Big Beat 2: Nu Skool Breaks | Keyboard

Drum and synth loop DVD in a wide variety of breakbeat, classic hip hop and electro styles. Includes all content in AIFF, Apple Loops, REX and Acidized Wave formats.

Big Fish Audio's Big Beat 2: Nu Skool Breaks' title is somewhat misleading, since it encompasses a wider variety of influences than just the "Big Beat" sound of the 90s. Of course there's a smattering of Fatboy Slim, Crystal Method, and Chemical Brothers-style breaks, but breakbeat fans of all shapes and sizes would do well to give this collection a listen.

The nicely organized data DVD includes 2.4 GB of content ranging from construction kits to individual drum loops and synth riffs. All of the major loop formats are covered - Acidized Wave, REX and Apple Loops, to be specific - and filenames include useful information like key and BPM.

Twenty-five construction kits run the gamut from classic big beat to that 80s electro flavor that's all the rage once again. As expected, each element in a groove is broken out into its own individual loop, with the added amenity of individual drum and percussion hits, so you can add fills or create your own embellishments using a sampling drum machine like those included with Ableton Live or Propellerheads' Reason. Additionally, many of the kits include useful sound effects and hip hop influenced vocal snippets of universal street phrases like "check this out" and "like this." Undoubtedly, some veteran producers may find them hackneyed, whereas others will dig them for adding a bit of street to their mixes. Me? I'm glad they're included in case I need them for scoring a car commercial or any kind of project that calls for them.

In addition to the construction kits, there's an extra 115 drum loops ranging in tempo from 115 to 128 BPM. These cover a broad range, with everything from crunchy old school hip hop to TR-808-infused electroboogie to classic 80s drum machine grooves, with added niceties like a bit of scratching here or a wah-wah chicken scratch there. Overall, their production is well thought out and sonically diverse, if a bit over-compressed in a few places. An extra folder contains 31 synth loops covering a lot of sonic ground, some with big and nasty hard sync and wide open filters, others with more Kraftwerk-esque retro in their vibe. There are even a few single-note rhythmic loops based on sampled stabs. These are nifty in that they can easily be transposed to follow a chord progression with a minimum of fuss - provided your DAW allows for loop-specific transposition, as most do these days. All in all, there's a little something for everyone in Big Beat 2, whether you're a die-hard fan of that 90s sound or just looking for a grab bag of all-purpose breakbeat elements to round out your dance loop arsenal.