From full free and open-source software to proprietary favorites from other platforms, the plug-in options on Linux have quietly come into their own. linuxdaw.org has a visual, searchable catalog – and it’s a reminder of just how spoiled for choice you are even without Windows or macOS.

Le Guess Who?, a festival beginning this week in Utrecht, Netherlands, put together a model of inclusion and diversity. And then that vision ran straight into a visa system often designed to keep people out – when it worked at all. But this festival decided to do something differently: share their experience.

In whirling, abstract flights of noise and oscillations, composer Arash Azadi makes electronics that evolve as if in an electro-organic primordial ooze. And he has something to say about returning us all to a deeper state of existence.

The free modules for VCV Rack are coming fast and furious. The latest is Bastl’s awesomely versatile Crust drum voice. Just in case you need something to, you know, distract yourself today/tonight/the rest of this week.

Do you want to travel back to 1990s music production? Were you not born yet and want to experience it in a fully immersive way? Opcode’s Josh and Nine Inch Nails have you covered.

The world lost legendary multi-disciplinary musical powerhouse Quincy Jones yesterday. He was 91. Here’s his vision in his own words at different stages of his life and career.

Soundtoys has made their exceptional phaser plug-in PhaseMistress free for a limited time. Here’s how to get it, plus some CDM-exclusive presets and a crash-course tour.

Never underestimate the power of simple synthesis tricks, least of all in the hands of vintage Casio designers. The distinctive “frog” bass croak in Michael Jackson’s “Thriller,” recorded in 1982, comes from a Casiotone MT-60. And it’s a sound you can patch up yourself.

Combining delay, pitch shifting, reverb, and noise generation, Solid State Logic’s Halloween giveaway is a surprising gem.

Music venues and artists in Lebanon continue to collect essential funds and supplies for forcibly displaced people. Here’s an update on how that’s going, a guide to fundraising events internationally, some music, and a conversation on community efforts at Nation Station.