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Messages - Lydian

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451
WIPs / Heatbeat - Lights Up Remake (4 bars) Opinions Wanted
« on: February 12, 2016, 11:23:10 am »
Hey guys. I'm trying to do a lights up remake for these 4 bars but my version sounds different. Can I get another set of ears on this to help figure out what my version is missing in comparison to the original?

The first four bars are the original while the second four bars are my version.

https://soundcloud.com/dannystestaccount/lights-up-remake :-\


452
Inspiration/Creativity/Motivation / Re: How to deal with low confidence?
« on: February 12, 2016, 09:18:30 am »
When you say what you'd like your production to become are you referring to what genre you'd like to go into?

You have to ask yourself whether the source of your low confidence in production is due to your music not following your tastes or whether it's because your afraid that nobody else will like it because it's to different.

If you're making music that is really different from anything else out there then you should be even more proud of it. Music that doesn't sound like anyone else has a tendency to attract its own audience in the same way that introducing a new product to a market allows a company to capitalize on its first mover advantage.

Look at madeon. When he started making his complextro style type of music I remember reading somewhere that he was told there was no market for it and it wouldn't be successful. Now everyone is trying to copy him with that nu-disco type of sound. Same goes for Aphex Twin. His music is incredibly different and unique and I'm sure he wouldn't have been able to release his music if he was always concerned about whether his music had commercial appeal or not.

I don't know whether that's what the source is considering I'm just making assumptions but if you could give CBT then it may help you out. Give it a shot and if it's not for you just throw it out like everything else.

EDIT: I forgot to include that I wasn't aware that you were in this for 8 years.

If that's the case then find something else to replace the negative thought with. Sure maybe you've been in this for 8 years but like you said isn't your old stuff terrible in comparison to your recent stuff? That's because you've been getting better dude! You've been making progress! You should seriously be proud and treat yourself out to dinner somewhere for your hard work. You've got to be doing something right if your new music is closer to your taste than your older stuff.

453
Composition/Arrangement/Theory / Re: Best Way to learn music theory online?
« on: February 12, 2016, 08:14:17 am »
If you want all the berklee harmony & music theory pdfs PM me and I'll send them to you. I studied them back when I was 13 and trying to be Steve Vai. Keep in mind they're really boring and can be confusing at times. It's best to use them to get familiar with the different theory topics out there and then use youtube to help clarify on them with better teachers & explanations.

454
Inspiration/Creativity/Motivation / Re: How to deal with low confidnce?
« on: February 12, 2016, 07:59:25 am »
We all go through this. What helped me is studying cognitive behavioral therapy or CBT. Cognitive behavioral therapy is also known as talk therapy and it's one of the primary tools that therapists use to talk their patients out of depression. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying you're depressed or anything but it really helps deal with negative self talk. Here's a pdf of the book I found online.

http://islamiconlineuniversity.com/counseling/resources/David%20Burns%20-%20Feeling%20Good.pdf

The entire basis of CBT is that the way we think determines the way we feel and if we can change the way we think then we can change what we're feeling. Instead of trying to "ignore" or "silence"your thoughts like a zen buddhist you should try to replace them with thoughts that are much more productive to your well being. Keep in mind... you have to actually believe in the new thought. You can't just tell yourself "The music that I'm making is the best thing I've ever heard!" because you won't believe it unless it really is that good.

For example, lets say you were feeling doubtful about some piece of music. You might be thinking to yourself "It doesn't sound as good as X artists track and I'll never be able to be as good as them." With CBT you write the thought down on a piece of paper and then you evaluate the truth of what you're saying. Maybe it doesn't sound as good as X artists track but does that necessarily mean that you'll never be as good as them? So instead you replace the old thought with something like this...

"It's true that my music doesn't sound as good as X artists track but that doesn't mean that I'll NEVER be as good as them. They've been producing for a decade while I've only been at this for a few years. If I keep on practicing everyday then I'll keep getting better and one day I'll be just as good as "X" artist. Now why don't I try working on some sound design/mixing etc..."

