I've just made a serious realization

V

VSTerrestrial

Guest
I have finally realized that the gear you use does not write songs for you. I know this sounds stupid but for the longest time I had always strived to have the latest and greatest but now that I have been forced to use Software instead of my hardware.. I realize that the real trick is in writing the song. I now have changed my ways and plan to write everything in Cubase SX and Reason 2.0 and then after writing, I can load it up in my studio and get the sounds that I want. I always used to spend time tweaking sounds... and never realized I was wasting my time..... a greate song can have the lamest synth sounds ever. It's all about the song. This is an important realization and piece of info for any of you out there looking for more gear.

Mark
www.markschonfeld.com
 
I think it depends.....

It's all about the song
Click to expand...
not always....i mean,i think sounds are important,expecially when there is not much going on with melody......some ambient stuff would be extremely boring if they wouldnt have cool sounds....

Also think about lounge stuff....like G-Stoned or Compost.....they would sound quite boring with out that kind of production (sounds)

The idea,concept is the most important thing for me....either it can be a nice line,or a nice production....it makes the difference.

But still,doesnt matter if u have a MPC or fruity (or any other piece of gear),as far as you can get the max outa it.

my 2Cents
 
thats right,
its not the tools, its you.

anyone can buy a block of clay. but only an artist can sculpt it into something beautiful.
 
In fact, raw often sounds better- case in point, TIm (Timmy) Rex's Relentless, smash underground hit of 98/99. Was his first track and was not what one would call great 'production value'

jB
 
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I find it's not quite as cut and dry as that. For me it tends to be a bit of a compromise between the two scenarios you're describing. I agree that it's definitely not just the instruments you're using, but often I find that a specific sound I've created inspires and influences the way a song is written.
 
Its how you pick your sound relative to each other that creates the effect you want.

You must have instruments that contrast or compliment each other in the right way... Bear in mind that an entire song can be resolved down to a two dimentional waveform.

It's the motion that the sound in that waveform creates that makes the music dynamic. When you play one type of timbre off against another with certain timing attributes it creates a timbral line of motion that your mind latches onto, so any single sound on its own creates nothing, in terms of texture, for the brain to have interest in.

When I started taking music seriously I spent months learning to create the most powrful dynamic basslines and kicks, and found that they often cloud music and swallow your dynamic range more than anything else. The same goes for any other instrument. If you assign to much power to a single sound it destroys your music. Which does mean that you sound sources don't need to be that fantasticly powerful as long as they have something interesting about them that makes them unique.

I don't see how you can compose a song using completely different sound from the final product. How can you create the correct balance? One sound can have very different spectral qualities from another and exert much less or more energy than a different sound, even when you play them back at the same frequency.
 
Well Spoken...but it also depends on what kind of sound you are going for. If you want something Raw, and Gritty, Obviously your not going to worry about Sounds that Compliment EachOther etc. Just another view.
 
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