Odd Time Signature Discussion??????

ludofuzz · Post by **ludofuzz** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 5:17 am

I'm experimenting with dubstep in signitures such as 3/4. I think it could be quite effective. I feel it adds another dimension to the hypnotizing feel of this genre as it is not all left up to the b-line as so commonly expected. As much as I love dubstep I don't want to bore my ears or become jaded with endless track after track after homogenous track, OR see it end up in the same position where DnB got stuck (before neurophunk unleased its power and weight! (Praise to the phunk!)

Obviously this brings certain dilemas during the production. The most common one I keep asking myself time and time again is.....

.......Should I start off and end in 4/4 for the DJ?....Or continue writing tracks that people can't mix-unless they use their noggins?

I myself am very much into the art of Beat Juggling and have also been experimenting where you can take dubstep with this technique, but obviously can't expect the average joe DJ to learn this just to play my track.

So far I've made tracks that change from 4/4 -intro- to 3/4 -main content- and back to 4/4-outro- but would like to have tracks that are in 3/4 // 6/8 and stay in the same time signiture from start to finish.

With the listeners of dubstep being generally open to new ideas I was wondering what peeps here think about my ramblings.

Is anyone else trying things like this if so whats your favourite time sig?

Hopefully the forum crew are as odd as me and likes to twist things that little bit further!

Peace,Love & Light.

Lurka · Post by **Lurka** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 8:20 am

yes mate im loving it, you should'nt even have to ask this cos the musics all about breaking musical boundaries and moving away from the tried and tested.

large up!

trigga!!!:6:

blip · Post by **blip** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 11:50 am

I've been working with some parts in odd-numbered loops, like 5 and 7 bars, over a main structure that is straight 4/4. Subtle but interesting.

What you are doing a lot more radical, would love to listen to it. And this thread is an interesting contrast to Deapo's one requesting more structure.

Steve AC23 · Post by **Steve AC23** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 12:23 pm

i dont understand musical theory at all

blip · Post by **blip** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 12:33 pm

Me neither, but this is actually quite simple.
3/4 is like your regular 4/4 beat stopped at the 3 instead of the 4.

Citrus Boy · Post by **Citrus Boy** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 1:20 pm

Yeah mixing up time sig to 3/4 or 6/8 does give the percussion a really nice swing. Music4 on myspace page is in 6/8.

I'm working on a track in 4/6 at the mo. It really does sound very odd. Totally unmixable with 4/4 but what the hey.

thinking · Post by **thinking** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 1:34 pm

if you want DJs to play your tunes, and for people to understand it on the dancefloor without having to stop & listen for a minute, make it in 4/4.

I've got some wicked tracks in 6/4 (6 beats per bar), 10/4, ah all sorts of shit. Like you say you can just include some sections of non-4/4 - I've got a broken beat tune with 2 sections in 7/8 that is fine to mix.

thomas · Post by **thomas** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 4:23 pm

I understand what this means, but just cant really imagian it in my head

anyone got any examples of 3/4 6/8

Sharmaji · Post by **Sharmaji** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 4:35 pm

you can totally do it. heard MIA's new joint bird flu? it's in 6/8 but you can mix it w/ stuff in 4 and it works. there's some hiphop in 6/8, D&B had that whole post-bodyrock movement... it's totally doable. best thing to do would be to make the 1 and 4 of the bar of six REALLY clear so that DJs can have an easier time mixing it w/ stuff in 4.

eleventigers · Post by **eleventigers** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 8:21 pm

I've been talking about this in Boomnoise thread and i found this one now :> I have my own example how i went through odd time sigantures world... It is in 5/4 and i would be glad to hear any opinions how does it feel on you. It is not finished track just some rough arrangement for my own pleasure....

Abandoned:

http://www.mediafire.com/?8zavnxxtjlj

Waiting for your response !!!

marbles · Post by **marbles** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 11:12 pm

hello,

I'm new to the forum, this thread caught my attention cause i'm a drummer and have been messing around with programming beats in odd time without compromising it's flow. Some really interesting things can be done in 7/8, where you keep the hi-hat with a 4/4 feel and displace the kick and snare. It's not easy to explain so I have thrown together a beat, with and with out the 7 highlighted.

http://www.mediafire.com/?e5z2kv2y243

Obviously it's a shoddy example but hopefully you get an idea.

