Drums or Melody First

I normally start with drums and percussion.. i find it much easier to write a bass line and build harmony once you've got the basic groove set.
 
Pherm B Leeva said:
Relaxation is much to do with preparation, finding the zone conducive to productivity, not the catalist behind a creative idea nor does it address important motivating factors behind expression itself, I'd recommend you do some research, maybe someone credited with abstract thought or creative thinking. I'd be happy to help, I'm quite sure someone else on here would advise us both.:D
Perhaps you might help me get to grips with the idea of lazy people that want to be creative but go about it all the wrong way? It's an intriguing concept, might make for a great thread, it could help others on here.
Click to expand...

:4theloveofgod:That would be why I said "the ability to chill becomes productive when there is something ticking away in the background, but you got to get to that point by feeding your mind." Relaxation isn't the catalyst it is conductive to creativity.

The reason why I told you to look up relaxation and creativity is so you would have some idea of what I am actually talking about. I have already done research in order to better understand the nuts and bolts of creativity, and being credited as creative doesn't automatically mean you are conscious of what you are doing right ya dig?

What don't you get about people aspiring to achieve something yet being too lazy to actually achieve it? It's not a difficult concept to grasp. Some fat dude wants to lose weight so he buys an exercise machine because "that's how you lose weight, you buy an exercise machine......problem solved!......no wait a minute, you mean I actually have to use the exercise machine in order to achieve weight loss? like I can't just keep envisioning myself with rock hard abs using it?.....fug that!".
 
hollandturbine said:
:4theloveofgod:That would be why I said "the ability to chill becomes productive when there is something ticking away in the background, but you got to get to that point by feeding your mind." Relaxation isn't the catalyst it is conductive to creativity.

The reason why I told you to look up relaxation and creativity is so you would have some idea of what I am actually talking about. I have already done research in order to better understand the nuts and bolts of creativity, and being credited as creative doesn't automatically mean you are conscious of what you are doing right ya dig?

What don't you get about people aspiring to achieve something yet being too lazy to actually achieve it? It's not a difficult concept to grasp. Some fat dude wants to lose weight so he buys an exercise machine because "that's how you lose weight, you buy an exercise machine......problem solved!......no wait a minute, you mean I actually have to use the exercise machine in order to achieve weight loss? like I can't just keep envisioning myself with rock hard abs using it?.....fug that!".
Click to expand...

Uhh? Relaxation isn't the catalyst, wasn't that my last comment???? :4theloveofgod:You seem to overlook the basic fact that creativity is often painful inception, a reactive mechanism, arousel and stimulation fired up by duress and the pressure situation.
-- What I don't get about people aspiring to achieve something yet being too lazy to actually achieve it: is how you make that distinction?
My Psychic radar is a little rusty:) may be I could borrow yours, sorry :o there has to be more than just suggestion, before I'd classify that person too lazy to use the gym equipment, if only to work on the triceps, but not the abs; Does experience and knowledge afford me the right to deny someone an answer to a basic question on a Forum. Simple really.
 
Pherm B Leeva said:
Uhh? Relaxation isn't the catalyst, wasn't that my last comment???? :4theloveofgod:You seem to overlook the basic fact that creativity is often painful inception, a reactive mechanism, arousel and stimulation fired up by duress and the pressure situation.
-- What I don't get about people aspiring to achieve something yet being too lazy to actually achieve it: is how you make that distinction?
My Psychic radar is a little rusty:) may be I could borrow yours, sorry :o there has to be more than just suggestion, before I'd classify that person too lazy to use the gym equipment, if only to work on the triceps, but not the abs; Does experience and knowledge afford me the right to deny someone an answer to a basic question on a Forum. Simple really.
Click to expand...

Yeah but you said relaxation isn't the catalyst as though I didn't already allude to the exact same point, you got the face palm for inadvertently presenting a straw man argument using the same point I had already made as though you were oblivious to the fact that I had just said the same thing.

