EastWest Sounds at Gear Expo 2022: introducing Forbidden Planet - a hybrid synth odyssey

GEAR EXPO 2022: For their first release of 2022, EastWest is taking us on a hybrid synth odyssey that’s going to be out of this world...

Forbidden Planet

FORBIDDEN PLANET, produced by Doug Rogers and Nick Phoenix, has a completely different take on what a synth should be and how it should be controlled. Forbidden Planet has an edge and attitude that is unique, offering a carefully curated collection of synth sounds across multiple categories.

A typical Pad in Forbidden Planet uses the mod wheel to cross fade between a custom programmed synth pad run through various modulation pedals and a custom programmed pad on another synth, or through a different chain of pedals. 

For Basses, Forbidden Planet samples and modifies huge basses from the best bass machines out there and brings them into the present with clever crossfading choices and some fantastic FX pedal choices. Over 200 amazing drones will lead you into a fantastic dark and twisted place. 

Forbidden Planet also soars with classic analogue legato Leads and does this better than any other virtual instrument. The mod wheel gives you total control over the character, and there is even a folder of leads dedicated to rap or hip-hop music. 

For Arpeggios, there is a dual structure, one for each layer. This allows you to create your own unique rhythmic combinations between the 2 layers and cross fade between them. Moving Pads use this feature so you can fade arpeggiations in and out of a sustaining pad. 

And lastly, Spaces convolution reverb, dual ring modulators, complex ping pong delays, a new chorus, a vintage ensemble chorus effect, multiple distortions and amp convolution all make Forbidden Planet an FX powerhouse. 

Hollywood Orchestra Opus Edition

The upcoming release of Forbidden Planet comes after a revolutionary year for EastWest. In 2021, they released Hollywood Orchestra Opus Edition, now the best-selling and most awarded orchestral virtual instrument ever created.

At the same time, they also released Hollywood Orchestrator, a must-have tool for composers who want to create a blockbuster soundtrack in seconds. Using the instruments in Hollywood Orchestra Opus Edition, Hollywood Orchestrator allows the user to create complex arrangements across the whole orchestra by playing just a few simple chords with one hand and shaping expression with the other. It includes over 500 customizable presets.

All of this was made possible by last year’s release of the new OPUS engine. “Many improvements were made to the PLAY software engine over the last decade but we suddenly had a unique opportunity,” says producer Doug Rogers. 

“We were able to bring Wolfgang Kundrus in as head of software development. He was the mastermind behind the creation of Cubase, Nuendo, and Studio One. Then we were able to bring in Wolfgang Schneider, the creator of Kontakt. With these two titans of music software development now on our team, we decided it was time to develop a brand-new software engine from the ground up.”

ComposerCloud

While you can purchase these products, the best way to get access to future releases like Forbidden Planet and new releases like Hollywood Orchestra Opus Edition is with a ComposerCloud+ subscription. With EastWest's ComposerCloud+ you get access to over 40,000 award-winning virtual instruments. With a current price tag of $19.99/month (or $199 a year), there is simply nothing else out there on the market that features such a massive and deeply sampled collection of virtual instruments.