Literally every time I make a track, you just go with the flow until it feels right to you and then start thinking about if it’s worth ‘perfecting’ it.
My rule of thumb is: if I get lost on a track for longer than 30 minutes I take what I like from it and delete the rest and start over with new melodies and whatnot.
Once I’ve reached about 4/5 minutes I’ll go back to the start and do more detailed composition stuff and flesh it out.
In regards to synthesis, yeah pretty much know what I’m doing, but I spice it up with other more exotic elements to discover new things within the boundaries I set. That keeps a healthy balance between creativity and productivity.
I think the artist should always try to be aware of the unknown while also aiming for better control over what is known. Skill and instinct. Order and chaos.
I also think always buying new gear to get inspired is a bit of a lazy solution. I do get it, though, playing with a new toy is fun! But in the end the aspect of what makes it really exciting is your own beginner’s mind.
I don’t know what the percentage for me would be. Maybe 50/50. But then again, sometimes just 2% of chaos in the right place is enough to lead the whole ship into unknown waters.
Also want to note that YouTube had killed a lot of creativity because there’s information on everything from multiple sources that tell you to use x in a certain way.
Just play and don’t worry about what others might think. Abuse compressors, eq’s and whatever you have and don’t take advice from others unless they are with you in the studio / have listened to your track and know which direction you want to go.
Yeah, it’s silly. Yet, a lot of people do it because it gives you the beginners mind experience. Thom Yorke also talked about that in that clip someone posted above. I was actually surprised he has this approach to electronic instruments. Maybe he was just bullshitting.
that could be part of gas, sorry if this has already been alluded to, but almost every time i get some new gear by purchase or exchange or borrowing or whatever i always make some new fucked up shit on it and think i have the gift again
half the time but the happy accidents lead to understanding and fun! Heck when I started, I had zero idea what an LFO versus a VCA was! At least now I have basic concept of how to patch VCA, filter, VCO and so forth, that leads to easier time with regular hardware synths! DAW is the bane of my existence as is studio mixing and mastering.