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Some drums sit right on the grid—but the ones in DECAP’s new pack were made to sit just off it.
SWUNG: The Pocket is the latest sample pack release from expert producer and sound designer DECAP, and every sound in it is swung. Built around pocket, trippy rhythms, and heavy sound design, it was made in collaboration with 19 producers, including the likes of Ian Ewing, Jon Casey, Machina, OddKidOut, Zotti, and many others.
We last spoke with DECAP about the hits his drums have shown up on. This time, we caught up with him to talk about the art of the pocket, what makes a groove feel perfect, and the collaborative process.
DECAP on the pocket, swing, and drums that hit
What does “pocket” mean to you? How would you explain it to a producer who has only ever worked on the grid?
DECAP: Pocket is a timing the drums take on that captures a feeling. It throws you off in the best way, so much that it feels right. It’s a bounce. It’s a swag. There’s a power behind it. It’s something you haven’t heard before, and your body knows exactly what it is anyway. You feel it.
If you’ve only ever worked on the grid, treat the grid as a suggestion. Everything is still in time. You’re just making your own grid.
Is there a record, producer, or drummer who first made you hear the pocket differently?
Timbaland’s beat on Ludacris’ “The Potion.” The percussion was on time and off time at the same time, and the bounce was crazy. As soon as I heard it, my head turned and my eyes opened wide.
But, the moment I remember most is The Game’s Doctor’s Advocate. Track two, “Da Shit,” produced by DJ Khalil. The hi-hats hit late, the snares hit early, and it took me out completely.
Same thing with “Get You Some,” the Dr. Dre beat on the Busta Rhymes album. The drums, the plucked instrument, everything was off the grid. It changed how I heard music. It gave me this transcendent feeling. That’s when I fell in love with the pocket. I’ve been going for that feeling in my drums ever since.
When you swing something, are you using DAW swing presets, playing it in by hand, nudging it off the grid manually, or doing something else? Does it change from sound to sound?
I think of it as little moments playing in space, and I nudge things around until it feels right. Every sound has its own place. A heavy kick wants to sit somewhere different than a shaker. So, it’s about playing with the perception of time. It’s the little fills, the way things call and respond, and how everything balances. The technique changes from track to track because I’m just trying to capture a groove.
How do you keep drums feeling loose and off the grid but still hitting hard?
A drum knocking comes down to the intensity of the hit. You can move it way off the grid, but it still smacks, and the pocket can still feel tight. And when I say pocket, I mean something kind of alien. When you hear it, it hits you in the face. It’s undeniable.
What’s the most common mistake you hear when producers try to get a swung feel?
For me, it’s being stuck in your head and stuck on specific techniques. Turn on swing, call it done, and it gets too logical. You’ve got to get it into your chest, where the feeling is, and sit with it until you have an urge to move your body. Everyone has their own pocket, their own groove, their own timing. If you’re inspired by it, it’ll come through you.
DECAP on the collaborative pack creation process
You worked with 19 producers on this pack. How did you pick the roster, and what tied them together?
Straight up, these are producers I’m a fan of. Every one of them has their own take on the pocket, their own fingerprint, and none of them are trying to play it safe. Machina, Ian Ewing, Robu, Golden Child. All 19 of them have mastered their own version of it.
Did any of them change or influence how you think about swing or groove?
All of them have. Every producer on this pack made something that had me thinking differently. Everyone has their own pocket, and hearing 19 different versions of it changed how I feel my own.
As executive producer, how did you keep the pack sounding like one project with so many different creative voices in it?
Every producer had access to my sound stash and made stuff with sounds I gave them. I picked producers that fit together, and I mix in a certain way that keeps it cohesive. Thousands of loops went back and forth before we got down to the dopest ones. I touch everything that goes out with my name on it, but I work with some of the best sound designers in the world.
The pack also heavily leans into sound design. What were some of the go-to tools or techniques behind that?
Most of SWUNG started from Drums That Knock. The producers pulled from my released and unreleased catalog and went crazy with it. Flipped it, resampled it, time stretched it, reversed it. A lot of them are serious sound designers in their own right, which is why I gravitate to them. They took the sounds places I wouldn’t have even imagined.
Is there a particular loop or one-shot you’re especially proud of, or one with a good story behind it?
The drum loop, “Clocking You From a Distance.” When Robu sent that one, instant stank face. He freaked Drums That Knock in such a crazy way.
What’s next for you after this pack? Is there anything else you’d like to share with the Splice community?
KNOCK 2 is coming. Stay tuned. KNOCK Audio is going to keep pushing with new sounds, new vibes, trying new things, and bringing fire to the producer community.
Dive into hard-hitting drums from 19 leading artists, executive produced by DECAP:
October 19, 2026
