Dubstepforum.com

hey whats going on i actually never thought i'd be posting in a dubstep forum. im a big beatport guy, and for awhile i never really could stand listening to dubstep, all the wobble and harsh noises i never understood it, however all that changed today when i heard Nero (UK)'s Sincere. I have to be honest, a couple days ago I first heard Breakage's Fighting Fire and that started getting me into it as well, but seriously when I heard Sincere I don't know something has got a hold of me and I would love to get into dubstep.
If I could get some answers with this that would be awesome, basically I don't understand how each kick and snare sounds so pronounced yet it is so rhythmic. Have a listen to Nero (UK)'s remix of Sincere and I notice it's as if each kick and snare pauses for a half second, yet it is still rhythmic and makes you want to dance.. Is there a technique for this? I am using Logic Pro, some Reason as well. Again it's that really pronounced like a stab yet it doesn't slow the song down it actually makes it more rhythmical.

Again man if I could say something to Nero (UK) I would have to say that is what's so amazing about music, literally one song can open your eyes to a whole new genre of music you never thought you'd be into..

-peace, I greatly appreciate any help with this at all! it's awesome

i think what youre referring to is the half-time drum structure which is a very defining factor of most dubstep tracks.
also, the tempo, traditionally of 130-145 bpm gives it that slow pulsing movement that makes it so appealing.

by half time, i simply mean a kick on the first beat of the bar, and a snare on the 3rd,
its then the arrangement of the highhats around this basic drum beat that give it the movement
and the illusion that its actually a faster paced track than it really is.

basically just the fundamentals of dubstep, and the sort of beat you will hear in most dubstep.

that being said, there are plenty of examples with full time beats, and more complex structures/time signatures...but thats normally within the more atmospheric/melodic side of dubstep.

Pauses for half a second? Are you talking about the beat pattern itself? If so, I think you mean "swing". It's where you create your drum pattern, then add some swing to the kick to shift it along slightly so it sounds skippy, but the movement is so minute its still on beat. Maybe this aint what you mean, but it's the only thing I can think of when you say pauses for half a second.

Reason has swing templates but I believe the MPC 60 was where swing was first seen/used (programatically, yes I know bands do it playing live and have done way before the MPC).

Mortal wrote:i think what youre referring to is the half-time drum structure which is a very defining factor of most dubstep tracks.
also, the tempo, traditionally of 130-145 bpm gives it that slow pulsing movement that makes it so appealing.

by half time, i simply mean a kick on the first beat of the bar, and a snare on the 3rd,
its then the arrangement of the highhats around this basic drum beat that give it the movement
and the illusion that its actually a faster paced track than it really is.

basically just the fundamentals of dubstep, and the sort of beat you will hear in most dubstep.

that being said, there are plenty of examples with full time beats, and more complex structures/time signatures...but thats normally within the more atmospheric/melodic side of dubstep.

exactly what he said. most dubstep songs start off by placing the kick and snare on the 1/3rd beat, then hi hats are filled in to give it some shuffle, and then other kicks and snares can be added to give it some variation. dubstep is all about syncopated (triplets) rhythms. which gives it that shuffle and groove that dubstep is so known for. comes straight from 2 step garage/grime. actually, if you search for the video "Rusko Masterclass" he gives a tutorial on how he made his song "rats in the kitchen" and he really explains the style of dubstep drums perfectly.

here i actually found it for you
http://www.vimeo.com/3595144

wow you guys are awesome. for the guys who need more explaining, you have to just listen to the song, it's called Sincere its the Nero (UK) remix . . it IS hard to explain in words, it just sounds so tight like each kick and snare is so damn pronounced it almost feels like (or maybe they ARE actually pausing for a half second) they edited holds into the track, maybe pause isn't the right word, a hold, like the kick and snare are holding for longer so it sounds very pronounced. like i said if you listen to the song, i assume most of you probably know it in your head anyway, it would help explain more...

damn i just can't get over this tune i just purchased the wav from beatport and bumped it on my huge-ass (excuse me, i should be so grateful to say it is actually my parents movie soundsystem) speakers it is fucken awesome!!!! ah i fucken love dubstep this is what i want to pour my heart and soul and my passions into AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH I LOVE IT

if you mean it holds, then i assume that could be reverberation...that might be something you want to look up as it ca give the feeling of something having space and being a lot more prominent. but if you mean theres half a second between the kick and the snare, thats the drum pattern. if you mean the kick/snare is sustained for half a second, then look into reverb, delay, and editing samples to have a longer sustain

certifiedhumane wrote:wow you guys are awesome. for the guys who need more explaining, you have to just listen to the song, it's called Sincere its the Nero (UK) remix . . it IS hard to explain in words, it just sounds so tight like each kick and snare is so damn pronounced it almost feels like (or maybe they ARE actually pausing for a half second) they edited holds into the track, maybe pause isn't the right word, a hold, like the kick and snare are holding for longer so it sounds very pronounced. like i said if you listen to the song, i assume most of you probably know it in your head anyway, it would help explain more...