You are right I certainly was specifically discussing the link between relaxation and creativity.

What you "don't get about people aspiring to achieve something yet being too lazy to actually achieve it" is that your followup question has nothing to do with understanding them at all......I don't need to make any distinction between one person and another, I just answer their questions and the rest is up to them....I don't make assumptions as to what motivates each person I am however aware of the existence of various motivations.......for example just because some fat dude packs away his exercise equipment doesn't automatically imply laziness, he could have done himself an injury for all we know and although that doesn't negate the fact that some people will pack away their exercise equipment because they are lazy, it would be foolish to dump any assumption onto a person in the absence of information.

Same thing applies to some dude asking a question on here, like say "how do I make decent 808's" for example, now I could go into detail from sine to saturation and someone else could post a link to Goldbaby's Tape 808 and dude could say "thanks for the link" and bounce, now I'm not going to automatically assume dude is lazy even though it's a possibility, for all I know dude could have incorrectly phrased his question, he could be searching shit out to meet the requests of a client, he could be working two jobs and need to get shit done as quickly as he can, he might have read what I said about tape saturation and realized why he was having difficulty and then decided to go with Tape 808.........or he could quite simply have the aspiration to learn but lack the motivation because he is frickin lazy......a consequence of which is his creativity is now limited by the samples he decided to go with.
 
Some excellent posts in this thread. Really enjoyed reading through this.

For a boring answer to the original question, I typically begin with drums. However, many of my greatest pieces began with the melody and chords first. And unsurprisingly, those peices came to be because of clear ideas I had in my head BEFORE I sat down.

For me, if I have a melody or song idea in my head first, I try as quickly as I can to capture the essence of it with the chords and an excellent lead sound. The drums effortlessly follow that.

One of my personal hang ups is that I tend to be too much of a perfectionist in some regards. When I begin writing a piece, I often don't even like it until I've found / created the perfect sounds, and mixed them beautifully. For me, the mixing and way the sounds actually sound are just as impactful as the notes. It can take some time for me to really get going because of this, but once that's unlocked, the rest just falls out.

However, this is where I am working on constantly pushing myself. I've recently begun "sketching" out songs before actually fully composing and mixing them. Simple placeholder sounds and ideas. If it sounds awesome like that, then you best believe when it's all produced up it'll be superb.
 
Last edited:
hollandturbine said:
Yeah but you said relaxation isn't the catalyst as though I didn't already allude to the exact same point, you got the face palm for inadvertently presenting a straw man argument using the same point I had already made as though you were oblivious to the fact that I had just said the same thing.

You are right I certainly was specifically discussing the link between relaxation and creativity.

What you "don't get about people aspiring to achieve something yet being too lazy to actually achieve it" is that your followup question has nothing to do with understanding them at all......I don't need to make any distinction between one person and another, I just answer their questions and the rest is up to them....I don't make assumptions as to what motivates each person I am however aware of the existence of various motivations.......for example just because some fat dude packs away his exercise equipment doesn't automatically imply laziness, he could have done himself an injury for all we know and although that doesn't negate the fact that some people will pack away their exercise equipment because they are lazy, it would be foolish to dump any assumption onto a person in the absence of information.

Same thing applies to some dude asking a question on here, like say "how do I make decent 808's" for example, now I could go into detail from sine to saturation and someone else could post a link to Goldbaby's Tape 808 and dude could say "thanks for the link" and bounce, now I'm not going to automatically assume dude is lazy even though it's a possibility, for all I know dude could have incorrectly phrased his question, he could be searching shit out to meet the requests of a client, he could be working two jobs and need to get shit done as quickly as he can, he might have read what I said about tape saturation and realized why he was having difficulty and then decided to go with Tape 808.........or he could quite simply have the aspiration to learn but lack the motivation because he is frickin lazy......a consequence of which is his creativity is now limited by the samples he decided to go with.
Click to expand...