I'm not saying to lie to yourself. If your music doesn't sound as good as you want it to sound then you need to be honest with yourself. That's the only way you get better. Yes your music may sound off to you now the question is "why?". What is it about your music that doesn't sound as good as "X" artist? Take it as an opportunity to learn and grow! Is it because the chord progression is to cliche? Does something in the mix just sound off? Keep on experimenting until you figure out why things sound like crap and then learn from it!

My music sounded like crap 2 years ago and to this day I still think that it sounds like crap in comparison to my heroes. However, compared to the stuff I was making 2 years ago I'm LIGHTYEARS better than I was then. The only way I'm able to get better is by trusting my intuition when things sound like crap and not trying to lie to myself by saying that things actually sound good. Then I mess around with things until I can get things to sound good and my mixes improve.

455
Inspiration/Creativity/Motivation / Re: What Makes Music Worth Your Time?
« on: February 12, 2016, 07:34:18 am »
Quote from: Nadav on February 12, 2016, 01:53:50 am
Five of my immediate blood relatives are professional musicians or artists, and another two are serious amateurs with day jobs. (I worked in the film industry for 7 years, though I tended to stick to more technical work.) So while I can’t speak personally on what being a professional artist/musician is like, I do have a solid “backstage” perspective.

It seems like art/music has its rewarding moments, and it’s nice to be able to sleep in every day and not have to dress up basically ever. And of course there’s a lot of prestige and glamor associated with success in art or music—if you’re lucky enough to attain it.

But other than that, I don’t see any advantages to being a professional artist over having any other job where you love what you do, and a lot of those other jobs offer HMOs, 401Ks, and (most importantly) regular hours.

My guess is that most musicians who have both headlined a festival AND gotten married and had kids would say this: both experiences are incredible, but if you only get to pick one, get married and have kids. You can make music until the day you die, but getting married and having kids gets harder every day past sometime in your mid/late 20s, especially for women.

As someone who is married and a parent, I’d say that the pressure society puts on you to get married and have kids is a GOOD THING. Most people agree that starting a family is the most rewarding thing they’ve ever done, even if they also have successful careers doing something they love. That’s certainly the case for me.

So my advice is this:

1. If you want to be a professional musician, think real hard about the reality of what that would mean and why you want it. Don’t sugar-coat it: not all of it’s as glamorous as it seems. If you do this, and still REALLY want that life, then go for it 100%. Don’t let anything get in your way. Live and breathe music and everything that goes with it. Emulate the success of others. If at any point you realize you’re not that talented, that’s when you need to start working twice as hard. You should basically only stop doing music to eat or sleep. You should be composing melodies while you take a crap or mow your lawn. Also, forget about ever having kids or a wife or a family—if it happens later, great, but you might as well assume it won’t. (You don’t have to do all this in most other careers, but this is just the way working in any media field is.)

2. If you do want a spouse and kids and a family, do that as soon as possible. Figure out a way to provide for them, and bit by bit nudge over to a way of providing for them that you also like. (Or if you’re the mom, make sure you marry someone who can provide for you if you decide to focus on being a mom full-time. A lot of women end up deciding to do this even if they didn’t think they would at first.) The thing you end up doing doesn’t have to be what you always dreamed of since you were little, but eventually you’ll find something that suits your skills and personality, and you’ll discover what’s interesting about it and you’ll become really good at it. You’ll develop a career and then, as worrying about money becomes a thing of the past, you’ll be able to free up some time and resources to have fun making music at night and on the weekends. It doesn’t sound like much, but it’s actually plenty of time and it’s a whole lot of fun. Share the music you make with your friends, or put it online and enjoy the feedback you get. Plus you’ll have the incomparable experience of having kids and a spouse who loves you. I know it sounds very “ordinary” but this is actually an extremely rewarding way to live—that’s why so many people do it.