damn i just can't get over this tune i just purchased the wav from beatport and bumped it on my huge-ass (excuse me, i should be so grateful to say it is actually my parents movie soundsystem) speakers it is fucken awesome!!!! ah i fucken love dubstep this is what i want to pour my heart and soul and my passions into AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH I LOVE IT

haha i remember when i first got into dubstep. its great stuff.

and as far as the kicks and snares sounding so tight pronounced, thats just the style nero and many dubstep artists have for drums. very tight and punchy kicks, not longer bassy ones like in house or rap. i use reason 5 and in kong i just mess about with the settings like the attack and decay etc to make very tight/short kicks.

do you have a daw?

Why do you keep putting (UK) after Nero?

charliefoy wrote:Why do you keep putting (UK) after Nero?

i blame jewtube

charliefoy wrote:Why do you keep putting (UK) after Nero?

i was wondering the same thing, its probably just the version he found says UK, cuz im pretty sure nero is from the UK. but either way i just disregarded it

'Had a listen, and it's veering more towards a garage -swing/groove. I'd say the skippy, shuffling hats are what're emphasising the snare and then there's a kinda 'call and response' thing going on with the bass changing it's lfo rate which- and again, the pause between the change of rate probably adds to the snare's effect

Do like Nero. A guily pleasure

JemGrover wrote:'Had a listen, and it's veering more towards a garage -swing/groove. I'd say the skippy, shuffling hats are what're emphasising the snare and then there's a kinda 'call and response' thing going on with the bass changing it's lfo rate which- and again, the pause between the change of rate probably adds to the snare's effect

Do like Nero. A guily pleasure

i agree. i think hes saying that the kick and snare almost sound cut off at the ends. but i attribute this to a quick attack and decay settings. like i said i use reason so i can just mess about in kong and get similar sounds pretty easily. not too sure if other daws have drum designers like kong but..

charliefoy wrote:Why do you keep putting (UK) after Nero?

Probably read it on some event flyer, or facebook page and thought it was their actual name...

? im not exactly sure what you mean the snares dont pause, if anything they are quick and snappy due to attack/decay. im not sure if there is reverb on the actual kick/snare but it sounds like he does place some sort of open hihat on every kick and which could be what your hearing. either that or the general swing and synchronization of the bass+drums...

just take the time to listen to more dubstep tracks and learn more about producing it; maybe it will start to come clear

fds- wrote:? im not exactly sure what you mean the snares dont pause, if anything they are quick and snappy due to attack/decay. im not sure if there is reverb on the actual kick/snare but it sounds like he does place some sort of open hihat on every kick and which could be what your hearing. either that or the general swing and synchronization of the bass+drums...

just take the time to listen to more dubstep tracks and learn more about producing it; maybe it will start to come clear

this is what i said. they're tight due to quick attack/decay settings. it sounds like he thinks that you cut or pause the end of the kick to make it sound like they do but really its just attack/decay

It's exactly what it sounds like:

kick, pause, rolling hats/perc, snare, pause rolling hats/perc, rinse & repeat

Basically the kicks & snares really punch through, the hats & perc are programmed in a nice shuffle groove which makes it roll and the little pauses after the kick & snare break it up a bit giving it a bit more groove and letting the kick/snare have a bit more impact.

If you're interested in trying to make this kinda sound I'd say a good place to start would be working with some break, an amen is a good place to start. Program a simple kick/snare pattern the layer a sliced amen over is and do some re-arranging & stopping and starting and see what grooves you can come up with.

Hope that helps.

are you talking about this track?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UqrO3B903dw

Sounds like a kick/snare from Vengeance sample pack with BASIC drum programming.

The hi hats sound like they have dist on them, bit like white noise.

Now for the science for the OP question. To get that pause effect all you need to do is........leave space. Dont fill every gap with hats/rolls etc.

If ur still stuck I can copy that beat in under 3 mins.

btw, WTF are you some of you lot on? how confusing can you make such a simple thing?

The guy is baffled by the hi hats stopping and its tricking his ears into thinking the snare/kick pause. Its simple ffs.

lol i thought it was gonna be about predelay verb