But what you want to know is: Will these loops get people to dance until dawn, exude sweat from every pore, and offer gratuitous sexual overtures? Sadly, I didn’t get to test the latter — but the first two are a given. I started with the bass loops; there’s not a loser in the bunch, from acidey stuff to muscular riffs. The drums are great too, melding a tight electro feel with some of the looseness of house. Loops with synths, guitars, top (percussive), and multitracked loops round out the collection.

Despite a house undercurrent, the sound is tighter, more aggressive, and has a raw, techno/electro sort of edge that drills straight to the underground. And there are no throwaways. Even the fx have some real class, sliding in effortlessly for breakdowns and transitions.

These sounds cross the line from good to inspiring by adding a fresh, creative twist to a genre that sometimes verges on cliché. The example at right took about 20 minutes to create; yes, the loops play together that well. Highly recommended.

Contact: Big Fish Audio, www.bigfishaudio.com

Format: DVD-ROM with loops (duplicated as WAV/Apple Loops/REX) and sample presets (NN-XT/EXS24/HALion/Kontakt2); 24-bit/44.1kHz; audio CD for auditioning
List Price: $99.95