The Sponge Wiggler Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 i was wondering how people gain more of a sense of freedom with composition, not feeling like you're locked into one thing. i was thinking of transcribing songs i liked, but then i feel like i'd be butchering them. Now that i think of it, maybe I could transcribe songs I don't like, and then I could still learn a bit about composition, and I wouldn't feel like I'm doing something sacriligeous. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TubularCorporation Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 I've never actually done it but when I'm in a rut I somethimes think I should just download some old short from archive.org, mute the originalaudio and score it as a way to change things up. Something like this, maybe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Chesney Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 Copy the structure of a song you think is interesting and swap everything out with an old idea of yours. See how it feels, might just unlock your stuck brain. I get in this predicament all the time, end up with the same style intro breakdown etc. Most people won't notice because the material is totally different but when you notice what you have done you can't stop thinking about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TubularCorporation Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 A couple of times I've literally taken someone else's song (in a completely unrelated style), overdubbed some stuff on it, deleted the original song, done more overdubs, and then (probably) deleted the first round of overdubs so there's nothing left that actually had direct contact with the other song. Been a long time, but it was a useful exercise. These days if I'm feeling blocked I either build something, go outside or vacuum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Chesney Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 That's kinda what I was getting at. I have never done it but I will when I get stuck enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TubularCorporation Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 That's kinda what I was getting at. I have never done it but I will when I get stuck enough. Cool, I thought you meant more generally copy the structure than just outright overdub on the original track. Sometimes rather than trying to make something good, it can work better to deliberately make the worst track you possibly can (but actually really see it through until it's done, and don't half-ass it). It takes the pressure off and sometimes you end up with something a lot better than if you'd been taking yourself seriously and trying to make Serious Art. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rotwang Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 RSP, on 24 Mar 2017 - 2:17 PM, said: Sometimes rather than trying to make something good, it can work better to deliberately make the worst track you possibly can (but actually really see it through until it's done, and don't half-ass it). It takes the pressure off and sometimes you end up with something a lot better than if you'd been taking yourself seriously and trying to make Serious Art. I second this. Recently, after I'd spent months working on tracks and not finishing them, my flatmate challenged me to make a shitty, generic track in a single weekend. It ended up being the best piece of music I've made. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 i was wondering how people gain more of a sense of freedom with composition. Through play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheatheman Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 Have a near death experience Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acid1 Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 I've learnt a few lessons recently. This is completely subjective. 1 - If you don't like what you are working on within the first hour, don't both finishing it. Seriously, just move on, you will know when you strike gold. Forcing yourself to fuck with something that you are not into is taxing on your mood. On that note, if you take a small break, come back and something bothers you, remove that part and keep going. 2 - Don't print "demos" for people. Their input, which is usually self reflective, can fuck with your drive/motivation. Print pre mastered or finished works only. You get more respect anyways from that anyways. 3 - Work on one song at a time. I have trouble recreating vibes from months ago (let alone years). Setting things aside for later is fine, but I'd keep it to like days-weeks depending upon how much ADD you have. 4 - Creativity wise, I just explore sounds first. As soon as I find something and go "hell yeah" I move onto the next thing and do the same. Some people prefer to have an idea first, and thats fine. 5 - Read manuals, there is tons of shit in there, play with it all, cycling presets is pointless. 6 - If necessary, write a computer program to give you a song prompt, that picks a bpm, root note, chord progression, picks oblique strategies cards, a couple titles of random wiki articles, and tells you which of your gear you should start with 7 - Drink retarded amounts of rum 8 - ??? 9 - Prophet 10 - Random pattern on the Roland 03 over and over and over and over and over and over and over Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ceiling Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 I find this youtube video of John Cleese on creativity to be particularly useful If I'm stuck. Works on the idea of what other people mentioned in the comments above, the idea of 'playtime'. It might seem like a waste of time but trust me, watch this video! John Cleese has a really good knack for explaining how to go about being creative. Video also works on a weird meta level as well which was clearly Cleeses intention; you'll understand what I mean when you watch It. Pretty much applicable to any type of creative work. Worked wonders for my approach towards music making, stuck with me since I first came across It over 4 years ago. