Repetitive beats :(

kang

kang

New member
Can anyone out there give advice to people on how to prevent a beat sounding repetitive.

Personally i add small sounds to various parts of the track to give it the feeling that its moving on. I also change up the drum pattern slighly when it goes from verse to chorus.

Are there any other things that can be done? A lot my beats are extremely repetitive but i dont sort it out until i have the vocals recorded. Once the vocals are recorded i can add drop outs, change the percussion, add effects etc.

In my opinion a beat is called a beat because its in a raw state... a beat doesn't become a track until the vox are recorded and what used 2 be the beat is finished, and by finished i mean effects, drop outs, switch ups etc etc.

Post your techniques or ideas on how to keep a track from sounding repetitive.

EDIT - I think this topic could prove useful to people starting off and who have had reviews saying "your tracks are repetitive" but no one leaves advice on how to resolve this.

Cheers

Kang.
 
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automate a subtle effect on, say, your hihats or whatever. say, a filter, or subtle reverb--- automate that with a real slow lfo. so it moves through time, slowly, and not drastically... like, goes up over 2 bars, comes down over 2 bars, etc etc....

thats one simple one that will keep your tracks from souding totally loopy.

automation is what you need to mess with. you can add life that way...




peace.
 
^^^ yea automation is a good fx i sometimes forget to use (especially in hiphop)

but it also depends if its a 2, 4 or 8 bar beat(melody)

heres some few tips:
- add/remove an instrument every 8 bars

- drop all hats(open, closed, cymbals) for a 4bar period in the middle of the track

- use bridges!!!

- evolve/change slightly the main melody that is looped throughout the track

- automate filter cutoff/resonance

- drop the snares for 1-2 bar once in a while


...
 
some good points so far.

there are different approaches to this, but i think it can be done in a very subtle way. you could start with an 8 bar pattern, just an extra hi hat here or there, or drop a snare drum on the fourth or eigth bar, i think a good example of this is the fugees killing me softly it's a very simple beat, but has some real nice pauses in it, to keep it ticking over. then when you change sections just add something, like a ride cymbal. i'd advise you to listen beats that your feeling and pick them apart, make notes on what's happening in each section of the track.

dynamic and swing is crucial to a beat not sounding boring to, so your hits are at different strengths.
 
Why not make beats that arnt loops? adding stuff is nice, but those are just ways to work around it.

Make beat with more melodies, make beats with extra melodies coming in each 8th bar or whatever...
 
sometimes after im done with all the parts to the Verse, I add an extra instrument with a low volume (almost inaudible) and i improve. I record it for tha full 16 bars and play some notes within tha scale. (it doesnt have to sound amazing or intelligent just so long as its within the scale) becuase its NOT tha main melody and the volume is low. Basically its just a "filler" BUT it will garuntee that every single bar in your verse will be unique. :)
 
good advice, but what exactley is swing, i dnt really have a clue bout it?

Thankz
Lil Loco
 
Excellent replies guys... keep em comin. I'm pretty sure this topic will prove useful to the newbies.

There is a lot of useful info in the replies.
 
The improv idea is a good one... i was tryin that out this weekend and i was pleasently surprised.
 
yeah but it only works for a few tracks otherwise it can make the track sound messy.
 
take note- a lot of people will tell you your **** is repetitive because they cant find anything else to criticise

one more thing...being repetitive isnt always a bad thing

sex is repetitive

nuff said really
 
I like the way u put that man.

A lot of people dont realise that a beat is repetitive coz the vocals haven't been recorded. Once the vox are done a beat can sound so different.
 
^^exactly

some releases are basically a 4bar loop straight up!!!
but the vocals makes it live and interesting.

it depends on the tracks, sometimes just letting it loop is what the song asks for, but on some other song, you want a fully fixed song structure with lots of variation...
 
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My thoughts exactly man.

Kano (a UK rapper) said it best...

"...Nuff producers think they've made hits, sold 500 they aint made hits, prick, its the vocal that makes it..." - Reload It

There's a lot of truth in that quote.
 
kang said:
My thoughts exactly man.

Kano (a UK rapper) said it best...

"...Nuff producers think they've made hits, sold 500 they aint made hits, prick, its the vocal that makes it..." - Reload It

There's a lot of truth in that quote.
Click to expand...

thats half truth...sometimes it is the vocals that make the hits...but a lot of the time its the beat...it SHOULD be both that makes a hit but this is the era of D4L and Lil Jon so anything is possible..
 
I makie the beats alterante, so I make two different beats and then I have em play back and forth. It tricks your mind into thinking the song is progressing.
 
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