Toontrack SDX: Fields of Rock

On Hallowed Ground

Seven kits capturing the essence of rock drums from the '70s through to today.

The Fields of Rock SDX features seven drum kits and a comprehensive collection of percussion instruments recorded by multiple award-winning producer/mixer Tom Dalgety (Ghost, Rammstein, Pixies, Royal Blood) and drummer Mat Hector (Iggy Pop, Gutterdämmerung, Razorlight). It was captured at Rockfield, the Welsh dairy farm-turned-into-studio that ended up leaving colossal footprints in its now-fifty-year-long path through music history.

This unlikely studio, to which bands like Queen, Rush, Judas Priest, Hawkwind and many of their contemporaries in the 1970s pilgrimaged, became a creative haven where some of the best rock songs of our time materialized. But even beyond the heydays of classic rock, Rockfield has remained a lynchpin in the recording world attracting top-tier acts across all genres, like Oasis, Coldplay, and Manic Street Preachers, just to name a few.

This SDX sets out to capture the essence of the genre-defining rock records captured in the different rooms of the studio, but also add the modern technology, forward-thinking ideas, and ingenuity that takes it into tomorrow. In addition to using all the great vintage microphones and outboard gear available at Rockfield, the library was recorded through 14 channels of hardware tape emulation, recreating the unmistakable, warm, and saturated sound of tape.

This SDX is just as much a nod to the past, an homage to the greats, and a respectful bow to gods of rock as it is a reach into the future. Welcome to a collection of drum tones to last the entire range of rock and beyond.

Features

• Seven (7) drum kits and a wide selection of cymbals and extra instruments
• One comprehensive set of percussion instruments featuring rototoms, congas, shakers, bongos and more as well as various multi-sampled foley pieces (cutlery, chairs etc.)
• Recorded at the iconic Rockfield Studios in England
• Produced and engineered by Tom Dalgety (Ghost, Rammstein, Pixies, Opeth, Royal Blood)
• Sampled by Mat Hector (Iggy Pop, Gutterdämmerung, Razorlight)
• Features four individual libraries/configurations (three for drums and one for percussion)
• Recorded with several ambience and character microphones offering a huge sonic palette
• Includes a broad range of rock-oriented presets engineered by Tom Dalgety
• Comes with a MIDI library customized for each included kit as well as a collection of ensemble grooves for percussion

About Tom Dalgety

With more than a decade at the helm of the console and an already impressive list of records under his belt, it was his production on Royal Blood's self-titled debut that broke Tom Dalgety's name onto the international producing scene. The album shot straight to the top of the charts in not only in Tom's and the band's native UK, but it also gained massive traction in the US. Shortly after release, it had accumulated platinum sales and earned Tom his 1st mainstream award, the "Breakthrough Producer of the Year" at the UK's Music Producers Guild. From there on out, Tom has literally been racking up awards back to back. In 2016, he was nominated for "British Producer of the Year" at the BRIT Awards as well as a number 1 hit on the Billboard Rock Album chart with the "Popestar" EP by Ghost. Over the next few years, he was nominated a second time for "UK Producer of the Year" and scored a Swedish Grammis as well as two Grammy Award nominations for "Best Rock Song" and "Best Rock Album" for his work with Ghost.

Known for his organic-sounding productions, ingenious and off-kilter recording techniques as well as his deep-rooted love for the craft, Tom continues to work at the apex of the rock world producing records for the top acts of today's scene.

The Rooms & The Kits

Rockfield has two main recording areas: the Quadrangle and the Coach House. For this SDX, Tom and team recorded in both and also treated parts of the rooms to obtain even more variation. In the end, the different areas, or ‘rooms’ as we call them, were configured as their own libraries - three for drums and one for percussion.

The 'Live Room' was recorded in the Quadrangle, which has two main recording spaces with the control room in between them. This was the livelier of the two rooms, with hardwood flooring and more reflective surfaces. The rest of the library, including the percussion part, was recorded in the Coach House, in which the kits were set up in both an area with carpeted floors and heavy drapes covering the walls ('Dry Room') as well as one with a reflective stone wall behind the drums ('Stone Room').

All in all, you'll get three contrasting and natural ambiences covering the entire range from loud, lively and hard-hitting down to dry and dampened.

The Presets

To inspire and enable you to make music immediately, the Fields of Rock SDX includes a broad range of mix-ready presets including 29 settings engineered by Tom Dalgety. These were inspired by the historic records captured in the studio as well as his own signature drum recordings. Additionally, there is a wide range of ready-made mix presets from the Toontrack sound design team.

The MIDI

The included MIDI was performed by Mat Hector and designed to provide the perfect groove base for each of the included kits. In addition to the regular drum grooves, the library also includes a dedicated section for percussion.