Check it: Soundtrap

Ryan Paullin is a talent behind anything that creates/emanates music, whether it be a piano or a soundboard. Paullin, using the pseudonym Soundtrap, is constructing an eclectic fusion of electronic, rock, funk, jazz, ambient, etc. After an unfortunate episode involving a "friend" who jacked his laptop and proceeded to delete all previous sound collages, Soundtrap started working on new beats from scratch. Luckily, the incident didn't hinder his creative energy.

Soundtrap masters the art of subtlety and texture. Layers are brought in and out, made louder and softer, with certain elements brought out at different times. A bass riff here, a smooth synth solo there. Those areas of a Soundtrap song that contain multiple layers, all working together are awesome; the areas that are stripped down are even better. Each track is a journey: one minute, you're hearing a preponderance of sounds weaving in and out of each other, and the next minute, you're listening to the simple beauty of, say, just a synth hook shimmering over a conga beat. These stripped-down areas give the tracks breathing room. The mark of a good beat-maker is his/her ability to realize this breathing room is needed for the listener to appreciate the beat in full.

There are two tracks posted on the Soundtrap Facebook profile, "Digirock" and "Wander." "Digirock" is a perfect song to pop in the car while cruising on the freeway. It contains a driving, but chill beat throughout. The track starts out with a catchy guitar shuffle, vaguely reminiscent of the Grateful Dead, but with the smoothness of Steely Dan. Towards the middle of the song, birds chirp as guitars and keyboards fade in and out with various solos. The shuffle then reappears at the end, bringing the song full circle. "Wander" is a great track, beginning with echoey synth fills and a moving bass line. After a perfectly placed pause where all sound stops, the beat picks up again with a sparse, yet effective keyboard solo. The drum beat is taken away in the middle of the song, giving way to dreamy swirl of sound. Then the track slowly begins to build. After a subtle, Mexican-like synth-trumpet solo, the drum beat kicks in hard with a strong, driving beat. The drums, along with simple keyboard repetitions and a great chord progression, form the backbone for an epic guitar solo in an explosion of brilliance. It sounds like the type of music you would hear at the end of a movie, at a graduation or get-together when everyone is reuniting and reflecting. They're sounds of pure joy. Then it slowly fades away, bringing the end of the song.

Check out the Soundtrap Facebook page here.

And dude, look, I met Soundtrap at a club! Haha. Ha.