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Lots of current Dubstep (including Brostep and things like it) are a result of producers forgetting that fact, and becoming consumed with SOUND DESIGN and impressing other producers.

Don’t get me wrong. I love the sounds of Robots screaming at each other SOMETIMES too. It has it’s place.

This is not a rant against any genre or sub-genre. It’s just something I realized the other day in the car.
I had come from the bookstore, after reading some Computer Music & Sound On Sound mags--the images still fresh of mixing desks, VST reviews, & general gear lustery that we all know and love. Yes. Equipment is great. I love it too. I even go to Guitar Center with friends sometimes just to be there.

But once you (finally) load up that DAW and start a tune, if you’re making EDM, remember what it means. DANCE MUSIC, not Dick Measuring.

Tbh, technological wankerys never done any harm to producing for me. I lust after all the gear everybody does but when I open my DAW its straight fuck all the new VSTS I'v downloaded and back to good old Albino. Happy Days.

What I’m really saying is, we should remember that ultimately--we’re making a SONG. It’s easy to get overly consumed with the technical side, instead of the musical side.

fully agree.
been checking out lhf today and thought exactly that.

agreed

ketamine wrote:What I’m really saying is, we should remember that ultimately--we’re making a SONG. It’s easy to get overly consumed with the technical side, instead of the musical side.

Yeah. Some producers (brostep generally) rate songs just based on how fucked the sound is, no matter what the composition is. Someone could literally make a patch and wank on it with the standard Kick 1 Snare 3 pattern and it'd get positive remarks among brosteppers.

well most ppl nowadays get into production because they think it make them cool so they want attention. our generation's attention span is near zero thanks to the internet so you gotta make as much impact in as little time as possible.
also a lot of electronic music is becoming less tune and more dj tool lately.

fuck the 21st century

edit: seriously, if your music is only gonna get played on youtube or your friend's ipod whats the point of actually having progression in your tune, why would it need to have a logical conclusion at the end if it gets skipped after a minute anyway

thats also probably part of why brostep is getting so big everywhere in the world. it's instant gratification music, comparable to a rollercoaster ride. theres a short wait and then it drops and you start screaming. today's dubstep raves are a series of drops rather than a cohesive set, the dj's are ipod shuffles with a beatmatch and crossfade function.

I agree man, 100%. I realized that a while ago, if you like it, good for you. Music is music, no matter what genre, if it gives you those sick twisted chillz, then hell yeah. Although I have to say that scenes do bug me. You know, when you're only into the music because you want to dress that way, or because somebody else likes it.

@ hasezwei: I agree with the whole ipod shuffle with a beatmatch and crossfade thing too though, it's horrible.

and then people run around searching for that technique they cant nail when they cant help but to realize their music is missing something...

psssst : meaning... soul... feelings... oooh

agreed as well.

thats what i love the jazz for, innovation, technique, feeling. sometimes displayed together, sometimes not.

I'm heading in a direction where I just make music, but add a banging sub after it's all done. That makes it bass music, plus actual soul harnessing music.

Sometimes it seems like all dubstep is today is people trying make the craziest insane sound so they can get the best "so filthy" comment on youtube.

That's a hugely general statement, but I honestly think it's not that far off base when it comes to a lot of people making dubstep/brostep/whatever.

Yeah pretty much. Not very winning since we all know Skrillex has the filthiest sound. Once Skrillex popped up with Scary Monsters, there's really no point in focusing on filth anymore. He has it.

ChadDub wrote:Yeah pretty much. Not very winning since we all know Skrillex has the filthiest sound. Once Skrillex popped up with Scary Monsters, there's really no point in focusing on filth anymore. He has it.

I wouldn't call it filthy though, it sounds way too grating and sharp. I would say Jakes completely destroys those Skrillex synth sounds, and he does it with style.

I dunno about you, but at the end of the day I make love.

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!

Great topic for discussion Thanks for bringing it up!

TieN - don't make stuff others want to hear. Make stuff YOU want to hear. If you don't want to listen to it, what kind of hobby is that?

ChadDub wrote:I'm heading in a direction where I just make music, but add a banging sub after it's all done. That makes it bass music, plus actual soul harnessing music.

inspiring shit!!!

ChadDub wrote:Yeah pretty much. Not very winning since we all know Skrillex has the filthiest sound. Once Skrillex popped up with Scary Monsters, there's really no point in focusing on filth anymore. He has it.

aw really!?! u had to ruin it like this!?!?! how can u have such strong convictions about the most subjective facettes of art :O u amaze me brother...

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

amphibian wrote:I dunno about you, but at the end of the day I make love.

WIN.

I agree that the technical side can swamp the workflow, but to make good music that stands up to other releases, you need to get technical. Searching presets and slapping audio files down isn't going to get you a nicely produced song that will compare to whats out there already, you need to use aux sends, split bass into various frequency and distort the highs, send to LFO's and all that technical stuff, especially so with Dubstep which is one of the 'harder' genres to do well. Saying all that, you are producing music so there is definitely something to what your saying... ;o)

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