Concepts
- Slow tempo - 60-90 bpm
- Moody vibe. Dark, melancholic, but with an undercurrent of anger, or cool.
- Slow evolutions.
Elements
- Drums:
- Break beats, often from funk tracks, usually slowed down.
- Muted - just a slowed down loop will do this, but if making drums from scratch try low pass or reduced high-shelf EQ with lots of reverb (not wide).
- Snare: short, pitched-up, distorted, reverbed.
- Kick provides the groove - add 16ths on off-beat 16ths, in
- Cymbal wash
- Percussion:
- woodblock, toms,
- Samples from existing music:
- e.g. melodies, chords, pads, vocals
- re-pitched to match your key.
- Muted vibes (pitch down/low-pass)
- Melodics:
- Moody
- low-passed + reverbed
- guitar, bell, keys or organ sounds
- Bass/sub:
- gritty but dark: distortion + low-pass
- Pads:
- constant pitch
- layered chords
- light modulation (e.g. 10% volume LFO, ~1/4 pulse)
- Vocals:
- repeated motifs, change every 4 or 8 bars
- reverbed
Techniques:
- drums:
- Shuffle the 16ths.
- Variations every 2 or 4 bars:
- Drop the drums out for part of a bar.
- Slice and re-arrange parts of the bar.
- bass:
- longish notes (1-4 beats), with gracenotes before, e.g. high notes leading in to the down-beat
- Play the bass against the kicks for a driving feel, or with the kicks for more laid-back vibes.
- Melodies
- FX:
- low-pass/low-shelf most thigns for moodiness
- wash with dense reverb
- Ear candy:
- high-pass or low-pass drums for a couple of bars.
- resample the master channel or drums and reverse/stutter for a beat.