What's your views regarding creativity?

[TritoneAddiction]

As I've mentioned planty of times before, I tend to focus a lot on music making and finishing songs.
And I feel like the topic of creativity relates to that in a huge way. Just thought maybe I can gain some useful or interesting ideas from you guys here.

What's your views on creativity? Do you have any tips or tricks that has worked for you? Maybe a certain approach? Are there ways that hasn't worked at all?
You can be as broad, narrow, philosophical or concrete as you want.

[Loque]

Just start something.
Experiment with sound design.
Browse some patches, samples or start learning a synth/fx you bought and never touched.
Just make some loops.
Try a different style.

Don't make things, you know, that you don't like them.

[DougalDarkly]

I think I spent a long time finding out what I'm good at, only to realise I didn't enjoy it.

Now I mostly enjoy doing stuff I'm not good at at all - the exploring and experimenting is the fun bit for me.

I think I now find processes that I enjoy, leading occasionally to results that I like, rather than focussing purely on results at the expense of enjoying it. I think.

[motuscott]

It must be stopped at all cost.

[deeplink]

Creativity is like a fart.

If you have to force it, it's probably shit.

[Loque]

Creativity is like a fart.

If you have to force it, it's probably shit.

[MrFigg]

Creativity is like a fart.

If you have to force it, it's probably shit.

Obi-Wan said you should use the force. That’s good enough for me.
That said, he had a brown coat. Hmmm.

[Auryn]

As I've mentioned planty of times before, I tend to focus a lot on music making and finishing songs.
And I feel like the topic of creativity relates to that in a huge way. Just thought maybe I can gain some useful or interesting ideas from you guys here.

What's your views on creativity? Do you have any tips or tricks that has worked for you? Maybe a certain approach? Are there ways that hasn't worked at all?
You can be as broad, narrow, philosophical or concrete as you want.

In making music I think we have opposite approaches. IIRC you like to finish tracks within a reasonable time frame after you started them (even if it means "brute-forcing" it) and you don't go back to them. Whenever I hit a creative block, I'll generally just stop working on a track and resolve to return to it later. This sure leads to a lot of unfinished tracks but at the same time, many times when I come back to a track that I previously abandoned, I find that my perspective has changed and a new way forward presents itself.

What also helps me a lot is that I have a pretty large collection of 90ies and early 00's dance vinyls, most of which have been utterly forgotten by history at this point. So I'll regularly spend an afternoon going through some records and sampling little loops. I've now got a pretty large directory of rex loops. When I get stuck, I'll just start auditioning different loops until I find something that is surprising/interesting to me. It's kind of like gambling in a way, as you never quite know how a certain loop/sample will interact with what you've got as an existing track... so it's a way to "force" happy accidents to happen.

I don't know how much use this advice will be to you, as our working methods are so different. If I were more talented at writing melodies like you maybe I'd have a different approach, but this is what works for me

[plaamook]

I started off trying really hard to make music I wasn't good and and didn't enjoy making but like listening too. Figure that out. Then I sort of realised what kind of music I actually want to make (as opposed to listen to) and how I want to work (processes I actually enjoy). This took a bit of time and sessions of brutal honesty but it all ended up being way more about experimenting than planning out some kind of meticulous arrangement.
All good now. Album No.4 in the works.

Creative blocks? Go do something else for a while. I can't force things even if there are dealines. Just have to have faith it'll come together and keep pushing forward. Pick low hanging fruit and see if the larger problems sort themselves out along the way. If its a larger project, work on the parts that are more straight forward etc. Gotta go easy or I just have a blow out.

[TritoneAddiction]

As I've mentioned planty of times before, I tend to focus a lot on music making and finishing songs.
And I feel like the topic of creativity relates to that in a huge way. Just thought maybe I can gain some useful or interesting ideas from you guys here.

What's your views on creativity? Do you have any tips or tricks that has worked for you? Maybe a certain approach? Are there ways that hasn't worked at all?
You can be as broad, narrow, philosophical or concrete as you want.

In making music I think we have opposite approaches. IIRC you like to finish tracks within a reasonable time frame after you started them (even if it means "brute-forcing" it) and you don't go back to them. Whenever I hit a creative block, I'll generally just stop working on a track and resolve to return to it later. This sure leads to a lot of unfinished tracks but at the same time, many times when I come back to a track that I previously abandoned, I find that my perspective has changed and a new way forward presents itself.

Well I used to do the brute-force disciplined style, that's true. And that way worked well for me for quite some time. But the last 2 years or so I've actually taken a more relaxed approach, similar to yours. I too can go back to unfinished tracks I started moths ago and sometimes I feel an urge to finish them. Sometimes they are left half written and never gets finished. I can have several tracks I'm working on at the same time. I didn't used to do that in the past.

The last year of music making have been very relaxed. What I've done is I've taken the "många bäckar små" -approach. (swedish proverb). Meaning I've had many many mini sessions with Reason. Sometimes just 5 minutes. Sometimes 1 hour. Whatever I feel like. The point has been to not pressure myself. If I only do 5 minutes, than that's good enough for that session. Each session alone doesn't look like much. But when you add them up over time you can get some surprising results.
Basically I've set the bar for each session so low that there's hardly any mental resistance to sit down and make music.

This year, 2020 I managed to finish 19 songs by doing this approach. And that's actually more tracks than I used to finish during most years with the "disciplined" method. So that was a big sursprise.
So at this point I feel like I'm more open to try out new ways.

