Roland just released the 3.0 software update for its SP-404MKII sampler/sequencer/effects unit, and we’re psyched to share some of the features with you (and try them out ourselves!) Quick overview:

You’ve seen mechanical engineers attempt expressive synths, and real, polished products. But why not have fun with a slightly more punk, DIY, bendy synth of your own? Sound Werkshop has been working on that, using the eminently affordable and flexible Daisy Seed embedded platform (which in turn runs code and Pd and Max-generated patches).

Making instruments, making music overlaps directly with the issue of mapping sound to emotional experience, meaning, and orientation. Let’s listen to Khabat Abas, a musician, composer, sound artist, and instrument maker from Kurdistan-Iraq. She works directly at the crossing of so many of the issues we’ve encountered in the past months – and finds ways to make experimental cellos out of repurposed bombshells.

Ukraine Resistance Radio is a new project for amplifying experimental sounds and music of Ukrainian artists and their allies. An open call is up now, with the first broadcast with partner Radio Vilnius on the 19th of March.

Korg sound design fans, you’ll want this: a user has made a free tool that automatically generates images from program presets. (Sounds like a great idea for other synths, too – and we get into other geeky scripts here, as well.) And now is a good time to revisit free patch sheets for volca modular, though for that you’ll need drawing software … or a pen.

The scale of the recent earthquakes in Turkey and Syria is hard to conceive, atop ongoing crises in the region and world. Tens of thousands have died, more continue to die, and millions are now homeless across the territories of the two countries. With music scenes intertwined with those places, responding is essential in any way we can.

Few people can power through a live set quite like Detroit icons Lenny and Lawrence Burden – and few can plaster a table with quite this many synths and drum machines. Behold the joy of Octave One live.

Yes, there are too many plug-ins, but I’ve been looking for something like this for a while – especially to replace some aging options. Cluster Delay, a combination of multi-tap delay and multi-effects, could fit the bill.

Elektron has a major update for Digitakt in 1.50 — now with Machines, as Octatrack, Model:Cycles, and Syntakt. Those bring sample warping, slicing, chopping, looping, repitching, and forward/reverse playback. Plus you get fixed-step recording and the ability to insert sample rate reduction pre- or post-filter.

If we can connect to artists through albums, especially as producers ourselves, why not through instruments and effects, too? A new release from Bari, Italy hard core/hard techno artist Carbone comes in the form of a software collaboration. And the results are suitably grimy and fantastic.