I found your post really valuable. I can't thank you enough. It's exactly what I needed to hear at this point of my life. What you said about marriage getting harder the older you get while music lasting forever made a lot of sense to me. The older I get the more I realize that the life of a musician truly isn't as glamorous as it appears. The media glamorizes artists with videos of screaming fans and everlasting money but that's only if you're in the top 1%. The rest of us sadly don't share a similar fate. The realities of being a touring artist would make being a husband or father extremely difficult.

I can't say that I've made my decision but I'll take things one step at a time and come back to this post for some clarity. Thanks once again.

456
Inspiration/Creativity/Motivation / Re: What Makes Music Worth Your Time?
« on: February 11, 2016, 08:36:57 pm »
Quote from: Bertie South on February 11, 2016, 01:25:14 pm
Quote from: Lydian on February 11, 2016, 04:30:14 am

there is so much pressure from society to focus on a career, get married, and have kids.

I sometimes wonder about this. I've felt the same way at times, but why? A society isn't a parent that can give you disapproving looks for not wanting to be a lawyer or a doctor, so who or what is really doing the pressuring?

The best answer I can come up with is that really we do it to ourselves. We all know what our society's norms are because they make themselves obvious in any number of ways, and we can't help but absorb them. But the feeling that we have to abide by them is completely within our control.

Quote from: Lydian on February 11, 2016, 04:30:14 am

I've reached a point where I've come too far and given up too much to stop writing music.

Sunk cost fallacy. If you're not finding it fulfilling, does it really make sense to give up even more of your time to it, or would you be cutting your losses?

Of course nobody wants to advocate 'giving up'. But maybe take a break from it for a while. A few months, maybe even a year or more. See if something else fills the space or you find you have more time for other things you find fulfilling. Or maybe you find you miss it and end up coming back to it, who knows ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

This makes a lot of sense to me. I seem to be putting unnecessary pressure on myself that doesn't really exist and it's killing the production process for me.

As far as sunk cost fallacy goes the main reason why I don't quit is because without music I would be seriously bored... There would be nothing else left for me to do really. I'm not going to pretend like making music has always been a story of flowers and rainbows. There's always been a 50/50 divide of enjoyment and frustration. Isn't that just the way it goes though? For everyone? Whenever you really care about something in my experience it's going to frustrate from time to time. It's like having kids... At least to me.

Quote from: Marrow Machines on February 11, 2016, 01:14:05 pm
Something to consider

It's worth my time because i like to do it, and I get better at it. Would i like to get paid a livable wage making music? sure. But, as a touring musician (nothing big), I've come to realize that being on the road kinda sucks, and you need stable people around you to make it happen.

I couldn't quite fit in with the dead lines that might have happen if i were to do this professionally. So I keep it as a very serious hobby. If and when the time comes for me to change my career path, I'll be ready. But, I just have to make sure I take care of my initial life investment first before I would have to entertain the thought further outside of just making siqq beats.

Interesting perspective. I found your link to be a good read. Thanks for that. Even though you say you like to do it have there have been times when you've gotten any sort of creative burnout?

Quote from: Arktopolis on February 11, 2016, 11:31:16 am
Is it really productive to think of life as a series of sacrifices? You have limited time at your disposal, so you have to choose what you do with it. Might as well be something you have fun doing.

Quote from: Lydian on February 11, 2016, 04:30:14 am
I've reached a point where I've come too far and given up too much to stop writing music. However I feel like I'm having somewhat of a quarter life crisis when it comes to thinking about whether all that time was worth it considering the things I had to give up because of it. I'm at a point where my music isn't good enough to be profitable and yet I've already dedicated so much time to the art.

This line of thinking gets you nowhere. If you don't like writing music, why would you insist on wasting MORE of your life to that?

