What is the prognosis for the music industry: terminal decline or steady recovery?

I like the situation we’re in right now. You’ve still got big labels and expensive videos but you’ve also got lots of small labels doing vinyl-only releases in the underground. i don’t really care about what’s going on in the major major labels but from my perspective things are more than solid. If you work hard with talented and unique artists then you’ll survive no matter what the rest of the industry is doing.

Does the industry these days dictate that artists need to be both creative artists and businessmen in equal measure?

If you want play that game, do It. You don’t need to though. If you’re a great artist like Move D, for example, you don’t need a YouTube account, 10 million Facebook likes and Twitter followers because you produce dope tunes that people will always love. However, if you want the Senator Miles card and 5 star hotel every weekend then you should definitely work on your business skills.

As an international touring artist who can regularly find themselves on different continents in the same week, how do you strike a balance between your touring schedule and time in the studio?

I’m not a ‘working on tracks every day’ kind of person. I really need to be feeling a certain vibe in order to get in the zone and work on new tracks. That means that sometimes I don’t work on new material for weeks and other times I’m so psyched to be making music I can’t leave my computer alone.

Who’s currently rocking your world as a producer and why?

I’ve got some great people around me who always surprise me with their music: Tigerskin or Catz n Dogz and Adam Port. I always like to discover new people too, such as Eats Everything who has blown up this year. And then there are the perennial talents such as DJ Koze, who can do no wrong in my eyes.

What one piece of kit or plug-in can you not live without?

My speakers. I always used work on old hi-fi speakers and 2 years ago I bought a pair of Adam’s P11´s from Martin Landsky and I’m more than happy with them. I’m not a gear freak but those two black boxes always make me smile!

When building a track how do you normally work? Do you start with the drums and build from that?

Sometimes I start with the drums. I’ll work out a little rhythm or a basic groove to get things going. Or sometimes I might have a specific sample I want to use, like an old funk guitar riff, so instead I’ll mess around with that as the starting point. Sometimes it can be hard to write the drums first and then fit a melody on top, so starting with a melodic sample is a good way to avoid simply making a dancefloor tool sort of track.

Do you prefer to use loops or one-shots? Do you use samples or sound design from scratch, or a mix of both? Do you like to record your own sounds?

I use everything I like the sound of. When it comes to the whole sampling topic I’m really anarchic. If I like a loop or one-shot I won’t hesitate in using it. I love sampling and my whole producer career has been built on sampling from day one. I’ve never done any field recordings to date – but never say never!

Any advice on monitoring? Quiet? Loud? Do you prefer flat and boring speakers, headphones or big, phat and chunky monitors? Do you reference on multiple systems?

I like to keep the volume reasonably quiet. I’ve got my Adam P11´s as my main monitors but I always listen to my new tracks on basic in-ear headphones afterwards to get a feeling of how it will sound of different systems. I’ve always got my iPod with me so I really understand how those headphones make things sound.

What are the biggest barriers new producers face?

The challenge is to develop your own style. These days it is too easy to copy what you like rather than search to find your own sound. That path of discovery can often prove too difficult for some people so instead they take the copy-cat route.

What three pieces of kit / software could you not mix without?

In general I don’t do mixdowns and I’m not a big fan of doing them at home alone either. If I’m in a rush I’ll do it myself and go with my gut instinct but usually I like to get an objective pair of ears in the studio with me for the mixdown. Most of the time I do it with Tigerskin or Chopstick and the Suol guys, who are in their own little analogue world, which is perfect for mixing!

If you could give one piece of advice to yourself when you started out in music, what would it be?

Just do it! I was always way too insecure and whenever a problem arose I would always stop and start surfing on some random website looking at sneakers or new tunes rather than being focused on resolving the issue. You’ve just got to knuckle down, do your thing and believe in yourself.

What do you find hardest to get right when making a track?

Getting the bass and kick to sit right together. It’s so hard to find the right balance so it really works on a club system. Most of the time it’s either a steady bass wave or no wave – I hate that!

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More from Till Von Sein on his website

What is the prognosis for the music industry: terminal decline or steady recovery?

Lets be positive here – I know its hard, but there is so much good music coming out of London, I’m excited to be part of it albeit in a very small way. And people are always coming up with new ways of selling and marketing their music. There’s some very creative minds out there which is great.

Does the industry these days dictate that artists need to be both creative artists and businessmen in equal measure?

Yes I think so, unfortunately! Personally I’m not much too at the business part, but I am adapting. There’s a certain amount of self-promotion you are meant to put in, although I’d rather let the music do the talking.

As an international touring artist who can regularly find themselves on different continents in the same week, how do you strike a balance between your touring schedule and time in the studio?

I find it quite easy. At the minute I’m just concentrating on working in the studio – I’m in the process of finishing two albums and loads of other stuff so right now I’ll do the odd gig every other weekend or cram a load of gigs into one weekend and then take a few weekends off.

Who’s currently rocking your world as a producer and why?

