Output

Sounds &Samples | Reviews
103
Looptone LackofAfro
HeistThemes |£29.95
www.loopmasters.com
Bank joband heist
movie soundtracks
have always been a
fertile ground for
diggers to pull
samples from. To
match the rollercoaster moods of such
icks, arrangers brought in tough brass
sections and bongo maestros for the epic
chase scenes, and plaintive string and
moody rhythm sections for moments of
cinematic suspenseand character
contemplation. It all made for funky
grooves that hip-hop and breaksheads
could loop up and make their own. Lack
of Afro (aka Adam Gibbons) is clearly a
big fan of the genre, and he’smorethan
adept at putting his own spin on it,whilst
giving anod to pastmasters like Lalo
Schifrinand John Gregory along the way.
Over11complete song kitsheand his
merry band of live musicians score what
would be abold and brassy movie,wereit
to exist. Bubbling Rhodes riffs, waspy
Moogs, double basslicks and more get
proper workouts under his watchful eyeas
he manages to capture aperfect balance
of mood,tension, groove,exhilaration.
RoySpencer
 9
LoopmastersSacredIndian
Chants |£29.95
www.loopmasters.com
Time to take achillpill
and get that chi
centralised with this
pack of spiritualised
chants and vocals.
RecordedinChennai,
the capital of theIndianstateofTamil
Nadu, with someofthe region’s nest
voices, this unique pack captures asolo and
ensembleperformances that will giveyour
goose bumps goose bumps. With 297
individual dry and processed les,across
2.48GB of content, you get afair brimful
of vocals for your Rupee. And amongst the
mellow loopsare amyriadmantras, plenty
of prayers, assorted hums andomms, and
other sacred-sounding sing-songs to slot
nicely into your more laid-back beats, or
deeper House excursions. Roy Spencer
 8
Splice Sounds StéLouse
Sample Pack 2 |$7.99/mo
splice.com
StéLouse(pronounced
“stay loose”) is back
with anotherdeft slice
of slick samples.
Volume one of this
series was straight-up
Future Bass, with acalibreofdope
one-shots, synth racks, loops and Massive
and Serum presets. Volume twosees
StéLouse digging on his Rock past (he
wailed an electric guitarinaband before
all this), so youget far more growling bass
and heavy drums lls this time around.
There’sahundredoriginal drum and synth
loops, one-shots and presets to playwith
here, and as abonus, he’seven included
three of his ownpersonal Ableton
processing racks to helpyour own
productions stay loose. In short, the
longhaired Denver native keeps the
momentum of volume one up and running
and, as suiting an ex-rocker,turns the
volume up to 11 on this one. RoySpencer
 9
Splice SoundsSynthwave
MassivePresets |$7.99 /mo
splice.com
It’stime to putdown
that Rubik’scube and
roll up them jacket
sleeves, as the Splice
Sounds squad gets all
retro on yourass. For
theirlatest pack of Massive presets they’ve
gone back to the timethatfashion may
have forgotten but synth lovers everywhere
remember fondly: the’80s. It wasa
pioneering decade for analoguegear,and
they’ve lovingly recreatedsome iconic
sounds for you to get to grips with.
Sonically,the choice is varied and the
qualityhigh, and with Massive’sbuilt-in
macros,you’ll be tweaking and twiddling
until the cows comehome. Roy Spencer
 9
SampleMagic
LA Sessions |£34.90
www.samplemagic.com
With asunny
disposition and full of
seriously richpad work
and soul-stirring chord
progressions,LA
Sessions’sounds are,
for the most part, Tropical, with asplash
of Disco. Everything is key- and
tempo-labelled at 124BPM, with bonus
MIDI l
es wh
ere
poss
ible.
Lusci
ous
melodiesabound, and super-clean clicks,
claps and drum hits join them, just
waiting tobesprinkled over the top.
The piano work is ajoy,and the bass
crate is full of riffsyou’ll be coming back
to againand again. Themildly cheesy
Baker Street-esque saxworkoutsdon’t
even sour this delightful pack of inspired,
and inspirational,samples.Bring on the
summer! RoySpencer
 8
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