If you accept music as a hobby, then you really shouldn't stress too much about this. Take a break if you feel like it, and just continue to improve yourself. What is it about Madeon's music that makes it better than yours? Whatever it is, work on that. And don't be afraid of having that nine-to-five job; Einstein did his most important research while he was working in a patent office.

If you do want to make a career out of music, you need a realistic plan for how to make money. It's bound to cause suffering if you just hope that one day you will wake up a rock star.


Hey arktopolis. It's not that I don't like writing music. Hearing a good new song is one of the best feelings in the world to me. It's just that the older I get the harder it becomes for me write music because of the obvious time struggles that come with having to make a living. (Money)

It's more opportunity cost than anything. Looking at all my other friends back from high school maybe this really was the right decision. At least I graduated extremely knowledgable about a specific subject. I may have had to miss out on some things but maybe this level of skill I've attained actually makes up for it. It's going to take a few more years of practice until I'm able to close that gap of doubt completely. If I'm one day capable of producing tracks likes my heroes then I'll have no regrets.

457
Inspiration/Creativity/Motivation / Re: What Makes Music Worth Your Time?
« on: February 11, 2016, 09:44:46 am »
Quote from: KAB on February 11, 2016, 08:50:11 am
Hey man, I'm not trying to put you down, I'm just trying to help you realize that none of this will come easy. I work a minimum wage job to pay my bills and soon want to get another job but I'm doing the second job for my music, I'm prepared to sleep 2, 3 hours a night to help pay for my music, equipment, I'm going to libraries, buying books to learn etc.

Listen man, the knowledge you've attained sounds like you haven't been using to it's full extent, sounds like you're afraid to fail, but you can't be, you have to come into this being prepared to fail and NOT be afraid to fail.
Experiment more, even if it sounds like shit push through it man, finish it, and go back & see what you could of done better & fix it, while reviewing your work you'll realize so much more you could of done & then you will go back to it and add more you'll get inspired, thus you will improve more & more
Learning is one thing but producing is a totally different beast man. That's why this forum is here to help people like you & I achieve our dreams, some people cared enough to create this for us and many other forums, so lets put in the work, & also search on our own

"You got to keep your ideals high, you got to know, that the sky belongs to no one" amazing verse from Above & Beyond that I believe fits here perfectly.

Don't worry about it dude. I know you're just trying to help. It's only the "smartass" attitude of certain people offering their "help" that annoys me. I admire your dedication. I also work at a minimum wage job just like you while going to school full-time so I definitely know that grind. If you ever need any books just hit me up and I'd be happy to help you out.

Quote from: ZAU on February 11, 2016, 09:14:25 am
Quote from: KAB on February 11, 2016, 08:50:11 am
I'm just trying to help you realize that none of this will come easy. I work a minimum wage job to pay my bills and soon want to get another job but I'm doing the second job for my music, I'm prepared to sleep 2, 3 hours a night to help pay for my music, equipment, I'm going to libraries, buying books to learn etc.

Listen man, the knowledge you've attained sounds like you haven't been using to it's full extent, sounds like you're afraid to fail, but you can't be, you have to come into this being prepared to fail and NOT be afraid to fail.
Experiment more, even if it sounds like shit push through it man, finish it, and go back & see what you could of done better & fix it, while reviewing your work you'll realize so much more you could of done & then you will go back to it and add more you'll get inspired, thus you will improve more & more
Learning is one thing but producing is a totally different beast man. That's why this forum is here to help people like you & I achieve our dreams, some people cared enough to create this for us and many other forums, so lets put in the work, & also search on our own.

This guy totally gets it.

Quote from: Lydian on February 11, 2016, 08:50:11 am
Do I seriously bother you that much that you need to stalk my profile and throw self help books at me?;D
Yes, it does bother me that you seem to basically ask the same questions over and over again, like a broken record. That book is actually really good. I only bought it because Morgan Page recommended it and I'm really glad I read it. But I was right though, you don't want it enough. You won't even admit to the problem, that you're afraid of failing as KAB mentioned, and you turn away any gesture of help. You just want people to tell you the things you want to hear. Well, life just doesn't work like that. Life is so much more cruel than that.

