DSF Q&A Sessions 2: Ramadanman

kwality · Post by **kwality** » Thu Jan 22, 2009 9:30 pm

^^^^
Not a stupid question at all - the mans drums are top notch!

My question is about how you manage to make fairly minimal tunes sound so huge? Often there aren't that many elements in your tunes (eg 'Bidding War') but they fill the space perfectly. Do you choose sounds to efectively help fill a space? And do you find the less you have the easier it is to make it clear/loud/punchy?

Anyway, cheers for this q&a!

ramadanman · Post by **ramadanman** » Thu Jan 22, 2009 11:08 pm

disturbed dowee wrote:Are there any release plans for your remix of Jungle Republic?

What releases do you have instore for Hessle 2009?

Big thread btw

yeh should be coming out this year...sometime..! think they're waiting on another remix or something

hessle 2009? no plans really, got another 12" coming shortly, but otherwise just seeing how it goes really

ramadanman · Post by **ramadanman** » Thu Jan 22, 2009 11:12 pm

kwality wrote: My question is about how you manage to make fairly minimal tunes sound so huge? Often there aren't that many elements in your tunes (eg 'Bidding War') but they fill the space perfectly. Do you choose sounds to efectively help fill a space? And do you find the less you have the easier it is to make it clear/loud/punchy?

Anyway, cheers for this q&a!

i think it's about choosing the right sounds, and having good speakers so you know what you're actually doing. i think that's the most important part. since i have had monitors you can just adjust with complete confidence. obviously monitors are not perfect and they might have some flaw here or there, but if you spend a bit of cash and get them in the right place it really helps you out.

what makes a tune 'loud' or punchy is quite specific, and i think certain frequencies make a tune louder than others. for example i read that back in the day they used to put tambourines in mowtown records to make them be the loudest tunes on the radio, because apparently a tambourine really cuts through cos it's at a certain frequency. it's also about getting the level of the bass right - too much bass can muddy a tune. finally, i guess getting the snare right sometimes you will have to layer a couple together, often with a lower one to give it more oomph. i don't mean making sub focus style 200 hz over heavy snares, but just a little subtle addition which might turn a slightly tame clap into something a bit more substansial. i hope that's of help!

paul88 · Post by **paul88** » Sat Jan 24, 2009 5:21 pm

hey there,

I was wondering what background you have in the likes of music theory..chords etc and any tips you might have? also what music theory you think is essential to know?

thanks

boyd · Post by **boyd** » Sun Jan 25, 2009 12:19 am

When you've got a tune where the only bass is sub, like offal, do you have any tips for eqing/leveling etc? Not sure how to get it so it can work for people listening in headphones as well as on a big system.

Cheers.

ether · Post by **ether** » Sun Jan 25, 2009 11:24 am

Testing the water.

Can you shed some light on what happens after mix down, how you gauge a tracks success.

Generally do you have a track mastered for cd immediately? or will you send it around to other producers to play, will you cut a dub? or just play out an unmastered CDR? and will you make any minor adjustments, after hearing it out through a decent system and seeing the response it gets?

mr jangle · Post by **mr jangle** » Sun Jan 25, 2009 9:37 pm

how often do you cut your toenails?

what star sign are you?

which is your favorite day of the week?

does harry agius have homicidal tendencies?

ramadanman · Post by **ramadanman** » Sun Jan 25, 2009 10:36 pm

paul88 wrote:hey there,

I was wondering what background you have in the likes of music theory..chords etc and any tips you might have? also what music theory you think is essential to know?

thanks

i do have a background in music theory, did it up to grade 5 when i was young, and did grades in piano (classical and jazz). but i was never big on reading music etc and always ended up improvising, or just learning the piece in my head. i'm not sure what tips i can give tbh, there are a lot of people who make amazing music without any theory training at all so i think it's a natural thing

ramadanman · Post by **ramadanman** » Sun Jan 25, 2009 10:38 pm

boyd wrote:When you've got a tune where the only bass is sub, like offal, do you have any tips for eqing/leveling etc? Not sure how to get it so it can work for people listening in headphones as well as on a big system.

Cheers.

i think often it's a case of the melody played - 1 note sub basslines can be quite boring.

in terms of eqing i guess you're trying to find its place in the tune, without interfering with the kick . i think levelling / eq is the same for headphones and a system. i always make my tunes with a system in mind anyhow

ramadanman · Post by **ramadanman** » Sun Jan 25, 2009 10:41 pm

ether wrote:Testing the water.

Can you shed some light on what happens after mix down, how you gauge a tracks success.

Generally do you have a track mastered for cd immediately? or will you send it around to other producers to play, will you cut a dub? or just play out an unmastered CDR? and will you make any minor adjustments, after hearing it out through a decent system and seeing the response it gets?

it really depends on the tune. some tunes you make and think it's amazing, but no one else likes it lol. sometimes you make a tune and you think its crap, but everyone seems to be into it. othertimes you've got something finished and you kinda know it's a good one, and you're happy with it yourself. as long as you're staying true to yourself i think it doesn't matter. if you're happy with the tune that's the main thing.

when i play stuff off CD i give it a boost myself, using eq and compression. i wouldnt play a flat file out off CD, as it wouldnt stand up to mastered / released tunes in either loudness or punchiness. i often go through a lot of versions of a tune before being happy with it so often it's a case of revising it a fair few times

ramadanman · Post by **ramadanman** » Sun Jan 25, 2009 10:42 pm

mr jangle wrote:how often do you cut your toenails?

what star sign are you?

which is your favorite day of the week?

does harry agius have homicidal tendencies?

why do toenails grow more slowly than fingernails? that's a question.

cancer

thursdays / saturdays

only on one of his famous unlucky days!

the snare bear · Post by **the snare bear** » Thu Jan 07, 2010 5:58 am

hey man- one question...first like to say you're an inspiration through your innovative tuneage, im sure from one 21 year old to another 20 or 21 year old that is weird, but hey dude- you know what the fuck youre doing and are doing a helluva job of it. the biggest ups i can give.

question: was it difficult to get noticed and start a label? for young dudes such as ourselves, it is a steady, gradual grind to get any form of recognition for such a niche music as we make...and i was just curious as to your thought process with sending out demos, reaching out to radio stations or labels, and just overall starting out. did you ever think your music would ascend to such epic proportions? because it has my man, it most certainly has.

much love and respect, SB (Cam)

JFK · Post by **JFK** » Thu Jan 07, 2010 10:08 am

Dude, this thread is over a year old.......... Dont hold your breath for a reply.

DSF Q&A Sessions 2: Ramadanman

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