Few days ago David Ireland posted an article on Magnetic Mag blog. It has been shared several hundreds of times and caused some confusion. The author says to stop flooding the internet up with sample pack jams! Isn’t Electronic Music made with use of sample packs in so many cases?
In case you haven’t read the article here is the link to full text on Magneticmag.com
Electronic Music is starting to be too easy to create.
Sample packs and loops began to fly off the digital shelves and become the new building blocks for every johnny-come-lately that fancied themselves a producer. Armed with six months of experience, youtube tutorials, sample packs and a dream many younglings began to flood Soundcloud and Youtube with tracks they were sure would accelerate them to superstardom. Then much like the 405 Freeway, we had a massive digital logjam on our hands.
The thing is much more complicated. First of all we need to consider “recent” broad availability of Internet. Second, take a plain human attribute, a desire to be seen and admired. These two things combined carry heavy consequences. Everyone can be famous just by displaying their work on Soundcloud. Now they commit their first sins by heavily promoting their unfinished tracks instead of finishing them.
It’s not the samples fault
There’s nothing wrong with samples. But yes, people need to learn how to use them and that they were meant to be tools for sketching rather than painting a masterpiece. There are famous DJ’s and music producers too who made their way to broad audiences by using plain, ordinary samples. Either in creative way or (more frequently) they reproduce “song success patterns” from Youtube tutorials.
Fun fact: these tutorials were made by people who wanted to get noticed too.
I’m still amazed how easy it is to impress someone with a “new” tune based on music ideas of Depeche Mode from 80s or way earlier, by Hildegard from Bingen in XIIth Century.
The real problem here is lack of proper education or at least awareness.
In a perfect world we all know the historical background of music we create.
Why can’t just people learn before they start playing over with their blocks? The same goes to photography, painting, making movies and even professional advertising. I know people who believe that product photography should be made with a phone camera over a background of paper sheet.
So my point is that sample packs sellers and easy-to-use-out-of-the-box usb controllers or smartphone DAW creators have to carry a kind of responsibility. I am aware that everyday someone buys a collection of drum kicks made by xyz artist, it should be my duty to let him (or her) know a thing or two but they don’t want to listen. They just want the tool.
Now what to do about this situation? What to do with people who think that they are good producers but all they do is posting unfinished tracks all over their social media? Do we really need to do something?
Maybe they’re happy just about this and maybe, just maybe should we adapt somehow? And we need to try harder finding the real diamonds in this pile of dust?
The solution?
One part is already written by David. It’s very simple. Listen to more electronic music and practice more.
And a word from me: enjoy making music. The electronic music is the most important, not the number of likes. A good tune will spread eventually. What will make you really proud is making one great tune, not constant posting tracks you know they can be better.
I promise to help you. We will continue to publish useful articles about music production, tutorials and other stuff. Be sure to check our blog and social media. You will find some inspiration there each week at least two times.
And again, enjoy making music!
