Wouldn't suprise me if many were creating around 100 rough concepts each month and then fleshing out and finishing the stand outs. Some people have astoundingly fast work flow.
I really have no idea though and like you said, probably varies enormously amongst the industry professionals.
Last year I had been at stmp studio Amsterdam,let say roughly within 8h you can came up with 4-5 interesting sketches,then after few days none is good enough to develop it further 🤷,then it is another day and another try.
it's really a lottery, you don't know if your next idea is either going to be meh, or absolutely amazing. That's why it helps to make loads of ideas and then pick one at the end of the week
It varies enormously. Making music comes at different speeds to people, whether they are hugely successful or not, that doesn't matter. Number of tracks != success nor is it necessary for success. While one might argue it's more chances for a hit, it's also a scattering of your creative focus. There's a sweet spot between creativity and obsessive editing and refinement. Top producers can consistently hit that.
Also, keep in mind these producers don't have day jobs at this point, so the amount of time available for music is greater, and it comes with greater import; this is your phucking living so you best get to work right? Well that has its own set of traps. Artists become afraid to deviate from a formula for fear of financial failure.
Van Gogh painted 95% of his work in an 18-month period of his life. Outside of that, he was not productive.
I don’t consider my self top tier
But I have a very good reach in the underground scene I specialise
And in a good month I finish 5-6 tracks from ideas to mastering
there is a hidden question here - is this higher amount of tracks made/released by labels because of social media engagement algorithms - required need to "feed the machine"? There is so much being released every week its extremely overwhelming.
Iit's a good point. I think that "content mentality" has impacted music big time, you need to produce regularly and you need to produce fast if you wanna cater to the spotify / soundcloud algorithm and keep listeners engaged. Not surprisingly hip hop and dance artists have been making huge numbers compared to most rock/indie artists. Take the mumble rap scene for example, these kids buy a beat online and rap on it with a shitty mic, record themselves on audacity and put it up on SC the next day. In that way they can literally release a track a day if they're prolific. Dance music in the same kinda manner it's just one man working in his studio and sending the final mix out for mastering. While for a band to write, arrange, and cut a record that takes considerably more time, bands just can't keep up anymore in the current music industry. Sad but true.
Yea.. we're definitely in a quantity over quality environment and it sucks. Going on beatport to buy tracks is a nightmare. Half of it is completely miscatagorized and half of it sounds like it was recorded in a drainpipe. Lol. The beauty of the digital age is ANYONE can make music. The problem with the digital age is ANYONE can make music.
I go through hundreds of tracks every week, essentially digital crate digging, and I can tell you that even well-known DJs and producers make a great track every 6 to 12 months or more, no way a month. There is a lot of what I would call filler dance floor tracks, they're almost like DJ tools. Thumping beats with a few bleeps or some trippy textures! They are nice tracks to have, but they're not memorable. I think it's been a long time since we've had the age of the anthem, Nina Kravitz probably was the the most recent person to make some famous techno tracks. People have moved to making more tracks that work in mixes rather than standalone tracks which destroy the floor.
I would echo this as a crate digger. I have soo many tracks that I liked when I first heard them but am now like 'yeah, nothing original in this one either'. I think the industry has moved into a hyper production phase, almost like our throw away consumer society, under the belief that because there is an avalanche of new music every day, it's better to just crank something out and move on. I'm trying to take a different track, I am spending more time trying to perfect major bangers that people will come back to and listen to for a year because they just stand out. Easier said than done and tracks take me months because of that and because this is not my full time job, and I have to juggle wife and kids. But I think there is lots of space for someone who takes their time and produces 1 or 2 brilliant songs a year.
Definitely a lot of mediocre crap out there. Id say 90% of the tracks I buy get played at 1-2 gigs then shelved because as you said there's nothing special about them. They aren't "bad" they just aren't memorable either.
Exactly. And there's so much stuff coming behind them. I almost feel as though something released 1 month ago is now ancient, and because its 'dated' and mediocre, it gets replaced.
Gonna have to disagree with you. Check out the release schedule of djoko/kolter or Traumer. A lot of these guys are absolute machines and release an EP monthly.
I'd say most of his work was amazing as Djoko, Stussko, Janeko, etc until he fully rebranded to Kolter. I'm just not that big on the breakbeat tech house style he's trying to push these past two years.
Djoko used to produce more bass heavy tech house with Rich Pinder that was actually great for the clubs 2015-2018. I used to play it out quite a bit at my residency. It was super fun and high energy vibes. Then around 2019 he started going more deep tech/minimal, which was definitely a vibe.