Quote from: Lydian on February 11, 2016, 08:50:11 am
Just because you're good enough to make a living off of writing music doesn't mean the rest of us on this forum can be as pro as you.
The only reason why I brought the thing about me doing music for a living was to make a point; that I have been through what you're going through but yet I chose to fight back and push through. Anybody can achieve anything, even you and everybody else on the forum. Anybody can be a pro. But it takes a lot of work and sacrifice, just like with anything else. And not only is it going to take time, you gotta be in a certain mindset as well.. letting go of the fear of failure. In fact, I've seen a few pros on this forum; Mat Zo, Matt Lange, etc.. and they will all tell you the same thing.

I think I've invested more time than I should have on trying to give you advice so I'm going to stop now. So Lydian, good luck in achieving your dreams.

Look dude... Relax. I'll give the book a read.



I get it. Life is cruel. We're all gonna die within the next 60 years. Cry me a river build a bridge and get over it.

All I was asking is "what makes music worth it to you?" I don't know what you thought I was asking... but I'm pretty sure I've only asked this question once.

You act like it's a crime to be afraid of failure. At least I embrace my fear and do it anyways instead of trying to pretend like I'm some sort of god of war without a fight or flight system.

EDIT: Nice quote dude. This book is giving me the feels trip.

"The artist must be like that Marine. He has to know how to be miserable. He has to love being miserable. He has to take pride in being more miserable than any soldier or swabbie or jet jockey. Because this is war, baby. And war is hell."

458
Inspiration/Creativity/Motivation / Re: What Makes Music Worth Your Time?
« on: February 11, 2016, 08:29:10 am »
I
Quote from: ZAU on February 11, 2016, 08:06:52 am
Quote from: Lydian on February 11, 2016, 07:16:48 am
The ultimate goal would be able to make a living off of writing music that I'm proud of. It's music that I'm TRYING to be proud of but can't because I'm far to critical of my own work.
Well, take it from a person who actually does make a living off of writing music.. your first step would be to get over yourself.

Try picking up this book: http://www.amazon.com/The-War-Art-Steven-Pressfield-ebook/dp/B007A4SDCG It's funny because in this book the author actually describes people just like you. Check out the book, seriously. You seem to have a lot of inner issues, and this book might help you. I've read your other posts too.. you are the same guy who was asking about whether it's okay to force yourself to produce, and you also started the 'Writing Faster and Finishing Songs' thread. I wonder... do you have any fun at all when you produce music?

From your previous posts, it sounds like you've only completed 'a few songs'. While you might have some knowledge about production in general, all of this doesn't really matter when you haven't made a full track. Making a full track is a lot harder than mixing something or making some nice bass growls. It is it's own art form. How do you think Madeon got so good? He says it himself in some AMA that his number goes into the hundreds/thousands.

Dude... Relax. Do I seriously bother you that much that you need to stalk my profile and throw self help books at me?  ;D

Just because you're good enough to make a living off of writing music doesn't mean the rest of us on this forum can be as pro as you.

459
Inspiration/Creativity/Motivation / Re: What Makes Music Worth Your Time?
« on: February 11, 2016, 07:42:38 am »
Quote from: FarleyCZ on February 11, 2016, 07:11:01 am

I can totally understand you. ...having similar feelings a lot lately. Life just passes by too quick, while not so much happens in that producer hobby I live by.

KAB's post is amazing, though, especially the Madeon quote. Even those who seem like having everything worked out greatly seem to struggle a lot.

I'm happy to hear that someone actually understands. I feel like there is so much that needs to be given up in order to become great at writing music simply because of the amount of time and effort it takes.

460
Composition/Arrangement/Theory / Re: Best Way to learn music theory online?
« on: February 11, 2016, 07:34:34 am »
Youtube, PDF's, Forums, random webpages.

