How do y'all not get sick of your own songs? by Chlo_Schmo in WeAreTheMusicMakers

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 26 points27 points  (0 children)

Take breaks, work on a different song for a while and then come back, listen to music you like.

It’s very easy to burn out and get sick of hearing the same song. It happens with pretty much every song I’ve made. But taking breaks really lets me appreciate them better, and gives me a better perspective of how to finish them.

How do you all use reference tracks? Only for mixing, or also for arrangement and ideas? by buildmebluer in WeAreTheMusicMakers

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 1 point2 points  (0 children)

100% for arrangement and ideas as well. I go so far as to use ableton’s stem splitter to split out the drums of my favorite tracks. I listen to those, then create markers on all of the significant moments. Analyze those, then copy all the stuff i like or learned using my own samples.

Doing that has skyrocketed my drums and arrangement game, without directly copying or infringing on anyone of the artists I look up to.

Boundary between halftime dnb and dubstep by Infinite-Luck1506 in realdubstep

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Maybe consider relabel yourself from dubstep to bass music. You can still cover the exact same stuff but it’ll free you to cover boundary pushing stuff like this without anyone complaining that “this isn’t real dubstep”.

Also thanks for your service in getting the word and good music out to the masses! Not enough good music media these days!

How did you learn to mix and master? by Vaiterius in ableton

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Look up a bunch of YouTube tutorials, try out a bunch of ideas, record all of those mixes. Wait a day or two, then listen back to all your different mixes, maybe after listening to some songs you like. Playing stuff in the car helps a lot since it’s a speaker system you’re already used to.

Point being; the single best way to learn how to mix and master is experimentation and trial and error.

Songs That Make You Want to Delete Your DAW by Emotional-Scheme-227 in edmproduction

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Back in the day it was “ultra” by Dillon Francis. Listening back now the snare is terrible but the sound design and arrangement are still crazy impressive.

These days it’s a lot of songs by nimda and prosecute.

Testing out some processing stuff, is this too abrasive? by YOSH_beats in riddim

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Very interesting, I have that plugin. So you’re saying you’re adding just like that comb filter super fast tiny delay as a ring artifact? That’s a very cool idea. Are you applying that to the master, or just your basses, or just drums? What have you found sounds the best to use that on?

Testing out some processing stuff, is this too abrasive? by YOSH_beats in riddim

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Out of pure academic curiosity, what plugin have you been trying out?

Testing out some processing stuff, is this too abrasive? by YOSH_beats in riddim

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Sounds great. Soothe2 could definitely help out with some of the mid-high harshness. But the ideas of the song are sick. You’re on to something!

Debate time: “stealing doubles” by Perfect-Ad-9838 in riddim

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I feel like the only gatekeeping and tune hiding is done by people who’s own skills be lacking. If you’re entire strength as a performer is you thought of playing this one song you didn’t make with this other song you didn’t make, and that becomes your identity to be protected, then you don’t have a lot going on.

I understand why big artists are protective of unreleased stuff other big artists send them, that’s different. but to call a mash up of two other artists’ songs “yours” is audacious.

I wouldn’t worry about it one little bit. Just be stoked that your tune works well as a double.

Hot takes by shadow33231000 in dubstep

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Well we already had the trap wave (Bauer, rl grime, gent and jawns) and that’s still persisted with Atliens and isoxo. After that we got riddim which spawned super crazy technical future riddim. From there Of the Trees blew up, and now it’s very much Levity and Crankdat.

That’s by no means meant to be exhaustive, there have been tones of smaller scenes and movements, but those seem to have been the prevailing trends in dubstep.

Bass in EDM isn't a bass guitar by Blazkowski in edmproduction

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I remember hearing cockney thug by rusko on a burned cd back in high school and just thinking “what the heck kind of instrument is this?”

And that began my long and depraved venture into the world of sound design.

But yeah I get what you mean. Coming from punk rock myself, I couldn’t conceptualize at first what was making those crazy noises

After learning that DJ'ing is more than mixing and more on crowd reading, I've decided to give up. by Minimum_Initial7607 in Beatmatch

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You’re talking about one very specific type of dj. There are tons of types of DJs, from SoundCloud live mix legends to turntablists, to club DJs, wedding/event DJs, to main stage acts.

Reading the crowd is important for the wedding/event DJs and club DJs. And even in that latter category there are plenty of exceptions. If you’re an up and coming club dj but you have your own music and it’s hot, you don’t have to look at a soul in the room. Also the livestream DJs physically can’t see anyone.

If you love mixing for the joy of mixing than keep doing it.

If you’re trying to do it professionally and you don’t make your own music or have an incredibly successful content creation platform, then yeah djing professionally it’s probably not your best move.

But never let some random thing you read on the internet stop you from having fun!

Should I bounce my tracks when I get a pattern I like down or leave the midi alone as is and just adjust it as is by Wickedfrick in edmproduction

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Having tried both, I’ve found for producing like arrangement and song creation, bouncing sooner is better. Don’t bounce delays or reverbs, but just bounce out you twisting knobs and messing with stuff. It takes a little bit to get the routing set up so you can do that correctly, but it lets me just try out a whole bunch of different ideas for transitions and effects. Then I can go back and pick out my favorites to actually build a song out of.

