How can I make my "music" better?

[vultraz 7]

Alright. First post. Well, I had begun making music a few months ago, in plans for specifically making music for MLP; a few days ago, I got frustrated and deleted it all since it was taking up so much hard drive space and I thought, in my opinion, that it was very mediocre... and then I realised I hadn't asked anybody for advice. Hence, I am here. These are the few song fragments that I can salvage, mostly from dropbox or vocaroos. They're pretty bad, partially due to the fact that I pulled some of them off their vocaroos, and partially because I don't know how this music thing works (regardless of 8 years of experience on the violin). I don't feel like I should make anything specifically for MLP until I got good enough at making music.

 

'https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9XUEzehN6Ow

 

I'm using LMMS. The main synth I use is the Synth1 VST.

 

EDIT: Oh... I see I doubleposted. Silly me. Other thread, begone!

Edited September 13, 2014 by vultraz

[Darker 1,352]

I don't know why you say that your music is bad. It's quite decent, and very catchy.

[Andaasonsan 3,205]

Note: I dabbled in recording many years ago, so I'm not really an expert here.

 

It sounds okay to me. You should make sure you've got a solid understanding of music theory so you can make nice key changes and things and will make the writing easier. And it kind of seemed like you were not keeping any part going long enough. A little repetitiveness isn't bad.

[Mae Borowski 356]

i like it i kinda am in the same boat i feel like these WIP (work in progress) songs are kinda blah...

 

 

[vultraz 7]

  On 2014-09-13 at 3:36 AM, Darker said:

I don't know why you say that your music is bad. It's quite decent, and very catchy.

 

Well, from my point of view, a lot of the instruments and notes don't flow or work in unison and feel just sort of like they were hammered in place one by one with a rusty nail, there aren't a whole lot of convincing chord progressions or melodic lines (in some cases there are none at all), and the mixes feel really awkward and not at all like what most music made today sounds like. I have a serious problem with making convincing, creative melodies/melodic lines, especially with having them fit the structure of the general harmonic progression. For examples of "good, convincing melodic line": WoodenToaster's solo section on "Awoken"... or the "The Eclipse" section of Yes' And You And I... or, actually, anything made by Yes, come to think of it. (Seriously, Steve Howe's a master of those. He can write them so well he can practically solo through an entire song.) When things don't work in unison, the song becomes a chaotic mess of notes that ends up just sounding watered-down, really... at least, I think that's it. Not sure if that's the mix or the lines. Probably both. Don't know how to mix right.

 

  On 2014-09-13 at 3:43 AM, Andaasonsan said:

Note: I dabbled in recording many years ago, so I'm not really an expert here.

 

It sounds okay to me. You should make sure you've got a solid understanding of music theory so you can make nice key changes and things and will make the writing easier. And it kind of seemed like you were not keeping any part going long enough. A little repetitiveness isn't bad.

 

Yeah, I think I could stand to keep some parts going with some permutations on the instruments (having vocals would help keep it from feeling too repetitive, but my voice is horrifyingly terrible (this isn't even Dunning-Kruger effect here, I've had some people listen to my voice and tell me my singing is genuinely bad)). I've never studied music theory formally, but I've picked up a bit of it over the past year because I figured it was easier to play a lot of modern stuff by improvising over chords rather than reading sheet music (obviously, you can't do that with classical music). Functional harmony, chord substitutions, guide tones, modulation, et cetera. Problem is, I don't know very much, and I can't apply it well, or almost at all.

Edited September 13, 2014 by vultraz

[Bit Rusher 30]

i've got one tip never say it's bad and belive in yourself

[ZeroTwo 64]

I like them. Really, what do you think is wrong with them? They sound fine to me. The only problem I see is that some of them seem a little over the top in the sense of using too many instruments/ channels, but it doesnt ruin it in the slightest. 

 

The only thing I could say is keep trying. Practice. Learn what it is you don't like about your music, and grow from that. It's how I sharpened my musical talent, It's how most people sharpen their musical talents. Your style is great, your use of different instruments, contrasting melodies, and interesting basslines sound amazing, and you shoudln't doubt yourself so much. 

[Zygen 6,066]

Practice makes perfect. 

 

And no offense, but having experience on musicial instruments, while helpful, will not necessarily make you good at writing music, it will help sure, but it won't automatically make you good. I've played Trumpet like 5-6 years or so now, and I'm learning guitar right now for a little over a month or so,(I've also been teaching myself to sing for a while) but I doubt I could write any music really.

 

I'd say studying music theory would help, any information you can obtain regarding that would be helpful. 

 

Then there is simply the experience portion, which requires you to do stuff, I can study all i want on many a thing, but without actually doing it, I may never truly learn how to do it.

 

Honestly though, I don't think any of this is as bad as your making it sound. Just keep practicing, it goes for anything, you'll get better!

 

When I first started singing I sounded like total garbage, but with some practice and studying on it and time, i've definitely got better. i've still a ways to go, but I've improved atleast!

 

Same goes with most anything really, so just keep practicing, and studying and learning, and you will improve!

 

Good luck!

[Rainbow-Crash 101]

Everything apart from the dubstep part was decent man. Its all quite original. I actually envy your originality a little bit. I think you have all the composition and sound design pretty well to be honest. I'd love to have a chat sometime man I think we could learn a few things of each other   

Just some stuff i'v done myself.  

[vultraz 7]

You know what, I think I might have figured my problem out... there's too much of everything. Clipping highlighted in red. You have to reduce it by 11.8 db to get rid of all the clipping. Above track is Earthworks' One of a Kind, original volume. Below is the ice thing, also original volume.

http://imgur.com/czJ4k7U