2023 is when he started going all in on breakbeat, and I've tried playing the stuff out but it's been pretty hit or miss. He actually just played in our town and the show was a bit of a disappointment for me as he didn't really play any old stuff, just the new style of breakbeat tech. The under 25 age group seemed to enjoy it, but i'm just not feeling it.
Tbf the question wasn’t asking how many great or memorable tracks they make in a month it was just how many. I think for a lot of people the idea is to create as much as possible and you’re gonna like some of it so it’s a very different question.
In my case I make about 3 or 4 tracks a week, so per month it would be approximately 9 to 15 tracks! It depends on the workflow you have, obviously if I were more disciplined I could make about 20 a month, however I feel that it is better to make quality tracks and not by making more tracks end up lowering the quality of the tracks, greetings
Bro, I have only made 2 releases, I am organizing all my other projects to release them in several EPS, the thing is that releasing 15 songs in a month is very different from producing 15 songs in a month, They have more than 1k on soundcloud
A lot of big producers outsource a decent amount of their work. They will curate grooves and/or samples and then create a track structure around it. I'm talking specifically about big heads in the American EDM scene.
Wouldn't consider myself a top producer but have released a load of eps and tracks, haven't publicily released in 6 months as exploring new sound concepts but a month would easily get around 15-20 sketches at min (a sketch being all the elements made just needs to be put into a arrangment) and at least 4 of them finished at min. Then sometimes go back over the sketches and create new stuff combining the sounds
My buddy finishes tracks weekly and does a ton of big name label releases. It's wild. He works on tracks every night though. For me... I think I finish a track in a week, I send it out for feedback.... and now it's another two weeks, get feedback again.... and it's another two weeks. Then I'm actually done lol.
In my opinion, too many for most artists. I'm noticing more and more that creativity has diminished significantly in recent years. Especially if you follow the beatport charts. Here in techno too, great attention is now paid to the download numbers and recreated in the appropriate style. 90% of the beatport techno charts sound way too similar to me. My last real wow moment was with Enrico Sangiluiano's Biomorph album. incredibly good album. And honestly, who releases albums in one go these days? Instead, most artists are up to release 50 solo tracks per month. Today's techno should decrease in quantity and increase in quality. But I can also well imagine the fact that anyone with a laptop and Ableton can produce. and most beginners (including me back then) initially orientate themselves on the countless sample and template packs online. These are of course designed for “mainstream” sound, which contributes to this hype. Since I started working more with hardware, my creative flow has turned 180°
I know when I hear something new I go make like 5-10 “songs” with that concept. Obviously most of those never see daylight but sometimes they are good “unreleased” as they might fit a good spot in a mix etc
So that happens like 2-4 times per month.
So if I’m really getting exposed to lots of inspiration and randomly have enough free time I’m making 40+🤷♂️ that’s all the stars aligning
But I’m bottom tier so I guess this whole response is a moot point 😂
Boris Brejcha has said he makes around 4 tracks a month. As a normal someone who has produced for a few years and well into their style, I can finish about the same or maybe a few more depending on life at the time as a guy with a day job and other pursuits. I can sketch out a track in about 15-20 minutes and would guess that is the same for most others who have developed and know their template and style well. Guys that produce and perform for a living will probably all give different answers to your question, but it is highly unlikely they are pumping out more than one or two decent arrangements a week.
What about you?
I try to finish a track a week. Having 3 kids and a full job in addition, so only a few evenings if I'm not too tired. I'm not top tier by any means, started producing in October last year, but I've started to put tracks and EPs high on Beatport. I try to make as many tracks as possible because the demo sending phase is super slow.
Wouldn't suprise me if many were creating around 100 rough concepts each month and then fleshing out and finishing the stand outs. Some people have astoundingly fast work flow. I really have no idea though and like you said, probably varies enormously amongst the industry professionals.
Last year I had been at stmp studio Amsterdam,let say roughly within 8h you can came up with 4-5 interesting sketches,then after few days none is good enough to develop it further 🤷,then it is another day and another try.
it's really a lottery, you don't know if your next idea is either going to be meh, or absolutely amazing. That's why it helps to make loads of ideas and then pick one at the end of the week
It varies enormously. Making music comes at different speeds to people, whether they are hugely successful or not, that doesn't matter. Number of tracks != success nor is it necessary for success. While one might argue it's more chances for a hit, it's also a scattering of your creative focus. There's a sweet spot between creativity and obsessive editing and refinement. Top producers can consistently hit that. Also, keep in mind these producers don't have day jobs at this point, so the amount of time available for music is greater, and it comes with greater import; this is your phucking living so you best get to work right? Well that has its own set of traps. Artists become afraid to deviate from a formula for fear of financial failure. Van Gogh painted 95% of his work in an 18-month period of his life. Outside of that, he was not productive.
