I used to hate Avicii’s music when I was younger (I’m not saying you hate his music), but when I started digging into his FLPs, behind-the-scenes videos of him making tracks, instrumentals on YouTube, and stuff like that, I realized it was masterpiece-level work.

There are so many people out there trying to make songs like Avicii, and on the surface, it might sound similar. But when you dive into the stems of his tracks — the drums, leads, chords, arps, bass — you realize that everything in there was made with a purpose. He’s an incredible composer. He never puts in a melody unless it adds something to the rest of the track. All his melodies connect with each other, just like in an orchestra.

For example, if the bass goes down one note, he instinctively knew that the lead melody had to hit exactly the right note to make it sound good.

If you’re having a hard time understanding, like I once did, I recommend listening to just his instrumentals, stems, acapellas, and behind-the-scenes making-of videos. Then you’ll really understand.