Once I’d heard ‘Are Friends’ Electric?” by Tubeway Army, I knew synthesizers would be a huge part of my life. Despite drums becoming my main instrument for many years, I dabbled and lusted after countless pieces of gear and started using computers to help me make my own music with a Commodore 64 and a copy of Electrosound.
Over the years, I eventually progressed to more professional tools and began to truly indulge my love of electronic music making, slowly building a collection of gear that covered most synthesis methods, from sampling to physical modelling and beyond. However, my love of the gear that soundtracked my formative years was strong and I was fortunate enough to be asked to work with the inventor of the Fairlight CMI on their more recent projects. This then led to me restoring Fairlight CMI’s, something I still do to this day.
My home studio is now filled with classic vintage gear of the 80s and 90s, as well as modern classics. In recent years, I have been producing podcasts for Sound On Sound, as well as writing articles for them and I also present a weekly live stream for the Pro Synth Network. I still drum, albeit now on e-Drum kits, which are far easier to move around and a lot quieter when practising! You can often find me delivering seminars & lectures and at various synth shows around the world, talking about and demonstrating iconic synths.
GForce Software continue updating their classic synth titles, this time turning their attention to the Minimonsta with Minimonsta 2.
Korg add a kit version of their outstanding ARP Odyssey FS reissue, allowing users to assemble their own version of this analogue classic.
Behringer have teased a new prototype via their Facebook page this afternoon, the JT-2, a single voice unit in a Eurorack form factor
In surprise news, a newly revived muSonics claims that they have "acquired" STG Soundlabs and released a new, revised 902 VCA Module!
With a long tradition of limited versions of their hardware synth in black, the Arturia PolyBrute Noir Edition now joins this exclusive club.
Buchla, famous for doing things in their own style, have now made the third iteration of that classic Music Easel keyboard design, the LEM218v3
The Mystic is a new device from Recovery, who are known for their quirky, yet interesting approach to sound generation and effects.
Following the release of their Analog Polysynth Collection, Roland have released the Drum Machine Collection featuring 5 classic rhythm boxes
Arturia update their impressive polychrome soft synth, Pigments, to version 4. How have Arturia improved on this highly regarded instrument?
Korg's modwave native, the plugin version of the modwave synth is released in time for Christmas! It's accompanied by hardware updates too!
Now updated to KORG Collection 4 with three new plugins from the early part of this century; the microKORG, ELECTRIBE R and the KAOSS Pad.
After a teaser video that left little in any doubt that Cherry Audio were working on a CS-80 emulation, they have surprised many by announcing GX-80.
The Sonicware LIVEN Lofi-12 features a retro sampling engine for that authentic low bit and sample rate sampling in a feature packed box
Sequential announced today their first new instrument since the passing of their founder, Dave Smith, the Trigon 6 Polyphonic Synthesizer.
Not content with reintroducing string synths to a 21st century audience, Waldorf now deliver the Streichfett String Synthesizer in plug in form.
Kodamo MASK1: The long-awaited synth from Kodamo, uses their innovative "bit masking synthesis" architecture. A new paradigm in digital synthesis?
GForce Software's Oddity 3 gets a big update. Two decades on, is it still as definitive as its predecessors? We take the latest version for a spin...