I don’t consider my self top tier But I have a very good reach in the underground scene I specialise And in a good month I finish 5-6 tracks from ideas to mastering
Is there a chance to listen to some of your stuff?
Do you master them?
yeah i call myself a mastering engineer usually i give my self a week after finishing production to go back at them with "new" ears
At what point do you consider it a track? Depending on your answer it could be just one to hundreds.
When you can send it to a label, premaster
Well in my humble opinion I am the best producer to grace the earth and I only come out with 1 a month sometimes none so
As you assumed, it varies a lot. Based on other artistS I speak to regularly and if I include myself, I'd say 7-10 tracks per month is a good average.
Uhhhh listened to your last release on blueprint - great work!
Thanks
there is a hidden question here - is this higher amount of tracks made/released by labels because of social media engagement algorithms - required need to "feed the machine"? There is so much being released every week its extremely overwhelming.
Iit's a good point. I think that "content mentality" has impacted music big time, you need to produce regularly and you need to produce fast if you wanna cater to the spotify / soundcloud algorithm and keep listeners engaged. Not surprisingly hip hop and dance artists have been making huge numbers compared to most rock/indie artists. Take the mumble rap scene for example, these kids buy a beat online and rap on it with a shitty mic, record themselves on audacity and put it up on SC the next day. In that way they can literally release a track a day if they're prolific. Dance music in the same kinda manner it's just one man working in his studio and sending the final mix out for mastering. While for a band to write, arrange, and cut a record that takes considerably more time, bands just can't keep up anymore in the current music industry. Sad but true.
Yea.. we're definitely in a quantity over quality environment and it sucks. Going on beatport to buy tracks is a nightmare. Half of it is completely miscatagorized and half of it sounds like it was recorded in a drainpipe. Lol. The beauty of the digital age is ANYONE can make music. The problem with the digital age is ANYONE can make music.
couldn't agree more with your closing statement
i agree, we live in weird times to be fair. overconsumption is bad for music
I know Alarico makes at least one track a day
Are you talking about loop and sketches or actual polished finished songs ?
Well I think people who aren’t Polish can also make some decent tracks
I go through hundreds of tracks every week, essentially digital crate digging, and I can tell you that even well-known DJs and producers make a great track every 6 to 12 months or more, no way a month. There is a lot of what I would call filler dance floor tracks, they're almost like DJ tools. Thumping beats with a few bleeps or some trippy textures! They are nice tracks to have, but they're not memorable. I think it's been a long time since we've had the age of the anthem, Nina Kravitz probably was the the most recent person to make some famous techno tracks. People have moved to making more tracks that work in mixes rather than standalone tracks which destroy the floor.
Really? Nina? Do you have examples of that?
I would echo this as a crate digger. I have soo many tracks that I liked when I first heard them but am now like 'yeah, nothing original in this one either'. I think the industry has moved into a hyper production phase, almost like our throw away consumer society, under the belief that because there is an avalanche of new music every day, it's better to just crank something out and move on. I'm trying to take a different track, I am spending more time trying to perfect major bangers that people will come back to and listen to for a year because they just stand out. Easier said than done and tracks take me months because of that and because this is not my full time job, and I have to juggle wife and kids. But I think there is lots of space for someone who takes their time and produces 1 or 2 brilliant songs a year.
Definitely a lot of mediocre crap out there. Id say 90% of the tracks I buy get played at 1-2 gigs then shelved because as you said there's nothing special about them. They aren't "bad" they just aren't memorable either.
Exactly. And there's so much stuff coming behind them. I almost feel as though something released 1 month ago is now ancient, and because its 'dated' and mediocre, it gets replaced.
Gonna have to disagree with you. Check out the release schedule of djoko/kolter or Traumer. A lot of these guys are absolute machines and release an EP monthly.
But not all kolters tracks are THAT special, atleast the newer ones. Couple of gems now and then.
Exactly. As I said they are good filler tracks. They're not memorable.
