The Break Crate

The Break Crate is a fantastic collection of breaks, breakbeat and hip-hip drum tracks, for which we teamed up with a true heavyweight of the U.K. Jazz and Hip Hop scene, Rich Spaven. Known for his sniper-accurate touch and mastery of metric modulation, Rich has landed gigs with a score of legendary artists including Guru of Gang Starr, Flying Lotus, Alfa Mist, Loyle Corner and Jordan Rakei.

Rich's sound has been described as "a nod to the past while keeping an ear toward the future" partly down to his choice of kit elements: crisp snares, round/jazzy toms, punchy kicks, and a selection of dry cymbals and percussion.

Recorded at London's Livingston Studios, engineering came from Giles Barrett of Lightship 95 Studio, who has worked on a number of projects with Rich, and was the ideal man to go about capturing Rich's signature sound. Giles kept it old school by using a selection of the vintage mics available at the studio, and chose to run everything through Livingston's 72 Channel SSL 4000+ G Series, creating a sonic picture that was natural, crisp and full of vibe.