Future Music

Editor-In-Chief Si Truss, simon.truss@futurenet.com Reviews Editor, Music Technology Simon

30 years of FM!

SCAN TO GET OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER It’s a

Korg finally unveil Drumlogue

Analogue and digital drum sounds cross paths with an expanded ’logue Multi-Engine

Aphex Twin releases Samplebrain, a free and open-source “custom sample mashing app”

> Having previously worked on a synth with

UAD Spark comes to PC

> Universal Audio have made good on their

Moog’s Model 10 modular synth is back again

> Following a limited-time production run in 2019,

The Jellyfish is a new plugin that dives into granular synthesis

> Best known for their expressive controller gloves,

Intech Studio launch Knot, a standalone USB MIDI host

> A USB MIDI controller is the perfect

Generate new musical ideas in Ableton Live

Create ever-changing snare fills (or any other drum parts)

30 YEARS OF PRODUCTION

...told through 30 essential products

NOVATION BASS STATION

WHAT IS IT?: MONO (AND 303-A-LIKE) SYNTH | LAUNCH YEAR: 1993 | LAUNCH PRICE: £349

ROLAND JV-1080

WHAT IS IT?: SUPER SOUND MODULE WITH EXPANDABILITY | LAUNCH YEAR: 1994 | LAUNCH PRICE: £1,085

CLAVIA NORD LEAD

WHAT IS IT?: THE FIRST VIRTUAL ANALOGUE SYNTH | LAUNCH YEAR: 1995 | LAUNCH PRICE: $1,995

KORG PROPHECY

WHAT IS IT?: MULTI-ENGINED MONOSYNTH WITH HANDS-ON CONTROL | LAUNCH YEAR: 1995 | LAUNCH PRICE: £999

ACCESS VIRUS

WHAT IS IT?: VIRTUAL ANALOGUE SYNTH AND DANCE MEGASTAR | LAUNCH YEAR: 1997

Where is music making technology going next?

FM has been charting advances in music-making tech for 30 years. Based on what we’ve seen, let’s make some predictions for the future

ALESIS ANDROMEDA A6

WHAT IS IT?: MIND-BLOWING ANALOGUE SYNTH WORKSTATION | LAUNCH YEAR: 2001 | LAUNCH PRICE: £2,599

MOOG VOYAGER

WHAT IS IT?: MINIMOOG RECREATION WITH 21ST CENTURY ADDITIONS | LAUNCH YEAR: 2002 | LAUNCH PRICE: £2,200

ROLAND V-SYNTH

WHAT IS IT?: EVERYTHING ROLAND, ALL IN ONE BOX | LAUNCH YEAR: 2003 | LAUNCH PRICE: £1,999

KORG MICROKORG

WHAT IS IT?: THE BEST-SELLING PORTABLE SYNTH EVER | LAUNCH YEAR: 2003 | LAUNCH PRICE: £399

ELEKTRON MONOMACHINE

WHAT IS IT?: SYNTHESISER AND SEQUENCER WITH ATTITUDE | LAUNCH YEAR: 2004 | LAUNCH PRICE: SFX-6 KEYBOARD: €1,950, 60 MODULE: €1,350

NI MASCHINE

WHAT IS IT?: MPC-INSPIRED MIDI CONTROLLER FOR PAIRED WITH NI’S BEATMAKING SOFTWARE | LAUNCH YEAR: 2009 | LAUNCH PRICE: £515

KORG MINILOGUE

WHAT IS IT?: FOUR-VOICE ANALOGUE POLYSYNTH | LAUNCH YEAR: 2016 | LAUNCH PRICE: £435

ELEKTRON DIGITAKT

WHAT IS IT?: SAMPLER AND SEQUENCER | LAUNCH YEAR: 2017 | LAUNCH PRICE: £659

ROLAND TR-8S

WHAT IS IT?: DRUM MACHINE BASED ON VIRTUAL ANALOGUE, SAMPLE AND FM ENGINES | LAUNCH YEAR: 2018 | LAUNCH PRICE: £609

MOOG DFAM

WHAT IS IT?: SEMI-MODULAR PERCUSSION SYNTH | LAUNCH YEAR: 2018 | LAUNCH PRICE: £549

30 CLASSIC RECORDS…

[ And how they were made ]

MURA MASA

Grammy-winning Alex Crossan has worked with some of the most exciting names in pop, rock and hip-hop. But, as he tells Matt Mullen, he still places creativity over technical ability

SKUDGE

Techno purist Elias Landberg’s fourth Skudge album displays a master craftsman at work. Danny Turner dives in

PANDA BEAR & SONIC BOOM

For Reset, long-time friends Panda Bear and Sonic Boom stare down global unease through the medium of samples. Danny Turner found out more

NILS FRAHM

As the German composer and producer returns with a new three-hour opus, he tells Matt Mullen how his gear choices have shaped his genre-hopping sound

Roland Juno-X £1,719

Roland’s long-awaited Juno for the 21st century is finally here – but is it a worthy successor to the much loved original? Dave Clews finds out

Focusrite Vocaster Two Studio £469

Everything you need to start podcasting, but is it everything you want? Simon Fellows finds out

Sebsongs Euclidean £138

Rob Redman gets polyrhythmic with this riff on the popular DIY module by Music Thing Modular

Joué Play Pro Option from €295

Martin Delaney gets playful with this advanced, but organic, approachable, controller for the Joué app (and beyond)

Spitfire Audio – POLARIS £299

> Polaris is a collaboration with electronic music

Thick Sounds – Timeless Jungle £29.95

>An amazing rinse-out round of loops, samples, MIDI,

Full Bucket Frequency Shifter 2

> If you’re a fan of free plugins,

Akai MPC One €639

Akai’s MPC One was introduced back in 2020 and quickly made heads turn. How has it changed since its release? Leo Maymind dives in…