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Do you ever look back?
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| BOOsTER |
Actually I've decided to listen to some tracks I made in 2003 and then even those much older from 1999-2000...
It's strange...and they are not really as good sound-wise as my new tracks...but what I noticed that back then, I was so full of ideas and some of my tracks have a unique twist to them ... simply said, they sound much more amazing to me then those I can make now...anyone else experiences that? Could it be, that I'm simply loosing it, or is it just...I don't know...a feeling?
/rant |
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| Speactra |
It's the exact same thing for me.
I guess that when you didnt actually know what you could do, just experimented, and it was more fun to experience new things. I spent more time on making music back then too.
But what haven't you learned in all those years! Now it's the time to use all the knowledge that has been learnt by experimented :) That's the hardest part. |
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| Stephen Wiley |
I'll be captain obvious here
Back then tracks required much more creativity to have a leg to stand on. You couldn't wash everything away with massive amounts of FX, layering, and "progression"
"Trance" in it's current state is nothing but a bunch of recycled, formulaic, garbage.
It is what it is. Not acting at all like I have the answer, but I call it like I see it. 4x4 has become shameful compared to what it was ten years ago, and you had to be alive and feeling it ten years ago to really understand this. At this point, I'd be happy if Armin Van Buuren turned Trance into gangster rap (he could probably pull it off with his cult-like following) just for the sake of change. |
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| xphonix |
| Yes its exactly the same for me! STuff i produced in 2001 sounds awesome as far as personality and ideas. I concentrate way too much on production quality (most people do) than i should do. |
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| Subtle |
| quote: | Originally posted by Stephen Wiley
"Trance" in it's current state is nothing but a bunch of recycled, formulaic, garbage.
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I used to have this opinion, but i think Trance is better now than in a very long time, often people just dont look hard enough or give new music a chance. Back in the days you had to give everything a chance, because it was all there is.
I have looked back on my productions and what i have done the last two years beats everything ive done before that in terms of everything. |
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| Stephen Wiley |
We will have to disagree then. I listen to more (a larger variety, maybe not actual minutes) Trance than 99.9% of listeners out there. I've listened to every single Trance release on Beatport for over a year now for DJ'ing and artist recruitment purposes. The music is completely different now vs. a decade ago (as it should be) but isn't really much different than half a decade ago (which is the problem). Is there great Trance out there? Sure. But if you want to look at %'s, the % of quality music back when it actually mattered (pre-2000) would blow away any type of stat or argument you tried to make. You don't even have to adjust for inflation. Never again will a DJ be paid 1 million pounds to play a two hour NYE event.
As a producer, you might reflect back and see growth for obvious reasons. But Trance, not your personal productions, has turned into a recipe that has produced more tracks than Coca Cola has canned sodas.
| quote: | Originally posted by Subtle
I used to have this opinion, but i think Trance is better now than in a very long time, often people just dont look hard enough or give new music a chance. Back in the days you had to give everything a chance, because it was all there is.
I have looked back on my productions and what i have done the last two years beats everything ive done before that in terms of everything. |
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| Speactra |
| quote: | Originally posted by Stephen Wiley
I'll be captain obvious here
Back then tracks required much more creativity to have a leg to stand on. You couldn't wash everything away with massive amounts of FX, layering, and "progression"
"Trance" in it's current state is nothing but a bunch of recycled, formulaic, garbage.
It is what it is. Not acting at all like I have the answer, but I call it like I see it. 4x4 has become shameful compared to what it was ten years ago, and you had to be alive and feeling it ten years ago to really understand this. At this point, I'd be happy if Armin Van Buuren turned Trance into gangster rap (he could probably pull it off with his cult-like following) just for the sake of change. |
Still, you're just talking about Trance. I think that both Booster and I is meaning just "making music", not only making trance.
I can't agree with you about washing "everything" away. You could use just as much FX back then as you can now, why now that would matter at all. |
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| Subtle |
| quote: | Originally posted by Stephen Wiley
The music is completely different now vs. a decade ago (as it should be) but isn't really much different than half a decade ago (which is the problem). Is there great Trance out there? Sure. But if you want to look at %'s, the % of quality music back when it actually mattered (pre-2000) would blow away any type of stat or argument you tried to make. |
Yes, but this applies to every other music genre.. movies as well.. and a bunch of other stuff.
| quote: | Originally posted by Stephen Wiley
Is there great Trance out there? Sure. |
This is all what matters mate.. if i can find 5 great tracks of a 100, i am satisfied, and i do.
The endless copying of sound and ideas will never stop anyways. |
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| Kismet7 |
| quote: | Originally posted by Stephen Wiley
I'll be captain obvious here
Back then tracks required much more creativity to have a leg to stand on. You couldn't wash everything away with massive amounts of FX, layering, and "progression"
"Trance" in it's current state is nothing but a bunch of recycled, formulaic, garbage.
