If you’ve ever dreamed of a custom controller you could assemble in modular, Lego-like fashion, you’ll love the idea of the Mawzer custom control surface. Adrian Anders points our attention to a new online configurator, so you can try out your own controller creation. (The link is at the bottom right of the page, labeled “Demonstration.”) See Adrian’s 1380 Euros (1621.50 USD) design below, and if you come up with anything you’d like to share, send it in.

Previously:
Musikmesse: Customizable, Modular Mawzer Control Surface
More on Mawzer: Modular, Custom Control Surface

The day after I do a VJ roundup, my friend Holly Daggers has turned VJing into a graphic novel. It’s wetcircuits presents VJ comix, a Flash-animated color comic book about the on-the-road life of a superstar VJ. Busta Rhymes, Miri Ben Ari, and All Mighty Senators are featured, plus a tour of unknown origin by a cigarette company of unknown origin (mmm, shady). But what we care about, of course, is Holly’s gear, from Korg, Edirol, et al.

Enjoy!
Of course, the real reason I bring this up is I’d love to get some help making music-themed comics using plasq’s superb Comic Life. Any takers?

Jackie Passmore is a talented VJ touring with Ladytron (and, in spring 2006, Stereolab). There are some talented genes in this family: her brother was the lead programmer of Acid. (Sorry, not the other Acid I was thinking of.) Thanks to sponsorship from Korg, she accompanies her Apple laptop with a Korg video mixer and microKONTROL keyboard. The heart of the setup is the superb Vidvox GRID2 software; Vidvox has a great interview with Jackie. (Watch for our own profile here soon.)

Vidvox Featured Artists: Jackie Passmore

Below: Jackie in China with Ladytron, showing off her rig. (Thanks, Jackie!)

Welcome, Keyboard Laptops Live and Computer Music Readers! Feel free to say hi and check out the rest of the site.

Photo: Vello Virkhaus with Red Hot Chili Peppers in London (thanks, Vello!)

Live visuals for keyboardists? Absolutely: if you’ve got MIDI chops, slick new tools can help you tickle projected imagery while you tickle the ivories. There’s just too much to say about VJing to fit into one story, so when I wrote up an introduction to live visuals for Keyboard Magazine’s Laptops Live special, I ran out of space fast. Here’s a quick roundup of some of the gear and tools you’ll need to pump out live visuals at your next gig.

CDM Sister Site: Incidentally, thanks to all of you who sent in thoughtful feedback about where VJ content belongs here at CDM, or on its own site. After careful consideration, I have decided to launch a new visual performance site towards the end of the year. But don’t worry: those of you who want to occasionally read VJ content will be able to follow the new site here on CDM, and thanks to a bunch of volunteer writers, I expect both sites to grow, not languish. More on that in December . . . now on with our VJ roundup.