"Danceable" Beats

M

mikex7

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Whats up everyone. Sittin here workin on some tracks, I want to make beats that people just cant help but dance to when they hear. What elements of the song give it that vibe??

I make some hot tracks, but they all come out a little bit too "nod your head" or flow on to, nothin I could see playin in the clubs

I usually keep my tempos around 90-105. Is there a key element im missing that makes one want to dance?? Thanks fellas

By the way, using reason with an oxygen8 keyboard
 
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Yeah i know what you mean. Same thing happens to me. I finish the beat and think: this one turned out great. Then i listen to it 50 times and am bored with it. I am trying to work with some swing and to get variations into the beats and as time goes by i am gradually getting the hang of it. I found it really helpfull to listen to songs with beats i like trying to figure out the timing and how each beat was placed.
 
Jackin_J said:
Yeah i know what you mean. Same thing happens to me. I finish the beat and think: this one turned out great. Then i listen to it 50 times and am bored with it. I am trying to work with some swing and to get variations into the beats and as time goes by i am gradually getting the hang of it. I found it really helpfull to listen to songs with beats i like trying to figure out the timing and how each beat was placed.
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How are you making your beats. I use two methods. I just lay them into the cubase sequencer or I use GURU and its step sequencer. So far I get the best results out of Guru. That VST is really great.
 
Well im composing in Reason, havent exported to cubase or anything yet. Maybe that will be a helper. I was messing around with FL studio this morning and the beats were sounding a little more "full". What kind of vst is guru?
 
Well ist quite difficult to explain. Its sort of like a software MPC but with load of more functions. I strogly suggest you got to: www.fxpansion.com , download the demo versions and the tutorial videos and the manual. After watching the vids you will be off making music........give it a try and post back.
 
When your making your beats, do they make yoo wanna dance? That would be my question.. Yoo want dance/club beats, then make sumpthin that MAKES yoo move..

Try different tempos as well..

Hope I helped

-kinG
 
go to dance clubs and see what songs make them dance, go home get that song and try to imitate it and do that for a few dance club songs then try making your own songs.
 
In order to make a song with a slower bpm danceable, double the speed of certain drum elements such as high hats, shakers, congas, etc. You can make a track at 70 bpms danceable and this way the chicks at the club have too speeds to shake their asses to. 70 bpm and double that at 140 bpm. I like asses shakin at 140..lol. Another thing that makes people want to dance is funky basslines. I produce funky house as well as hip hop and if you hear a good house track with a funky ass bass line you want to move. Maybe venture away from hip hop and listen to some dance artists. If you really want to understand how to make people move listen to some basement jaxx. Also you can try using a 4/4 drum pattern like house music and slow it down to like 110 bpm. You hear this in alot of Eminem's singles like his newest sh*t with Nate Dogg.
 
you gotta have a straight beat..

boom! boom! boom! boom!

with the snare joinin the kick on the 2 and 4 beats... also try an open high hat on the beats inbetween the kicks(causing syncopation), and using a closed high hat on the kicks... also a good bassline thats about 2 bars in length b4 repeating.

tempo around 130bpm
like this

oh = open hat
ch = closed hat
s = snare
k = kick

ch_oh_ch_oh_ch_oh_ch_oh
______S___________S____
K_____K_____K_____K____


i know it sounds simple on its own but thats what makes you dance. you dont wanna be standing there "listening" to the beat u just wanna feel it!
 
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muso121 said:
you gotta have a straight beat..

boom! boom! boom! boom!

with the snare joinin the kick on the 2 and 4 beats... also try an open high hat on the beats inbetween the kicks(causing syncopation), and using a closed high hat on the kicks... also a good bassline thats about 2 bars in length b4 repeating.

tempo around 130bpm
like this

oh = open hat
ch = closed hat
s = snare
k = kick

ch_oh_ch_oh_ch_oh_ch_oh
______S___________S____
K_____K_____K_____K____


i know it sounds simple on its own but thats what makes you dance. you dont wanna be standing there "listening" to the beat u just wanna feel it!
Click to expand...

That's what a 4/4 pattern is and I wouldn't say you have to have it but you can use it. A 4/4 pattern at 130 bpm is basically a house track. I'd slow it down if we're talking about hip hop. Not alot of emcees can rap easily at 130 bpms.
 
I've found that the hip hoppers generally prefer their house beats with the kicks dropped off on the 2 and 4 (where the snares are).

At the risk of sounding like a shameless promoter, there's a song on my myspace page with a Dre-ish house loop at 95ish BPM.

www.myspace.com/teddyrockspin
 
Cameron Thomas said:


That's what a 4/4 pattern is and I wouldn't say you have to have it but you can use it. A 4/4 pattern at 130 bpm is basically a house track. I'd slow it down if we're talking about hip hop. Not alot of emcees can rap easily at 130 bpms.
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thats not what a 4/4 pattern is....its a straight drum pattern.. in a 4/4 time signature....

nearly everything is in a 4/4 time signature, it doesnt have to be a staright drum pattern..
 
muso121 said:


thats not what a 4/4 pattern is....its a straight drum pattern.. in a 4/4 time signature....

nearly everything is in a 4/4 time signature, it doesnt have to be a staright drum pattern..
Click to expand...

lol... You ask anyone involved in electronic music and they will tell you that is a 4/4 pattern that's just what it has been deemed. Either that or 4 to the floor pattern.
 
the trick to club bangers is too carefully select ur sounds. Use claps, and heavy kicks....keep the drum pattern simple....like real simple....focus more on the surrounding sounds and eq-ing.

www.myspace.com/maxmethod
 
I'd say speed it up 120-140 maybe; do more syncopation (funkiness always gets people in a bouncy mood). not to suggest that things like melody and harmony are not important - this advice is just assuming these things are already there.
 
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