Sounds & Samples

>With a string of iconic albums under his belt, Butch Vig needs little introduction when it comes to production chops, but he is particularly known for his approach to exploring and creating contemporary rock and hybrid electronic drum tones. On the simply-named ‘Butch Vig Drums’ for Native Instruments’ Kontakt you’ll find a distillation of these in the 21 kits, each made up of 16 one-shot samples. Each kit collection comes with 16 drum patterns and pre-configured effects, and the grooves can be dragged into your DAW as a MIDI pattern for further tweaking. Hits are arranged in a colour-coded 4x4 drum grid optimised for playback on MPC-style drum pads, and editing of each, whilst relatively basic, is clear and effective.

Each sound gets its own insert effects, with further insert and send effects available globally. Accessing these is further enhanced with configurable macro controls for making real-time adjustments to multiple parameters simultaneously direct from the main window. One downside for those using a keyboard to trigger the sounds is that there is little reference to GM-style mapping, which will sometimes require subverting that ingrained finger drum muscle memory.

There are some great kits here, and real scope for creating your own by combining and tweaking the 468 available sounds. All of the drum hits in this well-designed instrument sound punchy and track-ready, and would suit a wide range of modern styles.

VERDICT 9.0

One of the baddest DJ/producers on the scene makes his welcome debut to the LM Artist Series, and he comes out swinging!

Fans of the revered house head will be well up on his signature sound – classy as hell and deep as funk. And he brings his near three decades of production knowhow and flair to this super solid sample selection.

The 1GB+ pack is rammed to the gills with kit, old and new. Fender Rhodes licks ride high over Juno and Roland synth stabs, filtered arpeggios, pads, and melody loops, while steady drum programming and 808 kicks anchor the lot with a stalwart dancefloor groove, guaranteed to inspire and delight. Like the man himself, it’s a real original.

VERDICT 9.0