Never underestimate the help that you can get from people on forums. People can be nicer than you think. Most advanced theory topics like counterpoint & part writing are too hard to grasp alone without the help of a teacher. The guys off of the musicians talk forum from ultimate guitar taught me a lot when it came to that.

461
Inspiration/Creativity/Motivation / Re: What Makes Music Worth Your Time?
« on: February 11, 2016, 07:16:48 am »
Quote from: RxD on February 11, 2016, 04:50:37 am
Why dont you believe in urself? just because its getting a little tough you're going to start doubting urself?  this world is full of people who give up be one of the very few who doesnt .understand that in order for you to have anything of great value you must suffer and endore

It's just real hard to listen to guys like Madeon, Seven Lions, and Virtual Riot and then listen to my own music. How can you expect someone to not doubt themselves when they're going up against these guys? You can understand that can't you? Don't get me wrong I know that these things take time but if you enjoy what you do should there really be any sort of suffering involved? It's not that I'm suffering but I just feel regret because I've spent all this time on music without much to show for it because none of my tracks sound professional enough yet to release.

Quote from: KAB on February 11, 2016, 05:10:30 am
Exactly, what do you as of right now, this moment of your life you hobby/career do feel like you've "mastered" because
1.)you never really master anything in art there is always much more to learn (don't mean this in a bad way, trying to motivate you)

How much work have you put in theory & fundamentals?
Look back at your work, listen to it, song structure wise harmony wise, melody wise. Do you think you put in 100%? Ddid you rush your tracks just to finish them?
A lot of projects, I've read from guys like madeon and stuff say they work on 1 track example Technicolor I'll post the link at the bottom tho I'm sure you've already heard it took him 7 months I believe he said. He would be on and off it changed various times

https://soundcloud.com/madeon/technicolor-original

GQ interview
Madeon quote follows
Quote
I've been in the studio for three months and written a bunch of songs and thought, "You know what? Not good enough." I thought I'd take three months off from touring - which is a big deal as touring is profitable - but I need some level of productivity. So I went to the studio to create. But I wasn't [thinking], "I need five new singles for the next 12 months." It was rather, "Let's study movie scores. Let's see what that is about." I'm glad I have this knowledge as now I have something else I can do. You can either cultivate spontaneity or you can be exhaustive in your knowledge and capacity. I'm more towards the latter. You know, my music sounds happy, but it's a painful process and I take it quite seriously. I do realise that if I keep on with this attitude forever - of scrapping songs and taking six months to finish a record - I'll pretty much have an album in 2035.


Here's a thread started by madeon showing off his struggle & tips

https://www.reddit.com/r/edmproduction/comments/186kli/im_madeon_lets_talk_production/

You're thinking of this (the whole music thing as money) it shouldn't be about money while everyone here wants that, priority number one should be about what it started with Music and should in with music

There's a quote in Kill The Noises song, I'll link the bottom with the song the quote is in the song & hope it makes you not give up I'll quote it as well

"You got to reevaluate you perspective & you priorities, because, you started doing this because it was fucking fun, it has to be fun, otherwise, you're just torturing yourself you know, you're just stuck inside you own fucking head"

https://soundcloud.com/killthenoise/all-in-my-head-feat-awolnation

I find inspiration in music, anime, other peoples work, score, films
Music isn't just about understanding music in an album or ep, it's about understanding sound not just in music, but in film, IRL event's, film piece together how a song in a film or in my case anime makes you come to tears. Evaluate it as sound, a person or being that provides support in an intangible way it moves everyone because someone took the time & learn to struggle to provide that feeling in you.

