There was a sea change in the mid-to-late ’90s. Right around this time several metal producers would make their mark and establish a new paradigm of what a “modern” recording sounded like. You likely know a few of them: Terry Date (Pantera), Andy Sneap (Arch Enemy), Daniel Bergstrand (Meshuggah), and Colin Richardson. Obviously there were others, but I’ve always thought of those guys as the “Big 4.”
For quite a few metalheads Machine Head’s Burn My Eyes had a sudden crushing heaviness that took them completely off-guard, like exiting hyperspace within the event horizon of a black hole. Then they, or at least I, noticed Colin Richardson’s name in the credits and immediately sought out any other record that passed though his mixing console. Colin’s work with middle-era Napalm Death, while divisive musically, had a power that just leapt out of the speakers. Your preferred flavor of Richardson may be the Trivium, the Chimaira, or an infusion on the lighter side with Anathema. But I guarantee the Neapolitan Richardson Variety Pack has been sampled and enjoyed by the vast majority of folks who have ever banged their heads.
So hey, speaking of samples, Richardson is teaming up with Toontrack to release his own drum sound library: “Made of Metal EZX.” Richardson went to Galaxy Studio in Belgium where he produced and mixed (with Carl Bown in the engineer’s seat) a towering war mech of percussion tone terror. The drummer in the throne for the duration of the session was Jason Bowld of Axewound and Pitchshifter fame. A full four kits were sampled: DW, Tama, Mapex, and Truth. And of course there was the usual vast selection of snares and cymbals.
The Made of Metal EZX sample library is out now, for the asking price of $89. You can procure the digital download straight from Toontrack at this location.
