Working as a sound artist in the digital age, my palette includes, literally, any noise which may be captured. I make use of highly processed environmental material in my more ambient pieces, and a favorite trick is turning what should not have been percussive into drums. Once I've coaxed a sound into 0s and 1s, it's free to become whatever I wish. The edges and artifacts remaining from its source incarnation provide a grounding, organic mystery.

I'm always interested in examining the techniques of others, and it's terrific when they make it easy. Wicked environmentalist Martin Spernau has a very nice mini-podcast up explaining how he created the clicking back-beat for his recent track: Father, I have been dreaming. And while some of us cyborg-meld with our studios full of blinking lights, Martin created his latest audio horror play using only GarageBand and the built-in mic on his iSight. Here's sonic proof you can create great sound with a very minimal setup.

Check out Martin's dark, enveloping audio works, Mindwarp and Outro. Be prepared to have your skin crawl away from your shivering bones, and like it.