Actress. I just admire his style – it’s kind of organic electronic and not really that dancefloor-friendly, but very aurally pleasing. That’s not to say the doesn’t have a few that would rock a dancefloor! I’m also enjoying Kassem Mosse. He’s similar style to Actress – quite percussive with really big low-end and organic sounds that means his music has a life of its own.

On the disco side my good friend Marcus Marr is super talented and has already released some very accomplished productions and I’m excited to hear what he has coming up. He’s kind of like a white Maurice Fulton, who incidentally, it’s no secret, is someone I often look to for inspiration be it DJing or production.

Some other names tickling my fancy are Conforce, Legowelt, Bicep, Floating Points, Dam Funk, The Rhythm Oddysey, Caribou/Daphni, Four Tet, Mock and Toof, Todd Terje, Lone and Deep Space Orchestra (who have a new EP out now on Tracky Bottoms) ☺

What one piece of kit or plug-in can you not live without?

My Yamaha DX21.

When building a track how do you normally work? Do you start with the drums and build from that?

I usually start with a sample then work around it with drums, bass, chords and so forth. Then I’ll usually bin the sample and use what’s left as the basis of the track.

Do you prefer to use loops or one-shots? Do you use samples or sound design from scratch, or a mix of both? Do you like to record your own sounds?

No – loops are boring used as is. I’ll take a loop then mess it up somehow – either cut it up, reverse it or I said previously just get rid of it completely after I’ve built other elements around it.

Sampling is my thing. I started as a spotty teenager making beats on a Roland S 50 sampler then progressed to an Akai s950. Now I use a software sampler but in the same way I used to use those babies.

I also record vocals and live instruments. I’ve just started learning to play the drums which will be interesting and I’ve got loads of sounds that I’ve recorded on my iphone that I’m going to use on my next album for Rekids.

Any advice on monitoring? Quiet? Loud? Do you prefer flat and boring speakers, headphones or big, phat and chunky monitors? Do you reference on multiple systems?

Referencing is so important! Take the track out and play it in the car and listen on your iPhone too. I’m a firm believer in that it doesn’t really matter about the monitors you use as long as you know how get your mix sounding good in a club.

What are the biggest barriers new producers face?

The fact that there’s so much music and so many producers these days – many of whom have really raised the quality bar.

If you could give one piece of advice to yourself when you started out in music, what would it be?

Learn an instrument and stick to it. learnt jazz guitar to quite a good level but sadly didn’t keep up the practice due to moves and various other things.

What do you find hardest to get right when making a track?

Finishing it! Sometimes you could tweak for ever – learning to know when a track is finished is quite a skill.

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More from Toby Tobias on Rekids

What is the prognosis for the music industry: terminal decline or steady recovery?

The music industry is moving towards a subscription-based model, where users pay a flat fee to access a large pool of music (Spotify are leading the way here in popular music). If this is to become a viable reality it’s important to have a fair distribution key for the subscription fees.

If piracy can be successfully reduced in this way then maybe the artists and labels can be fairly paid, thus leading to the industry recovering.

Pirates who upload our electronic music to torrents are not interested in good music or distributing good music, they just want to make money through click-throughs and ad space on Media Fire, Sendspace and Zippy Share. This is revenue that should be going into the music industry – to the artists, labels and distributors.

Does the industry these days dictate that artists need to be both creative artists and businessmen in equal measure?

I think for new producers breaking through this is absolutely paramount. Producers need to have a solid understanding of marketing and self promotion to build their profile.

It’s not always easy to do this, as music and business are two very different things that can sometimes directly conflict with each other – it’s not ideal to be writing e-mails when you could be producing tracks.

Once you reach a certain point in your career it becomes possible to employ other people to take care of the business aspects for you, but this isn’t available to the majority of artists and especially not to those taking their first steps in the industry.

As an international touring artist who can regularly find themselves on different continents in the same week, how do you strike a balance between your touring schedule and time in the studio?

It’s an often overlooked challenge for artists and I struggle with it myself. In order to be creative I usually need at least three days back-to-back in the studio, but if I have two or three gigs over the weekend then business and management tasks during the week sometimes it’s the weekend again and I’ve had maybe one or two days actually in the studio. The key is to set priorities and have effective time management.

Who’s currently rocking your world as a producer and why?

Martin Patino and Daso. They both have an outstanding grasp of musical structure. More and more I feel it’s important for artists to be able to compose melodies of high musicianship since the technical side of production has become easier and easier to learn.

What one piece of kit or plug-in can you not live without?

My UAD cards with and the plugins – I use a lot of them on all of my productions.

When building a track how do you normally work? Do you start with the drums and build from that?

I used to start with the drums and the groove but lately I have tended to start with the chords and melodies as I’m striving to take my tracks in a more musical, melodic direction.

Any advice on monitoring? Quiet? Loud? Do you prefer flat and boring speakers, headphones or big, phat and chunky monitors? Do you reference on multiple systems?

