New EDM-Style Beat - Feedback appreciated

D

D-toks

New member
Hi all,

So this is my third beat post and I was looking for feedback again. I was wondering in particular if the song is still boring many of you like my previous two were? I think overall I did some good things with the bridge in particular but I can't possibly be an objective judge of that. I also think I might have gone too heavy on the bass...but yeah...Please let me know what you think and I'd be willing to have a dialogue about any and all feedback. Since this beat was more aggressive I used the more aggressive tagline again instead of the softer one but...I did wait I believe 22 seconds between each tag instead of throwing it in every 10 seconds. Thanks.

 
Actually, your tags fits the groove pretty well. i wouldn't have guessed it was one. It's overly loud and compressed. That sucks a lot of life out of it. I think it would sound better if you let it breath. It seems to be the mastering that gets everyone in trouble around here. ;) At this point its still just an idea for a song. Why master at all? Personally, I'd prefer to hear the mix.

I wasn't too crazy about that dominant rhythm synth on the left. Personally, I'd find a more attractive patch. But if you do like that one, it doesn't need to be nearly that loud. It's a very, very dominating sound anyway. It's still going to cut through even if you lower the level quite a bit. Between that dominant sound an the repetitive riff it is playing, it starts to wear.

By the bridge, do you mean that section that starts around 2:20 or thereabouts? I'm not hearing much of a change in the underlying groove. Maybe something that takes the composition in different direction, rhythmically?

Drums were more lively than the last beat you posted. The kick was a bit on the busy side.

As with the other, I'd ask the fundamental question: Where are you going with it? Is there going to be a vocal of some kind? Until it has lyrics, it's still just an idea. Give it a vocal.
 
I think you have some pieces here, some good effects, but it just doesn't really go anywhere. I am not an EDM expert, but the tunes that I have heard have usually lots going on, not detailed, but stay interesting since most of the people listening to it has ADS.

I think you are moving in the right direction, but you really should step back and put some creativity behind it.
 
Robus said:
Actually, your tags fits the groove pretty well. i wouldn't have guessed it was one. It's overly loud and compressed. That sucks a lot of life out of it. I think it would sound better if you let it breath. It seems to be the mastering that gets everyone in trouble around here. ;) At this point its still just an idea for a song. Why master at all? Personally, I'd prefer to hear the mix.

I wasn't too crazy about that dominant rhythm synth on the left. Personally, I'd find a more attractive patch. But if you do like that one, it doesn't need to be nearly that loud. It's a very, very dominating sound anyway. It's still going to cut through even if you lower the level quite a bit. Between that dominant sound an the repetitive riff it is playing, it starts to wear.

By the bridge, do you mean that section that starts around 2:20 or thereabouts? I'm not hearing much of a change in the underlying groove. Maybe something that takes the composition in different direction, rhythmically?

Drums were more lively than the last beat you posted. The kick was a bit on the busy side.

As with the other, I'd ask the fundamental question: Where are you going with it? Is there going to be a vocal of some kind? Until it has lyrics, it's still just an idea. Give it a vocal.
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Yeah thanks for the feedback on compression. Mastering definitely is a huge issue for me. And...aha I didn't master anything. I didn't really mix much either because I thought it sounded okay. I only really LCR panned, added some reverb and compressed the reverb.

Also thanks for the feedback on the synth...I think maybe I shouldn't have LCR panned the beat because that might be contributing to the overly large sound. I LCR pan all my beats since I read it is a good idea but probably was not for this one based on the feedback.

Where I was going with it was to make it a stand alone beat...I don't think one can put vocals on a song like this but who knows...this is where the creativity I'm lacking probably comes into play.

Edit* Also that was a massive oversight wow that synth was supposed to be centralized. Gee.

DM60 said:
I think you have some pieces here, some good effects, but it just doesn't really go anywhere. I am not an EDM expert, but the tunes that I have heard have usually lots going on, not detailed, but stay interesting since most of the people listening to it has ADS.

I think you are moving in the right direction, but you really should step back and put some creativity behind it.
Click to expand...

Yeah I've started into EDM a little more recently...like Martin Garrix type of stuff, and there is always some tiny details that keep things interesting that I guess do add a lot of value. For me sometimes I think I should add more details but I want to find a balance where the details don't distract from the main idea...creativity beyond the main riff is still an issue clearly. Thanks.
 
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Hm since you ask about the composition, it does seem a little funny to have the bass handle the melody. Maybe you can try adding a synth lead or piano to take the melody and let the bass stick to the rhythm. Maybe add some pads and/or extra percussion that can occupy the mids to sort of round out the song. The mix sounds fine to me, might be a little fight between bass and kick but it's not real noticeable.
 
Victim of compression on the master bus. It all just kind of sounds on one level, there aren't many dynamics. This is something I still struggle with so don't feel bad. Just learn from it. I'm not saying all compression on the master bus is bad, but BE CAREFUL or the life of the song will just be strangled out of it. All of these: Compressors; Limiters; Maximizers - on a master bus, are usually, just a gimmick and should be applied to individual elements rather than on the master bus.

I'm not one to usually suggest a change ton an actual composition, but I'm just going to have to say it... This style of music requires change ups man. It just kinda roles at one pace and I knew what to expect. What I have found, is that you may not even need to do anything other than build elements over time. So instead of everything playing at once right from the start, or close to the start, build them until they finally reach that moment until they're all playing. And I realize you did this some, but just work on it and over time you will get better at it.

Refer to my signature before taking any of my advice! Nice work man, stick with it!

EDIT: Just saw where you said this, "And...aha I didn't master anything. I didn't really mix much either because I thought it sounded okay." Mastering is an art, but you can have a good song if you can mix properly. If it wasn't comrpessor/limiter on the master bus, then you really just need to work on the dynamics of each individual track. Try cutting everything under 100hz on EVERY track except the bass and see where that gets you to begin with.

TheLurker
 
Hey D-toks, i thought that the track was odd in that the low-mid instrument was carrying the lead. The freq's seemed unbalanced for most of the track - which was, as others wrote, one level the whole time (expected in this genre, save a few change ups here and there). It seemed to me that some higher frequency instruments would help fill the track out more. Chimes, as I'm sure you know, are popular in this genre. That midi-bass was just trying to wedge into this space there and it wasn't familiar to my ears to hear a lead occupying that space.
 
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