Episode 49, Introduction: "Mouse Ears, Yellow Shoes, and White Gloves"

This week's show. Important news on MOUSE EARS. And a Ring Modulation cage match (a Moog MF-102 vs. a Rucci RingMod vs. a Metasonix RK3) Headline: MOUSE EARS! Does Mickey Mouse regularly use a Ring Modulator to sneak onto Air Force One? https://boingboing.net/2021/03/16/mouse-ears-does-mickey-mouse-regularly-use-a-ring-modulator-to-sneak-onto-air-force-one.html Hi, everyone, welcome back to the show. This week, the discussion is on ring modulators. If you have a synthesizer or a guitar, or even just a voice, you need a ring modulator. They've been around since 1934, and provide some of the most incredible sound effects imaginable. 1934 is an interesting year. Mickey Mouse had just turned six years old, being born in 1928, and most intelligence literature indicates the mouse found ring modulation to be highly addictive. A fan of music and telephones, Mickey Mouse became a ring modulation addict in 1945, and since then has been known to use the many techniques of ring modulation, which is signal processing from the combination of two signals. He uses these techniques to become invisible. Once invisible, Mickey Mouse regularly walks among us, hiding out in our business meetings. And when he can get onto Air Force One, he likes to be a fly on the wall (or a mouse you can't see) and he eavesdrops on world leaders. The truth of this was exposed this month when it was revealed a man in "mouse ears" was found within walking distance of Air Force One itself: https://apnews.com/article/air-force-one-base-intruder-mouse-ears-88821e8a8f19b940ad0ddcaf7778825e - hiding out on the airfield for close to five hours until his distinctive "mouse hat" caught the attention of someone. So this week's show we discuss Mouse Ears and Mouse Ears Infiltration (aka M.E.M.E.I.-CKEY MOUSE) Your communication materials include a full hour long tutorial on Ring Modulation for music purposes, making everything from wonderful science fiction laboratory noises, to turning James Cagney's into a clanking bell. Three ring modulators are used, providing a good summary of the format: The Bob Moog designed classic MF-102, the completely passive and wonderfully unpredictable Rucci Ring Modulator, and the sound of hellfire itself, also known ad the RK3 Ringer/Shaper, from Metasonix. P.S. The 'shenanigans' flyer listed in track two can be seen here: https://twitter.com/EthanPersoff/status/1369708013167271944 Have a good week and take it easy with the Mouse Ears!