I prefer to keep my monitors as low as possible, that way I’m able to work for long periods of time without my ears becoming fatigued. If I want to get an idea of how it would sound in a club I’ll switch to my PA speakers and crank up the volume. The PA system is great for noticing areas that will need tweaking in the final mix.

What are the biggest barriers new producers face?

The sheet number of producers who are trying to build a career. Everybody can have access to everything they need: programs, samples, tutorials, so lots of people are now making music. The challenge is to stand out from the ever-increasing crowd.

What three pieces of kit / software could you not mix without?

1. Cambridge EQ from UAD – I cut out all unwanted low frequencies with its super-sharp high-pass filter.

2. Sidechain Compressor – sidechaining is very important for me as both a sounddesign tool and as a way of making room for all the elements in a track.

3. My studio acoustics ilke the bass traps, absorbers and diffusors. It’s not a kit but it’s possibly more important than any piece gear because otherwise without good acoustics it’s extremely difficult to hear the true sound you’re creating.

If you could give one piece of advice to yourself when you started out in music, what would it be?

Do your thing and stay focussed. In terms of music production I would advise learning as much as possible about musical theory, harmonies and musical structures as well as sound design.

What do you find hardest to get right when making a track?

Creating that magically balanced track where all the elements fit together seamlessly.

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More from Florian Meindl on his website

Loops? Or programming your beats from single hits?

Both! Loops can offer something you’d never think make yourself, so even if the loop doesn’t end up in the final track it can help keep the creative process moving when you’re struck for inspiration. Never be afraid to chop up, re-arrange and process loops them to make them your own.

What is the key ingredient in a track? Breakdown? Style of production? Bassline?

The key to a killer track is that you make something you like and not something you think other people will like.

When building a track how do you normally work? Do you start with the drums and build from that?

I don’t have a standard approach to making music. Ideally, the process is fluid – constantly flowing between the drums and melodic elements. I find it important to get a basic arrangement as early as possible to avoid getting trapped within a single loop.

Do you mainly use analogue or digital soft synth sources? Do you think analogue makes a difference?

I mainly use digital synths as that’s what I started making music with. They get better every year but sometimes they still need an extra boost, whereas analogue synths can sound fat straight away.

I don’t think there is a massive difference between digital and analogue if you know how to use the software and other plug-ins correctly. Sometimes I’ll get people asking me which analogue synth I used to get such a warm sound and the answer is that I used a relatively cheap soft synth with a combination of plug-ins.

Any advice on monitoring? Quiet? Loud? Do you prefer flat and boring speakers, headphones or big, phat and chunky monitors?

What is important is that you have a pair of monitors that suit your studio and your sound.

I prefer monitors present the higher frequencies quite transparently but also not too sharply – otherwise I have bad habit of lowering these frequencies too much, which shows up when I tracks on other systems.

I try to use my headphones and my smaller speakers as for reference and to hear the track with fresh ears.
I make dance music so I like to reference relatively loud as it gets my in the party mood, but sometimes it is important to lower the volume in order to focus on the overall balance of the mix.

What are the biggest barriers that new producers face?

To have their own identity. There is so much music out there these days you have to work tremendously hard to develop your own style and unique sound that can stand out from the crowd.

How important do you think it is to have your music mastered commercially? Can you do it yourself as effectively and what tools would you recommend?

When using the services of a professional mastering engineer it is important that you as an artist can communicate with them comfortably so they can master the track with your vision in mind.

If you’re going to master tracks yourself I would recommend getting lots of experience and knowledge and doing it in a perfectly treated room. Also take a break between mixing and mastering as your ears are already adjusted into the unbalanced mixdown.

What’s your opinion on processing the mix bus? Leave it clean or drive it to the extreme?

A difficult question to answer – I could fill a book on the subject!

For some styles it is useful to put a compressor on the mix bus to get the right groove but in most cases I prefer doing it in a aux group.

What do you believe is the secret to your success as a producer?

I think I have a sense for melodies that harness both euphoric and melancholic moods.

Any advice for aspiring producers out there?

Take the time to listen to non ‘dance music’ to get a broader musical view.

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More from Daso on his website ]]> http://www.soundstosample.com/blog/q-a/daso/feed 5 http://www.soundstosample.com/blog/q-a/kate-simko http://www.soundstosample.com/blog/q-a/kate-simko#comments Fri, 27 May 2011 09:57:56 +0000 David http://www.soundstosample.com/blog/?p=1458 A classically trained pianist, lover of analogue kit, international DJ and live artist, club night curator and of course an acclaimed producer with releases on red hot labels such as Hello? Repeat, Spectral and Ghostly – the multi-faceted Kate Simko takes to the S2S hot seat.

You will need: A synth with at least three oscillators (we’re using Logic’s ES2) which has chorus functionality. Reverb and stereo delay plug-ins.

And here’s how you do it:

You will need: Various clap and snare one-shots, EQ, reverb and clip distortion plug-ins.

And here’s how you do it: