Innehållsförteckning för February 2024 från Future Music

Warp Records, 1993 Windsor, Ontario. August ’92. The dead of night (his favourite time to create). The lone figure of Richie Hawtin bounces maniacally from machine to buzzing machine in his studio. Already locked into a 30+ minute jam of rhythmical acid techno, he’s lost in the music. Part man, part Wavestation. At once, an unholy peal of thunder strikes (with a lovely attack and some nice reverb, to be fair). His ‘lab’, under the kitchen in his folks’ home, shakes, killing the lights. The once blinking banks of humming hardware are deathly silent in the now pitch-black room. “It was this crazy lightning storm,” says Hawtin, instantly transported back some 30 years. “And, at that point all my equipment kind of glowed, and then shut down.” 1.21 gigawatts of…

CONTACT WHO: Polyend WEB: polyend.com KEY FEATURES 16-track sample and synth-based groove box. Multichannel audio over USB. Physical upgrade from original version of Play is available. Four synthesiser types included: ACD for monophonic analogue, FAT for polyphonic analogue, VAP for virtual analogue, and WTFM, a 2-operator FM synth. SPECIAL PRICE FOR POLYEND PLAY OWNERS: €399 (normal price: €799) Polyend released the original Play groovebox in spring 2022, adding to its lineup of distinctive instruments, including the Medusa synth, and the Tracker. The Play featured 16 tracks of sample playback and sequencing, with 35 different sequence play modes, automation, pattern chaining, and audio effects. Now the Play+ brings an upgraded processor, stereo playback, multitimbral polyphonic synthesis, and USB audio. Interestingly, owners of the original Play can ship theirs back to…

CONTACT WHO: PreSonus WEB: presonus.com KEY FEATURES INPUT GAIN: -30dB-+6dB FREQ RESPONSE: 30Hz-200Hz CONTROLS: low-pass filter (50Hz-30Hz), high-pass filter (80Hz), polarity invert switch PEAK SPL: 100dB @ 1m INPUTS: balanced ¼” TRS, unbalanced phono OUTPUTS: balanced ¼” TRS, unbalanced phono DIMENSIONS: 250 x 335 x 315mm WEIGHT: 5.4kg The PreSonus Eris monitor range includes everything from compact multimedia-style desktops right up to larger midfields and subwoofers. The range has now been updated and on the test bench we have the new Sub 8BT. This is a compact front-firing and front-ported subwoofer that combines an 8” paper-composite LF driver with Class AB power amplification (50 Watts RMS), and also includes passthrough connectivity for satellite speakers and plenty of setup controls. As you may have gathered from the name, the Sub 8BT…

CONTACT WHO: ASUS WEB: asus.com KEY FEATURES Intel Core i9 13900H 14 Core-Processor, 32GB RAM, 2TB SSD, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 8GB, 14.5” 2.8K 120 Hz OLED screen w/2nd display, 1x USB 3 Type-A, 2x Thunderbolt 4, 1x HDMI,1x 3.5mm jack, Micro SD reader DIMENSIONS: 323.5 x 224.7 x 179 ~ 196mm WEIGHT: 1.75 kg How often do you find yourself creating music on the go only to be hamstrung by a lack of screen real estate, wishing you were sat with that big second monitor? I’m sure, like us, many of you have often pondered splashing the cash for a second mobile monitor but stopped short at the realisation of how inconvenient wielding two screens on a train would be. So when we spotted that renowned laptop manufacturer, ASUS,…

> Suffering succotash! Time to peruse a curious cavalcade of comedy cartoon sound effects. And, with this little lot, you could soundtrack an entire season of Looney Tunes. There’s monster-sized thwacks, deranged ba-doings, chaotic crashes and ten-car pile-up smashes to tickle you – basically, any zany thing you can dream up, you’ll find a highly entertaining sound to perfectly match it. Including that one you need when tiny cartoon birds flay around a man’s head after getting bonked on the noggin with a comically large sledgehammer (you know the one). Looking for daffy, laffy, large, and lively noises for your bonkers beats? Don’t worry, Doc. You got more than enough here to make Bugs himself bug out, and the Road Runner go, “Meep! Meep!”. Roy Spencer loopmasters.com VERDICT 7.0…

