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Anyone else in a production slump? (pg. 2)
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| Kysora |
I completely agree with Eddie, I'm constantly learning and pushing the scope of my understanding and I've had maybe one low point in producing in the 2 years I've been doing this, and that came as a result of the end of an 8 month relationship. It's kind of hard to make uplifting trance when you're brooding over a breakup.
When I'm working on a solid idea I devote any production time specifically to that and nothing else, but if I don't have one I open FL maybe 5 times a day, at different times, and just dick around. Explore the synths I have, make a bassline, make a cool piano riff or something, make a string chord progression.. Just toy around with melodic ideas and motifs and see what inspiration stems from those. Listen to other people's music and try to emulate the style, or completely rebel against it. Just keep doing things, productive or not, and your mind won't get fatigued.
If I don't have any solid ideas down I never open up FL and go "alright, I'm going to come up with a progression/melody/whatever and it's going to be perfect". That happens to me sometimes but it'll be on the 50th or so attempt at trying to make anything. The way I get through that is never having any actual goals, I treat FL like a toy and anytime I churn out something that I think is worth my time, it becomes a pleasant surprise instead of me thinking "God, it's about ing time".
Just have fun with it, man. Once you stop having fun and start being disappointed with any lack of productivity you're going to be fatigued and lose any interest in creating anything decent.
That's how I do it at least. Seems healthy enough. I only churn out one track every like 2-3 months as opposed to the 2-3 weeks like I used to, but I'm happy enough with that. |
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| adi_hanson |
To be kind of personal , I split with my GF of 6 years and I spent alot of time and effort on producing over the last 18 months , but recently I am going out more and really need another
GF now so unfortunatly on my part producing is suffering. I have sat down and spent a few hours and got bits and bats here and there. But stuff like my track Mojave just fell into place in an afternoon. Its pretty wierd I say is this producing lark!. |
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| Zombie0729 |
i stopped forcing records, i know a lot of us use points of reference when we're making a track but i don't sweat it if the track i'm working on isn't even close to the original idea. If it's good, i just keep going with it.
when i get in a slump i bring friends into the studio to work. it's really enjoyable for me, someone else who can take control for a bit and let me think about the track without my eyes glued to a screen and my hand stuck on a mouse. i'll walk around, do some weird dance moves but all in all when someone else is in the room and things are exciting it really makes the music making experience enjoyable. i get why bands "jam", it's just in fun. |
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| sterilis |
| i was in one for 2 years after the onslaught of e trance being churned out so i started looking into different genres. didnt listen to trance for those whole 2 years until a month ago now the ideas are fast flowing. |
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| G-Con |
| quote: | Originally posted by daveth
Could your troubles reflect what's going on in your outside life? Just a hunch, but I think if you get out and make some REAL changes to your every day life, forget about music and production, just change things up whatever it takes. Do some things you've never done but always wanted to, or you've been too scared to, or whatever. Do something unexpected, spontaneous. You might just come back in a few months feeling inspired.
The worst that can happen is you don't, but you'll still likely feel better off :gsmile:
Hope you feel better soon bud :cool: |
I think this is the best advice in this thread. Do you feel that you are stuck in a rut in general, whether through work, social life or whatever? If yes, then I'd look to changing that first. |
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| music2dance2 |
Indeed, as mentioned look at your own life. Is all well, do you have any concerns, whether work, personal, financial, health? What ever?
If its not that then a change in work flow will help. As other have given great advice on new ways of doing things, then that is the way to go. These dry periods happen to everyone, like writers block for novelists. Hopefully you can solve this as more will probably happen in the future, but then you will probably be able to get past them easier by solving it now some how.
Find a track you like and try and make something similiar, doesnt matter if its almost the same, but chances are you will start to develop it into you own style, and your own track as you progress. You may get ideas to make it slightly different to the track you are working from. I've done that a few times and once done it doesnt sound like the track I was listening to as I added my own ideas to it along the way.
I'm not in a slump right now but when I was I found I had to figure out what the problem was, whether it was a music based issue or an outside (in my life) factor |
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| alanzo |
For about a year now. But my studio has morphed immensely over that time and I did release an Andromeda bank. So I do have a few things to claim victory over. But I haven't completed a track since June of '09.
I've gotten places on a few but always wind up losing interest and abandoning the project. Like Cryo said, a just-for-fun remix may be a decent idea. But it's not like I'm doing music stuff every day over the past year, though. I've gone a week without even turning on my Nord Lead 3 or opening Cubase. |
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| alanzo |
| I've also really gotten into beer brewing over the past year. I've only sold music equipment and bought pleanty of brewing equipment -- somewhere around $2000. It's not a total excuse since I mostly brew on weekends, but it is an all-day project and it tends to occupy my mind during the week. I'm brewing a batch of beer at least every other weekend. |
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| DJ RANN |
| quote: | Originally posted by 19503
i havent made anything worth mentioning for two years for multiple reasons. luckily my inspiration is back again but i do not have a good working place atm. i need a desk and new monitors. |
It's only a matter of time now until you change back to palm :toothless
On a serious note, I think people who are in a slump could try another approach: by getting some perspective.....
I started a business (completely unrelated to music/engineering which is my career and passion) and literally have not been able to touch logic or my decks for close to 4 months now because the commitments I have...and there' no end in sight.
So for all those moaning about sitting in front of their kit and not being abel to come up with something original or inspriing, maybe think what happens when you literally have no time to sit in front of that kit - it means you make the most of the time you have and you stop stressing about whether it's really the best thing you've ever done or if it's even any good.
Don't get me wrong, I have my slumps but this wakes me up a little. |
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| G-Con |
| quote: | Originally posted by DJ RANN
On a serious note, I think people who are in a slump could try another approach: by getting some perspective.....
I started a business (completely unrelated to music/engineering which is my career and passion) and literally have not been able to touch logic or my decks for close to 4 months now because the commitments I have...and there' no end in sight.
So for all those moaning about sitting in front of their kit and not being abel to come up with something original or inspriing, maybe think what happens when you literally have no time to sit in front of that kit - it means you make the most of the time you have and you stop stressing about whether it's really the best thing you've ever done or if it's even any good.
Don't get me wrong, I have my slumps but this wakes me up a little. |
So what you saying Rann? That he needs to stop being a little whining bitch and get a life the sad loser? |
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| Richard Butler |
I have the opposite problem - too many ideas, too many tracks I want to make, no time for promotion, no time to even make a decent myspace, let alone follow people on soundcloud and gawd knows what.
On starting any new project I get a rush - maybe in my psyche I think this next work will be the best yet - so the anticipation is palpable.
My work life - I RUN MY OWN STRESFUL BUSINESS AND GET P1SSED OFF MOST DAYS BUT THE MUSIC IS A RELEASE - SOMEWHERE TO GO TO. Icant be arsed to delete and redo the capital letters above - grrrr |
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| music2dance2 |
| quote: | Originally posted by Richard Butler
I have the opposite problem - too many ideas, too many tracks I want to make, no time for promotion, no time to even make a decent myspace, let alone follow people on soundcloud and gawd knows what.
On starting any new project I get a rush - maybe in my psyche I think this next work will be the best yet - so the anticipation is palpable.
My work life - I RUN MY OWN STRESFUL BUSINESS AND GET P1SSED OFF MOST DAYS BUT THE MUSIC IS A RELEASE - SOMEWHERE TO GO TO. Icant be arsed to delete and redo the capital letters above - grrrr |
Lol right now i have many idea's for tracks, its good to roll with it while they are there, a dry spell may be round the corner, going by my experience anyway |
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