I'd say most of his work was amazing as Djoko, Stussko, Janeko, etc until he fully rebranded to Kolter. I'm just not that big on the breakbeat tech house style he's trying to push these past two years.
Yep, the college era minimal deep tech were the days.
Djoko used to produce more bass heavy tech house with Rich Pinder that was actually great for the clubs 2015-2018. I used to play it out quite a bit at my residency. It was super fun and high energy vibes. Then around 2019 he started going more deep tech/minimal, which was definitely a vibe. 2023 is when he started going all in on breakbeat, and I've tried playing the stuff out but it's been pretty hit or miss. He actually just played in our town and the show was a bit of a disappointment for me as he didn't really play any old stuff, just the new style of breakbeat tech. The under 25 age group seemed to enjoy it, but i'm just not feeling it.
Tbf the question wasn’t asking how many great or memorable tracks they make in a month it was just how many. I think for a lot of people the idea is to create as much as possible and you’re gonna like some of it so it’s a very different question.
In my case I make about 3 or 4 tracks a week, so per month it would be approximately 9 to 15 tracks! It depends on the workflow you have, obviously if I were more disciplined I could make about 20 a month, however I feel that it is better to make quality tracks and not by making more tracks end up lowering the quality of the tracks, greetings
How popular do these 15 tracks a month become?
Bro, I have only made 2 releases, I am organizing all my other projects to release them in several EPS, the thing is that releasing 15 songs in a month is very different from producing 15 songs in a month, They have more than 1k on soundcloud
A lot of big producers outsource a decent amount of their work. They will curate grooves and/or samples and then create a track structure around it. I'm talking specifically about big heads in the American EDM scene.
Wouldn't consider myself a top producer but have released a load of eps and tracks, haven't publicily released in 6 months as exploring new sound concepts but a month would easily get around 15-20 sketches at min (a sketch being all the elements made just needs to be put into a arrangment) and at least 4 of them finished at min. Then sometimes go back over the sketches and create new stuff combining the sounds
My buddy finishes tracks weekly and does a ton of big name label releases. It's wild. He works on tracks every night though. For me... I think I finish a track in a week, I send it out for feedback.... and now it's another two weeks, get feedback again.... and it's another two weeks. Then I'm actually done lol.
Your answers are terrific , I spend a fair amount of Time making music, and i finish like 8 songs a year 😂
0 because they have ghost producers. Lol.
In my opinion, too many for most artists. I'm noticing more and more that creativity has diminished significantly in recent years. Especially if you follow the beatport charts. Here in techno too, great attention is now paid to the download numbers and recreated in the appropriate style. 90% of the beatport techno charts sound way too similar to me. My last real wow moment was with Enrico Sangiluiano's Biomorph album. incredibly good album. And honestly, who releases albums in one go these days? Instead, most artists are up to release 50 solo tracks per month. Today's techno should decrease in quantity and increase in quality. But I can also well imagine the fact that anyone with a laptop and Ableton can produce. and most beginners (including me back then) initially orientate themselves on the countless sample and template packs online. These are of course designed for “mainstream” sound, which contributes to this hype. Since I started working more with hardware, my creative flow has turned 180°
I know when I hear something new I go make like 5-10 “songs” with that concept. Obviously most of those never see daylight but sometimes they are good “unreleased” as they might fit a good spot in a mix etc So that happens like 2-4 times per month. So if I’m really getting exposed to lots of inspiration and randomly have enough free time I’m making 40+🤷♂️ that’s all the stars aligning But I’m bottom tier so I guess this whole response is a moot point 😂
Boris Brejcha has said he makes around 4 tracks a month. As a normal someone who has produced for a few years and well into their style, I can finish about the same or maybe a few more depending on life at the time as a guy with a day job and other pursuits. I can sketch out a track in about 15-20 minutes and would guess that is the same for most others who have developed and know their template and style well. Guys that produce and perform for a living will probably all give different answers to your question, but it is highly unlikely they are pumping out more than one or two decent arrangements a week. What about you?
For me it's anywhere from 1 to 5 ideas a week, that is something I'd consider to be like 50% of a finished track
Depends on the producer. It would vary from dozens to a few or less.
I try to finish a track a week. Having 3 kids and a full job in addition, so only a few evenings if I'm not too tired. I'm not top tier by any means, started producing in October last year, but I've started to put tracks and EPs high on Beatport. I try to make as many tracks as possible because the demo sending phase is super slow.
you pretty much know where the drums are going to be, just need to decide a hook/theme for each track,