Bundle ’em up
It’s a preconception held by many that to make decent rock music you need quite a lot of physical space – and the ability to make a lot of noise. In actual fact, you can be churning out the next Smoke on the Water every day for very little outlay. As computer musicians, we’re more prone to looking for sample libraries, playable software instruments and ways of making our sounds go further than most traditionally rockoriented folks, and while some might squirm at the thought of keyboard-based riff-writing, it’s the end results that speak the loudest.
So, where are the best places to find the most affordable tools? It’s always a fiscally sound idea to plump for bundles or collections as opposed to hoovering up individual items over time. While massive bundles such as SoundToys 5, iZotope’s Music Production Suite and FabFilter’s Total Bundle may be way out of reach for now, smaller scale assortments, like the ones regularly found on Plugin Boutique are often going for very reasonable prices, and are well worth your cash. A quick peruse on their homepage will likely leave you wanting to snap up a few bits and pieces, with knocked-down prices, and products are regularly coupled up with others.
We’re trying to keep costs down in this feature, but that doesn’t mean we’re embarking on a particularly freeware-heavy approach. But, we’ve elected to recommend a free DAW for the purposes of making rock, namely Apple’s everubiquitous GarageBand. Evolving from its rudimentary beginnings, this Apple-only DAW is for all intents and purposes a lite version of Logic, containing its older sibling’s Pedalboard options, and amp sims. It also sports Logic’s ever-useful Drummer to lay down instant beats for your project. For PC or Android users, why not try the equally free – and equally superb – Cakewalk by Bandlab.