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SHOWCASE: September 29 - October 6, 2024

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BiggChev

BiggChev

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Battle Points: 11
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Thanks for the feedback @Fyyn3stSymphoni

That dip in volume is a filter sweep, specifically a hi-cut. It's my default move when I can't think of transitions or B-sections. This beat definitely did take some work, and I had to step away from it for a few days to approach the mix and arrangement without any bias. Appreciate you giving it a listen.

Cheers,
 
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Fyyn3stSymphoni

ILLIEN
Battle Points: 43
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BiggChev said:
@TjombaBeats

First impressions - I like the dark/creepy vibe. The industrial type drums really suit the track. The slight asymmetry and groove was well done. In fact, the over all sound selection is very cohesive and work together to creating and elevating that dark aesthetic. That grainy synth with the portamento that comes in at 1:21 is very cool. I really like the back half of this beat with that dub style synth.

There's a lot of intricate interweaving of multiple lines that gives the beat a lot of texture and movement. Unique, mixed well, and interesting. Thanks for sharing.

@Fyyn3stSymphoni

Livewire:

The melodic elements of this track are great. Serene, sweet, and delicate. While I don't typically care for trap style drums, I think the juxtaposition of the drums against the saccharine nature of the melody creates something very interesting to listen to. The mix needs work however. It's a bit too quiet and a strategic static mix would certainly help to balance all the elements. I like this beat!

Havoc:

Great sample choice! Sounds like there is some sort of harp/guitar arpeggio going on in the background. Works well to create atmosphere, but I think I'm hearing some dissonance. Sound selection is good - there's just a bit too much harmonic clashing in other areas. The arrangement is good as it builds and fades eliciting emotion. A skilled vocalist could really use those dynamic cues to make a great tune. Again, the mix takes away from the finished product. Otherwise, there are some cool things going on here.
Click to expand...
Thanks! I appreciate your advice. It's very helpful. For LiveWire, I'll definitely do that. I'll listen to Havoc again and try to fix those things too
 
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Fyyn3stSymphoni

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Battle Points: 43
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DJ Excellence said:
"Livewire" has a nice, chill vibe with a solid mix. "Havoc" is dope and has a rather eerie feel. I would have liked the drums to be more present, but depending on the context, they may not need to be.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the feedback - I'll turn up the volume of the drums on Havoc... Im not hearing it very much either after listening to it again, so I'll see if it sounds better with more presence.. I appreciate the advice
 
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Fyyn3stSymphoni

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Battle Points: 43
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MA-Beatz said:
A lot of interesting beats on this platform.... here´s a recent beat i made with 3 parts to it using the same sounds.

Click to expand...

Bomb mix, love the beat and the vocals match it nicely. My only advice is making the transition at the 1:00 timestamp a little more seamless. But all 3 parts r very dope.. nice work
 
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BiggChev

BiggChev

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@MA-Beatz

Cool sample and great bounce. The vocals really help accentuate the overall groove of the beat. My only critique is that it sounds a bit disjointed. It's either the hook or breakdown section of a full song. Mix could use a bit of work, but doesn't take away from the listening exeperience.
 
Memento Beats

Memento Beats

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BiggChev said:
Here's another beat I started on the MPC 1000. Started with getting a simple drum groove going then sampled little lines in using Kontakt instruments. This (as the date suggests) took me a while to get to a point I was happy with, particularly:
  • Drums
    • Original snares didn't have enough crack
    • Kicks - I still feel like punchier, weightier kicks would serve this track better
  • Horns
    • First horn line was repeating too much and became a bit too annoying. But, I needed something to fill space and work as a "melody"
  • Bass
    • Getting the bass guitar and sub bass balanced took some time with several revisits. Also, getting just the right amount of Side-chain compression was a exercise in trial-and-error and patience lol
  • Piano
    • This was the solution to the overly repetitive horns. I used the piano line as a call-and-response to add a bit more variety and melodic content. I was trying to go for a Havoc/Mobb Deep type of piano line.
I brought everything back into Logic for final arrangement and mix. I tried a couple new things in the mix and would be interested to hear feedback on the mix specifically.

Otherwise I do like the dark and gritty feel. Would love to hear some feedback and critiques!

Click to expand...


You're thoughts on drums are correct. Indeed when it comes to kick and I would even say snare it would be better to use something with more punch. In general the beat is good, it has a nice structure and you also played with filters here and there which also adds a bit of dynamic to the whole track. But to me this beat doesn't really feel like a hip hop beat. Most probably due to this kick. Other than that when it comes to mix I would say it's good.

@Fyyn3stSymphoni

LiveWire

Love that guitar and flute melody. To me those vocal snippets that appear from time to time are a bit too loud. Also mix of drums could be much better. Drums don't have the punch that I personally like and therefore the whole mix sounds quite weak to me. Other than that the beat has a great structure, nice drum patterns and as I already mentioned good melodies. But mix could be better.

Havoc

Much better than LiveWire for me. Melodies are cool just like in LiveWire. I like the arrangement and structure. Especially, that break from 1:00 to 1:21 is nice. It adds a little bit of air to the beat. I also like doing similar things in my beats. Again mix could be better as 808 seems to be quite all over the place here. But I like the sound of it.


@DJ Excellence

Great remix!:fire::fire::fire: I love the bass here, melody and drums. As it was already mentioned, the mix sounds very professional. Nothing to add here. The track is complete as far as I'm concerned. Great job!
 
BiggChev

BiggChev

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@PSYCH0

The drums are cool and I like the processing on the vocal chops. The vibe is grimey and dark which I like.

That pumping pad sound takes up a lot of the sonic space and I feel like it makes the mix a bit muddy. It's a work in progres, so I'm curious to see how the final product shapes up. A few variations and some brighter elements could really elevate this.
 
BiggChev

BiggChev

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So I tried to make a "Trap/Drill" beat...

...Admittedly I'm not a particular fan of trap and thought it would be a good way to challenge myself. Through the process I realized making these styles of beats is actually quite a lot of fun. Also, it's not as easy at it seems. Working at 140 BPM with a half time feel really messed up my sense of groove. I listened to a fair amount of UK Drill and more modern stuff and picked out what I thought were the kill elements of a "Trap/Drill" beat:

  • 808 Drums (duh!)
  • Deep sub basses
  • Texture
  • Dark, simple melodies

There are a few key items I couldn't quite get a grip on. Those being the pitched snare ratchets/fills and 808 Kicks for bass. While the melody is fairly simple, it took a lot of layering to get the right sound. Maschine's lofi plugin and a slow moving filter helped get the right texture once the melody was figured out.

What really gave me a hard time was finding the right bass tone - and the overall mix. I cut a lot of low end anywhere I could and used mid-side EQ. Even still, I think the it's too bottom heavy - which is a mind fuck because I feel like the Kicks could still hard a bit harder. Ultimately, this was a worthwhile study of the genre and the process. I'm not entirely converted but I definitely have more appreciation for the genre than I did before.

Let me know how poorly I did lol

 
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