Steinberg have released a new virtual instrument aimed at percussive sound design.

Available in VST, AU and AAX formats, Backbone is described as a “Drum Re-synthesizer with a well-defined emphasis on creating unique kicks, snares, cinematic impacts, hi-hats and other percussive sounds”.

With Backbone you can take existing drum samples and completely re-work them to create fresh, new sounds. In effect, you can transform old sample libraries in to entirely modern sounding drum banks.

Aimed at everyone from hip-hop beat designers to cinematic composers this looks to be an inventive and useful tool to your beat armoury.

For full details and to purchase, visit Steinberg’s site.