A New Way To Approach

I’ve been listening to music since I was a small kid. Musical taste has changed many many times. All the way from eurotrance to “nu-metal” to death metal and then again back to electronic things. Nowadays mainly dark and heavy breakbeat and DnB. And every genre has left some nice influence.

I just love music. And allways i’ve been thinking that it would be nice to compose these things by myself. And lately i’ve been trying. And trying. And trying again. But no… I get something done, and it just sounds so friggin’ bad. Everytime i’m comparing myself to a some big star that i’m fan of. “nonono this doesn’t sound like that at all.”

Getting kinda frustrated. I’ve been tracking since god knows when. Okay there was a big break before i discovered Renoise. About four years or something. During that I forgot almost everything about trackers. Before that I used impulse tracker and I think I managed to get something done. Can’t really remember anymore.

So is there anyone else fighting with the same problem? Can’t really start off from anywhere. Head seems to be empty everytime you sit next to your computer. Everything you get done sounds like it was made by that 4-years-old kid next door with a friggin’ pot.

I just need a way to approach this thing and get a fresh start. The first kick in the ass that gets you going. If you guys know what I mean.

…just my 2 cents. (i’m so bored right now)

a few things :

I have these problems too. I just take it easy then, because I know that an idea will come along and will become a great track.

also, a few years ago MAZ told me that he is just “practicing” tracking for a half hour each day. just jerking around, not saving stuff. I thought this to be very interesting, because real musicians are practicing each day while computer-music people tend to always “work seriously”.

what I do :

I have no problems letting “dead” tracks go. my harddisk is cluttered with unfinished tracks. I know that I can’t force things.

sometimes I just play around. I stand up in the night, load up a steinberg “the grand” and play piano for 4 hours. Or I do music I dont like, just for fun. trance is nice for relaxtion ;)

so all I can say is “take it easy” :)

i have a good and very valuable advice to you!!! So listen carefully!!! :)

I’m 90% sure that you are thinking like this " Ok, now i sit infront my computer and compose one hell of the track" and after little while you get frustrated cause it dont sound the way you like. this is WRONG :)

You have to rememer that most great tunes start off as simple experimenting and are built into something good step by step.

Take something simple and by experimenting improve it and improve it, step by step. Dont try to make something good all at once and right this minute.

Most of my good tracks were started off like very simple melodys, basic rhythms etc. And after messing with them, adding little bit of this, little bit of that, changing some stuff etc etc (this takes time) those tunes turn out into something completly different (from what i started) and good!!

And that’s precisely what I’m trying to do. Unfortunately.

Stupid me :)

Yeah. I really need to take it easy and start off with something simple.

:)

yeah, dont be afraid of simple and basic startoffs… you have no idea into what they can/will develop!!! :)

Simple and basic is definetly best in the beginning of any process, that’s true! It takes some time for a tune to really sink in, for the variations to come naturally etc. I’ve got heaps of little snippets and ideas laying around, and one by one they now become something more complex and better. Can also be a good idea to present your stuff to others, let them come up with ideas. Unless you’re paranoid, ofcourse. ;)

The first kick in the ass comes from playing around, and finding something that sounds cool. If it goes sour, just leave it and try again the next day. Or get stubborn, and try extreme variations of the tune/beat etc. Try things that might sound ludacris, things you know for sure you won’t implement, and all over sudden you hear a little ‘something’ in the crazyness, remove what don’t work and get something completely different. Something that works.

Happy tracking!