Out and about

As I write this, it’s the week that

Arturia Pigments gets souped-up with additive synthesis and extra analogue emulations

The power synth plugin also gains new wavetables, utilities and more for version 3

There’s more to Polyend’s Tracker Artist Editions than meets the eye

> Polyend have introduced some rather lovely looking

Nord Piano 5: dual piano and synth engines, more storage

>Clavia have announced the Nord Piano 5, a

iZotope introduce a new version of Spire Studio, the cloud-connected recording device for singers and instrumentalists

>iZotope have released a new version of Spire

Analogue Solutions unveils the “raw, ballsy and rich” Leipzig V3 all-analogue synth

>Analogue Solutions have unveiled Leipzig V3, the latest

Pioneer DJ launch new VM monitor range

>Pioneer DJ have unveiled their new VM Series

Sheep, Dog & Wolf

Auckland-based multiinstrumentalist Daniel McBride broke through with his

SUBVERT YOUR HABITS

“It can add a lot to your songwriting

Ben Westbeech There’s More To Life Than This

Strictly Rhythm, 2011

RAS RAS III

Botnis

Little Snake –A Fragmented Love Story, Written By The Infinite Helix Architect

Brainfeeder

MNDSGN Rare Pleasure

Stones Throw

Matt Robertson Enveleau

Subtempo

NATURAL SOUNDSCAPES

The great outdoors is calling – why not multitask with some found sound or field recording while you’re there?

PREPARING TO BE SURPRISED

With few exceptions field and found sound capture

Initial recording stripe editing

Streamlining raw recordings to remove the messy excess, maximise editing ease, aid archiving and minimise data storage

BEFORE YOU START…

Open ears, open mind 1 Many sounds interact

“I recognised a deeper level of sound we’re not aware of”

KMRU charts his found sound journey  from Nairobi to Berlin

Ambience filtering: listening for new worlds

Mundane background sounds can become evocative ambiences with simple edits and processes

FIELD RECORDING EXCELLENCE

Listening through the mic(s) 1 It’s not just a

“It makes it possible to inhabit a space and also somebody else’s mental state.”

Blanck Mass on processing a decade’s  worth of field recordings

6 GREAT FIELD RECORDERS

Whether you want something ultra-portable you can whip out of your pocket to record samples on the daily commute (remember that?) or a pro piece of equipment for complex multi-mic recording of ambient sounds, these six tools should have you covered

Generate new musical ideas in Ableton Live

PROBLEM: How can I create drum patterns with interesting variations throughout an arrangement?

Novation Circuit Tracks

Praised for its great value and accessibility, Circuit Tracks is a groovebox worth getting to know. Let’s take a tour

Beyond the basics

>For deeper elements, Circuit Tracks is a tale

Probability and mutations

Per-step probability and the semi-random Mutate function are great for auto-generating variations on a theme. Let’s take a look…

QUICK TIPS

1 When creating synth patches, your Macro assignments

Exploring the synth engines

There’s not much detail on the engines behind the two polysynths. Connecting to Components lets us edit them in full though…

Setting up external gear

Broadly, the two new MIDI tracks function identically

Creative drum programming

Let’s combine some of Tracks’ more advanced sequencing tricks to create a short, 16-step drum groove that still has unpredictability

Chillwave

Hipster irony meets dreamy psychedelia this month as we investigate peak blog relevance in the form of chillwave

Hainbach

Motivated by a fascination for high-end research equipment and turning gear from old sheds and nuclear research labs into sound, Danny Turner talks to Hainbach about his latest album

Joal Eighty Four

Constant Circles, 2021

Creating Eighty Four’s effects in Ableton Live

Joal processes and resamples his existing synth parts to create risers and atmospheric effects

Soul Clap

Soul Clap’s third album is founded on a passion for environmental and social activism. Danny Turner reveals the deep house duo’s motivation and dualistic approach to production

Soma Laboratory Pulsar-23 £1,730

Combining esoteric sequencing, an experimental ethos and tons of patchability, Si Truss discovers a drum machine like no other

Mutable Instruments Beads £260

Is this reimagining of popular texture synth Clouds a case of blue-sky thinking? Rob Redman investigates

Acid Rain Maestro £365

When creating patches with modular I’m always looking

Klevgrand Slammer $40

The prolific Swedish developers drop a crunchtastic drum plugin. Si Truss takes a beating

GForce OB-E £150

Imagine an 8-Voice Oberheim synth faithfully recreated as a plugin. Chris Hughes doths his cap

CHANNEL STRIP PLUGINS

Get your basic effects in one place from these do-it-all processors

M-Audio M-Track Solo and Duo from £40

Want a basic, reliable interface? Jon Musgrave thinks one of these could do

Steven Slate Audio VSX

> Monitors and headphones both have their place,

Moog Sound Studio From $1,399

Moog bundle up their semi-modular Mothers but, Si Truss discovers, it’s more than your average 2-in-1 deal

In Session Audio – World Percussion Creator $139.99

> In Session Audio return for the third

Roland Cloud Juno-60 £138 or as part of a Roland Cloud Subscription

> Roland’s Juno range first hit the streets

Audiotent – Decade

Standard: £27 MIDI: £17 Deluxe: £37

Renegade Audio – Retro Funk Vocals £29.95

> Want some super groovy retro vocals that

Splice Originals – Psych Guitar $7.99/mo

> Spin out squares with this mind-bending dose

ZTEKNO – Ethnic Techno £23.95

> Let’s look further afield for inspiration

Sample Magic – UK Garage Nation $7.99/mo

> In a time when people got dressed

MIDI KEYBOARDS

Novation SL MkIII from £540 Full Review: FM338

SEMI-MODULAR SYNTHS

Moog Matriarch £1,979 Full Review: FM355 The

HIGH-END SYNTHS

Sequential Pro 3 from £1,459 Full Review: FM366