Why You NEVER Finish Your Tracks... (and how to fix it)
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- Опубліковано 16 гру 2020
- 💥 Watch my FREE Workshop where I cover How I Create PRO Quality Music at Home - and How You CAN TOO here: produceracceleratorcourse.com...
Why do so many home studio producers get stuck and never finish their tracks... if this is you - I'm gonna help you finish MORE songs!
My Studio Gear List:
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Lacie External Drive (storing sample libraries): imp.i114863.net/Xg2Bo
Logic Pro X: (use the app store)
Komplete Audio 6 (audio interface): imp.i114863.net/jNJbe
Presonus Eris E5 (monitors -- you'll need to buy a pair): imp.i114863.net/kyJ6z
Komplete Kontrol S88 (the BEST MIDI keyboard the link is the newer generation): imp.i114863.net/mLode
Lauten LS-208 Mic: imp.i114863.net/MPReJ
Avantone Pro CV-12 Mic: imp.i114863.net/d25dM
Shure SM58: imp.i114863.net/2oVmz
Audio Technica ATH-M40X (headphones - I have 2 pairs): imp.i114863.net/BNRL1
Novation LaunchPad X (also compatible with Logic Pro X): imp.i114863.net/0gRaM
Sample Libraries I HIGHLY Recommend:
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Native Instruments Komplete Ultimate (this is the BEST bundle you can buy): imp.i114863.net/OkyDz
Arcade: output.com/products/arcade
Signal: imp.i114863.net/Qa2DA
EastWest (Hollywood Orchestra): imp.i114863.net/PemxY
Spitfire LABS (free): labs.spitfireaudio.com/ - Розваги
I just used the tips in this video and finished a song within a few hours, it felt amazing. I literally haven't done that in about 3 years
This video is so money it doesn’t even know it. Found myself head nodding the whole time. Great stuff, Nathan! Learning so much!
Yeah yeah!! Love it. 😎🙏
Man, I need like ten more videos on this topic. As someone who's just getting things going, trying to get ready to release my first album in a couple of months, I feel this. It has taken me way too long to get things ready. From working full time, to making time for my wife and kids, sacrificing a lot of sleep, etc, it's a struggle to actually be able to calm my mind enough to be creative when I finally get some time to work on my music. Yes, it takes me sometimes a couple of weeks to finish a track, because I've got about two hours a day that I can actually sit down and work, and by the time I get there, I'm usually so tired that my brain is fried along with my creativity.
This all looks different for everyone. Spending a week, or even a month on a song isn't a bad thing at all. Some of the greatest songs have even taken up to a year to finish. Variables such as experience, family, jobs, etc can and will all contribute to your efficiency in the studio. If you are not highly skilled, taking advice to complete a song as fast as possible is one of the worst things you can do. It might be different for everyone but actually when I step away from a project for a few days or a week, I come back reenergized and excited to finish it.
Pure gold right here! I´m already doing a lot of this but I will try to add more to my mindset. Thanks Nathan!
This was great thank you. I catch myself focusing on what my vocal sound like and smaller details when I haven’t even fully comped everything together. I’m aware of it but this always gets me stuck in the mud, thanks for bringing it to my attention.
So simple and so hard. Thank you for such videos that remind you how simple everything really is, that you don't need to complicate anything yourself.
Thank youuuu oh my gosh. Sigh of relief on getting some clarity and organization from your channel, truly!
A lot of things this guy said are the things that many beginners producers struggling with, those tips are very helpful and I think that’s why he got thousands of subs within months🙌🏼
Appreciate this! 🙏🙏🙏
I'm so glad I found you on UA-cam. You've helped me a LOT already!
Legit this is super dope advice! Recently just had that track where everything fell into place, quick decisions really do produce the snowball effect!
