A Sonic Byte

A guide to programming dark electronic music with Sonic Pi

Listen First

Before reading a single line of code, listen to the album on SoundCloud.

Eight tracks. Twenty minutes. All made with code.

Hear what we’re building. Then come back and learn how it’s done.

Welcome

You’re holding a tutorial that will teach you how to create a complete 8-track dark electronic album using nothing but code. No DAW. No piano roll. No mouse clicking. Just pure, expressive code.

Sonic Byte — 8 tracks of dark clubbing, industrial electronic, and darksynth music, composed entirely in Sonic Pi. This book will teach you how it was made, and give you the skills to create your own.

Why Code?

In a traditional DAW, you click and drag. You draw notes on a grid. You twist virtual knobs with a mouse.

In Sonic Pi, you type this:

play scale(:d4, :minor).choose

One line. A random note from D minor. Every time.

Or this:

16.times do |i|
  play :d2, cutoff: 50 + i*4
  sleep 0.25
end

A bass note that gets brighter with each hit. The filter opens automatically. No automation lanes. No clicking. Just describe what you want and it happens.

Code lets you:

• Generate patterns that never repeat exactly the same way
• Control everything with variables and math
• Build systems that make creative decisions for you
• Share your music as text anyone can run

This isn’t about replacing DAWs. It’s about discovering what’s possible when music becomes code.

What You’ll Learn

By the end of this tutorial, you’ll understand:

• Sound Design — How to craft punishing kicks, grinding basslines, and atmospheric pads
• Rhythm Programming — Building drum patterns that drive the dancefloor
• Melody Writing — Creating dark, emotional melodies that cut through the mix
• Arrangement — Structuring tracks with builds, drops, and DJ-friendly sections
• The Power of Code — Using functions, threads, and generative patterns to create music that evolves

Who This Book Is For

This tutorial assumes:

• Basic programming knowledge — You understand variables, functions, and loops
• Some musical interest — You don’t need to read music, but curiosity helps
• Sonic Pi installed — Download it free at sonic-pi.net

New to Sonic Pi? The official tutorial is excellent for learning the basics. We’ll cover what you need here, but the built-in docs go deeper.

The Album

Here’s what we’re building:

Each track teaches different techniques. By the final chapter, you’ll have built all eight.

How to Use This Book

Part I: Foundations covers the vision and Sonic Pi basics. Start here if you’re new.

Part II: Sound Design dives deep into creating individual elements — drums, bass, leads, and effects.

Part III: Arrangement teaches you how to structure complete tracks.

Part IV: The Album walks through each track, explaining the creative and technical decisions. Each chapter ends with Hacker Challenges — modifications for you to try.

Appendix provides quick reference materials you’ll use constantly.

Let’s make some noise.

use_bpm 100
sample :bd_tek, amp: 2.5, rate: 0.9
sleep 1
sample :bd_tek, amp: 2.5, rate: 0.9

Press Run.