In week one of our electrical composition, we were coming up with ideas for our songs. This is so we can elaborate on them in the weeks to come.
This is an idea for a trap/rap track. It has many off-beat rhythms in the drums, especially on the snare. It also has a simple wobble bass line to make the song sound more full and more like the genre that I am working towards. I decided to make a second track for the hi-hats as I find this makes it much easier to work with your drums as not everything is in the same piano roll when you have to edit it. I came up with two drum beats for this composition so that if I decide to go with this song for my final composition, I can choose between the two perhaps even have them both in the song (one beat for the chorus, another beat for the verse).
Peer Assessment– “The trap song idea was very cool and it had a really fun rhythm to it but it was just had a little too much bass because you could really feel it vibrating your ears. However, these patterns and instruments used were ones that are typically found in trap sounds, like bass, so you really captured the sound that you was going for.” – Tia Trueman.
This is my idea for a lofi/hip-hop track. These songs are quite slow and relaxing, so the tempo is fairly slow, unlike the trap song. I first did the drum beat, which is swung so it has a much more relaxing feel and it flows better. I then added the organ (initially piano, but I moved it down to the organ as it sounds much smoother). This organ part is add9 chords which makes them sound jazzy and exactly what I need for a lofi track. As I felt the drums were still not quite enough, I added a shaker to the mix, coming in when the organ starts playing. This beefs up the sound to make it more full.
Peer Assessment– “This has a lot of build-ups and it’s almost like each second that you listen to it, you’re just getting more and more out of it because there’s always a sound to listen to. Each different sound has a nice pattern so it doesn’t sound blocky and it’s got quite a jazz feel to it which just makes it incredibly relaxing but also really fun to listen to. The only other suggestion would be to add in different variations for where the sound comes out of the headphones like it could switch between ears to totally submerse you.” – Tia Trueman.
This song idea is based on an indie rock genre, however, it doesn’t sound amazing here because the instruments are programmed and not recorded live. I first added the drums, doing the same thing with the hi-hat part (splitting it from the snare and bass drum so it is easier to work with). Because this sounds more of an introduction to the song, I added some quite static chords which could be seen as the chorus. I failed to make a bass track in time however if I choose this track for my final composition, I plan to make this. I also plan to match the bass line to the bass pedal in the drum kit so it sounds rockier.
Peer Assessment– “The indie rock song was so incredible! There was a constant change in patterns, sounds and it just overall had a professional feel to it. The heavy electric guitar really captured the rock sound yet the patterns and keys really emphasised the Indie style that you had approached. I loved how even if it wasn’t a drastic change, you always switched up the sound somehow, like how in the synth you kept adding just the one extra note for the build-up and then you changed the pattern completely which gave it a whole new sound.” – Tia Trueman.