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The 2025 Northeast Electro-Music Festival (NEEM Fest) is returning September 12th, 13th, and 14th, 2025, to the Center for the Arts of Homer, 72 South Main Street, Homer, NY. NEEM Fest 2025 will feature over 30 electronic musicians and several Visual Artists with three days of live performances and workshops.

NEEM Fest began as electro-music 2005, a small conference covering all aspects of experimental electronic music with a focus on participant involvement, sharing, community development, education, and great music. Electro-music was sponsored by electro-music.com, a global online community of composers and musicians who share a passion for electronic music.

Electro-music is made with synthesizers, home-made circuits, computers, found objects, voices, signal
processors, wooden flutes, ambient recordings, and virtually anything imaginable that makes sound – even
conventional orchestras, crossing many genres.

The event has grown and continues to this day. The Electro-Music Festival has been held at the Center for the Arts of Homer since 2017, and was renamed NEEM Fest in 2023.

NEEM Fest features back-to-back performances by electronic musicians and visual artists throughout the day and into the evening, utilizing two alternating stages for uninterrupted entertainment. The event also includes educational workshops sharing the latest technology and techniques.

This year’s event will also feature an electronic music instrument interactive exhibit a.k.a. Synth “Petting Zoo” where several electronic music instruments will be available for attendees to view and operate with headphones. Bringing your own headphones (1/4″ jack) is recommended.

NEEM Fest takes place in partnership with electro-music.com and TE-MPO, The Electro-Music Performers Organization, a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation and promotion of electro-music. The event will be held without artists’ fees. Tickets are $15 per day, $20 for two days, and $25 for a three day pass for adults, and can be purchased online at the NEEMFest website, or at the door at the Center for the Arts of Homer. Kids under 18 can attend for free.

For more information, including a complete schedule of events and artists’ profiles, visit the NEEM Fest website. For last minute updates, see the NEEMFest page on Facebook .

In his latest loopop video, host Ziv Eliraz shares a hands-on review of the new Suonobuono Polyvera synthesizer.

The Polyvera is Suonobuono’s first synthesizer. It’s described as “a modern homage to the iconic wavetable synths and samplers of the early 80s”. It’s designed to combine the characteristic digital artifacts of that era with true analog multimode filters, for added warmth and versatility.

In the video, Eliraz offers an in-depth demo of the Polyvera and shares his takes the synth’s pros and cons.

Topics covered:

0:00 Intro
2:00 Overview
5:45 Workflow
7:55 Build
8:15 I/O
9:15 Osc dirt styles
10:45 Sub osc
11:45 Osc 2 samples
13:25 Loop points
15:15 Sample styles
15:35 Sample shape
16:25 FM w/samples
19:15 Ring mod
19:45 Sync & noise
20:05 Filter
22:30 Clipping
23:45 Overdrive
25:30 Filter env
26:25 Effects
29:10 Reverbs
30:40 Modulation
33:00 LFOs
34:20 Arp
34:50 Sequencer
36:00 Voicing
37:10 Pros & cons
40:00 Preset sounds!

View the video and share your thoughts on the Polyvera in the comments!

Composer & synthesist Anthony Marinelli shared this new interview with Tom Oberheim that’s a must-see video for fans of Oberheim’s work.

In the interview, Oberheim discusses how he got involved in making electronic instruments, the early days of his company, and the stories behind many of his classic designs.

Marinelli calls Oberheim “The genius behind the greatest sounding synthesizers.” While electronic musicians might argue about what’s the greatest sounding synth, there’s no debating that Tom Oberheim is a synth design legend. Classic Oberheim designs include the SEM, the 4- and 8-voice, the OB series and the Matrix-12.

Tom Oberheim is 89 and, lucky for us, he’s still going strong and coming out with new designs. In the last few years, Oberheim has released the OB-X8, his ultimate take on the OB series, and the partnered with Dave Smith Instruments on the OB-6 and the Teo-5.

Here’s Marinelli’s summary of the interview:

“Today, we’re at the home of Tom Oberheim — one of the original pioneers who shaped synthesizers and music history. Tom’s legacy includes some of the most groundbreaking innovations: (a stand alone ring modulator, the first commercially available phase shifter pedal (my personal favorite), an early digital sequencer, the Oberheim DS-2, and the SEM the first commercially available polyphonic synthesizer made in 2, 4 and 8 voice models, followed by favorites such as the OB-X, OB-Xa, OB-8, Xpander, Matrix 12, DMX drum machine and more… of course, most importantly he gave us the unmistakable “Oberheim sound” on his entire collection of iconic synthesizers that have inspired compositions and performances on countless records by multiple generations of artists.

Joining me for this special interview is my friend Rob Rosen from Rosen Sound—talented musician and renowne expert in synth restoration and preservation, and someone who’s worked closely for a while with Tom to keep Oberheim instruments and ALL vintage synthesizers alive for future generations of musicians.

We’ll also be joined by Marcus Ryle, who’s done so much. Marcus began his career working closely with Tom, at Oberheim, was a session musician, designed dozens of affordable and accessible products for Alesis – including the ADAT multitrack recording, Quadraverb digital reverb, and HR-1 drum machine, and later co-founded Line 6 (creating innovative guitar effects and revolutionizing digital modeling technology). His insight into Tom’s innovations—and his own contributions in music history —makes this a rare, deeply meaningful conversatio

Check out the interview and share your thoughts in the comments!