P.S - I hope I haven't patronised anyone by explaining this

b-lam · Post by **b-lam** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 11:25 pm

i've found anything outside of 4/4 just makes me chinstroke. most probably due to the fact that the huge majority of western music i was brought up on is in this signature, if i'd been brought up listening to 5/4 hungarian folk music then it would be different, but i wasnt. i find it difficult to get into the groove of more unusual time signatures.
if u expect a tune to work on the dancefloor then i dont think unusual signatures are a good idea, not to say that it's not worth making tunes like this, but since most dubstep is made specifically for large soundsystems it seems to me like a conflict of aims...

b-lam · Post by **b-lam** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 11:35 pm

eleventigers wrote:I've been talking about this in Boomnoise thread and i found this one now :> I have my own example how i went through odd time sigantures world... It is in 5/4 and i would be glad to hear any opinions how does it feel on you. It is not finished track just some rough arrangement for my own pleasure....

Abandoned:

http://www.mediafire.com/?8zavnxxtjlj

Waiting for your response !!!

i really like this, would like to hear a finished version. i dont think i'd dance to this, but having said that, it's a pretty mellow one anyway so maybe i wouldnt even if it was 4/4...

ludofuzz · Post by **ludofuzz** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 11:42 pm

@Marbles... Thanks dude thats exactly what i'm talking about. The flow of the beat isnt being compromised because of the usual signiture! I used to drum so its not to adverse to me, but I hadn't produced anything in 7/8 it works pretty well.

@B LAM.... a conflict in aims? Surely dubstep is the ideal genre to experiment with structure, arrangement, siganiture.etc.... The average listener within the dubstep community is part of it to hear something new, fresh and exciting. If that means learning about music rather than being brainwshed by it then so be it. Why banish tracks from sound systems to home stereos because you don't understand it? Isn't that musicalist or sumting?

If people tried to bend their minds just a little more to accomodate differences in music we wouldnt have to listen to the same crap all day on the radio? I think thats something we can all agree on.

Peace.

deadly_habit · Post by **deadly_habit** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 12:52 am

most of the time odd time sigs are great for listening pain to mix
ie: venetian snares

product · Post by **product** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 4:36 am

i've been wanting to make waltzstep for a while

haven't got around to figuring out how to do 3/4 in fruity loops though

b-lam · Post by **b-lam** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 9:56 am

Ludofuzz wrote: @B LAM.... a conflict in aims? Surely dubstep is the ideal genre to experiment with structure, arrangement, siganiture.etc.... The average listener within the dubstep community is part of it to hear something new, fresh and exciting. If that means learning about music rather than being brainwshed by it then so be it. Why banish tracks from sound systems to home stereos because you don't understand it? Isn't that musicalist or sumting?

If people tried to bend their minds just a little more to accomodate differences in music we wouldnt have to listen to the same crap all day on the radio? I think thats something we can all agree on.

Peace.

yup, agreed, experimentation is what's made this genre amazing. but i'm saying that it takes more than just a decision to accomadate musical differences to get in to the groove of a 11/8 tune!
my view was based on the fact the original blokey was asking whether it was worth experimenting with other time sigs, i meant yes but only if you expect it not to get dropped at a club, which i still think is fair really.

don't get me wrong, i love hearing fresh sounds on a fat system, it makes going out worthwhile, fuckit, makes the daily slog worthwhile.
i just don't think a culture that has listened to 99.9999999999999% 4/4 (and 3/4) music is ready for such a radical change...

rhythm is so fundamental to how our bodies and minds interract with music on a basic level, i'm not sure people are willing to go that far to change it ya kno?

Citrus Boy · Post by **Citrus Boy** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 11:45 am

Product wrote:haven't got around to figuring out how to do 3/4 in fruity loops though

I can show you.

Under project general settings set bar to 8, beat to 6. This'll giv you 3/4 but with the extra steps to sequence a 4/4 style kick and snare to giv you the obvious half step rhythm. Hope that helps.

Littlefoot · Post by **Littlefoot** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 12:24 pm

its all about switch ups, if you can move from 44 to 34 without just breaking it down people might go nuts dancing = good thing

ludofuzz · Post by **ludofuzz** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 5:04 pm

I like tracks with sharp transitions between time signiture. If it's effective you really can't forget that moment when it hits the dance floor.

Prime example....Anyone remember what that DJ Abstract tune was? A 4/5 year Old DNB. Awesome. ( I bought it for a mate for his bday. Should a picked one for myself to damnit! I remember pink artwork on the sleeve- God I hate my drug inflicted thinking cell...oh yeh....... brain!!! Ha ha HA.

Odd Time Signature Discussion??????

Is there room for more than 4/4?

Odd Time Signature Discussion??????

Who is online