this is going to come off as a bit arrogant....
but i am pretty strong in almost all the general areas.....
i have solid mixing (could be better, yes, but its still solid), i have sound drum sound/drum creation (this ties into my mixing), i have a good ear for melody and arrangement, i have very good programming with my hats/shakers/percussion, i always have a great balance of elements. i have a good ear for feedback- i generally make good choices when listening to feedback, i know when to stick to my guns on something and when to give in and change something. i am good at creating multi layered beats without cluttering them i think... i am good at creating and invoking a variety of moods/feels.... and i can go seemlessly from one sound to the next... i have done some orchestral/film score type tracks that arent even hip hop, i have done radio commercials, and of course my beats.... i also have a few different "sounds", ala just blaze for example. he has his "club" "street" and "r&b" styles..... i have my "organic" "synth" and "cinematic" styles... i can also cross regional genres while keeping my own sound and style in tact....
basically i think i am strong in all the general areas of my beats.... but i have plenty of weaknesses, that to me are individully relatively minor but together make for a pretty big hole.
given my penchant for composing from scratch and what i am told having a very "live" sound to all my beats, i am sorely lacking when it comes to bridges and break downs. that is a glaring weakness of mine, as classic points out ofte (LOL!). the second weakness i have is that while i can create a variety of moods with completely different pallettes, i struggle with more up tempo joints... they are mostly head nod type tracks. uptempo joints have basically been my kryptonite... lack of bridges and breaks have been prevented my compositions from reaching "that" level... and while i mix well enough i am nowhere near where i want to be..... i need to learn more about frequencies and logical cuts and boosts...im lazy in that respect.... plus i need to enhance my keys playing... i have a very limited knowledge of chords and theory.... i use the same chords over and over.... and i am prone to severe hot/cold spells. its 10 beats one week and none the next two...i easily let my personal issues "take me out of the game" so to speak... if i get depressed or angry or sad or hurt in any way, forget it.... i lose interest in creating... very limited digging knowledge...
ok so i