CLICKS_+_CUTS // Mood Board

001 // DEFINITION

What Is Clicks & Cuts?

A movement in experimental electronic music emerging circa 1999–2001 where artists deliberately embraced digital errors, glitches, and sonic artifacts as primary creative material. The name was codified by the German label Mille Plateaux through their compilation series clicks_+_cuts, first released in 2000. It was never a rigid genre—more a shared aesthetic sensibility among artists who amplified the sounds others sought to erase.

Origins

Rooted in Oval's CD-scratching experiments (1991–94), Pole's broken Waldorf filter (1998), and the broader late-'90s laptop revolution. Mille Plateaux—named after Deleuze & Guattari's philosophical work—gave the movement its name and platform through six compilation volumes (2000–2005).

Related Genres

Glitch (the broad umbrella)
IDM / Intelligent Dance Music
Microhouse (danceable end)
Dub Techno (Pole, Vladislav Delay)
Microsound / Lowercase (ambient end)
Musique Concrète (historical ancestor)
Electroacoustic composition

Sonic Palette

Microscopic clicks, pops, crackles
Digital buffer glitches & bit-reduction
Extreme frequency exploration
Pointillist textures
Dub-influenced bass and space
Processed field recordings
Silence as compositional element

Why This Matters for Modular

Clicks & Cuts aesthetics translate directly to modular synthesis: granular textures from clock-synced noise, bit-crushed oscillators, chaotic clocking, sample-and-hold randomness, envelope followers on external noise, and extreme filtering. Several key artists in this scene actively use Eurorack and analog modular systems.

002 // SONIC DNA

Characteristic Sound Elements

Micro-Events

Tiny individual sonic particles: clicks, pops, ticks, crackles scattered in time like pointillist dots on canvas

Digital Artifacts

Buffer overruns, bit-reduction, aliasing, sample-rate errors, quantization noise—embraced as musical material

Extreme Frequencies

Sub-bass rumbles pushing speaker limits alongside ultrasonic sine tones at the edge of perception

Negative Space

Silence treated as an equal compositional element. Sparse arrangements where what is absent matters as much as what is present

Dub Space

Heavy low-end, cavernous reverb, and delay feedback inherited from dub reggae, recontextualized in digital minimalism

Granular Textures

Sound decomposed into microsecond grains and reassembled into clouds, swarms, and cascading streams

Error as Structure

Broken hardware, corrupted files, and feedback loops as compositional starting points rather than problems to fix

Minimal Rhythm

Stripped-back pulse built from tiny percussive events—the hi-hat replaced by a sibilant tic, the kick by a sub-rumble

003 // CHRONOLOGY

Key Moments

1991

Oval founded in Germany. Markus Popp begins scratching CDs with scissors to create glitch loops

1993

Mille Plateaux label founded by Achim Szepanski in Frankfurt. Pan Sonic (as Panasonic) forms in Finland

1994

Oval releases Systemisch on Mille Plateaux—foundational text of glitch music. Mego label founded in Vienna

1996

Rastermusik founded (precursor to Raster-Noton). Ryoji Ikeda releases +/- on Touch. Noton (Archive for Sound and Non-Sound) founded by Carsten Nicolai

1997

12k label founded by Taylor Deupree in New York. Monolake releases Hongkong on Chain Reaction

1998

Pole releases 1—made with a broken Waldorf 4-Pole filter. Dub meets glitch

1999

Raster-Noton formed from merger of Rastermusik + Noton. ~scape label founded by Pole. SND releases Makesnd Cassette on Mille Plateaux

2000

Clicks_+_Cuts Vol. 1 released on Mille Plateaux—the genre gets its name. Vladislav Delay releases Entain and Multila

2001

Fennesz releases Endless Summer on Mego. Jan Jelinek releases Loop-Finding-Jazz-Records. Alva Noto releases Transform. Cyclo. collaboration begins (Ikeda + Nicolai)

2002

Historic Vainio + Ikeda + Alva Noto live collaboration at BALTIC Centre, Newcastle. Only time the trio performed together

2007–2024

Alva Noto's Xerrox pentalogy spans nearly two decades (Vol. 1 through Vol. 5). Genre aesthetics continue evolving through Eurorack modular synthesis

004 // ARTISTS

Key Figures

Pioneers, core artists, and contemporary practitioners of the clicks & cuts aesthetic.

Oval

Markus Popp

Berlin, Germany

Pioneer of glitch. Physically damaged CDs with scissors and knives to create skipping sounds and randomly generated loops. Albums Systemisch and 94diskont. are foundational.

Pioneer

Alva Noto

Carsten Nicolai

Chemnitz, Germany

Audio-visual artist, co-founded Raster-Noton. Works with sine waves, granular synthesis, data-driven sound. Iconic collaborations with Ryuichi Sakamoto.

Pioneer EMS Synthi / Doepfer

Ryoji Ikeda

Gifu, Japan

Ultra-minimalist working across sound and visual media. Converts data into barcode patterns and binary. Created datamatics and test pattern series.

