This week is a video (rather than a post) about EDM chord progressions, how they work, and how you can use them in your tracks.
You can check out the video here, and download the chord progression cheat sheet (that compliments the video) below. If you want more info on how to make chords, check out this post, this post, and this post:
Although it doesn’t sound like the most exciting topic, “gain staging” is one of the most overlooked, simple, and SUPER-IMPORTANT concepts of getting the best from your mix…
Once understood and implemented, it can take your mixes to the next level, giving them more clarity, punch and loudness.
It might sound like an ancient brotherhood of knights, but the “Circle of Fifths” is actually a really useful tool in music composition. If you want to quickly find which chords work together, or which notes to use, this little circular diagram can be your best friend…
What makes a great track stand out? Well, it’s a combination of many different elements, but one of the most important is the melody. Why? Because this is what people remember, hum, or sing.
It doesn’t matter whether there is a vocal or not….a decent melody will bring your song to life. In this post we’ll look at what makes a good melody, and how to write one in your DAW…
It doesn’t matter whether we make music, paint, write, sing, dance, act or take part in any other creative pursuit…we get stuck more often (and in more ways) than we like to admit! There are 4 popular creative myths that – once dispelled – can be overcome with a few mental hacks…
Personally, one of my biggest issues in the past has been trying to find the time to make music. I mean, some of the songs I’ve worked on have ended up taking over 40 hours…that’s a whole working week! It causes a horrible nauseous feeling in my belly, where I think I don’t have enough time in my life to make music – especially when I factor in everything else (day job, girlfriend, friends, family, exercise, sleep, etc.) – so I try not making music, then end up feeling like I’m not expressing myself creatively – and get depressed!
Imagine you could take any melody in your head, quickly translate it into your D.A.W (Digital Audio Workstation), then work out which chords, harmonies and bass notes will work with it and sound great. Having a basic knowledge of keys and scales (and how to use them) will allow you do to this.
If you know in which key you’re producing a song, you can use the notes you KNOW will sound good – without having to hit-and-miss it in the piano roll editor.
Whilst there are so many things to learn in the music production journey (and the journey never ends), applying any one of these 5 quick & easy tips will instantly take your EDM productions to the next level.
Give them a try and let me know how you get on in the comments section!
Learning how to make chords will help you QUICKLY take your compositions to the next level.
I don’t know about you, but I’ve often struggled to come up with original and soul-grabbing chords in my tracks. Sure, you can use ready-made loops and stick them together, or listen to (and copy) existing tracks you love, but having a basic grasp of how to put your OWN chords together from scratch opens up a whole new world of original possibilities…
In this post we’re going to delve into my top 30 techniques for mixing EDM – although really the principals apply to mixing any genre of music.
Mixing is the blending together of all the elements of a track to make it sound cohesive and balanced. It’s the phase in music production before mastering. There’s a lot to learn – and it takes practise – but with some fundamentals under your belt you’ll be crafting better mixes in no time. Here are some of the very best techniques I’ve picked up over the years…
Handy definitions of all the words, terms and phrases you need to know for producing electronic dance music (and other genres).
If I’ve missed anything or if anything is unclear, let me know in the comments section and I’ll add it in 🙂