FIRST TRACK OF 2005 - PETE DONALDSON - DRUCKIN FUNK

[slavestudios]

www.covertrecords.co.uk/covert/mp3/public/Pete
Donaldson - Druckin Funk.mp3


havin some odd probs with the web site, but if u copy & paste that addy, the trck should pop up via Media Player...



anyways, first track of the year. many more to come

[slavestudios]

http://www.covertrecords.co.uk/cover...kin%20Funk.mp3



that should be it... sorry peeps. still a bit fuzzy from NYE :lol:

[eyes without a face]

some good ideas, but needs more work to really make it into a standout track, its very much a locked groove at the moment baring the edits... kick needs tightening a little more id say plus the hats are too loud and seem to phase from left to right on each hit which maybe for effect but i found it a bit annoying and un-natural...

really like the bass and kick tho nice bumpy feel to it

wud be interested to hear the finished version

[slavestudios]

cheers scott..

was just a noodle on Reason.

hi hats - a pal on another board said the same thing. they aint too bad on WAV but i tried the MP3 version on a mates pc & the hi sounds totally wrong lol they had nice panned delays on them so they criss crossed but it sounds bad on the MP3 unfortuantely :cry:

anywyas, i may or may not finish it... i dunno.

btw, bear in mind all my trax are made for dj use, hence the linear loop feel to it. they may sound dull without a track either end if u get me...

[slavestudios]

and theres actually 5 different kicks in there.. and they all sorta mush in with the bassline.. which i dig

[eyes without a face]

i dont think those kind of effects work very well on hats at all to be honest, alot of clubs wont have their systems set up to represent perfect stereo and the effect will b lost in transition anyway....

and i think making tracks in the frame of mind "for dj use" is probably what limits the track alot, a good dj can play/use/manipulate any record produced it doesnt matter what its structure is or if it was produced in mind for dj manipulation, its the Dj's who should be trying harder and not the producers trying less ;)

[slavestudios]

i dont think those kind of effects work very well on hats at all to be honest, alot of clubs wont have their systems set up to represent perfect stereo and the effect will b lost in transition anyway....

and i think making tracks in the frame of mind "for dj use" is probably what limits the track alot, a good dj can play/use/manipulate any record produced it doesnt matter what its structure is or if it was produced in mind for dj manipulation, its the Dj's who should be trying harder and not the producers trying less ;)

on your first point, i'm more than aware of the fact that almost NO club has a good stereo spread. and even if it did, very few ppl would hear the good of it.. like i said, it was a little exercise that grew into a track.

secondly, thats the type of track i play & make. i dont like trax that move all over the place. hence my favour of ppl like Ben Sims & Sven Wittekind & Liebing.. i LIKE linear loop based dj tools & i LIKE makin them... but again, thats just in the djin frame of mind. i dont think its right or wrong to do this or that.. jus make what ya make. if its linear & does nowt so be it.. as long as your happy with it ;)


i'll post up a track that has loads of breaks.... it'll be on a new thread

[eyes without a face]

i think i just like to hear more people actually writing their tracks than putting loops together which is happening way too much these days, and unfortunately by the artists u mentioned barring Sims, whose use of loops is i think all will agree that extra bit unique than the likes of wittekind... but yeah its horses for courses, some like their tracks to have more musical merit, some like them for ease of use etc etc...

tis all good tho i guess

[Pixolito]

I think yer tracks dung big man lets have a face off never mind the net nonsense..........

[dirty_bass]

Very very muddy production on this.
Most of the sounds could do with brightening up, except the hats.
The kick needs more mid range punch and top end.
Also a better use of EQ, to separate the sounds from each other, and some nice compression on the individual sounds to make em wide, which you really need on something this minimal.

Found the overall progression almost non existent, as scott mentioned.
Whether or not you like playing this sort of stuff, it`s just boring to make isn`t it? I know I couldn`t sit in the studio and make essentially 1 loop, and then record it playing for 5 mins.
Try adding a lot more edits, and effects cuts n stuff to make it interesting.
Personaly, I`d just redo this at 133.3333 bpm and turn it into a locked groove, for loop use.

[slavestudios]

production & eq is one. but jus cos you dont like loop records, dont mean other ppl cant..

i find this 'boring' attitude a bit pointless tbh. theres lots of music i dont like here but i generally try not to be critical of the style.

if i think its good studio work, i'll say so. but tbh, there are trax here that i dont like musically. trax that change too often & have too many synths..

but thats down to taste. not one tune being better than the other cos it does or doesnt do this.



points about eq & muddiness i take on board, but saying a track is no good cos you dont like that style is almost futile. dont matter how good a loop track is. if u dont like loops, you wont dig it.




and anyhoo, they are all first cuts. i wouldnt call ANYTHING ive put up here finished.

