Spitfire Audio has teamed up with the legendary Chas Smith of Dune and Interstellar (among a ton of others like Saw and The Hunger Games) for the brand new Mercury collection. According to Spitfire Audio, the all-new Mercury library samples 14 of Chas’s most celebrated acoustic instruments, then fused, warped, and reinvented them in Solar, the new eDNA-powered synthesizer. Basically, if you’re looking to get your soundscapes on, this is the library for you.
“This library combines two dynamic forces: Mercury and Solar. One, a collection of pure, organic sounds; the other, a tool for reinventing them. The most up-to-date iteration of our eDNA technology, Solar is the host to Mercury’s organic ethereal samples and the eDNAs extensive warp and preset library,” said Spitfire.
“Within Solar, you will find the expansive soundscape Mercury, a world built around 14 unique handmade instruments like no other. The Bertoia, Sceptre, Pez Eater, and Que Lastas (just to name a few) have had lasting impressions on some of Hollywood’s leading luminaries. The Que Lastas in particular has an entertaining story. First commissioned for John Williams for his composition for the inaugural season of the Walt Disney Concert Hall (but later deemed too dark and too menacing), it became the quintessential sound of the Saw film franchise. Charlie Clouser upon hearing it for the first time was moved to tears.”
So what exactly is included in the libraries? There are 300 organic presets, 672 unique and individual sounds, 14 entirely new handmade instruments as discussed above, and an eDNA interface. On top of that, there are six individual warps. They are:
- Core – The raw sounds as they were created
- Awash – Layers of reverbs diffuse the sound and create lush atmospheres
- Cascade – Chains of delays create evolving textures with just a hint of rhythm
- Destruct – Eurorack and outboard units saturate and destroy
- Molecule – Granular effects completely rearrange and recombine the sound
- Weight – A series of sound design techniques and effects augment the low-end of the sounds
