“Journey Into The Mist” – New Track from Failed Muso & MickyD
Hollow Sun Hammond Novachord
Commissioned by Hollow Sun to demonstrate the Reason ReFill library of their Hammond Novachord. To purchase this library visit Hollow Sun
Written by myself & Micky Dodds, and created completely in Reason. The only parts that do not come from the Novachord, a valve based synthesizer from 1939, are the drums. All other sounds, including percussion, come from the Novachord.
We had a lot of fun with this one, given that we wanted to keep it 100% Novachord, but when we added the drums, we all agreed it was better for it.
Much love to Micky for his work on this, as well as Steve for the sample library! 
Hollow Sun Novachord released for Propellerheads Reason & Record
Well, I’ve been sitting on this one for weeks, but today I can finally reveal that the Reason & Record ReFill version of the totally unique Hollow Sun Novachord library is now available for sale at the Hollow Sun website.
Refill for Reason & Record
I’ve mentioned the Novachord library a number of times before in this parish, so I won’t go into any detail in this post about it’s existence and how it came into being. However, in my last post, I mentioned I had had a sneaky peek at the Reason/Record ReFill and how nice it was. Well, things have moved on greatly since then and the release candidate that I have been trying out is even more astounding! Hollow Sun enlisted the services of Matt Black to do the Reason conversion. Actually, I say conversion…. don’t expect to see a patch by patch replication of the Kontakt library. Oh no. A new lease of life has been given here. Whilst some of the patches remain, Matt has taken time to utilise the many unique features of Reason to come up with even more sounds, some authentic, others using the Novachord samples as a basis for creating new and wonderful sounds. Excellent use has been made of the Combinator instrument.
Novachord Combinator
For those who don’t know Reason, the Combinator allows a user to build one new instrument using any or all of the existing instruments and FX tools within Reason. For example, you can layer numerous NN-XT patches, tag on a bunch of FX, run it through an arpeggiator, via some Mastering tools and bundle it all up into one easy to control instrument.
Thor
In doing this, Matt has also employed the excellent Thor polysynth to take care of numerous routing and filer combinations. This also makes the ReFill only compatible with Reason 4.0. There are also collections of the standard samples, as well as all the FX Combinators that you can use in any way you wish PLUS a whole section of sounds running through some of the superb FX that come with Propellerheads excellent audio recording application, Record.
Record FX
Combinator FX
Users who have both Reason & Record (and let me tell you, the two programs seamlessly fit together and form a music making powerhouse of impeccable quality) will be able to take advantage of these. Users who just have Reason will just be given a message informing them that these particular gems are for Record users only. A nudge, if any were needed, to go buy Record!!
So, all of these things combine to form a fantastic and very inspiring set of sounds. Here’s how Hollow Sun categorise them….
The Hammond Novachord Refill for Reason & Record is structured into the following folders:
• Classic Novachord
Here you will find the classic tones of the Refill, in Combinator
format
• Esoteric Novachord
This folder contains Combinator patches with a modern
twist, including layers, splits and FX
• FX Patches
Subfolders for all the FX modules used in the Combinators:
Line 6 USB Pod Farm (see opposite) , Reverb,
Scream, Thor Modulation Matrixes and Combinator FX
• NNXT Patches
All the tones saved in *.sxt format, plus additional subtle
variants of some patches
• Novachord Amped [R+R]
Combinator patches with Line 6 amp tones for Pod
Farm. Please note that as of writing, these patches will
only load within Reason+Record.
• Samples
24-bit, 44khz samples.
I’ve been noodling with these for a while now, and they really do work well within the Reason/Record environments. The immediacy and simplicity provided by the host environment allow you to really start exploring and tweaking these sounds VERY quickly. I’ve been playing around with these in combination with the Fairlight Legacy library and getting some very satisfying results.
Visit the Hollow Sun store now to pick up your copy of this unique ReFill now!!
Exclusive & Exciting! Novachord in more formats!
Hollow Sun’s brilliant Novachord library is going from strength to strength by encompassing even more formats all the time, bring this exquisite library of vintage synthesis to an even wider audience.
It is looking increasingly likely that the library will soon be available in three more formats, to complement the existing EXS24 & Kontakt versions.
Last night I was given an exclusive sneaky peek at a Reason ReFill of the Novachord and it certainly looks pretty! 
I hear work is progressing apace and we should hear something very soon regarding a release date. Keep checking back here and at the Novachord website for the latest info. You can subscribe to my RSS feed right here.
