How do J Dilla, Madlib, and a few others get that off beat sound ????

S

samplesbank

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So I listen to allot of hip hop and noticed cats like j. dilla, madlib, black milk, flying lotus and a bunch of others.....

....they have this off-beat sound to their tracks like the snare is late or early and the high-hats seem off but on at the same time.

I got access to an mpc 3000 where I work as an engineer and I've been trying to get that sound by using no quantize and having the metrognome off ...but still can't get that vibe.

What's the secret???

Ok....so I just got done listening to Erykah Badu's new album and the first song is called "The Healer" produced by MadLib and he's doing the offbeat soud again.....so I sampled the track...slowed it down....and it sounds like all the snares are early by a har instead of exactly on.....

....I think what he's doing is shifting all the snairs a tiny bit early....what do you guys think????
 
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He's not shifting anything he's just playin live like a real drummer would. Just leave ya quantize off and play in a good rythem, you'll get that off beat sound.
 
Well if you play with good timing your beat will flow, and won't sound offbeat unless you practice offbeat.
My only guess is that each drum hit is being played separately, or at least some of them are.

When you play your drums all at once with good timing it flows like a drummer does.

Alot of cats using mpc's record each hit to it's own track, and aren't sequencing the whole kit at once.
It's pretty easy to get that offbeat sound that way.
 
So Basically just leave the metronome and quantize off ???? I still need something as a guide
 
Just play it how you want it to sound it aint hard. Hit the pads where you want the sounds to go, if you cant do somethin as simple as that then you in the wrong game kid.

You puttin way too much thought into this
 
Exactly lol. Dudes acting like its some scientific secret behind gettin off beat drums. Just play the sh!t off beat.
 
You can keep the metronome on just keep quantize off. You need your metronome as a guide for the bpm setting obviously. Without the metronome you wouldn't know when/where to start bangin out.
 
Also, if you want to get an offbeat feel, but you want the same feel to be constant throughout the song, you can use quantize. It just may not be the standard 1/16 or 1/32 type settings.

Basically, you put the basic beat down using a standard quantization first, then you tweak it by adding swing or applying a groove from somewhere else - maybe even one of them Madlib tracks that get you so hyped!

Note that quantization is on in both of these cases, it's just that it's either being systematically ignored or it's on a non-standard setting. Of course, you could also take quantize off after laying down the basic beat and move the hits manually to taste.

Disclaimer: I only work with computer production so sequencing like this may or may not be possible with an MPC.
 
Guess I'm just over analyzing the whole ****...thing is I tried to play it off-beat to get the sound/style and its still to no avail.....so I been assuming it's not that easy.....but I'm gonna keep bangin them out and trying to get that vibe....

....you who say it's so easy...why dont yu do it and post up an mp3?
 
Yo, if it makes you feel any better Samplesbank, I read an article a few months ago where Illa J (J Dilla's brother) specifically mentioned the off-beat technique as a way to keep the heads noddin'.

My guess is that cats aren't playing off beat - the producers are systematically manipulating certain sounds to fall off beat by specific amounts. What that amount is may vary from song to song, or it may not. I have no idea.

But it looks like it's time for some experimentation.
 
Regardless.....allot of cats on here are talking BIG like they can do this in their sleep with their eyes closed. So for all the BIG talkers...let's hear some stuff that has tha off beat sound
 
dont play off beat to get the off beat sound...turn quantize off and try to play on beat as much as possible and it wont be perfect...and try to get the nod goin when u bangin in....i just started doin it so i dont have any tracks like that online yet but i could put one up in a couple hours if u like
 
try looping up a drum part from a song with a groove you like and then load up some drums and play along.
 
Go to the wiki for D'Angelo's voodoo album and check out the production section. ?uestlove talks about J Dilla and their attempts to emulate him. He just programmed the stuff freehand, with no quantizing and very little looping (he talks about Dilla doing 128 bars without looping).

My favorite part is him talking about how they brought in Lenny Kravitz to play guitar over it, but he couldn't hang with the off beat stuff. :D
 
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