10 techniques for Beginner Music Producers Looking to Go to that Next Level by Joe Jackson (Creative Coalition).
10 techniques for beginner Music Producers Looking to Go to that Next Level.
Learning to produce music is so rewarding but starting off can be challenging. Here are ten techniques that beginner producers can try for upping their production skills.
1. Break The Rules! First of all, if you’re wanting to become a better producer, start making some mistakes and break the rules a bit! Some of the best ways to learn new techniques and sounds you like is by stumbling into them and making a wrong move. Don’t be scared to try things that don’t work! Remember that in music, for every rule that exists, the opposite of that rule (usually) applies. For example, you might think the higher quality a recording is, the more people will listen. Well you’d be right to think that, but can the opposite apply as well? What about Death Bed (Coffee For Your Head)? That’s a low quality production that sounds like it was recorded on a potato! And it’s got over a billion streams! Break the rules and make mistakes. You might like how an unconventional sound works in your track.
2. Utilise Youtube videos but try to figure it out yourself. Youtube videos are an amazing way of finding out new production techniques that you wouldn’t even know existed and they are a great way for finding out how to use a new plugin you’ve just downloaded. But before you go straight to Youtube, have a go at your own method. There might be multiple workflows to get to the same destination and developing your own methods can be so useful for solving your specific problem. This said, youtube is a fantastic resource for producers learning new techniques. There are so many specific videos to help you improve your workflow and solve problems in your productions. Some great channels I would recommend are Andrew Huang, Rachel K. Collier, Reid Stefan and You Suck at Producing (despite the name, he’s actually a nice guy and has a great series on mixing).
3. Watch someone else producing. A great way to learn new production is to watch someone else do it, who is a higher skill level than you. This allows you to mirror some of their techniques. My production really went to a new level when I started using this method. Seeing how someone else produces can give you so many good habits and new ways of working that you might not even have considered. You might even see a method that you don’t like. Even better! Develop your own opinions and methods based on how other practitioners work. Ask a producer you know if you can sit in their session and watch. Ask them some questions about anything that makes you go, ‘Why have you chosen to do it that way?’. You might like the way they get a sweet guitar tone. You might not like the way they do eight hours of recording without taking a break.
4. Learn from your favourite song. Find the producer of your favourite track and see if there’s a video of them talking about the process.
Watching a producer is a fantastic way to learn new techniques, however sometimes you can’t do it in the flesh... Like if they’re a two time Grammy winning producer and aren’t responding to your DMs asking them if you can come to their mansion home studio to watch them record the
next Demi Lovato Album... Well you can actually watch that guy break down his production process on youtube. Oak Felder - Recording Demi Lovato's 'Sorry Not Sorry' Find a technique you like on your favourite songs and research that producer. There re many top producers who will talk about how they went about recording a track. With this method, you’re not just seeing a specific technique that a producer has used, you can actually get an insight into their whole production process. From how they collaborate with other producers to how they talk to an artist. The people making your favourite songs are the people doing it the best. Some great channels for this are Disclosure who stream their production process on twitch, Billie Eilish’s brother Finnease, Genius Behind the beat (great for hip hop beats) and Mix With The Masters.
5. Don’t get too hung up on which DAW to use. Let’s keep this part short. There are no better or worse DAWs (Digital Audio Workstation). There will be people who say that Pro Tools is better than Logic or FL Studio is better than Ableton or some people will say that the sky is green and to that I say you might be colour blind! But at the end of the day, your music will sound best on whatever equipment you’re most comfortable using. There’s no point in trying to navigate a new complex workstation only to do processes slower because they’ve got a whole different flow of information.
6. Get your basics locked in! Compression, EQ, and Reverb. Bosh! If you’re learning to mix, then I would recommend really getting to grips with your basic plugins that you’re going to use on every track. Really that’s going to be your compression, EQ and Reverb (maybe some others too but let's just start there). Compression is a great way to make your mixes tight by reducing the ‘dynamic range’ of a sound. This means that the loudest peaks of a recording get squashed so those loud peaks become quieter. If there’s less peaks, we can turn up the whole track. This is definitely one to get onto Youtube for. There are countless videos on how compression works and how to use it effectively on your recordings. The Logic Pro Stock Compressor is really strong for this. I would also recommend the Waves CLA Compressors. EQ is a great way to clean up your sound. If you have a flute part playing a high melody, you don’t really need the low sub frequencies that the microphone is picking up from background noise. EQ is a great way to clean up your tracks and it’s a great way to deal with sounds clashing together. The Fabfilter Pro Q 3 is a brilliant plugin to really deal with nasty frequencies clashing. Reverb is a plugin that will bring your mixes to life. Frankenstein style! Creating the right reverb can put your whole mix into a space where the tracks sound together. Like you’re in the same room as the song playing. A plugin I would recommend is the Valhalla Supermassive which is a free plugin with some great Massive reverbs. The Fabfilter Pro R is another solid reverb plugin for natural sounding rooms and halls and it’s got some very versatile presets all ready to go.
7. Listen to all of the music. A great method for learning to write fiction is to read fiction, a great method for learning to record music is to listen to music. Listen to as much music as you can from a variety of genres and a variety of periods. You might hear some old 60s Led Zepplin that goes really quiet at the
end of the verse and then suddenly BAMM! into the chorus and it’s really loud and the drums are thumping and you’re thinking ‘holy moly how on earth did they get that kick sound?’ Well stay curious my friends and look far and wide for every new sound that you have never heard. Don’t be limited by your taste. Yes you have favourite songs but maybe try seeing music objectively and ask what makes a song work? Why did the producer decide to do this? Do I like it? Do I dislike it? The more music you can consume, the more you can learn. I would recommend the Spotify playlists that give you glimpses of all sorts of genres, top of the pops throughout the years and Later With Jools Holland.
8. Do some research into old recording techniques. Did you know The Beatles only had four tracks to record some of their best selling albums. Four tracks! Today we can use hundreds! And now there are many digital plugins that try to emulate their old analogue equipment, like the Waves Abbey Road Vinyl plugin. Many of those old production techniques flow into the new ones we try. Some of those 70s Funk songs are being emulated by modern acts like Silk Sonic. The different modes on the stock Logic compressor are actually modelled on original physical analogue units. Each of these units behaves differently and by doing a little research into how each one responds to different sounds, you can really make the software work for you. This only leads to you becoming a super producer. I now present you with the Super Producer badge. Wear it with honour because you’re doing great!
9. It’s not about the gear you have, it’s about how you use it. Have you ever heard the phrase ‘all gear, no idea’? Well now you have! It means someone who has got all that expensive equipment but doesn’t really know how to use it. Well it’s much better to be a really solid producer with free stock plugins than trying to get a grip with the expensive third party waves catalogue. Don’t worry about having the most expensive microphone to capture your sounds. You really can do a lot with a little and if you really get to grips with your favourite equipment, it will take you further than if you try to use every plugin under the sun. Finnease and Disclosure use stock Logic pro plugins and I don’t think anyone’s bashing their sound.
10. Don’t be too precious about your recordings. Get some feedback. Peer feedback is a great way to find out what you need to do to take your production to the next level. Maybe not feedback from your mum because she loves you very much and might not give it to you straight up. But a friend who’s into music. They might just say ‘I love the tone of that synth but why are the drums so quiet?’ Don’t worry that the mix isn’t where you want it to be just yet, get some feedback and other people might help point out an idea you hadn’t thought of.
And there it is. Those are my tips for music producers looking for that next rung on the musical ladder. Keep creating and keep finding new inspiration. Good Luck!