FIVE (and a half?) STARS

Audio CD
Akai/Ensoniq/E-mu, Roland, Kurzweil, SampleCell CD ROM.

Spectrasonics Distorted Reality II must be one of the most anticipated sample CD ROM sequels of all time, but I can tell you now it really was worth waiting for. Distorted Reality II makes use of sound mangling toys that weren't even available when Volume 1 was made, many of which are software based. Producer Eric Persing lets us in on one of his secrets in the sleeve notes by describing how the Starchimes patch was created by running a celeste sample through a filter derived from a photograph of the Milky Way tuned to a pythagorean scale. Just in case that sounds weird, check out Metasynth, which offers precisely this facility - now your next album sleeve can also be the first track!

Because dance music is still so popular, the set includes a number of treated rhythmic loops and rhythmic hits, most of which are very usable, but for me the rich textural pads, drones and backgrounds are the real stars. There are weird pads and drones in abundance, some pulsating, some shimmering, but unlike so many computer generated samples, many of these are quite beautiful with an evolving, changing character reminiscent of a Wavestation on acid. Some samples are based on real sounds that have been treated or distorted in some way, (hence the title), and these categories include bells, fuzz guitar, human speech and singing and even orchestral effects (don't expect bassoons the cover notes warn!).

A number of samples started life as synths, some sequenced, but the end result is far more complex that you'd expect from the source material. Of course there's some tekno stuff in there to keep the dance guys happy, but the spectrum of sounds goes far beyond mere dance music - this is serious film/TV/ambient/sci-fi fodder of the highest quality. The list of instruments, signal processors and software used to create this collection runs to two pages and I was right - Metasynth is in there along with Bias Peak, Hyperprism, Antares Infinity (for looping) and just about everything else you can think of.

Good samples often use up a lot of sample memory, though Spectrasonics have tried to design most things to fit into a 16Mbyte sampler, which means modern samplers should have no trouble playing back at least two of the patches multitimbrally, though some of the groove libraries require a 32 Mbyte machine. Furthermore, the Akai format version has been tweaked to give maximum compatibility with Ensoniq ASR series and E-mu samplers from the EIIIx onwards. A Kurzweil version is also available for users running v3.0 or higher software while the Roland version is designed or use with the 700 series of machines.

Altogether there are over 600 different programs on this two disc (Akai) set including volumes entitled Tranquil Ambience, Spherical Ambience, Distant Ambience, Ambient Vistas, Fallen Ambience and Oceanic beds. But don't get the idea that all the sounds are lush and cuddly because we also have Discordant ambience, Gothic Towers, Mutant SFX and Nastee Fuzz to name but a tiny slice of what's available. Even when you reach the end, the designers haven't been able to stop - they've added three more bonus volumes of assorted great stuff to keep you going just a while longer. The only reason I'm giving this set five stars is because the art department refuse to create new graphics for five and a half stars!