TieN wrote:It's funny. This is something that has crossed my mind lately because I've fallen victim to it. I'll make something that has feeling and meaning to me, but I'll throw it out at the end of the day because it's not something that this or that producer would make. People in this city will tell me that I'm not them and that my music is good (or better, it's all subjective), however it's near-impossible for me to get over that fact. I want my creative innocence back, so I can stop throwing all my projects away!
as i keep pushin, try listening to some jack beats... i swear they can synthesize every single style in one, still sound fresh and unique, mix it properly, and call it Music with emotion at the end of the day... very inspirational
id say u need to start listening to the non obvious stuff in the music people do... like.. the purpose... /meaning to what they do.. try to listen to something else then dance music.. and realize that what makes their music so special doesn't have to do with aesthetic... but with whats lying under... (the so called method) then itll make sense to u that there are a million ways to reach that state of "musicality" and ull naturally lean towards one of them... or towards several, but at least it'll be genuine i.e. satisfying ... im sure ur tunes have something good in them if u have such artistic angst
Thank you for the feedback. I barely grew up on EDM (Aphex Twin, Chemical Bros, and The Crystal Method were my only real sources into this scene as a kid). I grew up on dark hip hop stuff like Gravediggaz and all sorts of unique, beautiful, and brooding music, especially foreign stuff like Sigur Ros. From a very early age, I learned how to vocalize, play every single instrument I could get my hands on from piano and drums, to harp and cello. It was all for the love of creativity and art. /lifestory
I try to listen to as many different styles as I can and draw from them, but with this scene, I've gotten sucked into the competitive aspects of it and it probably started when I got even the smallest amount of hype from other producers/musicians. I think I'm gonna have to lock myself into a musical vacuum and just go back to experimenting with my soundscape and create compositions that come straight from the heart and build off that.
My yearning to make something out of myself before I get "too old" has been killing me too; when it used to just be my love of music and eagerness to share this piece of myself with as many people as I could connect with (a lot of you vets will probably hate me for saying this as I just turned 20 yesterday, but when I see people "make it" at younger and younger ages, it gives me a clouded sense of urgency. Where I find myself attempting to follow in their footsteps and try to emulate certain production techniques that led to their popularity. /rant)
All-in-all, I'm gonna attempt to not listen to anything that could I could compare to and/or be negatively-influenced by during the creative process and just try to get back to the essence of why I started doing this in the first place. I urge others to do the same!
Something else I feel helps me keep at least some humanity to my songs is that I do my own vocals over my music (and plan to do so live), and before I even start creating beats, I write out a few melodies/countermelodies on piano that come straight from the heart. Then I convert them to basslines/pads/leads/etc. Just food for thought, anyone can do it! Give it a try
Thanks for bringing it up!
how can u have such strong convictions about the most subjective facettes of art :O u amaze me brother... 