Suffice to say, Reason is an extremely popular tool. It’s been my weapon of choice for some time now, with it’s immediacy and unrivalled stability. Some bemoan it’s closed format but in all these years, I have never felt restricted by it. Everyone has their own preferred tools for music making that suit their ideal work flow, and Reason ticks all my boxes
And if that wasn’t enough, it looks like we will see the Novachord gracing the Akai S5000/6000 format soon, which means instant compatibility with the MPC4000 & MPC5000 production tools as well as the legacy Z Series rack samplers. The other beauty of the Akai format is that it will be readable by many other samplers and converters so this will increase the catchment of this unique library.
And finally, the Alesis Fusion will see it’s own version of Novachord soon after. Even after it’s untimely “death”, this vastly underrated workstation, which is rapidly gaining cult status and still commanding high used prices on eBay, is still getting up to date library from not only Hollow Sun, but places like Back In Time/KPR too.
Whilst I held Hollow Sun to ransom and squeezed this info out of them, they let slip of a number of high profile users of Novachord of which they are rightly proud, so who knows where we might hear this sublime collection of sounds soon??
Hollow Sun release Novachord Booster Packs and free Novachord samples!
So, if you haven’t bought Hollow Sun’s Novachord library yet, why the hell not??
Make amends and GO HERE NOW!!!
Now that we have remedied that little situation, you can now get your hands on some extra patches to further increase your Novachord experience! Two sets of ten extra programs that expand the library’s sonic pallette.
Note that these are the programs only and do not contain any samples. Thus they will only work if you have the Novachord library.
And if you’re still dithering, saving up your pennies or just a tight wad (!), you can get some free samples and programs for Kontakt HERE!
This is what you get….
Enjoy
Hollow Sun Novachord now available in EXS24 format
The master of sampling, Steve Howell, has been busy beavering away in the lofty confines of Hollow Sun Towers, fashioning new formats of his unique and superb Novachord library. You may recall from previous posts that Steve has been collaborating with Dan Wilson, owner of Novachord NC346, and has come up with a library of beautifully haunting samples, presented both in their original form and also with new and exciting twists programmed in. Until recently, they have only been available in Kontakt 3 format, but Steve did promise more formats, including EXS24, Pro Tools Structure, Akai (S5/6000, MPC4/5000, Z Series) & Alesis Fusion.
The EXS24 offering is available now at the Hollow Sun store for the measly sum of $90 USD/£59 GBP.
The EXS24 version can also be imported into Kontakt 3 but will need patching up and some tweaking of certain parameters, but the mapping and basic amp envelopes are there, making it a good entry level pack for those Kontakt 3 users prepared to put the work in and get jiggy with their samplers!
Hollow Sun’s Novachord Library on sale from today!
The highly anticipated Novachord sample library from the acclaimed Hollow Sun is launched today in Kontakt 3 format, with other formats to follow very soon.
I have had the privilege to have a play with a release candidate and can tell you that this is something rather special. It’s one of those libraries where every program is an inspiration. You can find yourself getting lost in improvisation and experimentation.
A truly brilliant library that you simply must own.
Go here now….!!
http://www.hollowsun.com/shop/novachord/index.htm
The Hollow Sun Novachord Sample Library
Typical, isn’t it! The day that Steve decides to announce the Hollow Sun Novachord library, I get a power cut!
Steve told me of this project and swore me to secrecy and silence some months ago. At that point, the Novachord he was sampling was still in America, awaiting shipping to it’s new owner in the UK. I knew of the Novachord as this “ahead of it’s time” synth from the 30′s, waaaaaay before people like Bob Moog came up with his classic and legendary creations. But I’ve never really heard one “in the flesh”, so to speak.
It’s fair to say Steve was giddy with excitement at the prospect, and from a commercial point of view, this would be a first.
Last week, Steve previewed his promo for me and as you will see, it’s a collection of nostalgic slides of 30′s technological peaks such as TV, fast steam trains, etc all leading up to the announcement of the Novachord library. Backing this was some lovely ethereal chords and textures, and I just thought Steve had whipped out one of finest sample libraries, Nebulae, and just laid some stuff down. But no! Turns out these sounds are from the Novachord itself!!! Trust me when I say it is difficult to distinguish these sounds from some of the most advanced synths today!
So, the work is in progress. I briefly spoke to Steve at about 2:00am this morning (long story!) and he informed me he was nearing completion of the first few programs and he was “visibly” excited! As a tester for his work, I am very much looking forward to getting my hands on this stuff and having a play. Here’s a teaser of the first program created….
If Steve allows, I may be able to post more previews as they become available
Anyway, enjoy the previews. There are links to the video and to the MP3 soundtrack too
