Darkware VST's

I have been looking for a pitch shift vst to use on a live incoming audio application, so I hit KVR up and stumbled one this,  Darkware.  It appears the fascination with anime porn has spread farther than I anticipated, cause this dude puts naked anime chicks on his vst skins.  Some of the shit look pretty strange (it seems to be a home for cheap and quick glitch/IDM/wanker sounds, since the word "glitch" is used in a handful of the titles), but some got drawed on titties on the GUI.  I know Broken Fader as a rule is usually a go on drawn titties and music in combo, but this ventures into geeker shit that I can't nor would want to comprehend.

and I quote from the site- "World's first hentai GUI'd VST"

I downloaded the pitchslap and got out of Dodge.

Drum Synths

Image Line (yeah, the company that makes Fruity Loops, or FL Studio as it's called now) have a new drum synth that's in public beta now: Drum Matrix Public Beta. It uses physical modeling for the sound engine, and it sounds remarkably good. It uses the same model for everything from bass drums to cymbals, but it does a good job of making a whole range of sounds. The sounds it makes are more "electronic" sounding than realistic, but I like that.

In the beta version, you get a nag screen every now and then, and using multiple outputs doesn't seem to work. It has an eight-band fixed-frequency EQ on the output section, which I think is a great idea for a drum synth. It advertises the ability to use separate outputs for each sound, but this doesn't seem to work in the beta. Hopefully in the release version, there will be a separate EQ for each output, instead of just applying it to the mains.

Audio Damage has also released a new drum synth, called Tattoo, that is more focused on xOx type sounds. In contrast to Drum Matrix, each type of sound (kick, snare, hat, etc.) has its own set of synthesis parameters. The built-in step sequencer on Tattoo is also a lot more sophiticated: each parameter for each sound gets its own dedicated modulation sequencer with a randomization options.

One feature I think is a great idea is that you can run Tattoo's sequencer via "note sync" where it's clocked to midi note messages. That way, if you have some kind of groove pattern in your host sequencer, you can have Tattoo match the rhythm but still use the built-in modulation sequencers and drum-machine style pattern editing.

I haven't used Tattoo, but the audio demos are impressive and Audio Damage puts out consistently quality stuff at more than reasonable prices.

I've been using Logic's Ultrabeat for sequencing beats a lot lately, and I've come to like that style of sequencing beats a lot more than pushing blocks around on a piano roll. FLStudio, and now the new version of Sonar have integrated step sequencers. I think plug-ins like Drum Matrix and Tattoo, as well as stuff like Numerology (an awesome, modular, MIDI step-sequencing environment) are part of a come-back of this type of sequencing. I think Ableton helped show that novel approaches to sequencing can really change the way people work and make writing more fun, and I hope we'll continue to see extensions of that.

Quick link - 23 free AU plugins

here

Plugit, STEP IT UP HONKY

Our posting frequency is dwindling. Call to arms, motherfuckers.

Right now SonicCouture, this company that does mostly weird sampled instruments, is having a two-for-1 sale. Plus with any purchase you get their 303 plugin. Not bad to get 3 plugs for $80. I'm seriously considering this one. Because I really love pads (maybe everyone knew that already). And that shit sounds ridiculously awesome (listen to the samples). The main dude who's still actually doing this with an ensemble, Stephen Scott, is coincidentally from Corvallis (where Oregon State University is seated). They also have a glass instrument collection with an instrument that samples a homemade version of Harry Partch's cloud chamber bowls, and 3 different-priced versions of Gamelan instruments. Brian. To get the deal you have to enter a promo code: SCXMAS09.

OhmForce just made another of their plugins, a synth, freeware. Go cop that shit. Looks to be far more useful than Frohmage, which has its place, but that place is somewhere inside a hooker's asscrack after the champagne has dried but before the condom gets stuck.

I also have been fucking around with Sonalksis plugins lately. Pretty sweet, especially this guy. It's one of those plugins (like Waves' RComp) that when in doubt, you can throw as an insert pretty much anywhere, and you've got to struggle to come up with (subtle) settings that make something sound worse.



I also have been testing out the tips in this SOS article for working in Live, and it's re-energized my workflow to some extent, or at least, it makes me feel like I'm getting results faster when trying to come up with arrangements or pattern variations. I figure you can always line up some pattern changes with the beatbox method they mention to legato-switch between clips, then dump all the MIDI to another track as a clip and edit it, to help fine-tune those moments where the pattern change doesn't meld quite so well (e.g., two identical hits on either side of a pattern change). Gunna try that tonight and see how well it works. The group tracks stuff and added native devices in Live 8 are definitely worth it, if anyone's on the fence about upgrading.

Glitch babies - leave some tips on working better, faster? I think we could all agree that we should be making more music faster, while not compromising the quality. My latest one is just printing shit and not caring so much. You can save versions pre-print, of course, but just fucking bouncing it down usually helps you make decisions faster and not labor over every goddamn detail (which you can always do later, after inspiration leaves you and you feel like reorganizing something).