Are you destined to become a failed wannabe music producer?

[D4F]

Interesting topic.
For me music is more like a break from real world. I unfortunately don't have a job I like. I'm not complaining $$ wise but still that isn't something that I enjoy doing so when I get home, play with my kid (very often my 3 year old daughter brings her Korgmicro X to me and asks for a mic so she can sing to the patches and that's quality time ), help my wife, do whatever I have to do and then after all day just put my headphones on and build some sounds on the TI or just listen to old vinyls looking for samples and etc. Few hours per week if I'm lucky but they are mine. I don't give a crap if I'll ever release any of the stuff I do it but I will surely keep doing it. Not for others but for that quality time I have doing it.
In my opinion anybody that starts to work under pressure will in most cases fail in the long run or music will become 'another job/hobby' cause of the stress related to it and not enough entertainement.

As for gear... In Future Music (not sure which issue) one guy stated something like this. '...the more gear I had the more time I was spending setting/tweaking it all up just to realise that in the end I was making less music than before when I had just one synth...'

It's so true.
I only have a Virus B and Virus TI, Gigastudio for natural sounds and MPC for beats and cuts and honestly I'm not looking into expanding my setup anytime soon. There is simply no need to. creativity is what makes the difference. just my .02

PS hope you all understand what I just wrote lol as my English isn't very good.

[Khazul]

Originally Posted by D4F

As for gear... In Future Music (not sure which issue) one guy stated something like this. '...the more gear I had the more time I was spending setting/tweaking it all up just to realise that in the end I was making less music than before when I had just one synth...'

Yeh there is alot of truth in that, but you can also burn alot of time trying to coax sounds out of gear that just cant do the job. Its fine balance between a broad sound palette that you can still usefully work with and a simply too much stuff to get anything done.

Im very much coming round to the view that the ideal core setup is a decent rompler, drum machine, very good and flexible VA (ie virus ti at the moment) and a real analog synth. Not sure that the drom is quite characterful enough to be that real analog - maybe sunsyn, code8 or voyager. Anything on top of that is the occasional and/or simple to use stuff or a synth that does something really unqiue - v-synth for eg.


BTW - what do you keep your virus B for?

[D4F]

Originally Posted by Khazul

BTW - what do you keep your virus B for?

I got used to it
I am actually thinking to sell it and get something else but honestly nothing catches my eye.

[The girl next door]

Originally Posted by D4F

PS hope you all understand what I just wrote lol as my English isn't very good.

You takin the Mick ???

[D4F]

Originally Posted by The girl next door

You takin the Mick ???

What means 'taking the Mick'??

[Infinity+1]

It means you must be joking because your english is great!

[Igglethorpe]

This is a great thread and honestly, kinda brought tears to my eyes. In an attempt not to be too sentimental, I can so relate on so much of what has been said.

I keep pressuring myself to do this stuff and of course, it never gets done. I also hate my job and play way too many video games to release myself from it. Well, not as much as I used to I guess. I know I want to do music, but damn, it sure isn't the easiest thing to do. I suppose I've had way too many instant gratification things thrown at me over the years.

It is such a major effort to get me into my little studio. Once I'm there, time can pass by and I do accomplish things. It's the matter of just planting myself on the bench, turning on my synths and getting to it.

Hmm, I don't know what I'm trying to add to this discussion. Perhaps another angle. People with low motivation?

[Infinity+1]

Lol, confession time. Apologies in advance - I just feel like expressing myself and letting it all out!

Making music is actually a big problem of mine, like an unhealthy addiction.

It keeps me up all night, fools me by making me think I'll enjoy it and be good at it. I get depressed because I can't even write a simple arpeggio over two chords. My drums sound thin and crap. I play it far too loud through my headphones, I think I'm addicted to the intensity of the volume. I've been writing for about 6-7 years and have deleted every track I've ever made because when I listen back they sound terrible. I'm learning how to be a web developer and a programmer and the added pressure of learning compression, eq, sound design, music theory etc leaves my brain no time for rest. I'm far too determined for my own good, I can easily loop a chord progression for 3 hours without taking a break, and at the end of it have made nothing and go to bed. I have a ridiculous amount of samples and software installed that cost me loads of money and time to aquire.

