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Well, its 2010 and I tell you what, Drum n Bass Production isn’t getting any easier! Sure you get better in the studio and slowly but surely you start to develop the networking skills you need to get ahead in the music genre but its only just the beginning. Let me explain to you what I mean.

In the Beginning…

I got into electronic music because I was sick and tired of relying on so called “band members” to get there act together. Do it all “myself” was my motto and it seemed like the best solution at the time. I could definitely rely on me to do the hard work I needed to get the tracks done and this felt good. Plus, having NOT to deal with my drummers bullshit excuses for NOT practicing was a good enough reason alone to go solo.

I quickly learnt that drums were pretty hard to program. The bass in Drum & Bass was near impossible to make and the Mixdown in Drum & Bass was UNF*#KING-Believable!

Was this the correct decision?…. YES!

The Different Job Roles of a Drum n Bass Producer

Let me see, to start with you have to be a Producer, Artist, DJ, Engineer, Label Owner, Marketing Guru, Graphic Artist… and so on and so on and to be honest the list could go on and on.

How on Earth was I going to manage all of that? Well, strangely enough, people do?

Keeping it Real!

Many artists are all of the above and more and are doing well to their credit and let’s be honest they deserve it. The key to achieving anything in life is commitment, perseverance and an iron will to succeed.  Try not to be all things at once because that’s a very hard road to travel.

If your just starting out concentrate on just one thing at a time like engineering or just making tunes then after you have them down, think about improving your DJing and so on.

However, most of all, keep your chin up and stay focused.

Good things come to those that have patience.

See you on the dancefloor.

Dauntless

P.S. Mayhem plays for No Frills Drum n Bass on the 19th of March 2010@Phoenix Bar. Its going to be wild.

We also have Lomax and Xample playing 13th of March@LOFT Bar UTS and that promises to be a deadly night of

dancefloor madness.

P.S.S  If you get a chance check out my review of Mixing Audio: Concepts Practices and Tools

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Loopmasters just keep on giving the good stuff when it comes to Drum n Bass Production with the latest addition to their Artist Series “Ray Keith Original Drum & Bass vol 1″. Original Drum & Bass Vol 1 was created by Drum n Bass Legend Ray Keith so you know the quality is going to be awesome. Check out some of the  FREE SAMPLES HERE.

From the Loopmasters website:

Ray Keith – DJ, Producer, Remixer, Record Label Head Honcho, Radio & TV Presenter and one of the orginal Drum & Bass pioneers, has been on the circuit for at over 15 years.  When he teamed up with Loopmasters for his first ever sample pack he was always going to produce some of the darkest samples and breaks on the planet – and this pack won’t disappoint!

After finding his niche within the Drum and Bass scene in the early 90s he managed to notch up two of the scenes most memorable releases of all time with ‘The Renegade Terrorist’ and ‘The Chopper’.  Ray is one versatile individual and certainly one of the ‘Godfathers of DnB’ and continues to push the boundaries of his productions and DJ sets to an ever increasing audience of appreciative fans!

Original Drum & Bass vol 1 features a huge collection of original inspiration from the Dread Recordings studio, featuring Tearing Breaks, Deep and Menacing subs, Rave Style FX and Haunting pads and melodies to inspire the darkest of breakbeats production elite. Whether you are making Tech Step, Liquid, Hardcore, Breakbeat or Dubstep – this collection reflects the history and roots of the scene which Ray helped create and shape, and brings it full tilt into the future with some fantastic inspirational beats and bass lines destined for future dance floor killers.

Within this awesome drum and bass sample collection you can expect to find over 375Mb of royalty free drum and bass samples including 150 Loops and 160+ single hit samples. The pack consists of 37 Future Funk Breaks, 45 Heavy Rotation Basslines, 46 Inspirational Music Loops, 39 Single Bass Drones, 41 Single Hit Vox and Hits, 60 Single Drum samples, and 20+ Musical Hits. The pack is also available in Apple Loop, Ableton Live and Reason Refill formats.

If you are a producer looking to explore the darker edge of the sonic realm, and want a collection of sounds that will inspire you from one of the worlds most prolific Djs and Producers, sample Original Drum & Bass vol 1 from Ray Keith and Dread Recordings.

For more information or royalty free samples check out the Loopmasters website here.

See you on the dancefloor.

Dauntless

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You know what? I’ve been producing Drum n bass for about 6 or 7 years now and I’m still amazed at the quality of it all. I mean it just seems to be getting better and better and better. Young new producers like Ulterior Motive, Rockwell, Noisia, Phace & Misanthrop and S.P.Y set the benchmark that little bit higher with every tune they release. I love it!  Bring on the challenge I say because if it were to easy then the rewards wouldn’t be worth it at all!