Thanks again Nathan. Really great advice, inspirational. Have a book of lyrics of unfinished songs. I now understand the steps, to push forward to completion. Your free advice is of great value to many struggling song writers, I am sure. Have subscribed and will continue to use your guidance. You are truly a friend to all of us out there, who are learning the joy of creating and sharing music.
Love it!! Thanks so much! Get after it! You got this
I'm enjoying you zooming in on you gesturing the 'end' or the song on the viewers left, and vice verse.
Super helpful tip here. Thanks Nathan
!
This is the best music channel.Your videos are very helpful to me.You explain the topics very precisely. Thank you
this was much needed! thank you for these nuggets of wisdom!!
I love your enthusiasm!
This video is gold. Thanks Nathan for sharing all of these! :)
So on point regarding making decisions! That’s been the biggest turning point for me finishing my tracks. I find that I’m improving faster by making decisions and moving on. Thank you for sharing great advice!
100% true! Love this comment- well stated!!
Amazing video, great tips! Will definitely be using those immediately
Such great advice. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience.
amazing tips man!
This is exactly what I was looking for to break my block. I'm recording more muses than ever before, but I'm finishing less tracks than I did in my first year of writing music. I'm looking for your videos on songwriting / arrangement next - removed everything else from my queue.
Amazing advice, thank you, so glad I found your channel
Man this is GOLD......Thanks a lot man....this has helped me a LOT
Thank you for sharing your experience and knowledge.
Thanks Man! Good direction of thinking!
Dope content Nate!
This is gooood man. Thanks!
This video helped me a lot! Thank you for these amazing tips bro🖤
I needed this thanks for the great content!
Oh man, yes yes! Started this morning and finished the mapping and even overall mixing and sound choice in one day. This is such a motivational and eye opening video Nathan. Thank you so much!
Amazing video bro! Its so true! Structure is the main chunk
this is WONDERFUL advice, thank you so much!
I love you ! The most useful video I’ve ever seen in my entire life!!
Man, thanks for this video, I'm going to start applying all these tips today!
Mr Nathan Larsen, we have never met. But still you describe my last 25+ years trying to make music. And pretty spot on. Amazing or scary. So thank you for these great fixes and I promise to follow them ;)
you described my experience exactly, this channel is amazing!
We all been there! Thanks a bunch!
That's the truth! Thnx for reminding to think about structure and finishing it first. :)
Another great movie, thank you!
wow thank you so much Nathan!! You really hit the nail on the head for me. Subscribed! :)
Wow this vid is powerful man thanks fr
This is some real talk.. I use 95% of my everything based on the lyrics I write, when I write i imagine everything (mostly focused on the melody as how it will be presented in detail)...But the idea will come always when you experiment from different directions from all the way possible (listen 1000s of songs) .So you will be flexible to beging from end to middle to start or anywhere...
Just like tp share it...Keep up all and thank this channel.. a great blessing
Thank you, I always feel stuck after making a great chord progression I like. The arrangement is something I have to get better at as a musician.
I have been recording my whole life. My dad used to do home recording. I really enjoy building all the parts. So nowni write my songs and record them. But I have never "finished " a song.
I am inspired now after hearing your wisdom. Thank you
Great advice. Especially the bit about musical arrangement mattering more than mixing. If your arrangement is good mixing will be easy everytime.
Lovely pep talk!
another great video, thanks
Brilliant video, thank you!
My favorite is creating a loop, listening to said loop 1000 times until I’m sick of it, and then starting a new project…rinse and repeat.
pretty helpful advice with the timer thing. Thanks a lot
He called me out but he’s making some valid points. Appreciate that, I needed that. I know have the ability and the ideas to create more songs, I just try to do too much too soon and get stuck. I need to just focus on solidifying a structure and process, and think about the end as much as i think about the beginning.
A true gem 👌🏼 thank u!
Excellent video. That said the most annoying thing is that I had worked most of this out already for myself but still keep doing it. The farting around and getting caught up in stuff that I don't need to do or to sort initially as the beauty of the DAW is that you can return any time to alter anything you are unhappy with... It is a 'creative discipline' issue for me as well as not having enough of a structure before hand.. I am still far far far too easily distracted and vanish down that rabbit hole of "I'll just so this wee bit then I'll get the rest of it done" ... Then I've lost two hours pissing around with a guitar tone. Again a tone that I can change as often as I want at any time in the future..!!!! Discipline disciline discipline + better structure at the outset thats what's missing for me and Only I can fix that.. Thanks for pointing it out so clearly...!!! Next project won't get started now until I have sat down and written out at least a flow diagram of the structure and I have covered one wall in post it's with discipline written on each one..
I have struggled with every single point that you made. But I will say that my biggest issue is second-guessing myself on a part I’ve played or which sound to use. Over the next month I am going to apply everything you said here and see if I can’t actually produce one or two songs
I appreciate how quickly you speak. I'm so impatient.
Thank you. For everything.
Excellent advice nathan.....think it benefits everyone.....thanks
Appreciate this Glyn! 🙏
THANK YOU!!!!!!! This video - the information in it has freed me from the very things you're talking about. I've gotten my rig? put together. And I'm frozen in my tracks, repetitively thinking all the questions you're stating - without me even having started. And my song? Is totally charted. But I'm not moving forward. I don't know why it matters so much. I think I must put it in writing that I won't condemn myself listening to my first try. Clearly, at this point, I am a better writer than I am an arranger. I promise no one has to talk me off the ledge. Just want to thank you, very much. Wow, reading other comments below tells me I'm in good company.
Verbal GOLD! thank you
I’m hoping I can find arrangement tips for different genres. Listening to songs you like and writing/mapping out the structure by their section lengths and which elements are introduced and taken away is probably the best, but getting some experts to breakdown the structures would be dope. Time to research
I am *extremely* glad I found your channel
For some reason I never thought of writing before producing… this was really helpful
Thank you... This helped me a lot
Best tip for me I've realised is to be ruthless and be deliberate
You are speaking my language. This is actually a sick channel! You've now got another subscriber 💪🏽
It's almost 30 years since I started this journey and I still can't finish something. I'll definitely try it. Thank you
You can do it!
great video bro
Making quick decisions is something I didn’t realize I needed to work on, let alone pay attention to. It’s time to change that. Thank you 🙏🏼
What I’ve been doing lately rather than letting everything bother me... not fast enough, reverb busses, flying the hook, or whatever else they call ALL THIS STUFF........... I focus on a great song!!!
Like you say man, even if the mix is KILLER..... it’s still CRAP if the song isn’t KILLER. I could play a great song with fantastic words on an acoustic guitar and it would go bigger than if I had a LOUSY SONG with a fantastic MIX.
This video is better than I expected.
ADHD here, so finishing anything is a challenge in itself, let alone music production. Yes structure/route plan is important..... Cheers Nathean
I can Absolutely relate to this man❤
Right on, thank you.
i needed this today
We all need to hear it sometimes - I wish I wouldve heard it when I started!
Thanks, brotha.
I love the hour timer trick thnx for that!!
Great video
Thanks for posting such good quality content. I rewatch this video after seeing it 1 1/2 years for the first time. And all these tipps are still relevant to me. I think the hardest part for me is also to make quick decisions. But for me it is my own demand to the quality of music i am able to put out (my skill) in comparison to the quality i am use to listen. You know, stuff like: will this be a good chord that people like, is this sounds like people would dance to it etc. Because I am unsure about how people would judge me based on my skill in music making.
God, that felt good to write that down. Cheers
Thanks for your tips! I actually agree with the 1 hour rule but I change mines to the pomodoro method where I go over the track for 25 minutes and take a 5 minute break.
You are right and the points you mentioned about should be repeated everyday like a prayer because I see people pretended to understand this and next day doing it exactly opposite and wrong.
@Nathan James Larsen
Thank you for your videos!!! They really help.
Stay blessed!!!
Second video I watch from you, first music tutorial channel I follow
Jesus youre the best... Not only it helped me to change how I work, but this motivated me af. Thanks Natan, you really are the best!
That's great - thanks man!
You hit it right on the head....STRUCTURE is very hard to guide yourself to finish it....i need this..lol
I feel like my process is so complicated for these tips. I try to make music in a way similar to rock and pop bands in the 1970s. Drums, guitars, vocals, keyboards, bass. But I do everything myself. It takes a lot of time to be a self taught multi instrumentalist and sometimes simply setting up the drums takes an entire day. So making a song in a week's time is really daunting for me!
Fantastic! Few take aways: 1) 'Intent to finish' 2) 'Creativity breeds creativity' 3) 'Dull creativity' resulting from over analysis 4) Get better at making faster decisions. I'm going to try the timer exercise today.
thank you for this quick mock up i have it copy/pasted on the top line of my writing template
Thanks buddy, I have got about 50x Hardcore and Jungle tracks that are all 80-90% finished. The buzz of making a new one is always a huge temptation. I have taken some notes. Nice one ;)
Good shit dude, when I have 30 or 50 songs to finish and I've finished one or two I know I won't get bored but their is an element of work in their for sure however at least I'm working on different things ..... I don't always do this, I usually edit and produce while I'm making the structure of the song aswell but sometimes just sitting back and creating a bunch of songs, screwing around for a bit and then getting into editing and producing can be fun too
Great point but… I don’t know why even after I’ve arranged my song, I tend to gather great ideas and inspiration throughout the mixing phase which inevitably creates somewhat of a different but better song. When I write a song… I have a general idea but it takes me about a week or so of listening to it before new ideas begin to surface. I do get what you’re saying though about just plain chasing the rabbit around without structure. It is brutally disappointing when you had this awesome idea and it does not translate well in the mix. But, once you hit that place to where you know you made some magic With the lyrics and arrangement, it is an awesome feeling
Pop
Ultimately, there are no concrete rules to creativity, so just learn and do what works best for you. While it's not a race, you definitely have to apply discipline to finish.
I’m just getting started in Cinematic sporty, actually I have native instruments komplete 12 ultimate. Very good video.
Awesome tips. The stupid thing is that I already use this kind of structured high-level approach in my job, and somehow never wanted to take this approach with music! But this video has helped validate the idea for me, and I’m looking forward to taking this approach on my next track. I strongly agree with the approach of time-boxing music creation sessions. Even with a timer, I often find it hard to step away and take a break. But it definitely pays to take a break, even if you just stand up and go get a glass of water, that’s usually enough to snap out of the haze and realise that you need a proper break.
You understand humans! Great video, realy helpful.
Bro this genius ima take a lot from this!
Well said. - Thank you very much. 🍀🖖🏽
Appreciate it!
Man, thank you SO MUCH for the video. I have put a goal for 2022 year to create 24 tracks, but now i realize that it's not as much as i can and probably should.
A track a week would be 52 tracks
Thank you!
Absolutely. 🙏😎
Committing and moving on with the decisions
thank you my guy
my god just went off to record and what did I do exactly the same as I always do despite believing that I took in what Nathan was saying...!!! Habit obviously engrained. I did sit and work on a structure and a flow chart. Sat at the computer and just dropped back into the same way of operating that was a shocker.. So starting tomorrow I'm not going to pick up a guitar until I have the basics in place. Thanks Nathan uncomfortable learning curve but well worth it...!!! Cheers Only saving grace was that I didn't get into the tone of guitar or key board at the outset..
This stuff takes work and discipline like I said in the vid! You can do this. Takes some work but you got it!
@@NathanJamesLarsen it's defo a habit thing. So first thing is to break the habit and recognse when I am falling back into that way of operating... Cheers