[slavestudios]

and no, i dont find it 'boring to make'

however, i do find tracks with layer & layer of strings & synths 'boring' ;)

[eyes without a face]

pete i do think u take peoples comments the wrong way on here

its all about constructive criticism, and regardless of friendships on here people say it how it is.... Dirty is a dab hand at production with many releases under his belt, his words are true and very helpful....

i think the point we are both trying to make at times is that u shud push urself further, and making loop tracks wont get ur name out there unfortunately, any tom dick and harry can make loops, but it takes that little bit extra to push it into a loop track and at the moment the stuff ur putting up just doesnt do it, thats not to say they are bad tracks or ur a bad producer, just that they need a bit more work and time spent on them thats all

horses for courses definately, but this part of the board is all about honest, constructive feedback. if this means pointing out where ur going wrong then so be it.... and im pretty sure Steve is a fan of loop records, as long as they are done correct

;)

[eyes without a face]

forgot to add, if something is boring, then its boring, simple!

the thing u have to take into account is that some of us on here are used to making stuff with alot more going on musically and sonically, and to hear literaly the same loop for 5 mins and be expected to comment on it productively is a bit of an ask

but its all good, its just peoples taste's clashing etc etc, its what this part is all about, so we can see what were doing wrong and try to improve it

[slavestudios]

fair do's scott

i just think that it shouldnt be about the style, it should be about the quality.

and tbh, my trax reflect what i play. i play records that are basically one loop because i like a track to malible & easily manipulated. hence, the trax i make are very very very linear & do come across as a lock with only a few changes..

but thats what i'm into. i dont make/play anything for money or pats on the back. i do it cos i like it. if i never sign a record in my life, thats fine. it would be nice, but its certainly not why i make what i make..


at the same time, check the 'Orion Sampler' i put up. there is the odd suggestion of a tune here & there, but those trax are for listening & nowt else.



what DB, yourself & others have said about eq & production, i take on board. but i aint suddenly gonna make a lot of changes to what i make.

however, i will take notice in HOW i make it.


and i also think we are into wildly differing strains of techno. which wont help.. i dot see you being a fan of Switchblade 12s :lol:

[slavestudios]

btw, ALL those nu trax were done in Reason..

i think i'll export the loops & hit Acid

[dirty_bass]

I love well made loop techno.
But in my opinion. If your loop doesn`t change, why waste vinyl and recording time, and just make it a lock. Then the DJ can do everything.
But to make one loop and record it for 5 mins is nothing to do with taste, and more to do with laziness, or lack of ideas, or at least that`s how it appears.
It`s interesting changes that make people freak on the floor, little edits, chops, cuts, reverse, sweeps, drops, flange etc.
You don`t have to go overboard, but take a look at the music by the true loop technitions like Simms and Speedy J, and note the changes. then listen to the crap that gets churned out on the millions of short lived labels from germany, and you can see why those at the top of the game are there.
You can hear the effort and care, and work behind the tracks.
So much can be done to just a single loop, to make it interesting.
So composition IS a part of production critique.

As for your production, I think your problem is that using Reason exclusively means you are using the cack eq on it. So the production will always be a little sub standard to a point.
Export the audio to another sequencer and you can EQ more effectively.

[slavestudios]

cheers DB..

i have used Acid for years & never got stick bout muddyness, but now i been using Reason, it has become an issue..

back to exporting loops to Acid :clap: :clap: :clap:


as for Speedy J... his style has changed with each album.

Sims i get the comparison, but Speedy is beyond a loop expert. he just goes where we follow.. be it 'Loudboxer' or 'Amber' he is always pushing doing the next thing...


4 times ive seen him live..scary good.



but yeah, i'll put up a few older trax with edits & cuts. i can get all over a break in Acid but i find Reason very awkward to sequence tbh.

anyways, must dash to bank.


many thanx to scott & dirty & all who take the time to not only listen but also COMMENT.




my respect to all :clap:

[dirty_bass]

I tend to treat reason as a very intricate sound generator.
You can make some really nice loops and stuff.
PArticularly with the Screamer, which is a nice effect.
But I wouldn`t sequence in it. You`re much better of with acid for that. ;)

[eyes without a face]

i just think u have ur opinion on what makes a good techno track/loop and we have ours, but u dont seem to be willing to budge or take on board any help that people offer! we are not suggesting u go and change ur track wildly, far from it, id never tell someone to change something in their music, we are just offering advice on what WE think would improve it....

u mention Sims alot, well actually check his stuff and compare it to ur own, his stuff is FULL of loops, and i mean full, he has so many loops going on sometimes to create his own loops, this track of urs was loopy yes, but didnt contain and loops to fill it out etc etc, the point im making is that for loopy tracks, u need good, solid loops in with ur own production to really make it unique and fill the track out

no ones giving u stick for production at all, and to be honest when just using Reason what do u expect? its a good program yes, but the sequencer is absolutely awful and so are the effects, the EQ is one of the worst ive seen on a software program and its inability to incorporate VST just tops it off for me...

and believe it or not i love some of Laker (switchblade)'s stuff, its intense and well produced, but again, those kids use sooooo many loops in their stuff u just cannot fail to see the difference in what they do and what u do to create "loop" techno

im into all kinds of techno mate, but it has to be quality and well made, and fresh, and the likes of Laker, Amok, Wittekind etc etc are far from what i would class in general as good, quality techno... its the most throwaway techno around simply because of the effort that goes into it, these kids knock out records every other week and it shows in their productions

rant over haha