S1’s The Career Kit Vol 1: Review
Ho, Ho, Holy shxt! Christmas time is already here, and if your anything like me your really too old to expect much more than one of those popsicle stick Christmas tree ornaments; with your kids picture on it as a gift. Year after year I pray that Santa will stop torturing me with these “snooze inducing” tokens of love, I’m a musician dammit! I don’t want argyle socks and Old Spice gift sets; I want stuff that relates to me and my craft. Well said “prayers” have been answered this time around and I’m glad to say we’ve all drawn multi-grammy award winning super producer and all-around nice guy S1(@smybolycone) as our “secret Santa” this year.
For those of you that have taken up permanent residency under a rock, Symbolyc One (S1) is the musical genius behind the mega hit’s Best Thing I Never Had by Beyonce, Power by Kanye West, and My Life by 50 cent, Eminem, and Adam Levine. He’s built an impressive catalog that includes much more than those undeniable classics I’ve mentioned. He’s also worked with Jay-Z, Erykah Badu, Little Brother, Babyface, Strange Fruit Project and producers such as !llmind.
S1 has taken the plunge into the increasingly turbulent, shark infested waters that we all know as the Drum Kit game with his freshman offering; S1’s The Career Kit. The Career Kit features all of the drums and percussion loops from a gang of his major placements. You heard me right, all of the drums! It’s almost unreal that someone would do that in an industry so competitive, and your sounds can be quite literally all that separate you from the next “Joe Schmoe” producer. I thought that was really “huge” and I have the utmost respect and admiration for him, for doing that for us.
There are 126 high quality, hand crafted samples jammed into this kit, I’m not even sure how a kit so massive could only be 35mb but hey; my hard drive thanks him for the consideration immensely. I couldn’t wait to “put the paws” on this collection. I wiped the sweat from “clammy” hands, opened the kit, and was immediately treated to a well organized list of folders that were labeled according to what songs they were used in. If that wasn’t enough he also “blessed” us with roughly 20 “to die for” custom drum sounds from his personal collection in a bonus folder that frankly I would have paid for on it’s own. These sounds were nothing short of amazing, they were all expertly mixed and I found myself starting tracks with the drums first (something I never do).
The S1 Career Kit is a definite must have for producers of all genre’s. It’s got great, natural sounding acoustic drums as well as some “hard hitting” electronic 808 style drums. I’ve used these sounds in two of my recent compositions, and The Career Kit has already been added to my favorites list in my Maschine software library. I can’t wait to hear what S1 includes in his Career Kit Vol.2 which I’m almost certain will “trump” his initial offering. I’m going to go out on a limb and say that this would’ve made our Top 10 Drum Kits of 2013 list if it was released a tad earlier! For a mere $25 you can own this inspiring kit today!
**Maschine Format Included**
BeatzGalore