Composing - The Home Recording Studio

31Oct 2024 by Jon No Comments

Free Lofi Essentials Sample Pack

To celebrate the launch of my new website, Tangerine Sounds, I'm giving away a FREE, yes FREE Lofi Essentials Sample pack! The FREE sample pack contains all the essential ingredients for any Lofi music producer, including drum loops, one shots, percussion, guitar, keys, vocals and more. Go check it out at: Tangerine Sounds You can find out more about Tangerine Sounds and my new Lofi Keys sample pack: Here More from the Blog: Here

22Oct 2024 by Jon No Comments

Lofi Keys Sample & Midi Pack

Blog, Composing, Home Recording Blogs, Sound Design

I'm excited to announce the launch of my new website and my first Sample Pack: Lofi Keys Sample & Midi Pack. Tangerine Sounds tangerinesounds.com has now launched along with my first sample pack: Lofi Keys Check out the promotional video below:- Act now to take advantage of the Launch SALE prices for a limited time only. PLUS I have a SPECIAL DISCOUNT only for my email subscribers so make sure you sign up to my mailing list if you haven't already. The Lo-Fi Keys sample & midi pack is a collection of 50 amazing chord sequences inspired by jazz and soul, perfect for Lo-fi Hip Hop. Look no further for dusty, vintage keyboard and piano samples, processed with wobbly and saturated tape effects! Furthermore, the Premium version of the sample pack also incudes over 30…

17Oct 2023 by Jon

Can analogue synthesisers make drum sounds?

Blog, Composing, Home Recording Blogs, Sound Design, Sound Effects, Techniques

When it comes to making music, digital tools are popular for their convenience, but there's something special about analogue synthesisers. My journey with the Arturia Mini Brute, my first analogue synthesiser, has been a rediscovery of its unique charm and creative potential. But the question is: Can analogue synthesisers make drum sounds? Read on to find out more and claim for FREE Drum Samples. My First Analogue Synthesiser Purchased around five or six years ago, the Mini Brute stands in stark contrast to its modern counterparts. There are no LCD screens or presets as most of us are used to. It boasts a single main oscillator, a sub oscillator, and an LFO. It has a mixer for the different oscillator types, a filter envelope, and an amp envelope. The main…

27Sep 2023 by Jon

5 Best electric piano VST’s for producing lo-fi hip-hop

Blog, Composing, Home Recording Blogs, Recording, Recording & Mixing, Sound Effects, Techniques

Bedroom Music Studio Computer Music Equipment Lo-fi hip-hop is a genre of music that is characterized by its warm, mellow sound and its use of vintage and lo-fidelity samples. Electric pianos are a popular instrument in lo-fi hip-hop, as they can provide a rich and atmospheric sound that is perfect for the genre. In this post I'll discuss the 5 best electric piano VST's for Lo-fi Hip-Hop. Watch my latest video to hear 5 of the best VSTs for Lo-fi Hip-Hop. https://youtu.be/24xqw9ybE4g?si=VblGikEsBAH4qOnR If you are looking for the best electric piano virtual instruments for producing lo-fi hip-hop, here are a few of my recommendations: 1. Lounge Lizard.Lounge Lizard is a great sounding electric piano with both tine-based and reed-based presets. The tine-based are mainly Rhodes pianos and the reed-based are…

05Aug 2023 by Jon

Universal Audio PolyMAX Synth: Get It for Free

Blog, Composing, Home Recording Blogs, Mixing

Universal Audio are one of the leading developers of audio plugins and hardware. Their plugins are known for their high quality and authentic sound. Recently, Universal Audio have released some of their plug ins and instruments as native plug ins, including the PolyMAX Synth. So these will work with any audio interface and any DAW. In this blog post, we will take a look at UAD PolyMAX and show you how you can get it for free. What is Universal Audio PolyMAX Synth? PolyMAX is a vintage-inspired synth with fat analog tones from the golden age of poly-synthesis. PolyMAX is a subtractive synthesiser with two oscillators, a state-variable filter, and two envelopes. It also features a variety of modulation options, including FM, SYNC, and LFO. PolyMAX is inspired by classic…