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xPvvPTQaMI Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Sponge Wiggler Posted March 25, 2017 Author Share Posted March 25, 2017 thanks for the thoughts so far Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TubularCorporation Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 I've learnt a few lessons recently. This is completely subjective. 1 - If you don't like what you are working on within the first hour, don't both finishing it. Seriously, just move on, you will know when you strike gold. Forcing yourself to fuck with something that you are not into is taxing on your mood. On that note, if you take a small break, come back and something bothers you, remove that part and keep going. 2 - Don't print "demos" for people. Their input, which is usually self reflective, can fuck with your drive/motivation. Print pre mastered or finished works only. You get more respect anyways from that anyways. 3 - Work on one song at a time. I have trouble recreating vibes from months ago (let alone years). Setting things aside for later is fine, but I'd keep it to like days-weeks depending upon how much ADD you have. 4 - Creativity wise, I just explore sounds first. As soon as I find something and go "hell yeah" I move onto the next thing and do the same. Some people prefer to have an idea first, and thats fine. 5 - Read manuals, there is tons of shit in there, play with it all, cycling presets is pointless. 6 - If necessary, write a computer program to give you a song prompt, that picks a bpm, root note, chord progression, picks oblique strategies cards, a couple titles of random wiki articles, and tells you which of your gear you should start with 7 - Drink retarded amounts of rum 8 - ??? 9 - Prophet 10 - Random pattern on the Roland 03 over and over and over and over and over and over and over Good advice, although on 5 the flip side is don't get lost in the sound design and never finish the track (that's my problem). Presets can be a crutch but they can also be liberating if you use them sparingly for the right reason (if it's a preset that has history and extramusical associations; a DX-7 electric piano has a lot of meaning outside of the actual sound and sometimes that's what you need. Also there is no such thing as a preset if you have a couple pedals to run it through. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lada Laika Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 I've learnt a few lessons recently. This is completely subjective. 1 - If you don't like what you are working on within the first hour, don't both finishing it. Seriously, just move on, you will know when you strike gold. Forcing yourself to fuck with something that you are not into is taxing on your mood. On that note, if you take a small break, come back and something bothers you, remove that part and keep going. 2 - Don't print "demos" for people. Their input, which is usually self reflective, can fuck with your drive/motivation. Print pre mastered or finished works only. You get more respect anyways from that anyways. 3 - Work on one song at a time. I have trouble recreating vibes from months ago (let alone years). Setting things aside for later is fine, but I'd keep it to like days-weeks depending upon how much ADD you have. 4 - Creativity wise, I just explore sounds first. As soon as I find something and go "hell yeah" I move onto the next thing and do the same. Some people prefer to have an idea first, and thats fine. 5 - Read manuals, there is tons of shit in there, play with it all, cycling presets is pointless. 6 - If necessary, write a computer program to give you a song prompt, that picks a bpm, root note, chord progression, picks oblique strategies cards, a couple titles of random wiki articles, and tells you which of your gear you should start with 7 - Drink retarded amounts of rum 8 - ??? 9 - Prophet 10 - Random pattern on the Roland 03 over and over and over and over and over and over and over Good advice, although on 5 the flip side is don't get lost in the sound design and never finish the track (that's my problem). Presets can be a crutch but they can also be liberating if you use them sparingly for the right reason (if it's a preset that has history and extramusical associations; a DX-7 electric piano has a lot of meaning outside of the actual sound and sometimes that's what you need. Also there is no such thing as a preset if you have a couple pedals to run it through. Unless I know what I'm going for or am in a sound design-y mood, presets are probably the best way to lay down a quick melody or bassline before twisting those knobs straight to hell. As a jumping off point I find them very useful, even if I rarely end up using an unmodified one in a track. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pizza Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 use a different sequencing method Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TubularCorporation Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 I've learnt a few lessons recently. This is completely subjective. 1 - If you don't like what you are working on within the first hour, don't both finishing it. Seriously, just move on, you will know when you strike gold. Forcing yourself to fuck with something that you are not into is taxing on your mood. On that note, if you take a small break, come back and something bothers you, remove that part and keep going. 2 - Don't print "demos" for people. Their input, which is usually self reflective, can fuck with your drive/motivation. Print pre mastered or finished works only. You get more respect anyways from that anyways. 3 - Work on one song at a time. I have trouble recreating vibes from months ago (let alone years). Setting things aside for later is fine, but I'd keep it to like days-weeks depending upon how much ADD you have. 4 - Creativity wise, I just explore sounds first. As soon as I find something and go "hell yeah" I move onto the next thing and do the same. Some people prefer to have an idea first, and thats fine. 5 - Read manuals, there is tons of shit in there, play with it all, cycling presets is pointless. 6 - If necessary, write a computer program to give you a song prompt, that picks a bpm, root note, chord progression, picks oblique strategies cards, a couple titles of random wiki articles, and tells you which of your gear you should start with 7 - Drink retarded amounts of rum 8 - ??? 