Self imposed creative boundaries or limitations

The Lounge General Discussion
#21

Yeah me too. The first couple of times I used a sequencer on stage i really felt like a big cheat. The conservative rock guitarist in me hates sequencers :smiley:

On topic: Nothing helps me finish songs like a hard deadline. Otherwise I’ll just keep changing small stuff in the mix that no-one will ever hear, haha.

Besides the limitations of my instruments and machines I like to create limitations or rules for myself to help get more creative and find new ways to make music.
For the songs on my first release I had a few rules:
1) no snares
2) no hi-hats,
3) clean guitars only, no drive
4) no synths

That was 5 years ago and my newer work is filled with snares, hats and drive and I use more synths than guitar these days so maybe I’m compensating :wink:
Rules that I use nowadays are things like
Start the writing process with a drum pattern (I usually start with a guitar part, even though it may not even make the final mix)
Write a song in a weird time signature like 5/4 or 7/4
Write a song with a signature change like from 4/4 to 5/4
Use a maximum of 10 tracks to create a song

Reading the Making Music book from Ableton helped me a lot too: https://makingmusic.ableton.com/ Good stuff in there!

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#22

Limitations are great for creativity! Helps me learn my gear in and out. Lately I’ve been on this Electro / Acid music binge, so I’m forcing myself to create 303 / 101 style sounds on my BS 2 and Virus C, doing lightly low passed hazy super saw chords on my Reface CS, and focusing on my TT-606 primarily for the drums. Strictly 140+ bpm.

I’ll tell you, I’ve gotten much better at my acid line / patch programming and mixing these types of sounds together much easier. Also learning a lot about my gear. The limitations are great! I always say, less is more. Some of the best electronic music and traditional music imho, is pretty simple in it’s composition and sound design due to limitations.

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#23

Yeah, I’m all for constraints also. What I tend to do is for each release (album, ep, whatever…) I decide on a limited set of instruments/plugins/fx and then everything has to be done with them. Not only does it help with focus but it also means that I explore those pieces of gear much more deeply. I also think it tends to give the release a subtley more focused sonic character. Sometimes when I’m feeling old and curmudgeonly I think that part of the charm of older electronic music is that, for the most part, there is a tangible sound that comes from a smaller pool of gear.

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#24

I recently watched a video where people said that they sat and meditated for 10 minutes before hitting up their instruments and they were very pleased with the outcome.

This is also an approach that Minilogue do; check out their video filmed by Ableton on YouTube. There are two vids; one is them talking about the process and the other is them having a jam! It’s wonderful!

Edit-


The pre-jam mind set

The jam
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#25

I love that book. So much of the advice and suggestions inside can be applied to life in general. Beautiful object too - a joy to hold & read.

That really is wonderful. Thanks for sharing it!

#26

My self imposed creative boundaries are
Lack of talent
Lack of money to buy new toys
Lack of time (recently started job )

If only I bought another mono synth/ fx unit / drum machine , then I’d be fine.

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#27

Well, I couldn’t resist. I just picked up a Digitakt as a mate to the Digitone.

However, at first pass, I don’t think I’m going to lose focus with this device, considering the somewhat identical workflow as the Digitone. I’m still going to focus on synthesized sounds, but being able to pull back in a more dedicated drum machine/sampler without the brain-melt that I would be having while balancing a Digitone and something like my MPC Live …

Anyway, expanding back a little, but having a couple of months of pure “synth music” cleansing, plus adding a device that is truly well-mated to the Digitone seems like it will be a healthy addition instead of taking me back down that messier path I was on.

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#28

I’ve been thinking about picking up a Digitakt to couple with my Digitone as well. Although it would go against the idea of self imposed limitations for me. I feel I have enough gear as of now and also waiting on the Nanoloop Hardware to be shipped in the next few months upon completion. I don’t really have a good sampler though and it would be great to sample pianos, strings, choir voices, etc… and integrate that into my tunes. GAS!

How you liking the Digitakt so far?

P.S. also gassing for a TB-03 for my adventures in Electro / Acid.

#29

So far, so good. It’s exactly what I had expected and hoped for. I was aware of the DT strengths and limitations going in, so nothing is disappointing me. Mono samples only? Don’t care at the moment as long as I can pan parts. No deep slicing like the Octratrack? Not really what I personally need for live performance in a focused sampler/drum machine.

I am pleased to confirm that clarity and punch present in the Digitone is also there in the Digitakt.

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#30

I just don’t turn everything on sometimes. Just turn one instrument on and only work on that machine. If I eventually feel like I need something else then I turn on that device and begin to work it into what I’m doing. A midi splitter (vs daisy chaining) helps here and was one of those didn’t think I needed it but now seems essential devices.

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#31

I’m mainly a guitarist, and I started using and learning other gear so I could make entire songs without relying on loops.

I find if I try to do more than one thing at a time, though, I quickly get overwhelmed and frustrated. I feel like I’m just trying to get things to work together.

Now, I use one box at a time. Then I can get lost in making music, not in connecting boxes together. I also set aside time to do things like twiddle presets, or do sound design, or chop up samples. Those are creative work, but they’re not compatible with composition or improvisation, not for me anyway.

Currently I’m using an OP-Z to make a song. I asked a friend, who is a poet, to send me a poem exactly 12 seconds long, so I could chop it up in the OP-Z’s drum sampler. The idea is to go as far as I can in the OP-Z. My friend also loved the 12-second limit.

Limitations are great for the creative mind, because we get lost figuring out how to get around them, and then, almost without noticing, we’ve created something interesting.

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#32

The other way around works also quite good: getting yourself REALLY angry and then letting it out in the form of some tunes.

Works best with instruments you’ll need to hit for sounds, of course … :wink:

#33

Here’s a challenge.

Only work with all audio set to reverse , finish track , then play it forwards.
Or do the opposite

I often see releases flagged as ‘never heard before tracks’.
Why not make a track with all volumes set to zero , so no one has actually heard it (inc the artist/composer) until it hits a streaming service.

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#34

I’ve edited tracks onscreen without listening to them while cutting the samples using a mouse, then pasted them in places like look like they might fit; it often works, especially for long-form drones and suchlike.

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