>Looking for some G-Funk vibes for the whip? Cool. Hit the three-wheel motion, blaze that sticky icky, and pump up the stereo – it’s time to cruise. The near 300-strong batch of samples in this set all come with a certified West Coast bounce factor. Strong enough to give Snoopy Snoopy Dog Dog’s neck-bone a work out. You get melodic, tape-warmed chords and pads, slow jam drums and hat programming. And some cool keys and other marvellously musical loops to throw up what ever hand signs you and your crew made up that day. It’s a mellow, laid-back ride, with clean claps and hits to keep that beat rocking from Friday night at the strip, to Sunday morn at the cook out. Roy Spencer splice.com VERDICT 8.0…

NEW ENTRY Teenage Engineering EP-133 K.O.II £299 Full Review: FM405 | The K.O.II isn’t the most advanced sampler on the market by any stretch, but there’s a lot of fun to be had within its limitations. Polyend Play+ $799 Full Review: FM405 The ‘Plus’ builds on the capabilities of the original Play by adding some neat synth engines alongside its sample tracks, enhancing the usability considerably. Elektron Syntakt £849 Full Review: FM392 Building on the successes of multiple other Elektron instruments, Syntakt is a top quality analogue-meets-digital groovebox with a lot of power under the hood. Roland SH-4d £549 Review: FM394 Roland have released a lot of retro-inspired gear in recent years, but this synth/ drum combo is a real sonic playground. Novation Circuit Tracks £360 Review: FM369 Circuit Tracks…

>If there’s one part of the frequency range that Moog has been synonymous with down the years, it’s bass, so it seems entirely fitting that the company is launching a new soft synth that’s devoted to low-end tones. Known as Mariana – it goes deep, presumably – this takes inspiration from Moog synths of the past (the likes of the Minimoog, Taurus, Sub Phatty and Minitaur) while also promising to bring something new to the party. IT TAKES INSPIRATION FROM MOOG SYNTHS OF THE PAST BUT ALSO BRINGS SOMETHING NEW TO THE PARTY Mariana is a dual-layer synth; layers can either be stacked together or played duophonically, and each layer offers two oscillators and a sub-oscillator. There are two classic Moog resonant filters, along with a third one that’s designed…

Throughout their 30-year career, Baltimorebased experimental electronic music couple Matmos have gained notoriety for their unconventional use of sampling. Across 14 albums, dating back to their 1997 self-titled debut, M.C. Schmidt and Drew Daniel have, amongst other things, recorded the sounds of surgical procedures, washing machines and freshly cut hair to create various forms of melodic techno, glitch, IDM and post-industrial music. For their latest album, Return to Archive, the duo was commissioned by the Smithsonian Folkways record label to record an album in honour of its 75th anniversary. Founded in 1948 by Moses Asch, Folkway’s self-proclaimed mandate was to record the sounds of the entire world and commit them to vinyl. Thus, in their typically unique way, Matmos re-contextualise the sound of American frogs, larynxes, satellites, junk yards and…

FM last spoke with Karl Bartos some 10 years ago for the release of his wonderful trawl through his own musical archives, Off The Record. For those of us of a certain age, Kraftwerk were arguably the gateway drug when it came to all of the electronic music that followed. Bartos was a pivotal member of the ground-breaking German band for 15 years, contributing to what are considered all of their classic albums until leaving in 1990, frustrated at the band’s prolonged creative stasis. His recent autobiography The Sound of the Machine: My Life in Kraftwerk and Beyond is essential reading. Post-Kraftwerk, Bartos formed Elektric Music, releasing two albums before collaborating with Bernard Sumner and Johnny Marr on their Electronic project as well as also working with OMD’s Andy McCluskey.…

CONTACT WHO: Endorphin.es WEB: Endorphin.es KEY FEATURES Compressor, EQ and stereo enhancer in one, Mute controls, 6HP and 30mm deep Many modular synth users have a mixer in their rig, allowing them to balance levels of the various parts of their patches but there are limits to what can be achieved. To really glue all the parts of a mix together, some mastering is best and Endorphin.es has come up with a spectacular solution in the form of the Golden Master (also available as a guitarpedal-style stompbox). The diminutive 6hp module is well made and looks classy with its black and gold livery, like the rest of the range. It’s 30mm deep so will fit in all but the very shallowest of skiffs. The layout is simple, although its capabilities…

