Often, solid musical ideas loose their magic in the process. This has several reasons, sometimes the dynamic of a creative situation, sometimes just bad luck.
To keep you on track when laying down new songs, i’ve collected some ideas that can help you turn basic musical ideas into great works of production.
Let’ start with the creative mix:
De-Cluttering while enabling uniqueness
A typical diversion of an ongoing production is the habit of cluttering the mix.
This can happen due to melodic deficiencies, or maybe the team is just tired of hearing the track over and over again.
Decluttering is an important part of the process though, uncovering great elements and bestowing a sense of uniqueness.
Try to sustain you basic thoughts by keeping the mix simple. My experience has been that songs turn out quite allright, often even great, if you stick to the essentials.
Not overdoing the lifespan of images
If a progression, melodic thought or structure starts to loose its magic in a course of time – try no to overdo the lifespan of this image or idea.
Be bold and maybe even try shortening the whole thing.
You’ll experience a definite elevation of musical quality of you let elements exist the way they should.
Embracing creative boundaries
Sometimes i like to think of creative energy as a muscle, pushing me towards my musical goals. The great thing about muscles – they grow, if you give them something to push against.
This also applies to briefings. The more „freedom“ is given, the harder the task of getting everything in line can be.
Often, creative moments shine even brighter when they work within and blast beyond certain boudaries.
Harnessing fashion without neglecting principals
Knowing why a certain sound should or should not be used it incredibly important.
Especially when aiming for solid media, playlist or blog coverage, you’ll have to get a feeling for the area your music resides in.
This brings me to fashion: Chasing a certain fashion or style just to get hyped is rarely a sustainable way of approaching musical conception. Some producers are very good at hitting trends just right, but often, these guys and girls are equally as good at adapting new ones along the way.
„He who marries the spirit of the age will soon become a widower to the next“ great little line by Dean William R. Inge.
Demonstrating respect for the audience
Never understimate the audience – and the thirst for someting truly original.
No matter how far out you think you are, somebody will understand where you’re coming from and reward you for your efforts.
By respecting the intelligence of your audience you create art that is intelligent and demanding, in the best possible manner.
Setting the content above the gear
Its really easy to fall into a spiral of constant gear-adaptation and upgrade.
Sometimes this can even act as an excuse for avoidance of creative effort.
So, try to set the content above the gear – especially when writing new material. You’ll always get the chance to develop a new sound and even build your creative cathedral on a auditory vision.
But without great musical ideas, even the most creative soundsphere might sound empty and vague.
0 be the first one to show some appreciation for this!