| Listen. This is vitally important. If you do not listen then | | | | day. When you come back to your work you will be |
| your track will be very poor indeed. Listening is what | | | | refreshed, your ears will be willing to take a pounding |
| most musicians have forgot to do and that is why we | | | | and you will listen to your music differently, tagging |
| do not hear from them again. They have lost their | | | | pieces that don't fit, sounding strange or having a |
| roots, what ultimately made them famous. Trying to | | | | better idea to implement.Listen to the worst music. |
| move away from your group roots is very risky. The | | | | Now this isn't an exercise of laughing at poor techno, |
| Prodigy made fantastic rave and deep techno, then | | | | but it is to train you to what is poor and what is good. |
| starting to go into a rock phase. It didn't work out too | | | | For an example, if I sat in any Ferarri I would think it is |
| well, now they are trying to get back into their old | | | | pretty cool, but top motor journalists would always give |
| territory but its hard. Their fan-base has shrunk as new | | | | a downside, will always compare it to something else. |
| groups have come up. The Prodigy are now releasing | | | | Why? Because they have sat in poor cars and they |
| their classic hits to try and re-energise themselves to | | | | have sat in the best, now they have a scale to use to |
| grab back their old fans, telling them "remember this, | | | | judge any car. This is what you need to do. How do |
| you liked it and now we are going to do the | | | | you know a good song is a good song? Subliminaly |
| same".Alot of money spent, alot of marketing time | | | | you cross-reference it with something poor. But |
| used. With example 2, Elton John has constantly | | | | instead of doing it in the back of your mind, dig out the |
| chirped out piano tunes for along time now, always | | | | poor songs and (unfortunatley) listen to them. Another |
| variation on the same theme and he is still lasting the | | | | example. I have seen on some websites they give |
| time.Listening to your audience, your dedicated | | | | away cassettes of their work. I know that this is poor |
| audience (that will buy from you regularly) is the life-line | | | | practise because I have seen MP3s being offered for |
| to your selling. Go off-track and some will not like it but | | | | download (quicker, free and better quality).Listen to |
| then again you might attract some new customers. | | | | other styles. This may be tringgering the "what is he |
| For me, I would stick to what you know, you are good | | | | talking about" response, but hold with me. On my site I |
| at it so why change? Sure re-invent yourself or adapt | | | | have demonstrated a fundamental fact through alot of |
| to the ever changing music market, but never change | | | | top techno acts. They all have elements of different |
| style. Case in point. Kyle, pop queen and the lady who | | | | styles interwound within their own. For example, The |
| brought us the Locomotion and I should Be So Lucky. | | | | Shamen and The Prodigy have most noticable rock |
| But instead of keeping with cheesy pop she has | | | | influences. The great thing about rock is that there is |
| slowly re-invented herself- pinnicling at Can't Get Your | | | | only a few things that you can do with an electic guitar. |
| Out Of My Head. Same pop, but with 21st Century | | | | So their tracks have to be really catchy, employing |
| twist.Listening also means you should listen to other | | | | good lyrics, cool bass and hookable leads. It is no |
| tracks, go to concerts, clubs, wherever they play your | | | | wonder then that other artists from other styles look |
| music. DJs are always, and have to be, up-to-date with | | | | to rock as an influence. If I was into ambient music, I |
| "whats hot and whats not". They listen to their | | | | would listen to classical music for inspiration. Both are |
| audience, and they know sure well that if they get it | | | | similar to each other in that they have long sweeps |
| wrong they either won't work again or they will get | | | | and can go on for a while but still sound fresh, evolving, |
| booed at!Listen to other peoples comments. I had a | | | | and can still use hooks. Classical music has been an |
| real hard time listening to other people rip my music | | | | influence for William Orbit (helped Madonna with her |
| apart but I realised it was for the best. You must make | | | | Ray of Light CD, including that cool track Frozen), and |
| sure that the people who listen to your music is your | | | | he technoified Barbers Adaigo for Strings, a cool |
| sudience. If you do Drum and Bass and give a track to | | | | classical track in itself and was brought into the light |
| your grandparents to hear they might not like it. Playing | | | | when it was played in Platoon.Finally Listen to yourself. |
| a track to your friends of similar style liking, or a group | | | | Why did you make the track in the first place? Were |
| of people is much better. A group increases the | | | | you going to build it up into a cool chorus, or was there |
| reliability of your "little study into your tracks", more | | | | an idea that you wanted to tinker around with that |
| people increases the reliability and gives you a better | | | | sounded really cool? Not knowing where the track is |
| opinion of how your tracks will be accepted. If one | | | | going, not seeing the light at the end of the tracks |
| person says "ohh I didnt like that sample" keep it in | | | | tunnel, or the loops are just not sitting right can have a |
| mind, but if alot of people say the same, change the | | | | negative effect on your confidence and moral. Write |
| sample. It is a rare oportuinity to see how your | | | | down what you would like to see from this track. |
| audience will react to your tracks, in the real world | | | | Maybe even before you start get all the basic loops, |
| your sales would reduce, and you would just scratch | | | | or downloading website names all collected before |
| your head wondering why.Listen to the best in the | | | | setting off. If the track is just a notepad, make it so, |
| genre. If you want to know what excellent and top | | | | don't spend too much time on something that is just a |
| techno tracks sound like ask your target audience | | | | sketch pad. If it doen't work, fine, but why, if you have |
| who their top artists are, sometimes you might get | | | | no joy, leave it. Go back to it later on, don't make |
| inspiration from artists that you haven't heard from | | | | yourself too angry or involved in something that can |
| before, then surround yourself with the tracks. Listen to | | | | have a nehgative impact on all your techno |
| the tracks and bathe in their coolness.Listening can | | | | making.Dominic Hough has made music for over 18 |
| sometimes mean not to listen. Sounds strange I know. | | | | years. On his site Make your own Dance and Techno |
| But if you have been listening to your tracks day in | | | | he has proved that you can make, and market your |
| day out, then listen to other peoples tracks, you can | | | | own techno songs for free. His site also covers |
| get a bit bored, tired, and to a point the tracks get | | | | sampling, MP3s, loops and much more. |
| samey. Have a day out in the week for a no music | | | | |