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hmm.. my advice for a beginner.. Whatever you feel, put it into the music
If you don't have anything worth putting into music, don't make music.. forcing it never helps
Music - like any other work of art - is a story.. No single word or note is that important, but if done right they will flow naturally and add to one another.

Also -- contrast.... a ridiculously important concept.

There is a time for everything.. Light, darkness, humor, sadness, soft, and loud... the pacing and transitions of these contrasts is vital, perhaps one of the most vital things in all music..

FSTZ wrote: go into the session with a concept, try to write the tune in your mind before you execute your song

Ive never been able to do this. I have no idea how a tune will turn out until I have finished it half way trough. I don't hum melodies in my head and put them down into songs. I guess i don't have the knowledge to do so. I just make a mess of a song with layers and layers of stuff and then fix it till it sounds proper. That's how i go about it. And yes, less is more.

To encapsulate some of the best advice I've heard here -

Less is more.*

Coherent pallet.*

Contrast.

Something I think artists should be cognizant of is the influence of the audience in their mind. Avoid at all costs considering what people will think of this or that, it's absolutely toxic to the creative process. The audience is tricky though, you can calm it, but then in a flash it will work its way right back into your forthoughts. You have to look for signs of its presence, because it's not always apparent that it's there. People don't want to hear what you think they want to hear, people want to hear what you want to hear. What?

^^

last point is debatable imo - obviously you should be doing what you want otherwise you wont be getting any enjoyment out of music, but people dont necessarily want to hear what you do. i suppose it depends one various factors such as what you are into, what you make music for, etc.

for example, most big commercial tracks (not necessarily talking about dubstep here, more popular music) are very much tailored towards what its audience expects (by people who are very good at knowing their audience). which is they sell so well.

and on the other hand when you are deep into the creative process you (well i at least) can get really into things that other people are not gonna appreciate, because you are tied to it. you lose objectivity to a degree. so you could spend hours on some cool little bass twist or something that you think makes the track and others might not even notice it. and often one of your tracks that you are not particularly happy about other people absolutely love.

i suppose what you need is some kind of a balance. personally i am very much selfish when it comes to my music, i make what i want to hear and couldn't really care about what other do, but then i have never really been into that much popular stuff, normally been into more fringe artists, depth, etc. when a lot of other people are looking for hooks, something catchy to stick in their head. knowing your audience is a skill.

anyway its a tough one... something i find quite hard to grapple with myself (hence why i normally take the easy way out and say: fuck the audience im doing what i want).

gravity wrote:^^

last point is debatable imo - obviously you should be doing what you want otherwise you wont be getting any enjoyment out of music, but people dont necessarily want to hear what you do. i suppose it depends one various factors such as what you are into, what you make music for, etc.

for example, most big commercial tracks (not necessarily talking about dubstep here, more popular music) are very much tailored towards what its audience expects (by people who are very good at knowing their audience). which is they sell so well.

and on the other hand when you are deep into the creative process you (well i at least) can get really into things that other people are not gonna appreciate, because you are tied to it. you lose objectivity to a degree. so you could spend hours on some cool little bass twist or something that you think makes the track and others might not even notice it. and often one of your tracks that you are not particularly happy about other people absolutely love.

i suppose what you need is some kind of a balance. personally i am very much selfish when it comes to my music, i make what i want to hear and couldn't really care about what other do, but then i have never really been into that much popular stuff, normally been into more fringe artists, depth, etc. when a lot of other people are looking for hooks, something catchy to stick in their head. knowing your audience is a skill.

anyway its a tough one... something i find quite hard to grapple with myself (hence why i normally take the easy way out and say: fuck the audience im doing what i want).

Too true, makes me jealous! ha I think its all about the hook, obviously the part people will remember but like you said, making the music you want to make instead of what other people want is key to keeping your interest.

Mind, body and soul. Most importantly, the latter.

Yeah I'm gonna have to go with FSTZ on this one, I love having a concept for a tune before I go in.
Doesn't mean I have the whole tune mapped out in my head but I'll have an idea of where I want it to go before I start work.
Also in regards to the concept issue, having an idea of what your tune is "about" can help setup a vibe and get you working.

But then again, sometimes it's fun just to setup up a mad drum groove and jam until you get something good (then you can start conceptualising!)

My 2C would be to develop your own sound, but try to keep your tunes different so you don't get pigeonholed (sounds paradoxical but makes sense to me anyway )

Also, APPLY YOURSELF! Try not to get caught up in the partying too much (yeah right, like I can talk!) Treat writing tunes like a job (but don't forget to have fun!), schedule time for it, and turn your modem/router/phone off (or do what I do and give it to the missus to take to work with her). Block out all other distractions and focus, you'll look up and it'll be 8 hours later

1. make the girls dance. rule #1. the dudes can figure this shit out for themselves... or are irreleveant.

2. write music with soul. This'll take some introspection. Note that "soul" doesn't automatically default to subby tunes w/ a 2step vibe-- there's more than 1 way to skin this cat.

