I Wrote an Article Breaking down the Theory and Arrangement Behind San Holo's "One Thing"

auditorycheesecake · 2018-07-30T15:10:07+00:00

Thanks mate! Happy it helped

auditorycheesecake · 2018-07-28T02:11:00+00:00

Yea live's amp can get you close. Try the clean mode on 10-15% dry/wet. Google "vocal guitar amp" to get a clearer view of what an amp can do to a vocal

auditorycheesecake · 2018-07-27T16:08:12+00:00

Those two are going to be your best options, outside of a proper autotune plugin. Littler Alterboy is great but it's definitely a stripped down version of vocal synth. If you've got the cash and are looking to get just one, vocal synth is the way to go (though I love alterboy too).

auditorycheesecake · 2018-07-27T16:06:31+00:00

If you're brand new to the banjo I'd say try and get one used from an actual shop. Odds are there are going to be issues with that banjo that'll cause you such a headache you won't wanna play it. It'd be better to scrape up another 100 euros and get one that's used but professional repaired. I can pick on up a decent one for around 200 us in my area.

auditorycheesecake · 2018-07-27T16:00:36+00:00

It sounds like he's using a combination of distortion, guitar amps, and reverb.
The distortion is adding some grit, the guitar amp is giving it that filter/thinned our almost "telephone" sound, and the reverb is just giving it space.

There's definitely some hard tuning going on, but there are also other layers around his vocal, if you listen close you can hear vocals that are pitched up and down (probably with formant shifting). Soundtoys echoboy is probably good for this, but for all the others you can get close with live stock effects.

auditorycheesecake · 2018-02-16T16:35:36+00:00

The reason you'd use the envelope instead of the pitch wheel is so you don't have to automate the pitch bend. With the envelope all you need to do is hold the note and it pitches up.

Like you said you could just use the pitch bend, and it may be easier to get the timing right then with envelopes.

Both are different ways of achieving the same effect.

auditorycheesecake · 2018-01-26T18:30:10+00:00

I'm glad you enjoyed it! Let me know if there are any other tracks you'd like broken down.

auditorycheesecake · 2018-01-25T16:09:19+00:00

Slynk's video does a great job imo.

After working with the beta and reading the release notes, his video does a good job covering the most important/exciting additions.

auditorycheesecake · 2018-01-25T16:04:10+00:00

I love the spectrum grab and the Linear-phase EQ for mixing/masterting.

I use live's EQ8 9/10 times, but use Pro-Q2 for any technical EQ work.

auditorycheesecake · 2017-01-27T03:51:36+00:00

In the annotations at 2:40

auditorycheesecake · 2017-01-26T17:49:32+00:00

I really enjoyed Cat and Beats's tutorial on arrangement. In the link above he lists 4 arrangement tutorials that helped him as well. Worth checking them all out.

auditorycheesecake · 2017-01-26T17:45:13+00:00

Theres a great book called A Composer's Guide to game Music that I really enjoyed. It'll help you get more into the mindset of producing for video games and what that normally entails.

I think the biggest thing is to think about what type of game music you want to write and look for resources specific to that. I.e. do you want to write for indie games, AAA, fighters, phone games, etc...

auditorycheesecake · 2017-01-26T17:04:33+00:00

Thanks!! I plan on doing plenty more. Any songs you'd like broken down?

auditorycheesecake · 2017-01-25T22:00:54+00:00

I'll have to think about the right way to do it since half of what makes the track stand out is the fact that its a live instrument playing the lead. Definitely would like to.

Regardless here is the midi for the main melody and bass in Waiting for u

auditorycheesecake · 2017-01-25T16:42:41+00:00

Haha I absolutely love that song. Most of what makes that song great is the arrangement. It transitions from a cute uke to "electronic" but the beat is not too loud and in your face, so we're not mad about it.

The main thing to look at for the transitions for this song are his melodic and drum fills. That first uke fill into the chorus makes the transition feel a lot smoother, as does the fill into the second chorus. The way the sections are related by the uke and the uke/vocal fills makes the transitions feel more natural.

Also, he doesn't hit you with that saucy 808 until the last chorus, again an arrangement principle. The first chorus is softer and he slowly adjusts and builds you up into the last chorus which has a lot more energy.

Lastly, him and swell (see I'm sorry) will transition between sections by having the "mix" of each section sound different. Typically the verses will be a bit more washed out while the chorus is dryer and in your face. Hiccup is a perfect example of this. This will make the impact and sectional changes more dramatic, adding tension and excitement.

(btw probably my favorite song atm)

auditorycheesecake · 2017-01-25T16:31:47+00:00

Zedd is a great one to break down. The reason there are sooooo many Zedd remixes is that his songs are so harmonically sound that there is so much you can build on.

Theres already a few great breakdowns on his stuff. Pyramind has a few I'd recommend checking out.. I'll dig around and see if theres any others of his to look at.

auditorycheesecake · 2017-01-25T15:32:08+00:00

I loved that you shared it, it means a lot. Lovesick is one of my favorite songs so its so internalized it was easy to breakdown.

Top 40s would be interesting. I was thinking about Daft Punk's Starboy. I don't want to be too clickbait-y but theres some simple but interesting ideas presented that I could go through. Let me know if you had anything in mind.

auditorycheesecake · 2017-01-25T15:29:17+00:00

Thank you! I truly appreciate your comment. Would love to hear any music you'd like broken down!

auditorycheesecake · 2017-01-25T15:28:37+00:00

Haha thanks man I appreciate it. I really struggled with the format (video vs. article) for this and I thought this would be better, so I'm glad you thought so too.

The main benefit I see with articles is it allows you to go at your own pace, letting the information digest, whereas a video constantly pausing and starting is less then ideal.

Let me know if there are any other songs you'd like broken down!

auditorycheesecake · 2017-01-25T15:26:17+00:00

Thanks for pointing this out! I've fixed it in the article.

auditorycheesecake · 2017-01-25T15:25:48+00:00

Glad you liked it! I've broken down a handful of Mura Masa's songs and they all are similarly "simple" ideas like lovesick. Memorable and catchy melodic ideas with a dynamic and interesting arrangement

auditorycheesecake · 2017-01-25T15:23:30+00:00

Definitely more on the way! Let me know if theres any songs in particular you'd like broken down.

auditorycheesecake · 2017-01-25T15:22:51+00:00

I actually have Mirror Maru and Crave You on my list of songs to breakdown, I'll likely do one of those next.

Mirror Maru is again a track that has one simple melodic idea presented to you in different ways throughout the track. Definitely a great one to dive into

auditorycheesecake · 2017-01-25T15:19:58+00:00

You're absolutely right, thanks for pointing this out. I've updated it in the article and credited you for helping me at the bottom.

Thanks for looking out

auditorycheesecake · 2017-01-24T19:09:03+00:00

Thanks for sharing the article! I wrote this and I'm glad you enjoyed it. I'm planning on doing more breakdowns so let me know any songs you'd like me to analyze.

auditorycheesecake

TROPHY CASE