Some of the laziest people I've ever met, are the misguided egotists arrogant to the point of ignorance, unable to contemplate a fresh perspective or appreciate the unorthedox.
As for the straw man arguement, words in contrast and context, in a sentence to expand on the concepts behind creativity.

I like your comment about the 808, context of the 808 as important as the sound itself? It's contrast / way it interacts with it's surroundings, maybe? Would I consider the drummer lazy because he chooses not to learn how to build his own drum kit? No.
Would using a sample inhibit my musical and creative direction? Probably not, people on the forum use a sample creatively and imaginitively, precisely because of the way it sounds, sometimes out of respect/ homage to that original artist/ song.

we all know artists don't always produce their own work and we hear about producers that don't always produce work they are credited with; perhaps why a proven body of work becomes so important, will an artist choose one producer over another without solid evidence? Maybe not.

For me posting on this forum, is about helping others and seeing something that I think will interest others, so I post a comment, add a link, or embed a video, I find the idea of denying people information, abhorrent, in conflict with evolutionary process and most definitely creatively retarded. I can never understand why people find it difficult to put a little constructive possitivity before selfishness; which is why I respect the fact you are willing to post answers without influence from ideas about laziness. :D and yes you're quite right not try to make that distinction, I asked how you make the distinction to be closer to understanding why you'd need to, and to get closer to truth about wether it might influence your final decision making process, simple really.
 
Last edited:
I usually will have a random melody going in my head and I would hum it on my phone recorder. And then bring it over to my daw and try out different chord progressions on top of the melody and then start doing the drums after.
 
drums usually first then melody, sometimes drum pattern then the process of picking the drum sounds. Still mix and match for me though
 
Pherm B Leeva said:
Some of the laziest people I've ever met, are the misguided egotists arrogant to the point of ignorance, unable to contemplate a fresh perspective or appreciate the unorthedox.
As for the straw man arguement, words in contrast and context, in a sentence to expand on the concepts behind creativity.

I like your comment about the 808, context of the 808 as important as the sound itself? It's contrast / way it interacts with it's surroundings, maybe? Would I consider the drummer lazy because he chooses not to learn how to build his own drum kit? No.
Would using a sample inhibit my musical and creative direction? Probably not, people on the forum use a sample creatively and imaginitively, precisely because of the way it sounds, sometimes out of respect/ homage to that original artist/ song.

we all know artists don't always produce their own work and we hear about producers that don't always produce work they are credited with; perhaps why a proven body of work becomes so important, will an artist choose one producer over another without solid evidence? Maybe not.

For me posting on this forum, is about helping others and seeing something that I think will interest others, so I post a comment, add a link, or embed a video, I find the idea of denying people information, abhorrent, in conflict with evolutionary process and most definitely creatively retarded. I can never understand why people find it difficult to put a little constructive possitivity before selfishness; which is why I respect the fact you are willing to post answers without influence from ideas about laziness. :D and yes you're quite right not try to make that distinction, I asked how you make the distinction to be closer to understanding why you'd need to, and to get closer to truth about wether it might influence your final decision making process, simple really.
Click to expand...

I think the trick is to try and equip people with the knowledge they need in order to reach their full potential without actually trying to dictate to them what they should be doing with it.

Like say someone asks for a critique of their music I tend to stick to the technical stuff rather than judge the stylistic merit of their work, with a few exceptions depending upon their intentions, like say if the goal is to get a spin on radio or get peoples attention in a short period of time I might suggest they cut back on an intro...that sort of thing, but I am not about to tell some dude how to make his music.
 
i'd say go with what you feel that day. you can get some fairly wild sounding things when you start mixing up your production approach. drums always get the creative juices flowing for me though. if i have a melody already in mind i go with that. no real rules man. go for it! :cool:
 
I find a lot of pro artists start with drums, espeically in dance music, you need to set the groove first before anything else pops off in the club ...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top