9 - Prophet 10 - Random pattern on the Roland 03 over and over and over and over and over and over and over Good advice, although on 5 the flip side is don't get lost in the sound design and never finish the track (that's my problem). Presets can be a crutch but they can also be liberating if you use them sparingly for the right reason (if it's a preset that has history and extramusical associations; a DX-7 electric piano has a lot of meaning outside of the actual sound and sometimes that's what you need. Also there is no such thing as a preset if you have a couple pedals to run it through. Unless I know what I'm going for or am in a sound design-y mood, presets are probably the best way to lay down a quick melody or bassline before twisting those knobs straight to hell. As a jumping off point I find them very useful, even if I rarely end up using an unmodified one in a track. I think there's a lot of overlap between creative use of sampling and creative use of presets, although I am way more likely to use samples than presets (other than a few classic FM basses and some of the cheesy bell and flute sounds in my old MT-32 because they're hilarious). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TubularCorporation Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 use a different sequencing method Even just moving your gear into another part of the room can make you approach things differently. The way the human brain works (and I'm going to explain this very badly and simplisticly because I'm not a neuroscientist), most of what we see is actually models our brain creates based on seeing the same thing in the past, we see what has changed since last time we were in the same place, and the rest we mostly filter out and fill in with our memory. All of the actual studies I can find are behind academic paywalls, but this Guardian article is a good basic overview. The upshot is that if you move or reorganize your gear, your brain will literally see it differently on a basic sensory level, and that can make you naturally approach it differently. Personally I also like to have more instruments than I actually, and just choose 3 or 4 of them to use for any one track or even album/project. Both of those things are pretty basic, obvious stuff that lots of people do but I think looking at some of the neuroscience behind why they work is worthwhile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beerwolf Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 hail the sponge wiggler! truly the best named watmm of all time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheatheman Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 use a different sequencing method Even just moving your gear into another part of the room can make you approach things differently. The way the human brain works (and I'm going to explain this very badly and simplisticly because I'm not a neuroscientist), most of what we see is actually models our brain creates based on seeing the same thing in the past, we see what has changed since last time we were in the same place, and the rest we mostly filter out and fill in with our memory. All of the actual studies I can find are behind academic paywalls, but this Guardian article is a good basic overview. The upshot is that if you move or reorganize your gear, your brain will literally see it differently on a basic sensory level, and that can make you naturally approach it differently. Personally I also like to have more instruments than I actually, and just choose 3 or 4 of them to use for any one track or even album/project. Both of those things are pretty basic, obvious stuff that lots of people do but I think looking at some of the neuroscience behind why they work is worthwhile. yeah, when i finally set up my new studio, i made tons of stuff, and then i changed out mixers and it happened again. good point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acid1 Posted March 30, 2017 Share Posted March 30, 2017 5 - Read manuals, there is tons of shit in there, play with it all, cycling presets is pointless. What I meant by this is instead of getting a synth or piece of gear and just cycling through presets, sit down and read the manual first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ragnar Posted March 30, 2017 Share Posted March 30, 2017 ha, I did do the repeat pattern over and over thing, not by choice exactly, but looping patterns in jeskola buzz and trying to get that vibe as if i was using a actual 303 or something, if my early stuff sounds like it locks into place ridiculously well that's why as far as ideas, i've like virtually always completed a track within the space of a day (oh god it's almost midnight if i don't finish my dope beat will turn into a werebeat). like i feel like my mind resets every time i wake up/can't possibly continue with the same idea after dream sequence 3) Drink retarded amounts of cum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auditor Posted March 30, 2017 Share Posted March 30, 2017 Just to add a somewhat obvious tactic to the great ones mentioned above: listen to good music. I find that, when I'm feeling totally uninspired, taking a walk with headphones and a solid playlist generally reverses that and makes me wanna run back to the studio. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dingformung Posted March 30, 2017 Share Posted March 30, 2017 changing your life will also change your perspective on music. so you could commit a crime to get into prison or something, that'll help (alternatively you could move to a friend for a week and make music there lol) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impakt Posted March 30, 2017 Share Posted March 30, 2017 Have fun with it. If it's not fun, don't do it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ragnar Posted March 31, 2017 Share Posted March 31, 2017 changing your life will also change your perspective on music. so you could commit a crime to get into prison or something, that'll help (alternatively you could move to a friend for a week and make music there lol) move to a friend merge with friend fight giant versions of bad guys Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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