CONTACT WHO: Native Instruments WEB: native-instruments.com KEY FEATURES Kontakt integration, OS now built into hardware rather than relying on Komplete Kontrol software I/O: Buspowered USB-C; USB MIDI; 4 x assignable TRS pedal inputs; MIDI in and out DIMENSIONS: 86 x 967 x 323mm WEIGHT: 6kg Six years on from its previous version, and the ‘Komplete Kontrol’ keyboard range is now updated and renamed, with an expanded set of features. The Kontrol Mk3 brings a new, more robust spin on the keyboard’s chassis, and an interesting new look, right on down to the level of typography. The lightguides are crisper and bolder. Getting hands-on, the feel of the buttons remains mostly the same from the Mk2, while the knobs and wheels have been replaced with anodised aluminium versions. Let’s not forget…

Of all the various studio processors, delay is one of the most widely used. From a thickening vocal slapback to an echoey synth line, you’d be hard-pressed to find a modern record that doesn’t feature delay or repeating treatments. A delay device stores an incoming signal in its buffer, then plays back a repeat of that stored signal after a predetermined interval. The first delay units were initially designed to emulate the echoes heard in everyday life, and were famously used to create the short ‘slapback’ guitar effect that defined the rockabilly sound in the ’50s. Delay vs reverb  Whereas reverb effects use multiple short delay lines to replicate acoustic reflections in a physical space, a delay device stores the input signal in a buffer, then repeats it after an…

Initially influenced by the likes of experimental hip-hop artists such as cLOUDDEAD and Odd Nosdam, Rob McAndrews had already began producing prior to being invited to play guitar as a touring musician for childhood friend James Blake. Quick to find his own unique sound palette, McAndrews’ brooding debut album For Years (2013) had an analgesic yet idiosyncratic quality, rich with discordant acoustic guitars and edgy hip-hop beats. Fast-forward eight years and little had been heard from McAndrews, save for a few singles and EPs, and 2021’s otherworldly acoustic-electronic LP And a Bit of Hope. However, Airhead’s third LP Lightness charts a distinctive yet no less inventive course. Studying the techniques of numerous American jazz guitar greats, McAndrews discovers ingenious ways to process the instrument, combining tightly packed chord fragments with…

CONTACT WHO: Kali Audio WEB: kaliaudio.com KEY FEATURES Bass unit with two satellite tweeters. AMP CLASS: D, MID/HIGH RANGE POWER PER CHANNEL: 60W (continuous), LOW RANGE POWER PER CHANNEL: 100W (continuous), HIGH FREQUENCY DRIVER: 1-inch textile dome tweeter, MIDRANGE DRIVER: 4-inch optimised profile paper LOW FREQUENCY DRIVER 4.5-inch high excursion   The largest music production studio in the known universe is the 4,023m² Merwas complex in Saudi Arabia. In my own home studio there’s barely room enough to swing a cat. Not that our tom Apollo has been doing much swinging since the vet recently brought his fun to an abrupt end recently. For what it’s worth. Kali Audio’s IN-UNF monitoring system is unlikely to bring comfort to poor Apollo but if, like me, you work in a small…

>The mighty Booom Hornz crew hit the studio and lay down some of the warmest sax sounds we’ve heard in a while. Inspired by the vintage polish and pressure of classic ’70s reggae productions, you get a bright and brassy selection of the tones that made the music of Marley sound so sweet. Amongst the ten well-stocked folders you’ll find fine blasts of trumpet, tenor saxophone, and trombone to consider, with layered and solo lines to choose from. The truly authentic playing comes in riffs, stacks, hits and leads. And, dry and wet versions are included, with a great chain of FX added to the processed takes. Crucial stuff, if you need a sun splash of skanking horns for your next dub, reggae, trip-hop, or downtempo beat. Roy Spencer…

>Ozzie disco don, Jafunk, has the ’70s dancefloor dynamite ready to blow on this one. Taking cues from the Studio 54 era, he’s packed in all the beats and boogie business that would pack the club in those halcyon days. Enlisting some help from a gang of his muso chums, he’s gone in on the style that made those kids go wild. There’s bouncy bottom end and vintage basslines. Live as hell drums, bongos, congas, shakers, and percussion. As well as magic dust FX and lasers that will light up any disco ball. Also, as part of the deal, he’s thrown in MIDI bits and some bitchin’ Sylenth1 presets to thicken your sound. So, slick back that hair, open that collar, and strut, baby. Roy Spencer splice.com VERDICT 8.0…