Genre Advice - Help a brother out ...

Alright, I've created an account on SoundClick, here. And posted my first song (second, really, I lost my first in a hard drive crash). (Gulp.)

First off, any and all opinions are most welcome, of course. What I'm wondering most, though, is: What genre, in your opinion, does this type of sound fall under? Electronica is the simple + safe choice. As for IDM - perhaps not that different, not sure ... Techno - perhaps? ... Industrial - only in parts ... Other than the general Electronica category, I don't really know where to put this type of sound. Too slow for Dance, Euro, or Hardcore - and nothing like them. Stumped.

PS: The hi/lo options don't appear to work at the moment, but the download mp3 link does.

I got it to work on the hifi link, but after about three minutes it stopped, as it appears that soundclick had gone down, yet again. . From what i'd heard, i'm not totally sure myself really. It had some old school electronic elements, but had a sort of electro rhythm. It sounded an interesting track and i liked the panned synths. I'll have another listen later when soundclick is working again.

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Seem to be getting that message from that site more and more lately.

Just remembered i said i'd get back to this one when soundclick was back up. Dowloaded it and got to hear all of it this time. I still would'nt really know where to place it. I looked through all the sub-genre's under electronica and i could'nt really see a catagory for it. You could stick it in IDM, that's what i would do as it is electronic and it's for listening to and not dancing to.

Back to the track. I liked the sounds you used, but you really need to beef up the percussion as it's getting lost in the mix. I would try heavy industrial soundind percussion, maybe crunch the sounds up a bit. I liked that chorus part you brought in about 4:05 and at the end. Interesting track, i'll look out for your future tracks.

I wouldn't worry too much about what genre this is - just do your own art and let someone else slot you in somewhere. If you're lucky enough - you'll start your own genre and others will follow you.

As for the song - too many of the synth sounds are similar (squelchy) and play about the same notes in succession. Eighth notes, sixteenths ... not much variation there. You need to expand your sound palette, and experiment with filters to give the static sounds some movement and long-term interest. At one point in your track there are so many similar sounding synths being played simultaneously, and all in the same space between the speakers - that it just creates a cacophony. I also agree that the drums need to be more of the industrial type - certainly we could do without the happy handclap (with echo).

You're off to a good start ... it'll take some time to battle all the possibilities - there is just sooo much to learn. Over time, your songwriting ability will improve, as will your production. In the meantime, ask yourself if what you recorded sounds like anything you've ever heard anywhere before, if it sounds like any CD in your collection - style, quality, sounds, production - and if the answer is no, it's back to fix the problems.

KEv

Thanks for the honest insight, guys. Much appreciated.

I'll look into the drums. I'm using stock drums kits, and I know that drum sounds are a weak point of mine.

As for genre, I just want to know approximately where to put it, so it's not completely off-base when someone clicks on it. IDM may be the place (though it's still got that d***ed word 'dance' in it). I've personally never heard anything else like it - so I don't know what it is or where to put it. Well, it ain't country.

I was going for a sense of overwhelming sound at certain points, so that was part of the plan, rightly or not. I probably do need to spread the sounds out and differentiate them more. But being overwhelmed with sound in parts, is part of what I like. I hadn't gotten to filters / automation yet when i made this song (later songs of mine have it).

I'm glad you brough up the handclap! I actually forgot to ask about that ... I knew it was a strange element amongst all the other sounds, and was wondering a lot about it. Glad you brought it up. Yeah, I'll have to work on the drum and handclap elements ...

For your gracious input: (clap!)

Hmmm.interesting. Slips in and out of the pentatonic scale. I'd just go back and structure it out a little more giving it very definite sections. I seemed very all over the place. You have some good ideas.