But as a guy who started in high school now been producing for 2 and a half years, 20, still a lot to learn, I have dropped out of college for this so I can somewhat understand what you're going through but i'm having fun with this, I love this in the end, I'd rather die doing what I love than living & working in a office. The world needs more creative people and less men with black and white shirts and black neck chokers around their necks who kill imagination. That's all I can say, hope it helped

Btw this was madeon now he was 10 I think, but still it took I'm 10 years to get where he is now. link in the bottom
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=424340&content=widgets


I'm not trying to say I've mastered anything... If anything I've got a long way to go. I've put in more work in my fundamentals and theory than anything else. Yet producing doesn't get any less challenging. The only reason why I bring up money is because in order for me to have the time to keep making music I need money to pay for bills. That money has to come from somewhere and if it isn't gonna be music then It's gonna be hard finding the time to dedicate the "7months" on producing one track. I'll be working at some office job 40 hours a week instead which will make it harder to dedicate the time necessary to produce.

I found the deamon link entertaining. Thanks for that.

Quote from: vinceasot on February 11, 2016, 06:11:52 am
c'mon dude, its okay to be emotional but you cant be too emotional in this world, no one cares about your life stories cause you have to be strong in the music business

what are your ambitions man?

do you want to make music for fun? or to go to reach the top?

it is sacrifice to get to anywhere in this world, like being a doctor etc you must give to get cause nothing is free
this means you have to put in the hours to develop your craft

most people in this world are lazy and wont put in the madness hours to get where they want, these people expect a big result and end up short, I'm talking about anybody really, not just music

you have to believe in your game and fight for what you want in this world, that is for any career


The ultimate goal would be able to make a living off of writing music that I'm proud of. The music I'm writing now isn't music I'm proud of. It's music that I'm TRYING to be proud of but can't because I'm far to critical of my own work. Thanks for not getting all butthurt over the post like some other people. Seriously...

Quote from: ZAU on February 11, 2016, 06:12:36 am
Quote from: Lydian on February 11, 2016, 04:30:14 am
Hey guys. It's been 6 years and a half since I've gotten into music as a hobby. I started off with guitar and then expanded to bass, piano, production, engineering, sound design, DJing, vocals, and drums. I'm at a point where my music isn't good enough to be profitable and yet I've already dedicated so much time to the art.
Ok, in the past 6 years, how many tracks have you finished? The time you've spent doing this is hardly as important compared to the amount of tracks you've finished within that time frame.

Quote from: Lydian on February 11, 2016, 04:30:14 am
The life of any artist is tough and requires lots of sacrifice. It seems like the only way to make a decent living nowadays as an artist is through touring and touring makes it difficult to have a relationship according to what I've heard. Aside from that I've heard its even harder to make decent money in the industry.
So you're looking at music making solely from a money-making point of view... hmm...

Quote from: Lydian on February 11, 2016, 04:30:14 am
What makes it worth it to you?

You know what? I actually don't ever ask myself questions like that. The option of doing anything else has really never come into play.

Quote from: Lydian on February 11, 2016, 04:30:14 am
I've reached a point where I've come too far and given up too much to stop writing music. However I feel like I'm having somewhat of a quarter life crisis when it comes to thinking about whether all that time was worth it considering the things I had to give up because of it.
Let me tell you.... 6 years might seem like a long time to you, but it really isn't. True story. I have a friend who grew up playing keyboards, was in a signed 80's synth pop band, got into producing and engineering after the band disbanded, owned and ran a large studio for 10 years . And then the economy hit and had to shut down his studio. He always had a background in graphic design so he decided that he wanted to focus on that and now has a very good job in that field. He earns a very nice pay check every month and has even worked with Coldplay (he did some of their graphics for their live shows), Jay-Z and Usher. You say you have invested a lot of time and effort... what about my friend then? 10 years running a studio? 10 years mixing and producing? What about the 10 years of classical piano training? Suddenly the 6 years you mentioned now seems quite minuscule in comparison.

