sweet hip hop beat (positive kick)

[schlongson81]

did this up this morning and i really like how it came out. need some pointers on the mix. updated with vox

also updted with a second song, today's work "the roundup". it has some of the same problems as the first one but another solid idea i feel.

all critique appreciated.

[illybang]

if i could suggest, as a drummer myself, i find the hi-hat-matching-the-bass-drum-beat thing kind of annoying. you may wanna look into trying to change that up a bit, but just my opinion.

also, it is very very very repetitive. i think adding some different sections that signal a change between verse and choruses will help a lot.

[schlongson81]

thanks for the tips. those are definitely my 2 biggest weaknesses. i find drums tedious and once i get all the parts recorded and mixed i generally get burnt out on it.

should i be adding an entire new part starting with a different drum beat for the second part, or is it acceptable to just say pull out/replace the horns and leave the rest? also would i be able to achieve this simply with different vocal parts..i think that's been my plan

i did get the first verse done and it definitely livens it up

[illybang]

yeah, drums can be very tedious, but remember, the beat of the hip hop track is the driving force of the entire groove, so don't skimp out on it. take the extra time / make the extra effort and get a nice solid beat in there.

i don't think you necessarily need to change the drum beat to signal a different section of this song. instead, i think you need to bring in other elements and take out the horns. that would be a drastic change because that horn is so prominent. maybe since you've got the horn feel, you can bring in other orchestral instruments or ambience once you pull it out.

i'm sure the vocals will add a lot, but vocals alone can not turn the beat into gold. see how many different ways you can change the feel of the beat (not changing the drum beat at all) by adding in different elements. if you need more ideas, listen to your favorite hip hop album / song, and focus in on the beat, not the mc. i assure you, you will hear plenty of things to give you ideas on how to progress a hip-hop beat and make it that much stronger / interesting as an entire song.

good luck!

[schlongson81]

awesome i really appreciate your help

good luck to you as well.

[edub357]

allright bro i checked out positive kick, and heres my thoughts.

first and foremost illy the kid is right(theres a new name for u brother)
the beat is going to have to be changed up. also your horns are fighting each other, lower them and give them space in the mix the panning is working but pann the hat more and set ur master appregiator to 1/16 and let them hats tap away, following the kick is something i dont do maybe sometimes i follow the snare to an extent, but i usually let the hats ring now an open hat is different i think an open hat sounds good along with a kick, but you just have a hat in there. how do you arrange your beats are you using a beat machine? regardless you need to set up your beat so that it has structure and that it doesnt sound like a 4 or 8 bar loop.

the way i do it is i like to have(this is an example)

2-4 bar intro based on your beat i would let the melody ride like soloing the strings( let them ride and build up the beat)

now you can go right into the 16 bar first verse or you can go into your hook first (up to you)

lets say u do the hook first, so based on your hook4-8 bars
this is where u drop in you kick snare hats and others to go with your hook,or you can use your melody(instruments) to form your hook.

16 bars for your verses
this is where you let the beat bang, dropping instruments in and out throught the 16 bars, this will give extra room for your instruments to beath and this will allow you to bring out certain parts of your verse. if i drop things in and out i do it in a 1-2 bar increment or maybe more depending on how i want it to sound, you can ride the kick with just the hats for a couple bars this will free up all that space to really hear what your saying you understand?

if i can help any i will, send me the beat and i will recreate it and arrange it for u to better understand what im trying to type!