To make good Dubstep...

[chekov]

"liquid dubstep"

for lack of a better word :/

Genre names are a big part of the problem imo. Once something has a label and once it has a label it must be defined.

although i know a lot of people here give it grief, this is why i think the 'uk bass' scene has been as interesting as it has because there are, at least in theory, no set definitions for the kind of music being made. it doesn't even have a proper genre name

[alphacat]

Although bizarrely, one of my biggest inspiration sources recently is a podcast that doesn't play any music

Share! It's not bizarre at all. Inspiration comes from many, many places. I mean, it may sound strange but I think a decent grasp of things like cooking or gardening are just as important in music because of all of the parallels! They are about the process as much or more than the ends...

Films might be obvious but think about how many great musical compositions have been inspired by works of lit and vice versa; architecture's another source that comes up a lot in conversation with many musicians.

[Sinfected]

Not saying giving up listening to anything...though the wording of the op is naturally open to interpretation. But closed statements aren't as good for fostering discussion.

Just wanted to clarify, I think alot of impressionable kids are lingering around here

Genre names are a big part of the problem imo. Once something has a label and once it has a label it must be defined.

This is true, and the retarded never ending genre wars on every EDM distribution channel on youtube kind of proves it.

[horsefeather]

uhm then i have to make a choice producing or djing

Why would you have to choose?

cause i meanly listen to bass music and thats what i try to make, but i think your right listening to some other music can give some good inspiration to make tunes cause i try to copy to much and tbh i don't want that i want my own sound, so i'll give it a try and listen more often to other genres

[alphacat]

And feel free to go outside of what you're familiar with because this doesn't mean, "Oh, well, I never liked metal before but I guess I have to learn to try to like it now." Search out some shit you've never even heard of - strange Japanese psychedelia, French hip hop, Afrobeat, Brazilian music (Batucada FTW!), Rembetika, Souk, Sufi trance music, the drummers of Burundi, Basque folk music, Gamelan music...

There's so much good music out there to discover I don't understand how anybody just parks in one genre.

[horsefeather]

There's so much good music out there to discover I don't understand how anybody just parks in one genre.

neither do i but bass music is my main thing i like all different kind of music but i don't really listen to it like i listen to bass music

[alphacat]

Sure, me too - that's why we're all here inna first place.

FWIW I started life along a different musical path than many here, and when I was the age many of you are at (20 or so) couldn't see myself engaged so deeply in this kind of scene; coming from more of a punk/HC background there were old tropes I had to part with slowly but surely as my tastes evolved. There were some great bands coming out of punk/HC that turned me on to other styles; Bad Brains and reggae for instance.

It's all a journey though, and it's good to be open to things and challenge yourself. There are so, so many acts and styles that I didn't like when I was younger and I thought I knew why I didn't like them; after years of making and listening to more and more music, some of the sounds I thought I hated for reasons I knew turned out to be sounds that I wasn't ready to digest because I didn't have the musical mileage yet, and feel silly for being such a reactive little twat when I was younger.

[Today]

Re: To make good Dubstep...
listen to reggae

[fragments]

fwiw electronic music in general comprises less than 25% of what I listen to over all. I go weeks listening only to the occasional electronic music tune. I don't know how ya'll listen to it constantly...as much as I love it.

[dotcurrency]

I know this is true....but I simply can't stop listening to dubstep/bass music. Out of a good 1120 songs, only about 6 of them aren't electronically produced (house/bass/dubstep/glitchhop, etc)

I don't mind listening to other genres, it's just that I suck at broadening horizons, I don't know where to look.



I have an extremely soft spot for all jazz, however, so someone should send me some tunes.

[didi]

Q. What...are you listening to now?

Blawan: A lot of Jamal Moss, James T Cotton, Analogue Cops…

Different methods I suppose...

Although I'd recommend listening to a load of different styles simply because there is a shitload of incredible music that has been made and is being made, and you will probably find something you'll love that you've never even heard of.

(you is aimed at the general populus not to OP or anyone in this thread).


I guess, though, that bringing in new influences to a genre is what keeps it fresh rather than imitating producer X, because we already have a producer X doing producer X stuff.



That has to be my most convoluted post yet.
[/ramble]

[OfficialDAPT]

Smoke a da ganja

[oprs]

wub you hit the nail on this one, i barely listen to music anymore.
i find myself happier with my production

[Bassf4ce]

This is very good advice but I simply find this...

[Hircine]

And feel free to go outside of what you're familiar with because this doesn't mean, "Oh, well, I never liked metal before but I guess I have to learn to try to like it now." Search out some shit you've never even heard of - strange Japanese psychedelia, French hip hop, Afrobeat, Brazilian music (Batucada FTW!), Rembetika, Souk, Sufi trance music, the drummers of Burundi, Basque folk music, Gamelan music...

There's so much good music out there to discover I don't understand how anybody just parks in one genre.

I'm brazillian and what is "batucada"?

ontopic: Just make music you enjoy, don't worry about making some breaking edge future shit, you don't have to do it. Your old style sounds perfectly fine.

[Marzz]

"liquid dubstep"

for lack of a better word :/

chillstep

[Marzz]

And feel free to go outside of what you're familiar with because this doesn't mean, "Oh, well, I never liked metal before but I guess I have to learn to try to like it now." Search out some shit you've never even heard of - strange Japanese psychedelia, French hip hop, Afrobeat, Brazilian music (Batucada FTW!), Rembetika, Souk, Sufi trance music, the drummers of Burundi, Basque folk music, Gamelan music...