I haven’t been strapped to my production seat for 14+ hours in the last few months. I know some of you would remember that I’ve been on my Honeymoon and started a new job of sorts. Which has ultimately left me with NO time for drum n bass production. However, when ever I do get a few minutes I get on the beats and the great news I’m getting better!

How can this be?

First step is to be super organized, if you can. Try it out, for me. Please. Just put your drums some where and put your bass some where else and put your fx sounds some where etc etc.  This way when you need a sound. You know where it is. Don’t spend too long on this as the real goal here remember is to write tunes not be a super neat freak! Believe me, I’ve fallen into that trap before. It ain’t pretty! You get a whole computer of organized files but absolutely NO tunes finished. BAD BAD BAD!

Next step is get used to bouncing down your stuff. Whole tracks, breaks, bass, hi hat loops etc. Just bounce that shit out. Keep them in a folder called bounces and organize them by months. Why bouncing? Because It helps you when it comes to arranging and it’s much easier to hear how something sounds later on, as well as when you compare it to different versions. Lastly its great for recycling old loops and ideas which is awesome for when your stuck for any.

Another tip is to have more breaks. (NOT have more breaks samples! Actually physical breaks!) Its quite easy to get really involved in tune making and forget about such trivial things such as eating, showering, sleeping and other things not to be mentioned. However, by having consistent breaks it gives your ears that much needed rest and allows you to have a more bird eye view of your track/break/bass etc. This is so critical because it can get you back on course if indeed you had strayed.

All in all having some time away from the studio is because it can give you that space your head needs to relax and take in all that you have learnt. Ideas and concepts you couldn’t quite work out suddenly make sense and the whole picture suddenly is in more focus. The time you get when you get a few minutes is really appreciated and utilized in its fullest.

Well anyways, hope these little bits of advice help you become more productive in the studio.

See you on the dancefloor.

Dauntless

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Electro Collection bundles together two of Wave Alchemy’s award winning sample packs – Electro House Underground and Electro House Progressions and offers them at a giveaway price of £59.95! (Saving you a massive £15.00!) Get it here

Originally designed as accompanying sample packs, Electro House Underground and Electro House Progressions offer an extensive and ultimately complete collection of drum loops, synth hits and royalty free sound effects samples ideal for top-flight electro house and progressive production.

All samples have been produced to perfection using a wealth of high-end studio equipment with the sounds themselves taking influence from the underground dance music scene and its leading producers.

The combination of these two classic sample libraries gives you a whopping 1.5GB+ (before file conversions) of expertly produced Electro and Progressive House samples, loops and sound effects!

Get all the details of whats in the pack here!

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Let’s get 2010 started of in a smashing old way and the only way I know how to do that is get more drum n bass production done! Period! On bringing up this point that is exactly what I’ve been doing! Well, up until the point that I had to go up north to my sister-in-laws wedding! Doh!
I hope you had a great Christmas and New Years Celebration, I certainly did. Not too much, but just enough to keep my head and body happy! Anyways, whats been going down in studio I can hear you ask?
Well, a few things have been happening in drum n bass production land. A name that you should definitely be hearing more of in the future is Dj Sci Phi. Dave (as his mother knows him) is over on holidays in Sydney with his lovely wife for a while and I managed to get some quality production time with him. ( Honestly we spent the most part of the session with him showing me how he gets down! What an eye opener!) Mucho respect to the big Sci Phi because he didn’t hold back on the styles and secrets. For those that don’t know what style of drum n bass Sci Phi makes check out his Soundcloud. Its the really new deep, minimal style that’s blowing up big time all over drum n bass land. Big hitters like Loxy are playing his cuts in mixes etc. Def check my boy out! I’ve managed to get a little video tutorial/Q&A with him so be sure to come back at check it out.
Another big player to come through in December and play for No Frills Drum n Bass was Chook. Neuro-Funk producer extraordinaire and all round good guy. Phillipe (Chook – FullForce Recs) came and played Sydney Phoenix Bar and crushed the helpless crowd into dance submission. Chook producers on Logic 9 and I use 99.9% of the time Cubase5 so there wasn’t much production time going down. However, I did manage to corner him a few times to get some mixdown secrets and sound engineering tips. Chook has agreed to a Q&A for dnbbeats.com which I’ll be bringing to you shortly. We’ll go over how he uses Logic to produce those funky grooves for drum n bass and get his favorite vstplugins etc. In the mean time his Album “Cocoon” is dropping shortly and the single “Optimus Prime” is already out. Grab it here.
Finally, 2010 promises to be a big year for not only dnbbeats.com but hopefully me as well. I’ll definitely keep you posted on how my tunes are coming along and all the rest. Hey, if you have any tunes being released or just want me to have a listen to some please send me a megaupload/rapidshare etc. I’ll be more than happy to check them out. Anyways, back to the beats then. All the best in the studio.
See you on the dancefloor.
Dauntless