ENDLESSFLOW PRODUCTIONS

Jun 1, 2001 12:00 PM, By Julian Colbeck

           
 

Sonic Foundry's Acid loop-editing software has done well with its burgeoning library of grooves and effects. Nonetheless, there's always room for more effects, especially when the content is as fresh and unexpected as Endlessflow Productions' Ugly Remnants ($79.95).

Ugly Remnants is a truly massive, uniformly well-recorded collection of material in Acid-friendly WAV format. The material spans two CDs and is neatly categorized into folders (Bass, Beats, Beds, FX, Melodies, and so on) and subfolders. For example, the Beats folder contains drum loops, fills, percussion, rhythm effects, and vocalizations. Within Acid, you can instantly load or preview items, at which point you also see tempo, duration, and root key (where applicable).

Monstrous Sounds

If you can tell a lot about people by the samples they keep, then Mark Harbst, president of Endlessflow Productions, must be a science fiction and monster-movie buff. He's probably a fan of Anne Rice's novels, too, and perhaps he was a goth in years gone by. You get lots of scary guitar, twisted riffs, and ghostly wails and effects. The CDs boast some splendid distorted metal bass grooves, vocoded basslines, and such. Ugly Remnants' dark, eerie pads and drones positively ooze atmosphere.

The collection embraces drum loops, pads, motifs, sound effects, beds, and melodies played on every imaginable instrument, including koto, tuned percussion, and vocals. Stylistically, Ugly Remnants is an appropriate, if somewhat self-effacing, title; though samples are frequently laden with effects, they are not prettied up. The samples sound perfectly crisp and clear, but they are not designed for easy listening. Many are tailor-made for hip-hop and dance material, and you get a huge number that can be used in other types of music, from rock to jazz.

The Beats folder contents typify the product's exploratory feel. In addition to 151 beats in the Drum Loops category alone, disc 1 offers fills and a folder of percussion loops played with sampled tabla, real bongos, dumbeks, shakers, congas, and kitchen utensils. The Rhythm FX category contains industrial machinery, crunches, and munches. A vocalizations folder includes chants and monster noises. The rhythmic material is inspirational stuff — a far cry from the typical “me-too” dance drums on other sample CDs.

Behind the Curtain

The data is clearly organized on the CDs. However, the packaging consists of a grainy printout and generic CD labeling, with only the perpetrators' names supplied on the rear tray insert. That's a shame, because Ugly Remnants is an excellent body of work. Its sales could easily be hampered by the homespun physical presentation.

Harbst was the main force behind one of Sonic Foundry's most popular loop collections, Universal Groove Elements, and his knowledge of what works best in Acid-style compositions shines through this glittering collection. Although one or two song-form compositions speed you on your way, Ugly Remnants knits together well, and I don't classify myself as a power user of Acid. If you use Acid and hunger for more raw materials, Ugly Remnants' 1,900 loops — which span the weird and the wonderful — come highly recommended.

Overall EM Rating (1 through 5): 4.5

Endlessflow Productions; tel. (602) 404-9155; e-mail endlessflow@endlessflow.com; Web www.endlessflow.com