I've quit loads of times before, and when I do I get out more, meet mates, exercise etc. But like an alcoholic I get sucked back in by the 'just a little' idea and the vicious circle continues. I'm a reasonably intelligent guy and I love music so I figure I should be able to write good music, but it's just not that simple.

Anyway, it's only a few months since I realised I have an OCD problem with producing. I've been so ignorant for so long. I sold some gear but never got round to selling my virus, so I'll do that ASAP. I'm just about to get rid of all my software and samples and I'll have to have the self discipline to say no in the future. The cognitive dissonance is crushing me and I'm better than that, my life isn't too bad otherwise.

Do I win the most depressed post of the year award or what! I hope no-one else feels this way and you all have a great time making music.

All the best.

[Khazul]

Rule #1 - never delete anything - no matter how crap it is - its worth it as a reference and inspriation for the future, or at the very least you can look back and while it may have been utterly shit, at least maybe what you do later hopefully isnt quite as bad

You sound burned out to me, go out get pissed with mates, drag a couple of fluffies back from a club or whatever your thing is - maybe next door neightbours dog/goat etc?


I never try a write whe I get home from work - its a complete waste of time - my day job is way too shitty and stressy to have a hope in hell. So often Ill just frig aorund playing random crap, often on a piano, not even a synth - just as a way to relax so I can forget the crap day as quick as possible and enjoy the rest of the evening, whether in or out. I expect most of us are in a similar boat one way or another.

If you stop being so stressed about it and stop trying too hard, who knows, maybe something will come together. What is the point anyway? You want to be making stacks of cash from producing? Is that realistic? Do you have people coming to you to ask to work with you? If not - accept it as is for now and just have some fun/relax etc.

Try doing a remix or something - there a huge advantage to doing them - even if they never go anywhere - you get to mostly forget about trying to write (someone else has done that) and can more or less focus on production and cool fun shit, end result - you get some production exprerience that eventually you can very quickly and easily re-apply when writing you own stuff - the less you have to think hard about when writing, the easier it is. If your thinking of anything but music, then you are being distracted and technology we use can be very distracting.

I sound like I know it all - no - my stuff sux too - Ive just learned to accept that, have fun along the way, and not worry about it or be particularly self conscious about it - people wither like it or they dont, and I know allready my production ability in my home studio sux (accoutically its really bad and I hate using cans) and there isnt alot I can do about that rigth now.

The only advantage I have I guess is Ive done audio production work professionally years ago (nothing fancy - just music and audio post production for corporate/promo films, national TV etc) so alot of the technology is second nature to me - at least on the hardware side - but the stupidity of software user experience designers still never ceases to amaze me, and given that production software puzzles the hell out of me at times (I'm a software developer by trade, so not even some computer illiterate), it no wonder that many people have problems remaining creative with it...

BTW - what production methods/software do you use - that can make a hell of a difference.

Also allmost anything can sound good in either shitty accoustics, or when played loud. Most of us are guilty of both Having the levels turned down tends to help with both problems.

Another random observation - if something loops really well - then its often really hard to move on from it in a useful way. Introduce some more sounds into the loop, cut others and break it up, then it may natural progress/evolve to something else. Making loops is easy - getting out of the damn things can be quite hard. If you typically edit around 4/8/16 bars for example, then you will mentally get ingrained with the loop - allmost any style music become a form of trance in that state. So when editing, dont loop around loops, start well before and loop back well after - it keeps you alert to whats actually happening, otherwise you just get used to it and ignore it.

[LivePsy]

Man oh man, you've turned a hobby into a disease

Can I suggest a couple of things:-

You may not have met the right beat box yet. For me, making beats on the MPC is a breeze and they sound 'right', whereas a whole history of purchases spanning 17 years before that I was never happy with even just a kick and snare. I dont wanna think how many bits of hardware and software I purchased because I thought it would make the difference. And accidently I discover the MPC is the one for me.

Inspiration comes from some unrelated triggers. I'm going through a whole Prog Rock revival thing (Yes is so good/bad I can't get it out of my mind), and yet I am full of electro ideas. I think the break away from any narrow music genre does the world of good. Listen to music you don't like, and then question why you don't like it. Its good for you...

Lastly, you've apparently put in a lot of work. That can't be all bad, but *you* think it has been hard work. Make it fun! Sell or buy music gear however you want. And be happy to change your mind as often as you want.

Cheers,
B