks Effect by Steinberg. This plug-in gives you the freedom to make a different array of reverbs. It helped to create a nice, sweet, warm feeling with her vocals. I used the Vintage Plate reverb setting at 1.66s. Everything was done by ear.
I didn’t use resettings on this at all. I tried many different effect settings for the vocal, but this sat really well with her vocals. I tend to do one vocal stem almost dry to catch the original essence and emotion of the vocal. Then another channel with the effects at a lower volume, and mix them together.
As this is a Steinberg plug-in effect, you would have to have Cubase. There are many other Plugins from other companies that do the same thing. Once again, I’ll reiterate that the more you play with the effects, the more options you’ll have to choose from.
Quick Fire Tips
As I consider myself more of a DJ who makes songs, as opposed to a producer. Also, I’m pretty Genre Illiterate. I think you have to go with what feels right to you in the moment.
I tend to lean more to the Tribal, Acid, and Deep House, with a bit of vocals, and heavy bass. Which in itself is its own genre, I guess. I will always start with the bottom end and work my way up.
For me, it’s important to have the drums and the bass working together. Then Vocals, as I’ll play the synths around the message of the song. I’ve made everything from Deep House, Disco, Acid, Techno, and Breaks. Now you can be genre illiterate too 
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