The Juke/Footwork Production Thread

[hasezwei]

INTRODUCTION YO

alright, i know we already had a thread in the production forum but it turned out to be just a youtube linkfest (not that i dont like that) just like the one over @ general discussion.

so i thought it'd be nice if we had a thread focused around asking questions, providing advice, posting bits and sharing techniques rather than discussing whether or not this style is actually any good or which producers are good or wack.

for those of you who still don't know what juke is and are too lazy to read thru the 2 threads linked above i'll post a couple of example videos of different facets of the whole phenomenon and then i think we can kick it off, aight?

first off we have the original juke/footwork sound from chicago, which has been going for over 10 years from what i've read, the 4/4 stuff even longer but i dont really listen to that.
planet µ has 2 great compilations of 'true' footwork if you wanna call it that, heres a snippet that should provide a good overview.



honorable mentions go to dj spinn and dj rashad, if you dont know them then clearly u dun kno. check out rashad's 'ghost' for utter rhythmic insanity.

then we have the idm/dubstep/electronica veterans @ planet µ who are trying out the new sound, with great results i might add. they're all putting their own twists on it. check out kuedo, machinedrum, ital tek, phillip d kick aka om unit and chrissy murderbot.



and then we have, uh, krampfhaft. no idea where to fit that guy, he makes all kinds of music but this tune definetly got me hooked on juke:


as you might have noticed by now, people dance in very weird ways to this shit. if you think this dance is retarded then you better not be making juke music because, this is important: the people dont dance like that cause the music sounds fucked up, the music sounds fucked up cause the people dance like that. in chicago where this shit comes from the dancers are the guys everyone wants to be, not the dj's. kinda like breakdance. theres some good articles about that shit that i'll link in a second.

okay with that out of the way i'm nearly ready to get to business, last thing i must add is a question to wub (and any other moderators): would it be ok to ignore the 'theres a how to make that sound thread' and 'dubs forum/WIP thread is that way' rules for this thread? cause honestly i'd rather have one thread i can check every day to see whats interesting than having to sift through heaps of brostomp to find fellow juke-enthusiasts asking questions or sharing their latest attempts.

LINK TIEM NAO
Footwork takes competitive dancing to the Chicago streets - Guardian
documentary about footwork @ npr
article about footwork @ chicago reader

[hasezwei]

So, you wanna make juke but don't know how?

First off, your tools. You really dont need a specific DAW for this kind of music, there's no 'must have' synths like massive for dubstep (which isnt true anyway), however there are a few requirements you'll definetly need UNLESS you actively decide against them for artistic reasons.

First of all you'll need a sampler. This music is inherently sample-based, like hiphop or, well any underground/ghetto music i suppose. Software samplers are perfectly fine, i heard spinn&rashad use their hardware but a lot of juke trax are just made with cracked copies of FLstudio. You might still consider an mpc-style midi controller, i personally found my mpd to be way better for programming these crazy drums than a regular midi keyboard or just my mouse. especially the note repeat function combined with the swing is nice to give hats and toms a loose feel.

Now that we have that out of the way, you'll ask yourself what to fill your sampler with. and here we come to the centerpiece of this music, the alllmighty roland tr-808. this drum machine is featured in some way in pretty much every juke track out there with maybe a handful exceptions. the 909 gets used a lot too.

all the free 808 samples you'll ever need
some of the links include other samples too, hope you don't mind. if i missed any essential packs let me know.

if you're ready to pay money for your samples check out goldbaby's tape 808 samples, they're pretty much the best you can get.
there's also 808/909 emulation vst's, i'm not an expert when it comes to that. i've tried Audiorealism's ADMand was disappointed but you might like it.

as Naan Bread pointed out, southern rap/trap drums are another nice way to give your tracks that ghetto feel
this is a great samplepack by lex luger (thanks for finding that, naan) and i can also recommend this pack by boi-1da.

okay, now we have the drumsounds covered.

general advice:

For juke proper:
-obvious/highly resonant filters on everything.
-bitcrushers/saturation on everything.
-weird panning.
-Don't worry too much about the mixdown. Focus more on the overall aesthetic.
-pitch drum samples, fairly obvious one but anyway.

