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If you’re like me, your social media feed is probably full of ads for music plugins promising to revolutionize how you make music. Usually, this is just hyperbole; sometimes, the plugins fail to live up to the hype. Captain Plugins was one of those Facebook ads for me—a suite of tools from Mixed In Key that seemed to promise a shortcut to inspiration. It looked slick in the ads, but I found myself wondering. Could it deliver on all those promises? After diving into it, I can say that it’s a surprisingly versatile tool that’s sparked plenty of creative ideas—and for me, that’s half the battle.
First Steps: Laying Down The Foundations
While it became clear to me that Captain Plugins Epic is designed for ease of use, the built-in and included tutorials (accessible via “How To” in the right-hand corner) were “epic” in the way they helped me get the most out of every plugin. I truly recommend starting with those before beginning, as they are incredibly useful.
I began my journey with Captain Chords, which feels like the backbone of the entire setup when considered amongst the rest of the collection. It doesn’t just help you lay down chords—it breaks them down into their numerical and named equivalents (like “ii-V-I” and “D minor, G major, C major”), which I imagine would be a huge help for beginners learning keys and theory.
It was convenient for someone like me, who sometimes likes to use the original chord progressions of my favorite songs as a base to start my remixes. Captain Chords also includes a vast library of genre-specific chord rhythms and progressions, so if you’re making melodic house or trap and you’re stuck, it’s like having a shortcut to inspiration. If you’re stuck, Mixed In Key does provide a great tutorial on Captain Chords here.
Exploring the Suite
Once you’ve built your chords, Captain Plugins makes it ridiculously easy to layer on melodies, basslines, and drums with the rest of the suite. Here’s how they stack up:
Captain Melody: Captain Melody is perhaps the most interesting in how it develops its patterns. Whilst the other plugins have preset options for genre and bpm, Melody invites you to tinker under the hood to design a melody that works for you. Its nine visible presets are a solid starting point; however, exploring the Layout, Shape, Rhythm, First Note, or Lanes tabs allows you many options to truly take those patterns in new directions. Thankfully, using these is intuitive and great for quickly generating melody ideas that follow your chord progressions. As with Captain Chords, Mixed In Key does provide a great tutorial here if you’re unsure.
As a suggestion, but not a gripe, I hope Mixed In Key expands on this in a future update by adding genre and BPM melody presets. Not that missing these weaken the plugin in any way, but it could go a long way to making this capable tool even better.
Captain Deep: Captain Deep offers much variety, from simple root-note patterns to more rhythmically complex ideas. Rhythms can be filtered by genre, with vast presets underneath, and the rhythm selections feel polished enough to drop straight into a track. Some of these feel nostalgic, especially the ’90s House presets, which made me feel like I was in a UK Club, listening to dance remixes of Everything But The Girl.
Captain Beat: However, despite the strengths of the other plugins, for me, this is where the suite shines the brightest. Captain Beat gives you an impressive collection of drum loops across a wide range of genres; and tweaking them is effortless. You can swap out kits, adjust individual elements (like snares or hi-hats), or even import your own samples if needed. It’s flexible enough to give you complete control while offering a solid foundation if you want to drop in a pre-made loop and go. You can even use rhythms from different genres on each part of the kit (for example, trap high hats over house-inspired kicks) to create something uniquely your own.
Creativity Unlocked: Use Any VST You Want
While you could quickly build an entire track using just these plugins, Captain Plugins includes a built-in ability to export MIDI files, which means you’re free to use your own VSTs and sounds. If you’re a producer with an epic library of go-to VST instruments, Captain Plugins can be used to spark ideas and form the basis of an incredible track.
I haven’t finished a song entirely with just Captain Plugins yet, but I’ve come up with many ideas to expand on. And honestly, that’s worth a lot. As any producer will tell you, sometimes just getting started is the hardest part.
Final Thoughts
Captain Plugins strikes a nice balance between accessibility and depth. If you’re new to music production, the built-in theory tools and genre-specific presets are a great way to learn while creating. For more experienced producers, the suite feels like a creative partner, helping you work faster and get out of your own head.
It’s a solid addition to any producer’s toolkit for those seeking inspiration. Whether you want to learn, experiment, or get unstuck, it offers enough flexibility and functionality to make it worth your time.
Would I recommend it? Absolutely. It’s a great scratch pad for those looking to create, and that’s enough for me to keep it in my rotation.