3. work really hard! Read those early Skream interviews to see just how much of a flex he was on. Midnight Request Line didn't come out of nowhere. Neither did Joker's material, or Benga's, or DMZ, or....

3.5-- make connections w/ folks on a similar path. This is far more enjoyable and productive when you're not completely in it alone-- dance music is ultimately a social thing; come out of the basement once and a while.

(I'd like to add GET REAL PAID as a distant #4)

pets bud wrote:

FSTZ wrote: go into the session with a concept, try to write the tune in your mind before you execute your song

Ive never been able to do this. I have no idea how a tune will turn out until I have finished it half way trough. I don't hum melodies in my head and put them down into songs. I guess i don't have the knowledge to do so. I just make a mess of a song with layers and layers of stuff and then fix it till it sounds proper. That's how i go about it. And yes, less is more.

give it a try...

sometimes it's just a single sample... a horn delay or a bassline / bass sound

I bet you'll be surprised with the result

Sharmaji wrote:1. make the girls dance. rule #1. the dudes can figure this shit out for themselves... or are irreleveant.

^^^that!

nothing more rewarding than seeing a floor full of ladies going mental to a tune you've created (except distant rule #4 - GET MAD PAID)

FSTZ wrote: nothing more rewarding than seeing a floor full of ladies going mental to a tune you've created (except distant rule #4 - GET MAD PAID)

Haha I love how in some threads people hate on people making music for these reasons, then other threads it's a different story

Sharmaji wrote:1. make the girls dance. rule #1. the dudes can figure this shit out for themselves... or are irreleveant.

one thing the dubstep scene has kind of forgotten about, too busy making aggressive manbeats.

wirez wrote:Mind, body and soul. Most importantly, the latter.

I'll elaborate on this after Sharm's comment...

Mind - Make music to cure the itch of needing to make music, just make it... Don't think about what you're making [until the complete track is somewhere near finished, then go back and correct parts which aren't necessarily working]

Body - Make music that's going to sound good to rock ladies bodies with...

Soul - Make music that comes from your emotions, no point just making music for the sake of making noises... Otherwise you'll just end up with a folder full of Brostep

wirez wrote:

FSTZ wrote: nothing more rewarding than seeing a floor full of ladies going mental to a tune you've created (except distant rule #4 - GET MAD PAID)

Haha I love how in some threads people hate on people making music for these reasons, then other threads it's a different story

I love my homies... but

dancefloor full of dudes... no ladies will jump in = dancefloor will be empty soon

dancefloor full of ladies... the bros will jump in = rammed dancefloor all night

you can slide in a couple of Datsik or Excision tunes when you need to melt a face or two...

bring the bounce and watch the ladies brock! <--- that's my motto

wirez wrote: Soul - Make music that comes from your emotions, no point just making music for the sake of making noises... Otherwise you'll just end up with a folder full of Brostep

Yeah I agree with this to an extent, but I personally love music for musics sake, especially 20th Century classical, stuff like Integrated Serialism (Boulez, Stockhausen, etc) where every aspect of the music, pitch, duration, dynamics, tonality would be calculated based on various structures. The sheer passion these composers had for their music is inspiration enough!

FSTZ wrote:bring the bounce and watch the ladies brock! <--- that's my motto

FSTZ wrote:go into the session with a concept, try to write the tune in your mind before you execute your song

Remember reading some Aphex interview where he says he is a lucid dreamer, and he would just dream that he was in his studio making tracks. He'd work on a track, wake up, and do what he just did in his dream. That might explain some things. He also may be a bit of a charlatan.

nowaysj wrote:Remember reading some Aphex interview where he says he is a lucid dreamer, and he would just dream that he was in his studio making tracks. He'd work on a track, wake up, and do what he just did in his dream. That might explain some things. He also may be a bit of a charlatan.

I'm a lucid dreamer and still wouldn't be able to remember a melody from a dream, techniques maybe... I reckon he only said that to look good Although, I could definitely imagine his videos coming from dreams!

1) compression kills sound quality.

2) trust your ears.

3) adderall works.

nowaysj wrote:

FSTZ wrote:go into the session with a concept, try to write the tune in your mind before you execute your song

Remember reading some Aphex interview where he says he is a lucid dreamer, and he would just dream that he was in his studio making tracks. He'd work on a track, wake up, and do what he just did in his dream. That might explain some things. He also may be a bit of a charlatan.

don't think he's a charlatan, but he definitely likes to take the piss.

symmetricalsounds wrote:

nowaysj wrote:

FSTZ wrote:go into the session with a concept, try to write the tune in your mind before you execute your song

Remember reading some Aphex interview where he says he is a lucid dreamer, and he would just dream that he was in his studio making tracks. He'd work on a track, wake up, and do what he just did in his dream. That might explain some things. He also may be a bit of a charlatan.

don't think he's a charlatan, but he definitely likes to take the piss.

Haha that picture is pretty funny!