Reviews
Review: Winter Tech loop pack by Function Loops
Winter Tech is a collection of 200 loops and single shot samples aiming at the tech house crowd. There are drum/percussion, bass, and synth loops to explore, plus 50 drum hits for those who like to construct their own sequences in their DAWs of choice or with hardware drum machines.
The first thing to point out is that, overall, the quality of the recordings is great. This quality can serve as a helpful benchmark for producers looking to improve their mixes and get to a professional level. The loops themselves have a lot to offer in terms of inspiration, as well; they have a somewhat dark, metallic feel to them, like recordings of the movements of a vast machine twitching away in a frigid factory, not uncommon for the tech house vibe.
Let’s break the pack down into its subcomponents and take a look at each one.
Drum single shots
In particular, the kick, the snares and the claps sound excellent, very thick and meaty. The kicks have a nice level of sub bass to them that make them perfect for that entrancing deep tech house feeling. The snares bang hard, and are hits that have commonly been heard in dubstep and modern drumnbass subgenres like darkstep and neurofunk. The claps have some nice low- and mid-end punch that would sound right at home in trap and modern hip hop beats. These sounds can all be used in a variety of settings, making them an invaluable addition to your sample stash.
Synth loops
To me, this is where Winter Tech really shines. There are some creatively-tweaked sounds going on in here, from moody, atmospheric chords to danceable riffs guaranteed to help producers give some depth and flavor to their tracks. There’s some distortion that makes these loops grimy and noisy – in a really good way – which can add a dimension of snarl to any project. Best of all, these loops are applicable to any genre, and are likely to keep producers entertained and inspired for a long time.
Bass loops
The drive bass has some interesting rhythm patterns, but overall I was a little disappointed with the lack of variety in the types of bass sounds available. Granted, bass isn’t exactly a very prominent feature in tech-house, but a few different textures and tones would have given users more to play around with. That being said, the loops that are available give users decent rhythmic building blocks they can use to generate ideas.
Drum/percussion loops
Of the two groups, the percussion loops really stand out. Designed to feel innovative and expansive, these patterns feature a lot of alluring effects, hits and overall sequences that can provide excellent layers for tracks that need some gritty, machine-like grooves to make them more hypnotic. The drum loops feel pretty standard for tech house, but there are still plenty of provocative items to play with, particularly the clap and tom loops.
Overall, this is a powerful loop pack with plenty of interesting things to offer any producer. With the amount of different textures and possibilities present, Function Loops is definitely giving you bang for your buck.