I have been producing music for about two years now. I have been DJing for probably more. I guess that's how everyone's journey is most of the time.
I heard Four Tet for the first time at Magnetic Fields, a pretty hip festival in India popular amongst the ravers. I could not sleep that night, not because I was 'on something', but because from that very moment, I realized my calling. As soon as I reached home after the festival, I distinctly remember that I intently listened to all of his music. Some of his tracks are influenced by Indian folk music.
I come from a land known as Rajasthan, 'the desert part of India' which is probably most known for its folk musicians and artists. A fusion like that was something that gave life to the ideas which I didn't think I would ever attempt pondering.
Being a hotelier, I would travel for work very often. In the evenings, I would get lonely as I did not have any friends around. The only friend I found was in music. I started making most of the undivided attention that I had to give when I was alone and used it to my advantage. I learned the skills of the trade watching YouTube videos. Until recently, Commix, aka George has been guiding me.
One thing I told myself every time I made a track was there is a lot to learn. Two years have passed, and this open-mindedness has helped me learn more each day.
I am so excited to release the new tracks that I am working on because each one keeps getting better than the other. How do I know it? It's because I would listen to my songs in gaps. I would forget about a track, listen to a few good tracks by others and then listen to mine. I guess that's the only way to know how you are doing, personally. We all have our journeys and this is mine. I hope I was able to cover a little bit of it.
Ableton, Ableton, Ableton! I can't emphasize enough how much I love this DAW. There is not a single day I miss seeing that screen with all the colors and lines. I tried using FL Studio, although, to be frank, I found the interface quite boring. Ableton just felt good to me. I am not going to make this complex by writing terms that would make my answer complex. But keeping it simple! The number one trick to making good music is knowing your DAW. Coming to the second part of the question WHY?!
I loved how simple it was to loop stuff and try different things. Melodies are a feeling that we have maybe for a second, and Ableton helped me get that out of my system. What was crazy was when you gave the melody beat, your idea is now for you to dance on. How amazing is that? Also, I don't know about other DAWS but its crazy how I would get stuck somewhere and all I would have to do was go online and type on YouTube. There are tonnes of videos online so you basically will never have to say to yourself that you don't know something. It's all out there. Being hungry is the key!!
Ableton Push 2 my absolute FAVE. It just makes making music so much fun. You want to jam and feel the music. A laptop can be too digital. Hardware makes you feel more connected. You can simply close your eyes, twist some knobs and feel. I guess anyone would prefer than clicking on some keys. Also, the lights flickering on Push 2 everywhere makes you call the aliens at times. LOL. I mean the frequencies can spin silly at times. But yeah, Push 2 is my absolute fave.
Moog Sub 37: It's a synth after all. The kind of music I make is an experimental, tech oriental house. Oscillators make you crazy, when you twist those knobs you realize the depth of music. Our imagination is so limited to the good music we hear. I like challenging myself to find the perfect sound that no one has heard. Hence the Moog Sub 37 already is a great synth. I usually make presets of the sounds I find now and keep them to use them in my next project. So yeah, it's slowly getting to me.
You can get fancy with all the drum machines in the world but you can never go wrong with a Digitakt. That machine is just the next level. My absolute friend and in the kind of music I make if you have the drums sorted, you are sorted!
I use stock Ableton plugins most of the time.
Also, Sylenth is something I would use to make atmospheric sounds. Plugins are endless and I have just given up on them. There is enough in Ableton. You need to know them first to buy new ones. Once you know all I doubt you would need to use anything else.
A hook is all I need. Once I get it, I need to listen to it enough to not get bored with it. I would play it for some time on loop and read a book. If I am not bored I know I am going to add beats to it. I will go all around that hook and make that track something I would listen to. I usually make the tracks for myself. I do care about the opinion from my fellow ravers because we have raved a lot together but that's all that matters. Rest, I ask myself, "How can I get better?"
YouTube, Udemy, and blogs. Reddit answers your questions most of the times but I usually am positive about a lot of things. The era that we live in there is no excuse to run away from a problem because the solutions are all there. Contrary to this everybody keeps on saying it's all saturated, and there's so much going on online! As for me, I am glad every question I had or got stuck somewhere, someone had already asked that and another person had already answered it. I guess there are some pros to a saturated market than all cons.
To start, I guess that's all that we struggle with. The fear of looking at the software makes you feel that it is difficult. The question here is for how long is it going to be difficult?
I wish I would have started early. I would probably do enough courses to improve my skills. Playing the piano maybe could have been one. I wish I could learn that when I was young. But nothing holds me back now. I give my art enough time to cover up for all the hours I might've missed.
Knowledge!!! I want to learn more and more each day. I just finished a course, so I am pumped. I will release a few tracks and do another course. The tricks and tips to knowing the DAW(s) are endless and the technology is getting advanced every day. One needs to keep up to it so one is not left behind.
Slice a midi track after you're done finding your fave bits in a track and change the speed, you will be surprised to see the best version of the track is yet to come, made by you.
I use Landr for mastering. I would listen to the finished track in my car and do this process several times until the time I don't feel right. You will be amazed at how the ambiance you hear in changes the feel of the track, sometimes for the better, sometimes you got to work on it. Mastering engineers can get fussy at times. Do your work well and the results will live up to your expectations.
George, aka 'Commix'. He is a pretty well-known DJ in Berlin. Also, he has 20 years of experience. Taught at point-blank, do I need to say anything else?
That one is yet to be released. I know this folk artist, he comes from a very humble background. Folk music is dying as mainstream overshadows everything. He is extremely talented and I am going to make a track with him soon. I want to support his art and I will put in all the hours I have, to make sure that it will be my best.
I love the platform. Like-minded people getting together for a cause. Like Facebook is for the face, LOL. RepostExchange is to exchange our ideas and inspire.
Connect with MIGRANT on SoundCloud and Instagram.
Want more? Sign up at RepostExchange.com.
This interview has been lightly edited for brevity and clarity.
