Hardstyle in your mind

[thesh3ll]

I want to know if i'm not the only one,

Do you ever get ideas in your head for the intro? how you think sounds should be placed and ideas for how the character of the sound should be?

Or do you just play with your sequencer and go with whatever comes out, by trying things?


I get some ideas in my head sometimes, but I try to ignore them because... it's not realistic. From experience and some of you might know, the best way to produce is by a bottom-up approach. Starting with a sound, finding something, experiment, mangle it up, add and add etc.. this is really the more realistic way to get things done imo

what do you think?

[ljk32]

...........

[zanshi]

e.g i'm extremely overanalytic with everything i create. as soon as i have an idea i write it down, sketch the arrangement of the track (exact to the bar) and then just open the sequencer and start working
it is something that i have developed in a long phase of being stuck with "just fooling around" (ljk's tier 2)

if something is not realizable yet, i still try to realize and work on the idea as far as possible, so the actual idea will not get lost (i already had ideas lying around in my notebook for two years and THEN realizing them because it's simply something that doesn't let me sleep at night), my creativity tends to get lost in the action sometimes also due to the fact that i'm overly perfectionistic with everything i touch

eg: i have an idea for a dark track with an unusual non-mid arrangement, this is how i'd do:
i'd put the idea into some simple words, sketching things out (eg add dist snare offbeat, use sidechained riser, 2 main melos - 1bell, 1 main X 2layer, virus/massive, triplets, non-chord melo,...)
then i start sketching the arrangement out (eg 16bar intro w filtered kick, snare kicking in at 8, rising towards b16)
i either chose a melody from my bunch of midis that i did that fits the mood or i mash together progressions and derivate melodies so long until i have something that satisfies me eg for a project like that i might mash together something in f# harmonic minor, for the sinister atmo
then i import the melo into the sequencer and start working on the "skeleton" adding markers at where break, climax, 2nd climax, outro and intro start, then i import the melo and start doing the sounddesign bit by bit and eventually things grow into a finished track

i schedule own days for progressions/melodies and kicks since for me those are the most exhausting parts.

[thesh3ll]

if something is not realizable yet, i still try to realize and work on the idea as far as possible, so the actual idea will not get lost

that is a good thing to do imo

my creativity tends to get lost in the action sometimes also due to the fact that i'm overly perfectionistic with everything i touch

eg: i have an idea for a dark track with an unusual non-mid arrangement, this is how i'd do:
i'd put the idea into some simple words, sketching things out (eg add dist snare offbeat, use sidechained riser, 2 main melos - 1bell, 1 main X 2layer, virus/massive, triplets, non-chord melo,...)
then i start sketching the arrangement out (eg 16bar intro w filtered kick, snare kicking in at 8, rising towards b16)

I do this also (and written stuff just like that in fruity notebook ) But you should try to be more spontaneous in your DAW as well because when you plan out stuff like this, it's kind of like you're making work for yourself. Just remember that music is art at the end of the day, it should be free/in the moment and you don't need to think too much. And remember, you can always try something and reverse engineer the idea later on.
Do now, Think later

It's just a thought, I know that every producer works in their own way.

i schedule own days for progressions/melodies and kicks since for me those are the most exhausting parts.

It's exhausting indeed. Working on a kick alone can take up nearly a whole day so I think that's a wise thing to do.

[Dj Reaper]

I think if you just experiment your tracks lack inspiration and the sense behind the track. The reason I startet producing for is that I heard certain sounds and melodies in my head which were missing in worlds "music library" and wanted to learn how to realize those things.
The way I work is having an idea, trying to realize it and of course while making the song I experiment, if an element is missing add one and come up with things I didn't plan at the beginnig. Imo the best is to combine planning with experimenting and never limit to your idea. If it works the way you have it in mind it is fine, if not, than experiment, and if you see that the idea is not as good as you thought make something else. But with just experimenting in many cases just random, experimental stuff comes out, the hook is what you need to hear in your head.

Of course I am not HHZ or somebody so I don't know how those people do it but I just felt like sharing my opinion on this topic, I hope it is helpful and I am sure there are famous producers who just experiment, famous producers who just plan and famous producers who combine both, just figur out what works best for you

[The Void]

I generally have an idea of how I want it to sound in my head but I never note it down so I end up making something completely different
If I hit a wall with creativity or ideas I just make random sounds and after a while I have loads of sounds to work with again so that makes it easier.
What Lukas said with person 2 is certainly more creative but I tried that approach and I have been stuck on how to progress on that project for months now so it's not always the best for productivity

[Colorblind]

I have such a bad problem with deleting stuff i make... idk why!!
ill make something, make a cool sounding kick and 8 bar loop then when im done i wont save anything ill just delete it
or if i do save it i wont go back to it... ill start something new

i really need to stop it

[leeroy]

I have such a bad problem with deleting stuff i make... idk why!!
ill make something, make a cool sounding kick and 8 bar loop then when im done i wont save anything ill just delete it
or if i do save it i wont go back to it... ill start something new

i really need to stop it

Maybe you should make something really original and with a unique kick, then you will want to push the save button as fast as possible

[K*N*G]

I have such a bad problem with deleting stuff i make... idk why!!
ill make something, make a cool sounding kick and 8 bar loop then when im done i wont save anything ill just delete it
or if i do save it i wont go back to it... ill start something new

i really need to stop it

Don't worry mate, I think it's safe to say that all of us have a bad habit of doing it in one way or another.

[Crankx]

I have a bad habbit, by opening a new project file, and no matter what genre i want to make Hardstyle, House, Electro whatever..... It always turns into trap