Of course I've also tried the "Wait for inspiration to come" approach. But most of time I was just waiting. Completely useless

[plaamook]

I've had many many mini sessions with Reason. Sometimes just 5 minutes. Sometimes 1 hour. Whatever I feel like. The point has been to not pressure myself. If I only do 5 minutes, than that's good enough for that session. Each session alone doesn't look like much. But when you add them up over time you can get some surprising results.
Basically I've set the bar for each session so low that there's hardly any mental resistance to sit down and make music.

Of course I've also tried the "Wait for inspiration to come" approach. But most of time I was just waiting. Completely useless

Same. I just think in terms of jamming and play. That way I just get in there and do it. Maybe a few sessions a day, whatever. Once an idea really takes root I naturally spend more time on them.
It's only during the polishing of things that I have to force myself a bit but by then it's mostly engineering problems rather than creative. Smaller adjustments.
If you work like this you don't have to wait particularly. It's more like throwing yourself in the road and being run over by inspiration!
Then the periods where I don't work on sound are deliberate as well.

[MannequinRaces]

My view is creativity is not a switch. The more experience you have being creative the more it becomes 2nd nature. Take a look at professional authors, or people who work on movies, graphic designers, etc.. People that are creative don’t sit around wasting time for the muse to strike them, they channel the muse at will. Easier said then done, I know. For us hobbyists the main point is to have fun. When it stops being fun take a break and do something to charge your creative batteries.

[EdwardKiy]

To me accountability is key. I found another musician to grow with - we talked over our goals and aspirations and ever since, we make to-do lists for each other and communicate our progress on a daily basis. This way overcoming anxiety (if this is what you're referring to when you talk about 'getting creative') becomes easy - you sort of juggle it between yourselves, like a volleyball - it's in the air between you most of the time without anyone actually touching it. When you feel this accountability, you just sit down and do the stuff you need to do whenever you find the chance. Accountability beats anxiety.

In other words, getting someone to be your actual or surrogate manager is my suggestion. Your various challenge threads on this forum fueled me for a good while by the same principle, so thank you for those! But whatever I've to say, I don't have much experience in music making per se, I just extrapolate from elsewhere.

[integerpoet]

What also helps me a lot is that I have a pretty large collection of 90ies and early 00's dance vinyls, most of which have been utterly forgotten by history at this point.

Aaaaaaaaand now I feel a thousand million years old. Thanks so much!

[TritoneAddiction]

What also helps me a lot is that I have a pretty large collection of 90ies and early 00's dance vinyls, most of which have been utterly forgotten by history at this point.

Aaaaaaaaand now I feel a thousand million years old. Thanks so much!

It wasn't actually me that said this but ok. It was Auryn.

[bxbrkrz]

This.

[plaamook]

Someone has to post it...

http://stoney.sb.org/eno/oblique.html

[motuscott]

Screen Shot 2021-01-10 at 4.26.32 PM.png (18.04 KiB) Viewed 1750 times

courtesy Mr's Eno & Schmidt

Available online: http://obliquestrategies.ca/#

[Auryn]

What also helps me a lot is that I have a pretty large collection of 90ies and early 00's dance vinyls, most of which have been utterly forgotten by history at this point.

Aaaaaaaaand now I feel a thousand million years old. Thanks so much!

you've got even older vinyls? or was it the "utterly forgotten" part?

[Oquasec]

If you aren't in the songmaking mindset, it'd be better for you to just mess around with your daw for a couple hours instead of trying to make something if possible.
---
No point making a tune without inspiration beforehand imho.
That time could still be spent though, studying your plugins.
Muscle memorizing those parameters & remembering which ones work everywhere.
---
That'll do ya some good in the long run.

[MicahMakenzie]

a lot of ideas come to me in transport - when I go to work, travel somewhere, go for a walk, etc. so I have some mobile music apps to sketch out. I also have many applications with various notes and reminders, which I use later when I sit down to write music.
ps I also write lyrics and different stories, I even started writing a book some time ago, but I gave it up. I hope to come back with this sometime

[TritoneAddiction]

Interesting to read everyones answers. I'm not really looking to find any "right" answer here. I look at each answer as a different tool. They can all be useful depending on where you're at mentally during a specific time.

[integerpoet]

Aaaaaaaaand now I feel a thousand million years old. Thanks so much!

you've got even older vinyls? or was it the "utterly forgotten" part?

Yes?

[integerpoet]

Aaaaaaaaand now I feel a thousand million years old. Thanks so much!

It wasn't actually me that said this but ok. It was Auryn.

Huh. I must have removed the wrong attribution line or something. Sorry!

[aeox]

As I've mentioned planty of times before, I tend to focus a lot on music making and finishing songs.
And I feel like the topic of creativity relates to that in a huge way. Just thought maybe I can gain some useful or interesting ideas from you guys here.

What's your views on creativity? Do you have any tips or tricks that has worked for you? Maybe a certain approach? Are there ways that hasn't worked at all?
You can be as broad, narrow, philosophical or concrete as you want.

There are times when I start a project with the intent of finishing a song but it's rare for me.

It usually starts off with me attempting to learn something new or experimenting with sound design. Maybe I'll come up with a "wild" bass and I'll start to imagine it in a track, I'll save it.

I'll get side tracked for months or years just going down one avenue of music production or sound design. Not sure if this is a good or bad thing for me but it's fun, and that's why I do this For a while it was saturation/dist, then chord progressions, then I went into synthesizing kicks/snares, then started really studying stereo image and I've been on that for a bit now.

Maybe the next thing after stereo image will be structure for me.
Also, I can continue to practice and learn to things about previous endeavors.



I'm not sure I have any useful knowledge to share with you here. From how I've heard your music progress over the years, it seems like you've got all the creativity you need!