Invibed discusses the common elements amongst dance tracks and also unique elements to make an EDM track stand out. He also takes a dive into personal style and the creation of his first music video. Lastly he talks about defining your mission as an artist.
Episode Links:
Invibed:
- Facebook: Facebook.com/invibedmusic
Plugins:
- Absynth (Available in Komplete): https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/Komp13R–native-instruments-komplete-13-software-production-suite
- Roli Equator: https://roli.com/products/software/equator-player
Episode Summary:
EDM producer Waldek Jarosik joins the Sample Hacker podcast this week to discuss how having and underlying mission drives him in his career as an artist. He explains his vision and how he condensed this mission into a piece of art by creating a music video.
Waldek’s background includes computer science. Along with playing in bands this led him to a natural transition into computer-based music. One challenge relates to having played in various bands is the coordination of getting all of the members together and on the same page. With EDM, he likes that he can control the entire process and has the capacity to complete projects in their entirety on his own.
Waldek goes on to discuss the power of music on emotion and how it can shape moods. To him, being able to influence other people’s lives in this way is very rewarding. In particular, he loves being able to reach the part of someone’s subconscious that makes them want to dance.
In writing dance music, he has often found that there are certain rhythmic patterns that play an important role in creating the danceability. He further discusses how this can in some ways be a double-edged sword for the creative artist. On one hand, danceable patterns create a universality to the music. On the other hand, it can be easy for dance tracks to sound “the same.”
However, Waldek describes how bedroom producers can look for opportunities to separate themselves and make their tracks more unique. One prominent way is with a unique vocal track. However, other methods include using orchestral or unusual instruments. Still another method of exercising unique creativity would be to use unusual scales…such as an Arabic scale in a dance tune.
When listening critically to a piece of music, Waldek likes to keep in mind what he calls the Three P’s: Pieces, Production, & Placement. That is to say, what pieces or elements are in the music? How are they produced to play a certain role? And lastly where do they sit in the mix? He likes to use this strategy to study the danceable patterns that work in EDM.
In addition to good production and rhythm, Waldek emphasizes the importance of energy management in music. Part of this includes making solid transitions. At all times, he is asking himself “What story am I telling?” and “Does this music make me want to dance?” Along with energy management is the idea that you can often change the energy by removing elements. Waldek likes to begin with more elements than he needs, and this can give him options when he wants to remove elements.
To break out of a loop Waldek suggests playing live instruments or experimenting. He also thinks that flipping through presets and experimenting with them can sometimes be a way to find an inspirational spark.
To improve your mixes, Waldek recommends listening back to yours music constantly and taking good notes. Also, he emphasizes the importance of beliving in yourself when you first start out and giving yourself time to develop. Lastly, he recommends surrounding yourself by peers who can give you objective feedback on the quality of your work.