Making Angel’s instruments

Laura uses a couple of Logic’s built-in instruments and some top-class processors to create Angel’s tropical house feel

01 > The track’s main hook is a kalimba riff created with Logic’s physical modelling synth Sculpture. “I quite like the Mallet Instrument percussion sounds,” begins Laura. “This one was ‘Big Kalimba’ and I just fucked around with it a bit.”

02 > To fine-tune the kalimba, Laura uses a selection of FX plugins: “I put Soundtoys FilterFreak on the setting called Radio Tuner, which just makes it thinner, but that’s quite subtle. Then put a bit of Logic’s Bitcrusher on the end, which just makes it a bit brighter and more interesting-sounding.”

03 > Logic’s Amp Designer is used to rough sounds up. “The kalimba has a send on it that goes to a guitar amp. I always use the Boutique Retro reverb, but I always turn the treble way down or it really destroys your ears!”

04 > Another synth part was made in Logic’s Retro Synth. “It’s got a bit of glide on it, I love fucking about with a bit of glide on the synths – it just makes it sound a bit wonkier. I’ve also added a bit of chorus.”

05 Retro Synth is processed too: “I’ve EQed it, taking out a lot of the bottom end out and brightening it up a little bit,” Laura reveals. “Then I’ve got my FilterFreak on there again, which widens and saturates it a bit… Stereo Spread to widen it even more, and finally there’s a bit of EchoBoy set to a half-note delay just to give it that weirdness.”