When it comes to electronic dance music, The Crystal Method is nothing short of iconic. In the fifteen years since crafting their first beat together, Ken Jordan and Scott Kirkland have been featured in countless films, TV shows and video games—and scored a Grammy nomination along the way. The duo recently replaced their legendary Bomb Shelter studio with their sparkling new Crystalwerks facility and emerged with a new album, Divided by Night, plus new world tour to match. As you might expect, M-Audio gear is at the heart of it all. M-Pulse caught up with The Crystal Method at the Los Angeles warehouse where the legendary electronica artists were putting the final touches on their live stage show.

Performing Live with Axiom Pro
The Crystal Method are known for high-energy, dynamic live sets that often incorporate live remixes and mashups of their most popular tracks. Instead of playing a simplified DJ set like some electronic groups do, Ken and Scott actually perform their songs live—triggering samples and playing key synth lines over dense sequenced backgrounds. "The live show has always been a mainstay of The Crystal Method," explains Ken. "When we first started, we wanted to be taken seriously as a band and make sure we weren’t misrepresented as a DJ team. So of course for the first new album in five years we had to bring out some new gear, a new stage and put on a great show."

In preparation for the upcoming Divided By Night tour, the duo acquired two new M-Audio Axiom Pro 49 MIDI controllers to serve as the centerpiece of their stage rig. "Every control is mapped to something different," reveals Ken. "We use the faders to control filter resonance, delay feedback, and volume levels for each instrument—allowing us to adjust the mix from stage. The trigger pads are used to fire samples from our computers. The Axiom Pro really simplifies everything so we can concentrate on our performance…”

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