There's so much good music out there to discover I don't understand how anybody just parks in one genre.

I'm brazillian and what is "batucada"?

[Hircine]

And feel free to go outside of what you're familiar with because this doesn't mean, "Oh, well, I never liked metal before but I guess I have to learn to try to like it now." Search out some shit you've never even heard of - strange Japanese psychedelia, French hip hop, Afrobeat, Brazilian music (Batucada FTW!), Rembetika, Souk, Sufi trance music, the drummers of Burundi, Basque folk music, Gamelan music...

There's so much good music out there to discover I don't understand how anybody just parks in one genre.

I'm brazillian and what is "batucada"?

It's called a bateria, a collective of different percussionists. They can play samba, like the ones in samba schools or just random rhythms, like a college one, for example. Always thought that it was a verb. There's also a religion that goes by the same name if I recall. Learned something new I guess.

[wub]

it doesn't even have a proper genre name

Does it need one though?

Although bizarrely, one of my biggest inspiration sources recently is a podcast that doesn't play any music

Share! It's not bizarre at all. Inspiration comes from many, many places. I mean, it may sound strange but I think a decent grasp of things like cooking or gardening are just as important in music because of all of the parallels! They are about the process as much or more than the ends...

When they throw up a new episode, then maybe. But at the moment it's a small listen base and it's getting me to and from work most days

Films might be obvious but think about how many great musical compositions have been inspired by works of lit and vice versa; architecture's another source that comes up a lot in conversation with many musicians.

The films thing I've never really got. I've got some ties to the UK hard dance scene, and remember one friend of mine (reasonably biggish name producer in the right circles) comment to me once about Blood Diamond, that bit where the guy talks about being the devil and him saying "Man, I'm going to produce a song around that sample!"

Whilst I know the difference in 'hook' is different for some genres than others, and hard dance can be quite film sample lead, it's not a vibe that I personally look for.

For example, Lee Haslam - Music Is The Drug. The 51st State sample in this is UNREAL in a big club environment if you're off your face and jumping around like a nutcase;


1m06s for the 'drop'


When it works, it works

Not saying giving up listening to anything...though the wording of the op is naturally open to interpretation. But closed statements aren't as good for fostering discussion.

Just wanted to clarify, I think alot of impressionable kids are lingering around here

Genre names are a big part of the problem imo. Once something has a label and once it has a label it must be defined.

This is true, and the retarded never ending genre wars on every EDM distribution channel on youtube kind of proves it.

YouTube has a lot to answer for in terms of genre names...carve a niche, invent a subgenre and then take it to the Tube with you as sole owner and pilot of the doomed ship MundoStepCore

cause i meanly listen to bass music and thats what i try to make, but i think your right listening to some other music can give some good inspiration to make tunes cause i try to copy to much and tbh i don't want that i want my own sound, so i'll give it a try and listen more often to other genres

But if you only listen to bass music and then try and make bass music you've got some sort of musical inbreeding going on...only taking influences from the genre you're trying to produce will lead to an eventual watering down of the sound as the characteristics of that genre (both good and bad) are focussed on and redone over and over.

And feel free to go outside of what you're familiar with because this doesn't mean, "Oh, well, I never liked metal before but I guess I have to learn to try to like it now." Search out some shit you've never even heard of - strange Japanese psychedelia, French hip hop, Afrobeat, Brazilian music (Batucada FTW!), Rembetika, Souk, Sufi trance music, the drummers of Burundi, Basque folk music, Gamelan music...

There's so much good music out there to discover I don't understand how anybody just parks in one genre.

Moving to Madrid has been a real shot in the arm for me, GF's uncle is Andalucian and proper into his gypsy music...stripped back stuff, nothing like the idea of 'flamenco' I had before I came here.

Re: To make good Dubstep...
listen to reggae

To make good Dubstep, listen to Dub and 2-Step...surely?

I know this is true....but I simply can't stop listening to dubstep/bass music. Out of a good 1120 songs, only about 6 of them aren't electronically produced (house/bass/dubstep/glitchhop, etc)

Damn

I don't mind listening to other genres, it's just that I suck at broadening horizons, I don't know where to look.

Anywhere and everywhere. Anytime I go home I usually grab a random CD from my parents collection and whack that on for a session. Occasionally I'll luck out and it'll be Paul Young or Neil Diamond, sometimes it'll be Ike & Tina's greatest, sometimes live Carlos Santana stuff and sometimes my dad's Deep Purple collection. It depends.

But it's all music...genres aside, I make up my own mind whether I like it or not.

I have an extremely soft spot for all jazz, however, so someone should send me some tunes.

As good a starting point as any, I guess.

Although I'd recommend listening to a load of different styles simply because there is a shitload of incredible music that has been made and is being made, and you will probably find something you'll love that you've never even heard of.

Online blogs/magazines are also a good place to start for this sort of thing...even if you're limiting yourself to electronic stuff, FACT and XLR8R are incredible (and their podcast series is spot on)

Smoke a da ganja

And a keepa da notepad close by when you do

[chekov]

it doesn't even have a proper genre name

Does it need one though?

not at all, that was the point i was trying (probably very poorly) to make