I think it's important not to have beats and samples that are too tidy and neat; quantization is definitely happening, but it's good not to get sucked into the "snares always go on the 2 & 4" habit, or even use the traditional kick/snare combo for the accent notes all the time. Have fun with it, get hyped like it's the first time you're making a beat, and don't be afraid to try weird shit rhythmically.

rhythm section still missing, i think im gonna explain it via soundcloud links tomorrow

[Mushroom Buttons]

Lovely. Been making some myself. Would love to see where this thread goeeeess

[serox]

On it also

[Naan_Bread]

For juke proper:
-obvious/highly resonant filters on everything.
-bitcrushers/saturation on everything.
-weird panning.
-Don't worry too much about the mixdown. Focus more on the overall aesthetic.
-pitch drum samples, fairly obvious one but anyway.
- Beyond the standard 808 fare google some trap rap kits. There's a really good lex luger one I'll post a link to later when I find it.

EDIT: here it is: http://www.mediafire.com/?ytuaf97v49qhk4u

[joegrizzly]

Wow this shits dope, thanks for those youtube links shits unreal

[alphacat]

One of the things that struck me when I first heard Juke was its rawness; it sounded like a 15 year old with a cracked copy of something (with the varying loop lengths and near random placement of the 808 toms and all that) - and that's one of the things that I like most about it - that it kind of existed in its own little world without being influenced too much by most contemporary music except R&B and Hip Hop, where even then the Juke take on those sounds is like 90 degrees in another direction entirely.

That said, I think it's important not to have beats and samples that are too tidy and neat; quantization is definitely happening, but it's good not to get sucked into the "snares always go on the 2 & 4" habit, or even use the traditional kick/snare combo for the accent notes all the time. Have fun with it, get hyped like it's the first time you're making a beat, and don't be afraid to try weird shit rhythmically.

I also think 606's and CR-1000's sound pretty at-home in Juke.

___________________

One more thing - although I know it's an overused cliche to invent a new genre by fusing two existing and unlikely genres, I think that as bits of the Juke sound filter out into other styles (as has already happened somewhat) that some very interesting cross-pollinations will occur, like this:

http://www.dubstepforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=230440

[hutyluty]

fuck a mixdown

juke/jungle mixes are where its at!

[hasezwei]

nice one guys, added your advice to the second post!

[Mushroom Buttons]

Juke goes well with the skittering southern rap hi hats

[Electric_Head]

good post

[lazermouse]

Production tips & tricks from Pointblank online:

[Suangi]

acapellas4u.co.uk deserves a mention here for anyone who doesnt already know it.
full of acapellas from hiphop and other styles that you can dl free, cut up, and repeat like mad in your juke tracks.
in 90% of juke tracks ive heard, there are repetitive, short (1 or 2 beat) vocal samples. extra points if it's sexy, distasteful, or drug related.

[Mushroom Buttons]

bump this bitchh.

OP: "then we have the idm/dubstep/electronica veterans @ planet µ who are trying out the new sound, with great results i might add. they're all putting their own twists on it."



i feel this one is one of them. Not too obvious but there are some juke elements. might be wrong.

[fragments]

Great post, few fellas in my neck of the woods are into spinning Juke at local parties. Wanna know more about it. I've really been about not just making another of my "usual" tunes as well!

I will also add that D16 groups 808 and 909 emulators are awesome. I have the 909. Though to be honest I more often use samples. +1 for Gold Baby! Amazing samples. The Tape 808 pack is my little whore

[Sonika]

What bpm is juke, generally? Around 90 bpm, like hip hop?

[fragments]

@Sonika: I think what a lot of people are doing these days is 150-160BPM, but I'm pretty sure Juke DJs used to play house records on tables set to 45RPM with -8 pitch (or something like that) to get that "original" sound.

[Sonika]

Okay, thanks but it's sort of free, right, not like dubstep where it has to be 140 bpm?

[fragments]

Okay, thanks but it's sort of free, right, not like dubstep where it has to be 140 bpm?

Who said dubstep has to be 140BPM but to be honest I am not really sure. All I know, from the guys I've talked to, is what they spin is around 160BPM

I do believe you are correct though, with the free BPM thing. I've heard lots of stuff that is slower and faster. I think it's mostly about 808s, hip hop samples and syncopated riddims. So you can get yo' crackhead dance on proper.

[Sonika]

Sounds like a plan! Thanks