Pioneer

Pole

Stefan Betke

Berlin, Germany

Created dub-glitch by using a broken Waldorf 4-Pole filter. Founded ~scape label. Trilogy of albums (1, 2, 3) defined a subgenre.

Pioneer

Pan Sonic

Mika Vainio + Ilpo Väisänen

Turku, Finland

Raw analog minimalism using self-built electronics. Influenced by musique concrète, Suicide, and Kraftwerk. Brutal sub-bass and piercing sine tones.

Pioneer Self-built Hardware

Fennesz

Christian Fennesz

Vienna, Austria

Guitar processed through laptops into lush glitch textures. Endless Summer (2001) merged melody with digital noise—a landmark album.

Pioneer

Jan Jelinek

also: Farben

Berlin, Germany

Micro-sampled jazz and funk records into glitch-house textures. Loop-Finding-Jazz-Records on ~scape is a masterpiece of the genre.

Core

Frank Bretschneider

aka Komet

Chemnitz, Germany

Co-founded Rastermusik. Minimalist rhythmic structures with integrated visual elements. Rhythm (2007) was Wire magazine's top release.

Core

SND

Mark Fell + Mat Steel

Sheffield, UK

Precise, minimal rhythmic works on Mille Plateaux. Simultaneously experimental and danceable. Mathematical precision in sound.

Core

Vladislav Delay

Sasu Ripatti

Finland

Dub-inflected glitch with extraordinary depth. Entain on Mille Plateaux and Multila on Chain Reaction are essential documents.

Core

Taylor Deupree

New York, USA

Founded 12k label. Pioneer of microsound—miniature blips, acoustic/electronic fusion. Gentle but precise.

Core

Thomas Brinkmann

Cologne, Germany

Turntable manipulation and experimental electronics. Featured on Clicks & Cuts Vol. 1. Cologne school of sound.

Core

Monolake

Robert Henke

Berlin, Germany

Co-created Ableton Live. Pioneered Berlin club culture with deep, textural techno. Hongkong on Chain Reaction is a classic.

Core Eurorack / Cirklon / Max

Byetone

Olaf Bender

Germany

Co-founder of Raster-Noton and the label's visual designer. Dance-floor-centric minimalism with precise visual identity.

Core

Emptyset

James Ginzburg + Paul Purgas

Bristol, UK

Explore analogue signal chains and architecture-as-instrument. Everything in the analogue domain except computer as capture device.

Contemporary Analogue Signal Chains

Kit Clayton

USA

Key Mille Plateaux artist. Featured on the foundational Clicks & Cuts Vol. 1 compilation.

Core

Rashad Becker

Berlin, Germany

Legendary mastering engineer and composer. Uses Eurorack modular synthesis alongside additional processing techniques.

Contemporary Eurorack

Sutekh

Travis Thatcher

USA

Glitch-house artist featured on Clicks & Cuts compilations. Dancefloor-oriented glitch textures.

Core

005 // MODULAR SYNTH INTERSECTION

Clicks & Cuts × Modular

Artists who bridge clicks & cuts aesthetics with hardware modular synthesis. These are your primary references for recreating this sound world with a modular rig.

Richard Devine

Atlanta, USA — Detroit Underground / Schematic

Massive Eurorack system // Uses modular almost every day

His last three records were created entirely out-of-the-box using modular and hardware. Released all-modular records "Creature I" and "Creature II" on MakeNoise Records. Rapid clicks, metallic thrums, and scattered glitch beats. Has a sprawling modular collection built over more than a decade. Essential reference for translating C&C to Eurorack.

Key: Creature I, Creature II, Sort\Lave, Lipswitch

Keith Fullerton Whitman

Brooklyn, USA — Kranky / Various

Eurorack // Serge Modular // Buchla

Performs exclusively on Eurorack-format modular synthesizers. Occlusions (2012–14): hybrid digital/analogue modular pieces aiming for free jazz sensibility. Brilliantly utilizes control voltage that feeds back with audio. Has worked with Max/MSP and was granted access to the GRM studio.

Key: Playthroughs, Occlusions, Multiples, Redactions

Robert Henke

Monolake — Berlin, Germany

Eurorack // Cirklon sequencer // Max/MSP // CBM 8032

Co-creator of Ableton Live. Integrates Cirklon hardware sequencer into modular synthesis rig. Created a Eurorack module interfacing a Commodore CBM 8032 with a modular system. Deep Web laser installation bridges club aesthetics with gallery art.

Key: Hongkong, Momentum, Ghosts, Silence

Alva Noto

Carsten Nicolai — Chemnitz/Berlin, Germany

EMS Synthi // Doepfer modules // Theremin-controlled LFOs

Uses an EMS Synthi synthesizer extensively, and Doepfer modular systems with theremin modules for LFO/frequency modulation. Reportedly prefers programming from his EMS over pure modular. Also works with granular synthesis, iPad apps, and natural sound sources (water droplets, snowflakes).

