Oliver Schmitt’s latest sample pack breaks with genre conventions to deliver a singular take on robotic sound effects.
To date, the bulk of sound designer Oliver Schmitt’s output on his own Sounds Of Revolution label has been targeted at specific genres or types of sound. Take, for instance, the wildly popular Minimal Techno Revolution series, now in its fourth instalment, or the more experimental Clicks & Glitches packs.
Transformation is different, focusing instead on what Schmitt describes as “epic industrial/machine/robo sounds”. In other words, the kind of sounds you might hear in, well, a Transformers movie.
This isn’t SOR’s first exploration of a more cinematic approach (they’ve also produced a series of movie vocal packs) but it’s probably the least obvious in terms of how it can be applied to music production. Cinematic vocals slot over the top of just about anything, but how about the sound of hydraulic struts extending or giant gears whirring?
Some of the sounds in this extensive collection (1.53 GB in 44.1 kHz WAV format) bring to mind the industrial bangs and clanks used by Mumdance and Logos in their recent collaborations, while others are reminiscent of the cold, mechanical sound of some of Night Slugs’ more experimental Club Constructions releases.
The sounds here certainly aren’t all easy to work into tracks, but they’re well categorised to help make it more simple to work through them.
Some folders (such as the self-explanatory ‘R2-D2 Tribute’) might be of limited use, but there’s definitely enough in the Drum, Bass and Synth.Machine to get started with before moving onto some of the slightly more obscure sounds in folders like ElMagnetic Field and Hydraulic Movement. I would like to have seen more of the pitched samples – such as in the Sub folder – labelled with key information, but a pack like this is always going to require some work on the producer’s part.
Often when listening to sample packs it’s easy to hear how the sounds have been made; a drum machine sample here, a found sound there. One of the biggest compliments I can pay Transformation is that there are hundreds of sounds here I wouldn’t even know how to start recreating from scratch. This pack contains some incredibly complex sound design; yes there are elements of found sound and field recordings (photos from the sessions can be found on SOR’s product page), but this is augmented by synthesis and some deep and clever processing.
Transformation would certainly be useful for movie sound designers, but we’re not judging it from that perspective. Does it work well for music? That depends what kind of producer you are. Transformation isn’t for everyone – this is about as far away from your typical instant-tech-house construction kit pack as you can imagine – but if you’re into experimental industrial sounds it’s a very well made collection.
Much like the Dystopian Elements sound bank that Maelstrom gave away to Attack readers last month, there are plenty of mechanical, industrial sounds here that could easily be employed in techno production in particular. At €49.95 it’s priced toward the high end of the sample pack market, but if you’re in the market for something unusual then the quality of the sound design on display justifies the price.