We can sometimes talk about DAWs as if they’re incredibly mundane things, as if they’re simply bread and butter tools, or just a blank canvas onto which more interesting creative applications are applied. In modern music making though, DAWs are everything. They’re the space in which the vast bulk of music is created, and even if you’re just using yours like a digital tape machine, its look, feel and capabilities still set the tone for how you’re working. It’s easy to overlook the impact, for example, that the development of Pro Tools has had on the way rock music is recorded, or how the growth of GarageBand has democratised home music making.