14Sep 2022 by Jon

HOW TO PRODUCE HIGH-ENERGY HIP-HOP

Blog, Composing, Home Recording Blogs, Mixing, Stock Music, Techniques

In this video, I show you how to produce high-energy hip-hop. Watch as I break down one of my high-energy Hip-Hop tracks, showing you the sounds and techniques I use to produce this popular genre. https://youtu.be/cin_4NJPx1c When producing this type of track it's important to have the right references in mind. Consequently, this will help you meet the brief and stay within the genre. Here are some of the characteristics of High-Energy Hip-Hop:- Very much influenced by 90's Hip-HopLargely sample-basedVintage feelSoul and Funk samplesTempo between 90 and 100 BpmUse of spoken word samplesscratchingRepetition, contrasted with variation in samples and structure If you need inspiration check out artists such as DJ Shadow, Public Enemy, Fat Boy Slim, and De La Soul. More specifically, you can find inspiration from Audiojungle Author, Coffee…

06Sep 2022 by Jon

How to create 60 second edits like a pro

Blog, Composing, Home Recording Blogs, Stock Music, Techniques

Do you compose Stock Music or Production music? Then you need to create edits of your tracks. In this guide, I show you how to create 60 second edits like a pro! Why do I need to create edits? So, you've created your track and you want to upload it to Stock Music Libraries like Pond5 and Audiojungle. However, if you want to maximise your chances of selling, you need to create some edits. Here's why: Edits add value for the customerCustomers may need longer than the track you have created - this is why we make Loop editsCustomers need short, concise edits for certain mediums30 or 60 seconds is a common length for TV or Radio commercialsYou can sell edits as separate tracks (on certain libraries), increasing the potential…

18Apr 2022 by Jon

The Ultimate Lo-Fi Plugins?

Blog, Composing, Home Recording Blogs, Recording & Mixing, Techniques

Are these the ultimate Lo-Fi plugins? Introduction In this post I take a look at Vulf Compressor and Tupe by Goodhertz and ask the question: are these the ultimate lo-fi plugins? Whether you make lo-fi hip hop, chill-wave or vaporware there are a growing number of lo-fi tools. Tape emulations, vinyl emulation and vintage compression, for instance. Some of my personal favourites include:- Waves J37 & Lo-fi SpaceChow DSP Chow TapeArturia Tape Mello-fiCaelum Audio Flux Mini and Tape Cassette,Klevgrand DAW CassetteYum Audio Lo-fi Pitch Dropout I've had good results with these tools (many of them are free) but I have often wondered if there are better options. Read on to find out more, including a secret 50% discount! Goodhertz? I have heard good things about Goodhertz plugins for quite some…

24Mar 2022 by Jon

FREE Cinematic Piano by Heavyocity

Blog, Composing, Home Recording Blogs, Sound Design

Free Cinematic Piano This week, Heavyocity announced the release of a free cinematic piano. The piano is the first instrument from Heavyocity's 'Foundations' range and works with the free Kontakt Player. In this video, I give the new instrument a full test and demonstration. https://youtu.be/wBJi9OB-fZY Heavyocity Foundations - Free Cinematic Piano Demo Heavyocity Foundations Piano If you are familiar with Heavyocity you'll know they offer a fantastic range of high quality orchestral, cinematic and hybrid instruments. Personally, I love their range of percussion instruments and own the epic 'Ensemble Drums' collection. The Foundations Piano didn't disappoint me. The interface allows you to blend the soft dynamics of a grand piano with an expertly crafted sound design layer. The instrument is highly customisable although the presets provide a great starting point.…

26Feb 2022 by Jon

Novation Launchkey 37 Mk3 Keyboard review

Blog, Composing, Home Recording Blogs

Looking for a midi controller keyboard? Watch my video: the Novation Launchkey 37 Mk3 Keyboard review. The latest piece of gear in the home recording studio is the Novation Luanchkey 37 Mk3 midi controller keyboard. It's a small keyboard but unusual in that it sits between the usual 25 key or 49 key models. It's rare to find a midi keyboard with 37 full-size keys. Up to now I have been using a 25 key controller keyboard. However, there are times when I find that I need at least another octave of keys. My desk is pretty small, so a 49 key controller would be a bit too big. 37 full size keys seemed like the best option for me. But don't let the size fool you! Novation have done…