This week, we were to make a short song. I chose to make mine in the genre of house. I first made a rough draft in the program that I have used for a long time, FL Studio. I then transferred it into Reason and tried to improve it. I will present them both for your consideration.
FL Studio:
Boomp3.com
Reason:
Boomp3.com
Monday, October 27, 2008
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Click Tracks: The Making Of
Loop 1:
This was the first loop I did. I had an interesting idea of speeding up the click track so much that it would become a buzz sound which I could form into a bassline. This would flesh out the minimal sounding track that just clicks would make. I used three tracks of clicks for the beat: one for bass, one for snare and one for hi-hats. I added an effect to the bass to make it a bit more distinctive than just a lower-pitch click, and I filtered the hi-hats to get a softer and more realistic sound. The bass was not a simple four on the floor, but a more syncopated pattern that makes the loop a bit more interesting. The bass was just one note with the filter being modified over the course of the loop. I tried to make it come back to the starting point at the end to make it a true loop, and I think this might have limited what I could do with it.
Loop 2:
With this loop, I had a bit faster and more conventional drum beat, with the typical four on the floor and a steady snare and hi-hat pattern. One nuance of this, though, is that the snare sound is moved up a little bit, making the second and fourth beat have a sort of flam that sounds more interesting than having them hit together. I used the bassline idea again in this one, but instead of changing the filter, I modified the pitch that the track was going at. I don't remember the exact values, but I believe I used 50, 62, 74 and 86. These are offset by 12, which I picked because that is the default value that the pitch goes up by if you drag the target. Overall, this is the loop I like the most.
Loop 3:
The final loop has a "dark, German dance-house feel," according to my suitemate. It has more bass punch than the other ones, and the bass line concept turns into more of a lead, with a creepy sounding reverb effect. The snare is higher pitched than in other tracks, which I originally thought sounded better, but in retrospect don't like as much as a flatter and less snappy snare. I achieved this by reversing the click so it has a longer attack and very little sustain. The hi-hat pattern in this loop is somewhat subtle; it is somewhat overpowered by the lead, but it is an interesting, almost-shuffle beat. The sound of the hi-hats is a bit like a pair of maracas in this. I find it interesting that a series of four clicks could sound remotely similar to a pair of maracas.
Overall, I am astounded at the kind of music that I created with four, simple clicks, and I am very satisfied with my results.
This was the first loop I did. I had an interesting idea of speeding up the click track so much that it would become a buzz sound which I could form into a bassline. This would flesh out the minimal sounding track that just clicks would make. I used three tracks of clicks for the beat: one for bass, one for snare and one for hi-hats. I added an effect to the bass to make it a bit more distinctive than just a lower-pitch click, and I filtered the hi-hats to get a softer and more realistic sound. The bass was not a simple four on the floor, but a more syncopated pattern that makes the loop a bit more interesting. The bass was just one note with the filter being modified over the course of the loop. I tried to make it come back to the starting point at the end to make it a true loop, and I think this might have limited what I could do with it.
Loop 2:
With this loop, I had a bit faster and more conventional drum beat, with the typical four on the floor and a steady snare and hi-hat pattern. One nuance of this, though, is that the snare sound is moved up a little bit, making the second and fourth beat have a sort of flam that sounds more interesting than having them hit together. I used the bassline idea again in this one, but instead of changing the filter, I modified the pitch that the track was going at. I don't remember the exact values, but I believe I used 50, 62, 74 and 86. These are offset by 12, which I picked because that is the default value that the pitch goes up by if you drag the target. Overall, this is the loop I like the most.
Loop 3:
The final loop has a "dark, German dance-house feel," according to my suitemate. It has more bass punch than the other ones, and the bass line concept turns into more of a lead, with a creepy sounding reverb effect. The snare is higher pitched than in other tracks, which I originally thought sounded better, but in retrospect don't like as much as a flatter and less snappy snare. I achieved this by reversing the click so it has a longer attack and very little sustain. The hi-hat pattern in this loop is somewhat subtle; it is somewhat overpowered by the lead, but it is an interesting, almost-shuffle beat. The sound of the hi-hats is a bit like a pair of maracas in this. I find it interesting that a series of four clicks could sound remotely similar to a pair of maracas.
Overall, I am astounded at the kind of music that I created with four, simple clicks, and I am very satisfied with my results.
Monday, October 13, 2008
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Electronic Music: Boring?
DISCLAIMER: I write this post as a bit of an incendiary piece.
I think electronic music is boring.
I don't really like listening to it that much. I prefer rock and more traditional forms of music. I find electronic music to be too boring to listen to. As background music, or for dancing, it can't be beat, but I cannot listen to techno or house while I do my homework.
My main complaint about electronic music is the lack of change. Each song consists, usually, of one main riff and a few variations. These are repeated over and over with very little difference between the repetitions. My brother, an avid listener of electronic music asserts that "if it's good, why change it?"
This kind of philosophy makes a song that is remarkably boring, regardless of how good the hook is. There is more to music then just repeating one melodic line with different filters and bandpasses.
The lack of vocals is one thing that really shows this lack of change in techno and electronica. In rock music, or even rap, the same chord progression is repeated over and over, but the variation of lyrics accompanying the music makes each repetition a little different, and you can focus on the change in the lyrics, rather than the similarity in the music.
Don't get me wrong, there are a few electronic artists who keep their music fresh throughout their songs, and I do think dancing the electronic music is much better than any other type. But the vast majority of electronic music is just plain boring.
I think electronic music is boring.
I don't really like listening to it that much. I prefer rock and more traditional forms of music. I find electronic music to be too boring to listen to. As background music, or for dancing, it can't be beat, but I cannot listen to techno or house while I do my homework.
My main complaint about electronic music is the lack of change. Each song consists, usually, of one main riff and a few variations. These are repeated over and over with very little difference between the repetitions. My brother, an avid listener of electronic music asserts that "if it's good, why change it?"
This kind of philosophy makes a song that is remarkably boring, regardless of how good the hook is. There is more to music then just repeating one melodic line with different filters and bandpasses.
The lack of vocals is one thing that really shows this lack of change in techno and electronica. In rock music, or even rap, the same chord progression is repeated over and over, but the variation of lyrics accompanying the music makes each repetition a little different, and you can focus on the change in the lyrics, rather than the similarity in the music.
Don't get me wrong, there are a few electronic artists who keep their music fresh throughout their songs, and I do think dancing the electronic music is much better than any other type. But the vast majority of electronic music is just plain boring.
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