Deep and Raw Techno Review

Techno is a genre that has undergone many subtle shifts over the years, from its industrial-sounding beginnings to the deeper and more cerebral sounds of modern techno.

Manufacturer Loopmasters
Price £29.95 (download)
Contact info@loopmasters.com
Web www.loopmasters.com

Techno is a genre that has undergone many subtle shifts over the years, from its industrial-sounding beginnings to the deeper and more cerebral sounds of modern techno. This new pack from Loopmasters sees long-time contributor and MT favourite Andy Lee take the helm once again, with a collection of gritty beats, haunting synths and deep basses inspired by labels such as AUS and Hotflush.

The pack is available in the usual formats, and contains 376 loops and 63 sampler patches, with tempos ranging from 120 to 130bpm. A variety of classic and modern hardware instruments were used to craft each sound, with further processing applied via high-spec outboard gear. It’s clear a lot of attention has gone in to the overall finish of the pack, as there is a very consistent and warm sound throughout. On the loop side, the basses are big and rounded, with plenty of low-mid energy but filtered down tops to allow space for other elements. Lee is also not afraid of using reverb to add a sense of space and character, but used carefully so as not to muddy up the sub frequencies. The synths have a similar powerful, but warm sound with a mixture of deeper washes and more stabby and sinister chord riffs, whilst the drums feature heavily-driven kicks, minimal-style snares and hats, and frantic, percussion-laden tops.
Our only criticism is that the drums aren’t really broken down enough into smaller, usable layers, and there’s not a great deal of variety in the overall sounds on offer.

Arguably the highlight of the pack, however, is the superb collection of fat-sounding drum hits, which includes additional folders of distorted kicks; low, atmospheric rumbles; and vinyl percussion sounds. You’ll also find plenty of solid bass and chord hits, with good use of short delays to give movement, character and life. Finally, there is a small handful of decent FX hits, although we would have liked to see a few longer riser-style FX for build-up sections.

Lack of variety aside, this is an excellent pack of usable sounds and loops, with a warm and punchy, club-ready finish.