It is what it is. Not acting at all like I have the answer, but I call it like I see it. 4x4 has become shameful compared to what it was ten years ago, and you had to be alive and feeling it ten years ago to really understand this. At this point, I'd be happy if Armin Van Buuren turned Trance into gangster rap (he could probably pull it off with his cult-like following) just for the sake of change. |
You are the most ridiculous "label owner" I have ever come accross, its a shame you get to run a label. Actually I would'nt call being the middleman to a .mp3 housing storage server running a label, but even that, shame.
ie stop complaining about trance, the music doesnt suck, what sucks is idiots like you who have far too easy the opportunity to choose, develop, and put out rather music. The genre isn't at fault, its talentless hacks running labels they shouldnt be running, choosing music that should not be put out.
I've said in the past many times, the biggest issues any genre of music has is toxic labels putting out under developed artists and under produced music out. That doesnt mean any less quality music is being made accross all genres. |
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| BOOsTER |
| quote: | Originally posted by Speactra
Still, you're just talking about Trance. I think that both Booster and I is meaning just "making music", not only making trance.
I can't agree with you about washing "everything" away. You could use just as much FX back then as you can now, why now that would matter at all. |
Exactly...since when did tranceaddict forum change to a trance-only one?
I can agree with many points here...actually...I would love to see an outcome of this discussion in a form of...what to do in this kind of situation...I'm not quite as happy as subtle, to be satisfied with everything I've done in last 2 years...well I am ok with what I have learnt in these years...but not happy with the way I feel...kinda...burnt out or something...Ideas won't come as easy as before and I get frustrated quite easily... |
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| MrJiveBoJingles |
Yes, I look back on my early days like that. I even made a thread about it:
http://www.tranceaddict.com/forums/...threadid=500528
I think it's because in the early days you might just focus on exploring sounds and arrangements and having fun without the limitations of trying to emulate someone else's sound or make a track more label-friendly or dancefloor-friendly.
Also, this might be controversial but I think most people are ultimately quite limited as far as creativity. It seems like "creative juice" is a limited quantity, and how fast you use yours up depends on how much you start out with. IMO the vast majority of producers run out of original ideas pretty early on and either fall into endlessly repeating their early works, imitating others, or just being blown along by trends and whatever is popular at the time, for example when lots of established prog producers moved toward "techier" or more stripped-down sounds. There just aren't that many truly creative people out there; most are doing little flourishes on themes and genres that have already been established. That's fine, though, because it can still be quite enjoyable simply to put your own small twist on something that already exists. But when you're a newbie you don't know as much about the rules and expectations, so you tend to just make whatever suits your whims at the time, not necessarily what you think will be widely accepted, and this can lead to more unique ideas, I think. |
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| Kismet7 |
| quote: | Originally posted by MrJiveBoJingles
Yes, I look back on my early days like that. I even made a thread about it:
http://www.tranceaddict.com/forums/...threadid=500528
I think it's because in the early days you might just focus on exploring sounds and arrangements and having fun without the limitations of trying to emulate someone else's sound or make a track more label-friendly or dancefloor-friendly.
Also, this might be controversial but I think most people are ultimately quite limited as far as creativity. It seems like "creative juice" is a limited quantity, and how fast you use yours up depends on how much you start out with. IMO the vast majority of producers run out of original ideas pretty early on and either fall into endlessly repeating their early works, imitating others, or just being blown along by trends and whatever is popular at the time, for example when lots of established prog producers moved toward "techier" or more stripped-down sounds. There just aren't that many truly creative people out there; most are doing little flourishes on themes and genres that have already been established. That's fine, though, because it can still be quite enjoyable simply to put your own small twist on something that already exists. But when you're a newbie you don't know as much about the rules and expectations, so you tend to just make whatever suits your whims at the time, not necessarily what you think will be widely accepted, and this can lead to more unique ideas, I think. |
Blaming creativity is a strike and a miss. There is plenty of creativity out there. The problem is, me too digital labels signing under developed me too floops music.
What is funny is Stephan Wiley and his Olympik Label, he talks about how great 99 trance is, and I agree it was great, but the tracks he has signed sound nothing like the trance he seems to be nostalgic for. The irony here is strong, because if your complaining about trance sucking, and your signing the same stuff that the next poorly conceived digital label is signing, then you arent really doing much to change things are you? Just blowing hot air into a fridge. Why is it so hard for people to understand why there is music out there? It has nothing to do with creativity of artists or "artists", it has more to do with the creativity of the toxic labels, and the ease of putting out music. If joe blow is making trance track, why put it out? No one is twisting a labels arm. The only thing that has to happen is, standards need to rise on all fronts. And it has to start with labels taking responsibility for what they are putting out. So it starts with people like Stephan Wiley, because no one has to listen to uncreative producer, if toxic labels stopped putting that out, and let the good stuff rise to the top.
Stop bashing the the genre and artists, start kicking labels in the head, if you want to make a change in something you feel passionate about. |
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