Best new music plugins this week: Lucid, Monochord

This week sees the release of several remarkable new music plugins that are capturing the attention of producers and musicians alike. A detailed look into some of the best new music plugins this week reveals innovative offerings like ReStem 2, Lucid, Monochord, and Spectral. These plugins offer a range of cutting-edge features designed to enhance music creation and experimentation. From ReStem 2’s advanced track separation capabilities to Lucid’s granular synthesis with scale-locking, each plugin brings something unique to the table.

ReStem 2 is a powerful music plugin designed for comprehensive drum track separation. It enables users to split drum tracks into distinct components such as kick, snare, hi-hat, toms, ride, crash, and an ‘other’ stem, offering fine-grained control over the mix. This separation can be performed in real-time or rendered offline for enhanced quality, catering to different workflow preferences.

A notable feature of ReStem 2 is its integration with Drumagog technology, specifically for the kick and snare channels. This integration allows users to replace these elements with fresh samples dynamically, providing flexibility and creativity in music production. ReStem 2 offers two pricing options: the Core version priced at $99, and the Pro version at $199, which may include additional features or enhancements over the Core version.

Lucid is an advanced granular synthesizer known for its sophisticated capabilities. It includes a feature for scale locking, allowing users to ensure that pitches remain in key during the creative process. Additionally, Lucid supports the stacking of grain particles to form chords and arpeggiators, providing rich harmonic layers.

The synthesizer offers per-grain filtering and imaging, which adds variation within sounds. This makes it possible to craft unique textures by manipulating individual grain characteristics. An integrated multi-tap grain delay further enhances the sounds with scale-locked pitch shifting, resulting in harmonically rich shimmers that add depth and dimension to any composition.

In terms of pricing, Lucid is currently available at a sale price of $79, while the full regular price is set at $129. This pricing structure provides an opportunity for musicians to access advanced sound-design tools at a reduced cost for a limited time.

Monochord is described as a “dream machine and harmony workstation,” featuring a comprehensive sound library sourced from iconic vintage equipment. This library includes sounds from classic pieces such as the Fairlight CMI, Memorymoog, Oberheim OB-X, Casio VL-1, Bontempi B3, and the Suzuki Omnichord.

The plugin also incorporates 15 effects modeled after renowned hardware, including the RE-201 Space Echo, Eventide H3000, Lexicon 480L, and Juno-60 chorus, providing a wide array of tonal possibilities. In addition to these features, Monochord’s chord engine supports over 600 chord voicings, enhancing its ability to create complex harmonies.

Monochord offers modes such as arpeggiator and strum, which facilitate creative performance and composition techniques. This versatility makes it a powerful tool for musicians seeking comprehensive sound manipulation capabilities. Monochord is priced at €139, offering a blend of vintage sound aesthetics with advanced digital effects.

Spectral, developed by Gulf Coast Synthesis, is a music plugin known for its unique approach to harmonic control and synthesis. It allows users to draw harmonics directly, which can then be used to resynthesize image files into evolving, playable instruments. This is achieved through features like the Spectral Canvas and advanced Pattern and Sacred Geometry generators, offering a visual and intuitive method of sound creation.

The plugin includes versatile harmonic controls labeled as All, Even, Odd, and Inharmonic. These controls enable users to manipulate the spectral makeup of sounds, allowing for a broad range of tonal and textural possibilities. Spectral is designed to support creative exploration, providing a platform for crafting sounds that are both rich and complex.

Regarding pricing, Spectral is available at an introductory price of $39, with a full regular price of $69. This pricing makes it accessible for those looking to expand their sound design toolkit with innovative features that promote creativity and experimentation.

CONCLUSION

This article focused on the best new music plugins this week, covering ReStem 2, Lucid, Monochord and Spectral.

ReStem 2 separates drum tracks into kick, snare, hi-hat, toms, ride, crash and a dedicated ‘other’ stem and can perform separation in real time or render offline for maximum quality; its kick and snare channels incorporate Drumagog technology for on-the-fly sample replacement, and it is offered in Core ($99) and Pro ($199) editions.

Lucid is an advanced granular synthesizer with scale locking to keep pitches in key, grain stacking for chords and arpeggiators, per-grain filtering and imaging, and a multi-tap grain delay with scale-locked pitch shifting; it is available on sale for $79 with a full price of $129.

Monochord is described as a “dream machine and harmony workstation” and provides a 425-sound library drawn from vintage instruments including the Fairlight CMI, Memorymoog and Oberheim OB-X as well as Casio VL-1, Bontempi B3 and Suzuki Omnichord; it also features 15 effects inspired by RE-201 Space Echo, Eventide H3000, Lexicon 480L and Juno-60 chorus, a chord engine with more than 600 voicings, and arpeggiator and strum modes, priced at €139.

Spectral, from Gulf Coast Synthesis, allows users to draw harmonics or resynthesize image files into playable instruments using the Spectral Canvas and Pattern and Sacred Geometry generators, offers harmonic controls labelled All, Even, Odd and Inharmonic, and is available at an introductory price of $39 with a full price of $69.

Each plugin’s section above details technical and pricing features for further reference.