Key: Transform, Unitxt, Xerrox series, Vrioon (w/ Sakamoto)

Rashad Becker

Berlin, Germany — PAN

Eurorack (documented on ModularGrid)

Legendary mastering engineer who has cut countless electronic/experimental records. His own compositions are built with modular synthesis plus additional processing techniques like timestretch. The music is alien and deeply strange.

Key: Traditional Music of Notional Species Vol. I & II

Emptyset

James Ginzburg + Paul Purgas — Bristol, UK

Analogue signal chains // Hardware-only (except capture)

Everything in the analogue domain. Explore complex "rule-sets" with hardware in labyrinthine signal chains. Architecture as instrument—have recorded in resonant spaces like abandoned power stations.

Key: Collapsed, Recur, Signal, Borders

Eurorack Modules for C&C Aesthetics

Moffenzeef Modular
Specializes in clicks & cuts style glitch percussion. Their mission is Eurorack drum machines built for this exact aesthetic.

Perfect Circuit Glitch Systems
Systems incorporating granular synthesis, FM, VOSIM, wavetables, and physical modeling— inspired by Autechre, Ryoji Ikeda, Kim Cascone.

008 // INFRASTRUCTURE

Record Labels

Mille Plateaux

Frankfurt, Germany · Founded 1993 · Achim Szepanski

Named after Deleuze & Guattari. Home of the Clicks & Cuts compilation series. Codified the glitch movement.

Raster-Noton

Chemnitz/Berlin · Founded 1999 · Nicolai, Bender, Bretschneider

Now Raster Media. Overlapping borders of pop, art, and science. Transparent CDs, anti-static bag packaging. The gold standard of minimal design.

12k

New York, USA · Founded 1997 · Taylor Deupree

Microsound, fusing ambient + acoustic + digital textures. Quiet, precise, intimate.

LINE

USA · Founded 2000 · Sub-label of 12k

Ultra-minimalist sound. The relationship between sound, silence, and the act of listening.

Editions Mego

Vienna, Austria · Founded 1994/2005 · Peter Rehberg

Name allegedly from "My Eyes Glaze Over." Released Fennesz's landmark Endless Summer. Wildly unpredictable catalog.

~scape

Berlin, Germany · Founded 1999 · Stefan Betke (Pole)

Home to Pole and Jan Jelinek. The dub-glitch-microhouse intersection.

Chain Reaction

Berlin · Founded 1995 · Ernestus + von Oswald (Basic Channel)

Dub techno foundation. Released Vladislav Delay, Monolake. Deep, hypnotic, infinite.

Touch

London, UK · Founded 1982 · Jon Wozencroft

Ryoji Ikeda's home label. Art-focused electroacoustic releases with meticulous packaging.

Schematic

Miami, USA · Founded 1996

Home to Richard Devine. IDM/glitch with bold visual design.

009 // VISUAL DNA

Aesthetic Language

The visual identity of clicks & cuts is one of the most cohesive in electronic music. Rooted in Swiss typography, constructivism, and early computer graphics.

Color Palette

#f5f3f0

#e8e4de

#1a1a1a

#ffffff

#0055cc

#cc2244

#333333

Typography

Sans-serif, monospaced, code-style. Stark grid-based layouts. Helvetica, DIN, or custom geometric typefaces. Generous tracking.

Imagery

Data visualization, waveforms, spectrograms, barcode patterns, pixel artifacts, glitch art, electron microscopy, molecular structures.

Principles

Reductionism. Negative space. Anti-ornament. Mathematical precision with intentional corruption. The grid, then the glitch.

010 // APPLICATION

Translating to Modular Synth

Practical techniques for recreating clicks & cuts aesthetics on a modular synthesizer.

Sound Sources

Granular synthesis modules (Morphagene, Nebulae, Arbhar)
Digital noise generators bit-crushed through sample-rate reducers
Ultrashort envelopes on oscillators (<1ms = click)
FM synthesis at audio-rate with extreme ratios
Physical modeling for metallic/resonant tones
Self-oscillating filters as sine sources

Processing

Extreme bandpass filtering (isolate micro-frequencies)
Sample & hold on audio signals for bit-crush effect
Wavefolder at extreme settings for digital-sounding distortion
Feedback patching through delay lines
Resonant filters with CV-controlled cutoff at audio rate
Reverb into distortion into reverb (dub chains)

Sequencing & Control

Chaotic/random clock sources for irregular rhythms
Probabilistic triggers (Marbles, Branches)
Clock dividers and multipliers for polyrhythm
Envelope followers on external audio (microphone feedback)
Bernoulli gates for stochastic event distribution
Sub-audio LFOs modulating everything slowly

MODULE TIP: Moffenzeef Modular specializes in Eurorack drum machines explicitly designed for clicks & cuts style glitch percussion. Perfect Circuit also offers curated "Glitch Systems" inspired by this aesthetic.