DSF Q&A Sessions Vol. 18 - Threnody

[threnody]

favorite unsigned/upcoming artists at the moment?

I used to spend a lot of time on here before the dubs forum existed...back then the ONLY place to post dubs was in the production forum... I used to check a lot of new music then - and in around 2006/07 i was quite active in the dubs forum (before it became a mass dumping ground like now).... When i was locked in to the grassroots of the scene I discovered Sully (and was probably the first person to play him) and numerous other unsigned people.... Paradigm X also springs to mind - and i released an EP by him last year(!). These days I am less locked into the unsigned stuff....there is so much about and I only just have enough time to listen to what i am sent so trawling through unsigned artists is beyond me at the moment.....I am always listening to new artists tho.

These artists are the newer and more upcoming ones who are consistently in my box....
-Sentinels (who has a release on L2S) has produced some amazing tracks - as has ReSketch and Beatloafe (on the garagey tip).....
-I've been impressed with the first couple of tracks to come from Vax.....
- A producer on my radar is Diamonds & Dynamite who makes glitchy, footworky, 8-bit music (http://soundcloud.com/diamonds-dynamite)...
- Djake, Legend4ry & TMP on a minimal, spacious dubstep vibe are getting aiplay from me.....
- Nodul from Istanbul is producing some really interesting sounds, quite wonky and warped.....
- Dekode & Gunjack on a breaky vibe....
- Obviously Koncode owns music (hahahaha!)

[vertx]

Thanks for the reply, your q & a is killing it with the detailed answers

[DoctorPlease]

i think im paranoid that most of the people giving positive feedback on my soundcloud tracks are just looking for some one to listen to their own music. and i would like to listen to their tracks for them commenting but 99% of the time the tracks are utter shit. so im sitting here thinking well HEY PEOPLE ARE COMMENTING AND SHIT WOO HOO but then wait a minute... these people either have questionable tastes or just down right suck at producing. so i guess my question is what should i do? just stop uploading and focus on producing? cause it seems when i "dump" tracks anywhere "important" they get no attention, but still. even the pointless comments on SC give me motivation to start another track. does this make me a shitty fan boy?
Soundcloud

P.s. sorry this question is so self centered. all my other questions have already been answered in pristine detail.

[indika]

I don't have any questions, just wanna say nice one for the detailed, interesting answers, and keep making fantastic tracks!

[threnody]

i think im paranoid that most of the people giving positive feedback on my soundcloud tracks are just looking for some one to listen to their own music. and i would like to listen to their tracks for them commenting but 99% of the time the tracks are utter shit. so im sitting here thinking well HEY PEOPLE ARE COMMENTING AND SHIT WOO HOO but then wait a minute... these people either have questionable tastes or just down right suck at producing. so i guess my question is what should i do? just stop uploading and focus on producing? cause it seems when i "dump" tracks anywhere "important" they get no attention, but still. even the pointless comments on SC give me motivation to start another track. does this make me a shitty fan boy?

Social networking has really become as important a part of being a computer musician as writing music is these days. You have to have a Soundcloud and Facebook and keep them updated and comment on people's music and add friends and all the rest of it..... No point in getting worried about it!

If you are getting comments then just enjoy the fact that your soundcloud looks busy.. at least a few of the commenters will have enjoyed the track and they won't forget your name and may well become bona fida fans.... For the others then nevermind, leave them to it. To be honest if you are only relying on Soundcloud for feedback then you will never get quality feedback.... give tracks to your mates, family & DJs you respect.... get a network of real people whose opinion you trust and ask them for honest feedback.

If you are wanting to give some feedback and it turns out the track is utter shit then try and find some kind of positive....it may be a good bass drum sound or a good structure or anything that you can focus on... On the whole when people put tracks up for feedback all they want to hear is 'Sick...320 plz' etc.... No one likes negative feedback!!! However if you ask someone you respect and they give you genuine feedback then it will be easier to take the negatives and hopefully help you to improve your sound and develop your productions.

Obviously everyone wants feedback on their own stuff but if they are listening to your stuff then it's all good - Soundcloud is very 'you scratch my back' and by all means use it to find new music and let people find you.

[threnody]

I don't have any questions, just wanna say nice one for the detailed, interesting answers, and keep making fantastic tracks!

Big up and thanks a lot!

This is the last day of the Q&A (although i will check back every now and then just incase anyone posts anything else) it has been great fun to do so thanks to Ledge for asking me and thanks to everyone who has asked questions or just taken the time to read the thread!

Do sign up for my mailing list at http://www.threnody.co.uk and keep in touch!

[EraREdux]

Hey man, I really appreciate what you are doing here with this Q&A. I soak in everything the Q&A's have to offer, since it is always full of amazing tips, tricks, and an overall accumulation of work experiences. The Widdler and you have probably been my favorite so far as for helpful tips on EQ, Reverbs, Incidentals, Panning, 16 bar beats (which easily turn into 32), and overall patience with developing anything worth while. I have to agree, everything that is truely amazing has come through months of experimentation. I have found that my music has been getting better as a whole, and I have been evolving as a producer the more I do it, and the more i study about it.

So to make a long story longer, I was just curious, what are your thoughts on micro sampling? (ie. Pulling a kick from here, a woosh from here, a snare from here.. etc) -- do you feel as if you are stealing something from the artist? I'm not talking about old school hip hop sampling where people would blatantly rip off beats, but more like one-shots.

Thanks again for your time answering all these questions with heart, and sorry for rambling, too many greens to the dome tonight. Cheers.

[threnody]

So to make a long story longer, I was just curious, what are your thoughts on micro sampling? (ie. Pulling a kick from here, a woosh from here, a snare from here.. etc) -- do you feel as if you are stealing something from the artist? I'm not talking about old school hip hop sampling where people would blatantly rip off beats, but more like one-shots.

Nothing wrong with sampling drums in my opinion....i think it is really interesting to see drum sounds evolve as each new genre and generation recycle the same drum hits....each time adding their own processing.... look at the amen for example, each hit has been chopped and processed in thousands of ways.... If you want to do an authentic garage sounding track then the best bet is to sample some old garage hits....apply your own reverbs and compression so it blend with your track and it will sound original. I think vocals and drums are 2 things which can always be sampled (basses & melodies are 2 things which shouldn't be sampled!).... As for incidental sounds like the wooshes etc, it's fair enough i think....typically i like making my own sounds but if i want a rave feel to a track then i will sample some rave stabs etc....

Remember to add your own stamp on a sound and don't just rip off a whole beat or melody (and leave other people's basses alone!).... Also be careful about how you sample the reverb that is on the original sound etc....quite often the best bet is layering a few hits together.....or do some editing of the drum sounds in your drum machine etc.... I don't really think it is stealing too much - mainly coz the sounds have probably been stolen so many times before (if they are drums or stabs)....it is more recycling. Having said that it is a matter of context....getting a techno or rave stab or even a dnb snare and putting it into a dubstep track is one thing but recycling sounds within a genre smacks of tsecni. Expand the sonic palette of a genre by taking influence from outside!

[GRAYSKALE]

Haven't got a question, but I just noticed you are from Stafford, I'm from Penkridge, big-ups to the staffordshire crew!! Didn't know we hadn't any decent musicians round this way!! Keep up the good work bro, and thanks again for some really interesting responses,insightful stuff!