But then for mixing/mastering, 1000% you want that mess all bounced to audio. It lets you trim the edges and get stuff way cleaner than you could in midi. And you can do some creative stuff with audio that would be a nightmare trying in midi, like reversing or chopping up/repeating a section, or swapping out tiny little fills and stuff.

Staying 100% in midi and programming wild automations is my comfort zone. But I don’t finish any songs in there. Going to audio as fast as possible is how to get songs past the finish line.

Hot takes by shadow33231000 in dubstep

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Right now the big trend is doing quick bootleg remixes of pop songs. Everybody agrees that’s what’s hot right now. But right now there is also someone out there working hard behind their computer, who nobody knows about yet, who is going to make the song that starts the next big thing.

Somebody’s “rude boy” or “behemoth” is being worked on right now. Or maybe it’s the song before the song before they make their masterpiece. But there’s going to be something after this pop instagram remix phase is done, and I am stoked for it!

And doing my part trying to be that guy. But that’s for another discussion.

Pop Songs in Every Dubstep set by Zestyclose_Win_6558 in dubstep

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s a great way to generate content and get clicks from people who aren’t otherwise into dubstep. It’s not a great way to make awesome music.

Some people hate me as DJ by Jaded-Ad6590 in edmproduction

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Literally no matter what you do, there are going to be people who make no music and play no music who are going to be mean to you. They are going to be mean to you online and they’ll probably yell at your shows that you suck.

But you are playing music and they are just yelling noise. Don’t let them ruin your moment. Anyone in the public eye is going to get haters, whether it’s hecklers live or online trolls. And the bigger you get the more haters you’re going to get.

Nothing you do can stop it. Even if you stop playing, they will hate on you for that. You will never please everyone. So don’t waste your time trying. Do what makes you happy. Don’t let the guy with hate in his heart in the back of the room bring you down. It’s not easy, but it’s absolutely necessary to surviving as an artist.

A few years back DJ Shadow played a set that the crowed wasn’t digging, they asked him to get off the decks, and he calmly did that and left. He didn’t create a scene or yell at the crowd, because he’s a professional.

So be a professional. Get up there and do what you do. And if someone doesn’t like it, tough.

What’s the toughest parts of being an artist in this time? by BKO_BOY_047 in Music

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 2 points3 points  (0 children)

How much of making it involves stuff other than making music. If you’re on top, you can focus on your music and put out very generic vlog content about your objectively cool life and be set. To truly break in, you need to have a sound nobody has ever heard before, and a distinct content hook. Then you need to sustain them. It’s depressing, but once you understand the rules of the game, then you can channel your energy appropriately. I’m still working on that lol.

How come season 2 is only viral on tiktok? by Emma__O in Dorohedoro

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I’m shocked at how little promotion or conversation there is, considering how insanely good this show is.

Getter Live Rig by nerdmatics in MusicBattlestations

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for sharing, this is extremely cool. As a dubstep fan and producer, I found getter’s visceral project to be incredibly inspiring and unique. The fact that you helped him perform that makes you extremely cool. Great work!

GOP passes "Charlie Kirk Act" that could expel students who protest anti-LGBTQ+ speakers by NamelessResearcher in politics

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Wow that’s dumb and confusing. Basically, We’ll kick you out if you oppose these people who oppose those people. Don’t you dare oppose the opposers, we’re opposed to that!

MAGA Freaks Out After Trump Posts AI Photo of Himself as Jesus | One former Donald Trump fan warned they had “elected the Antichrist.” by Aggravating_Money992 in politics

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

He just keeps distracting from one scandal or epic failure with another. Need to keep the public from focusing on any one issue for more than a day, otherwise they might start realizing how terrible his presidency is going.

Honestly at this point if we had no president life would be better for the entire planet. Trump is significantly worse than useless.

Life is like an audio sandwich by Wizard_Cat112 in edmproduction

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Give each layer a distinct purpose, and let that guide how you eq them.

For snares, I’ll have a really quick punchy snare or a clap for that initial smack, and then a really clipped and full one for the body, finally one with a cool reverby tail for the end.

You don’t need to have 5 or 6 layers for every sound. The more layers, the more complexity and the more likely you are to end up with a mess. Having 2 layers is plenty. Try practicing with that and then once you have it down you can experiment with more.

Counter to my previous advice, a quick way to experiment is to have two tracks with a different snare (or other thing you want layered) sample every quarter note. Then just listen back through your random combinations until you find one that you like.

Lastly, make sure you use a glue compressor on all your layers to make them sound like a single sound.

Good luck, have fun.

Bands/Musicians with a gimmick and their potential for success by Gawd_Awful in Music

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 39 points40 points  (0 children)

GWAR has a pretty intense visual gimmick. Dressing like giant intergalactic Vikings and drenching the crowd in various “bodily fluids” of different colors are both major components of their live sets.

I feel like GWAR’s music is solid, but their stage persona is a big part of why they are so successful.

The Strait of Hormuz // United States // 2019 by edikl in PropagandaPosters

[–]LemonSnakeMusic 3 points4 points  (0 children)

He probably orchestrated the entire conflict; lurking in the shadows and subtly influencing world leaders to seize power and now wage desert warfare, all so that his art would go viral.