The Lost Tapes Vol.2 Review

In this review we take a look at Freshtone’s latest labour of love – The Lost Tapes Vol.2 is a riff-tastic pack.

Manufacturer Freshtone
Price £44.95 (download)
Contact +44(0)1837 55200
Web Time & Space

Freshtone Samples are a company you would hardly call prolific, but when you consider the nature and quality of its releases then all if forgiven.

This pack is downloadable as 3.52GB, and contains both 24-bit Acid WAV and REX2 formats. It’s an authentic funk and soul history trip to some time between 1967 and 1973, with live drums, percussion, bass, guitar and brass recorded with an array of vintage equipment.

There are 40 compositions, presented as full jams with between two and four variations, cut down jams, and individual instrument loops. The jams are fully written pieces, so will be more useful for singer/songwriters, media composers looking for quick solutions, and producers interested in doing some hip hop-style sample chopping. Of more use are the individual loops, which act as a treasure trove of song-starting riffs, and track thickening grooves.

Everything here has a crunchy vintage sound, from the saturated bass and compressed drums, to the spring reverb laden guitars, and the deep and funky keys often sit at the perfect point where they just start to break up and saturate. New to vol.2 is the addition of a brass section with muted trumpets, lively ensembles, sax solos and more, which adds a nice dimension to the sound.

After listening to so many over compressed electronic packs, it makes a nice change to hear something subtle and dripping with character. Once again, this is a beautifully-recorded and mixed collection that is stacked with useful and inspiring riffs.