Quote from: Lydian on February 11, 2016, 04:30:14 am
It feels like I live in a different world from everyone else around me. People don't understand how I can spend so much time on music and there is so much pressure from society to focus on a career, get married, and have kids. The only people who I can really have a good conversation with are other musicians/producers because they're the only ones who understand what I'm doing. Does anyone else feel the same way?
I feel that to this day, people still do not get me, why I do the things I do, or the choices I make. A producer's life (unless you have a collab partner) is quite a solitary one. It's different when you play in a band.. you have band members and you play music with other people. But as a producer, you're doing almost everything on your own. I can say one thing though. I was blessed with parents who were pretty understanding and let me go to music school, do music professionally, etc.. If you're parents aren't as understanding, then I don't know what else to say. At the end of the day, YOU make the choice of whether to give in to the pressures of "society" or not.

Actually, the title of this post and what you wrote don't really connect with one another to be honest. Again, I think it's really strange to ask a question like this.

At the end of the day, you either do it or you don't. Music doesn't own you anything, it never will.

When talking about ambitions/goals, it always depends on how badly you want it. It doesn't sound like you want it enough.

Yeah, well... you know that's just like your uhh... opinion man

462
Inspiration/Creativity/Motivation / What Makes Music Worth Your Time?
« on: February 11, 2016, 04:30:14 am »
Hey guys. It's been 6 years and a half since I've gotten into music as a hobby. I started off with guitar and then expanded to bass, piano, production, engineering, sound design, DJing, vocals, and drums.

In highschool I remember not really fitting in with anyone because although music was my forte I didn't play a band instrument so I didn't even qualify as a band geek. All my free time had gone to music and I've had to sacrifice so many things in order to get decent because of it. I was never good at sports, making friends, or anything else.

Basically in order to get good in this field it takes a really long time. Sometimes as producers we spend hours just to write 1 minute of music. As instrumentalists sometimes it takes dozens of hours just to be able to master a piece of music and perform it with confidence. All these hours we dedicate to our craft and people may never care about our music. Many people will never give it a listen. More people will just skim through it and move on to the next track.

The life of any artist is tough and requires lots of sacrifice. What makes it worth it to you? It seems like the only way to make a decent living nowadays as an artist is through touring and touring makes it difficult to have a relationship according to what I've heard. Aside from that I've heard its even harder to make decent money in the industry.

I've reached a point where I've come too far and given up too much to stop writing music. However I feel like I'm having somewhat of a quarter life crisis when it comes to thinking about whether all that time was worth it considering the things I had to give up because of it. I'm at a point where my music isn't good enough to be profitable and yet I've already dedicated so much time to the art.

It feels like I live in a different world from everyone else around me. People don't understand how I can spend so much time on music and there is so much pressure from society to focus on a career, get married, and have kids. The only people who I can really have a good conversation with are other musicians/producers because they're the only ones who understand what I'm doing.

Does anyone else feel the same way?


463
Composition/Arrangement/Theory / Re: No Music Background...Thoughts?
« on: February 04, 2016, 08:09:26 pm »
Music theory doesn't put yourself into a box. You put yourself into a box. Learning music theory helps you put yourself OUTSIDE of the box. If you can recognize which chord progressions are cliche and overused then it's easier to avoid them within your own music.

Learn your scales, chords, and arpeggios then forget all that shit and just play.

464
Inspiration/Creativity/Motivation / Re: what are non electronoc music you listen to ?
« on: February 03, 2016, 05:10:33 am »
Sithu Aye
Plini
Periphery
Bulb
Avenged Sevenfold
Animals As Leaders
Bullet For My Valentine
Kiko Loureiro
Joe Hisaishi
Nobuo Uematsu
Yoko Shimomura
The Used
Silverstein
Scary Kids Scaring Kids
Circa Survive
Nujabes
Galneryus
Escape The Fate
Kendrick Lamar

465
Inspiration/Creativity/Motivation / Re: Forcing Yourself To Produce
« on: January 28, 2016, 08:46:36 am »
I agree that breaks are definitely needed from time to time. I know it's not gonna kill me if I don't produce tonight but at what point does forcing yourself to produce become negative?

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