How to keep yourself interested?

[dMan]

I searched but couldn't find anything.

I am wondering how everyone keeps themselves interested enough to keep on producing everyday. I will mess with a song and its sounds for about an hour or so each day but then I get somewhat overwhelmed and bored. I see people saying ohhh yeah I spend about 5 hours everyday, making about a tune a day. That just blows my mind. Maybe the more knowledge and experience you have with the program the easier it is to produce for longer periods? I am pretty new to music production and I really really want to get better. If anyone has any advice please let me know. Thanks!

[Phigure]

Maybe it's not for you...

[Frodo Bassbins]

Maybe it's not for you...

says the guy whos on the forums 24/7

[dMan]

Maybe it's not for you...

Ohh I sure hope not I really want to get good at this. I think if I were to remove everything in my room that i am tempted to touch. Xbox and shit like that then I would actually be able to get somewhere. I think my main problem is I don't know where to go next, I will sit down an make some really cool/interesting sounds, about 90 percent of my time spent is messing with sounds. Then once I start thinking about how to build the song, I am just thinking "WTF, What do i do now?" Hopefully when I start school next week I will learn something from music theory. I can lay things down but not the awesome stuff in my head.

[amidoinitrite]

I searched but couldn't find anything.

I am wondering how everyone keeps themselves interested enough to keep on producing everyday. I will mess with a song and its sounds for about an hour or so each day but then I get somewhat overwhelmed and bored. I see people saying ohhh yeah I spend about 5 hours everyday, making about a tune a day. That just blows my mind. Maybe the more knowledge and experience you have with the program the easier it is to produce for longer periods? I am pretty new to music production and I really really want to get better. If anyone has any advice please let me know. Thanks!

I don't think anyone keeps themselves interested.. I think they just are interested! I know some days I can spend hours messing around(coming up with nothing) and not get bored.. and other days I'll sit down for 5min and get pissed that nothing goods come out yet!
If you only want to work an hour a day go for it.. why not? If you want to do more.. then do more!
If you get bored but still want to produce try something new. Maybe leave and come back. Or just sit it out until you get something that motivates you!

[JemGrover]

I used to feel like this, but then when day something takes hold of you (it can stem from a personal breakthrough, some great feedback, or just an urge to want to learn something and be proud) and you become obsessed and it snowballs from there. Gotta REALLY stick at it though, even when it's mind-numbing. A good percentage of the time I'm not working with a view to create a track, but putting in the graft to learn how to do something e.g layering bass lines or making a drum beat that gels together as opposed to just a collection of samples- it's all too easy to start to hate a track you're working on because the mix sounds terrible, or whatever, which dampens enthusiasm and ends up with you walking away from the computer to do something else because you think "Ah, I'm never gonna make something worthwhile"

[yummy]

i think it's just a matter of how much you dig whatever it is you're working on. if i get in the zone with a tune i can easily spend 5-8 hours (with breaks) working on it, if my schedule allows. other times when i dont at all feel like producing i'll try something new to keep myself interested, whether it's watching youtube videos, learning new key commands, or approaching the software without any expectation whatsoever. just focusing purely on sounds.

using abletons session view to mess around with loops is a good way to break a creative block. also, smoking some herb is a good way to get into the session but one may lose the ability to discern between a shit idea and something worth progressing on with.

[TheBreadMan]

So a few years back we had a sorta friend Larry(Exzakt) out for a show from florida. We partied all night and then we had to slow the night down, then larry and i got in one of those 6am mornings with too many cigs and booze...he told me something that changed everything for me:"When you start producing you hit a point when you feel like it's TOO hard, and that you could never make a full track in a day, But the people who actually get into producing are the ones that stick it past that point. Thats where there is a fork in the road, and you have two choices. Give up and just move on, because it might not be something you really wanna do, OR you stick it through that point and begin the journey into producing, and when you decide to take that road you have to remember that you will ALWAYS be learning durning it, no matter good you are". I'm sure one or two words were different, but the point is, YOU have to decide if you wanna make that journey or give up...but i can tell you from personal experience that you'll like the journey after you break that point.


Sorry for the long post, but someone just asked me that the other day, so it was ironic there was this post.

[dMan]

I don't think anyone keeps themselves interested.. I think they just are interested! I know some days I can spend hours messing around(coming up with nothing) and not get bored.. and other days I'll sit down for 5min and get pissed that nothing goods come out yet!
If you only want to work an hour a day go for it.. why not? If you want to do more.. then do more!
If you get bored but still want to produce try something new. Maybe leave and come back. Or just sit it out until you get something that motivates you!

Thanks this is a relief, I think this is one of my off days, haha. Last week I spent about 4 hours messing around with random shit. I guess I shouldn't worry too much, I nearly forgot one of the main rules, patience.

using abletons session view to mess around with loops is a good way to break a creative block. also, smoking some herb is a good way to get into the session but one may lose the ability to discern between a shit idea and something worth progressing on with.

HAHA herb, damn I cant believe I forgot about that too, I do watch interviews and stuff also, this is where I hear about people like Mala saying yeah i spent basically all day, everyday making tunes. I guess if you surround yourself with music you will naturally gain more interest.

