How come the kick sounds so weak, the bottom end needs some serious turning up.. other then that nice melody. Keep at it!

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Originally posted by Richard Butler I quite enjoyed the listen, it has some emotional playing style to it. Long way to go of course, hope you can tough out the journey your'e embarking on.

Glad you enjoyed it buddy, and really happy you felt some emotion was evident, that's the main thing for me, far more than the technical side which imo seems to be where a lot of the newer producers seems to center their attentions (getting a pro sound rather than making something from the heart, you can tell it a mile off)
Yep a very very long way to go but pretty happy with progress so far...well some days at least, others feel like I am banging my head against the wall.

Aye should not be a problem, had a few much tougher journeys along the way so this should be a piece of piss (apart from the moment I realize nobody likes the music I put my heart and soul into and fall into a pit of depression)

quote:

Originally posted by Whip_lash How come the kick sounds so weak, the bottom end needs some serious turning up.. other then that nice melody. Keep at it!

To be honest I am not quite sure, struggling with the bottom end a bit due to shit monitors, listened on a couple of different speakers and it sounds ok-ish on some, have tried to a bit of a mix down so will upload that one, need to look into mixing and mastering though, thought it would be best to concentrate on other things first.

thanks for the feedback though pal


Also I let a couple of mates who have been producing for around a year have a listen and they said it ''sounded strange'', and '' I think it goes on a bit and needs separating properly to define where the bars are'' not sure I get what they mean about the bars, they make hard house though so maybe they are just used to all tunes following same formula

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My first attempt at a track

Hypnotic Dreams - Classic Prog Trance mix
Eternal Sound - Progressive Trance mix
One for the Underground - Dark Progressive mix

ever hear of the 10,000 hour rule??

it really just comes down to alot of practice.. workijng and re-working your techniques as you get better and better... of course this only takes care of the fit-and-finish of a track... as posted above, what many budding producers seem to lose track of is that the most important thing is to make *good* music... anyone can bang out a copy of the latest style track but that doesnt translate to making something memorable...

just keep at it...

Think I have heard it mentioned pal yeah, is it a theory on how long it takes to become good/proficient at something ? or along those lines

I can deal with that, I am one lazy fuck at times but total opposite when its something I am into and my heart is in I suddenly develop drive and a thirst for knowledge, been at it 10 weeks now and would say put in 500 hours or so give or take, loving the learning, how to compose stuff etc some of the more production orientated goes over my head at moment because there is so much to take in so tend to move onto things my brain will absorb easier (pretty hard as when I read stuff I very often seem to read eg a few pages and then think ''what the fuck have I just read'', like I have read it but not been taking anything in

First track above I just wanted to get opinions on the actual musicality of it as in am I on the right tracks composing a melody/basslines/chords etc, does it work at a basic level or am one of these guys who bangs out the most awful shit you could imagine yet deluded enough to think it sounds good.
didn't really focus on the technical side as I am thinking get the basics right first (how to actually make/write a tune) and move onto the more technical side gradually as I go along picking stuff up along the way (ie using effects and having a clue why I am using them)

New track I am working on I have just wrote the melody/chords/drum pattern/bassline but struggling fitting them all together, well the pads mainly, the rest sound sweet together (to me at least) but stick the pads in and its great..until the melody comes in where it sounds superfuckingwank, so now I am trying to learn about why and how to resolve it if possible, which I seem a bit limited by in reason4 but thats probs just cause I don't know what tools to use for the best at moment (only started working on this today)

so basically next track I am trying to work more on the production side and practice making it sound less like its been banged out by ..erm.. me

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My first attempt at a track

Hypnotic Dreams - Classic Prog Trance mix
Eternal Sound - Progressive Trance mix
One for the Underground - Dark Progressive mix

I actually think this is really nice. Definitely sounds much better than the tracks I was making 2 months in.

I don't really think the kick needs fattening up and such. Not every track needs to be a dancefloor banger. This reminds me of some of the more ambient progressive tracks of the late 90s.

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Originally posted by david.michael I actually think this is really nice. Definitely sounds much better than the tracks I was making 2 months in. I don't really think the kick needs fattening up and such. Not every track needs to be a dancefloor banger. This reminds me of some of the more ambient progressive tracks of the late 90s.

Cheers pal, really glad to hear a few people enjoyed it.
Long long way to go but happy with the start, Think I need to start really studying synthesis as I am having no problems writing melodies, bass lines, strings etc, but getting the sound I want for the melody etc I am struggling with a lot more, Guess that will come with experience.

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My first attempt at a track

Hypnotic Dreams - Classic Prog Trance mix
Eternal Sound - Progressive Trance mix
One for the Underground - Dark Progressive mix

If you have no problems adding melodies why don't you add some more to make the song more complex and interesting to listen to? If synthesis is keeping you from doing this I suggest you start reverse-engineering presets from your favourite synth.

Pretty bad, but decent considering it's 2 months of work. Try showing us again after about 6 months to a year, to save us having to listen to such a poor quality track. No feedback is going to replace time spent practicing.

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Originally posted by Evolve140 Pretty bad, but decent considering it's 2 months of work. Try showing us again after about 6 months to a year, to save us having to listen to such a poor quality track. No feedback is going to replace time spent practicing.

Cheers for the feedback, which elements would you say are ''poor quality'' ie production/composition etc or parts of the track such as bass/melody/drums etc

I am practicing 4-10 hours a day but mostly on composition (as I had never wrote a melody/bassline etc etc or had any idea of music theory until I started) just starting to learn more about synthesis and sound design as well slowly.
actual production techniques/skills I am mostly leaving till later apart from what I learn along the way.

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My first attempt at a track

Hypnotic Dreams - Classic Prog Trance mix
Eternal Sound - Progressive Trance mix
One for the Underground - Dark Progressive mix

quote:

Originally posted by Greeny1210 Cheers for the feedback, which elements would you say are ''poor quality'' ie production/composition etc or parts of the track such as bass/melody/drums etc

This sort of question is very difficult to provide a meaningful answer to. Essentialy your musical ideas are ok, nothing outstanding yet, and the sounds themselves are a long way off (you acknowledge the technical side you have yet to really embark on).

So to zero in on your original question about the musicality, you have an ok bit of jamming if you like, but remember, there are a million organ and Yamaha keyboard players that could jam, and indeed play very well. How can you separate your output / achievment from thiers?


So your agenda for me would be to turn from a noodler / busker and into a producer. Most people I think don't ever achieve this fully.

It has a lot to do with selections. Knowing how to make a killer hook with just the right sound ( a killer hook in itself is nothing without the right sound to 'breath life into it'). People often say to me that a great melody is a great melody, and yes it can be if the original sounded just right, but I used to buy these crappy immitations of Jarres music done by organ player types, and they sounded terrible and would never in thier own right have been a sucess inspite of the great melodies they contained. A good melody is thus typically a function of the soundscape it originally used. Afrer that melody then hits the pysche, it will sound good even on a penny whistle.


In a word, producing is ablout class. Listeners won't know about subs and reverbs, but they insticntively recognise class.

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https://soundcloud.com/butlerrichard