"When you start producing you hit a point when you feel like it's TOO hard, and that you could never make a full track in a day, But the people who actually get into producing are the ones that stick it past that point. Thats where there is a fork in the road, and you have two choices. Give up and just move on, because it might not be something you really wanna do, OR you stick it through that point and begin the journey into producing, and when you decide to take that road you have to remember that you will ALWAYS be learning durning it, no matter good you are". I'm sure one or two words were different, but the point is, YOU have to decide if you wanna make that journey or give up...but i can tell you from personal experience that you'll like the journey after you break that point.

That is a pretty inspiring quote. I just cant really see myself doing anything else in life really. Making good tunes that people like, seems like it could be one of the most satisfying things ever. I am just going to force myself to practice everyday and stick it out longer than I normally would.

[Hurtdeer]

no sense in giving up, if you really want to do it. or forcing it either.

make tracks at your own pace, start something new if you get bored, and eventually your brain will get so used to what you're doing that it'll, one day, get really hard not to do it all the time

[TheBreadMan]

you can always spend your time in between working on a track and browse through posts in here...you can actually learn A LOT from the forum....and don't forget to always read through the production bible(if you haven't already done so)....

[JemGrover]

So a few years back we had a sorta friend Larry(Exzakt) out for a show from florida. We partied all night and then we had to slow the night down, then larry and i got in one of those 6am mornings with too many cigs and booze...he told me something that changed everything for me:"When you start producing you hit a point when you feel like it's TOO hard, and that you could never make a full track in a day, But the people who actually get into producing are the ones that stick it past that point. Thats where there is a fork in the road, and you have two choices. Give up and just move on, because it might not be something you really wanna do, OR you stick it through that point and begin the journey into producing, and when you decide to take that road you have to remember that you will ALWAYS be learning durning it, no matter good you are". I'm sure one or two words were different, but the point is, YOU have to decide if you wanna make that journey or give up...but i can tell you from personal experience that you'll like the journey after you break that point.


Sorry for the long post, but someone just asked me that the other day, so it was ironic there was this post.

Exactly what I was trying to say; Don't give up...

plus girls love guys who make music and you will get lots and lots of sex

[yummy]

you can always spend your time in between working on a track and browse through posts in here...you can actually learn A LOT from the forum....and don't forget to always read through the production bible(if you haven't already done so)....

conversely, turning off the internet while producing can help you keep focused on the music.

[dMan]

you can always spend your time in between working on a track and browse through posts in here...you can actually learn A LOT from the forum....and don't forget to always read through the production bible(if you haven't already done so)....

I actually have the production bible bookmarked! haha



Thanks guys for all the help super inspiring and helpful, I was expecting maybe 1 reply max, but not this.

[TheBreadMan]

you can always spend your time in between working on a track and browse through posts in here...you can actually learn A LOT from the forum....and don't forget to always read through the production bible(if you haven't already done so)....

conversely, turning off the internet while producing can help you keep focused on the music.

this is true...i guess i never realized I do that...I have one computer for production and what not and one for the internet. everyone here is all the same page:DON'T GIVE UP...IF...it's REALLY something you wanna do, and NEVER stop learning...take what people say even if it may not be what you wanna here and apply it.

[legend4ry]

Stop making sounds and drum beats and write songs!


Theres nothign worse than people who get stuck in writing 16 bar loops...

Load up a piano, a basic pad, some 808 or 909 drums... and maybe a simple sine wave... Get your melody, atmosphere, drums and bass down..

replace sounds where needed and fill in the gaps, its actually THAT simple, in theory..

[budsteq]

you can always spend your time in between working on a track and browse through posts in here...you can actually learn A LOT from the forum....and don't forget to always read through the production bible(if you haven't already done so)....

conversely, turning off the internet while producing can help you keep focused on the music.

this.

i always get distracted by facebook, and this fucking forum haha.

[dMan]

Stop making sounds and drum beats and write songs!

I just thought about it and what is the point of me making good sounds when I don't know where to place them. I always hated shitty sounding synths but I guess I need to learn the basics first.


I think I am going to start unplugging my xbox everyday and putting the cords in a box so If I want to play, I will have to really want to play. I need to get off this forum for now and get back to producing shit.

[legend4ry]

Just think how pianists make beautiful music with just one instrument.

We have limitless capibilities to make the most interesting music with technology these days but without those fundermental rules of notation and a start, middle and end, music doesn't exist, it just becomes disjointed noise.

If you only care about your sounds then you'll be stuck in 16 bar loop for a long time.

Then again, my efforts could be a horrible disapointment if you just wanna write tearout music...

[weedcali]

Its pretty tough for me. not because im not interested but because my computer is way outdated.

Ill be working on a song and getting real into it when it starts skipping and XP gets hiccups. totally kills the mood. i cant have more than one decent vst running at the same time or it gets bad. so i resort to exporting my sounds as wave

but im saving to build my new system with a new Phenom II X6!!!! lol only about $400 more