Welcome

I'm a producer/MIDI programmer/songwriter currently in the Nashville area. My passions are music production, Ableton, controllerism, and education. You can hear excerpts of my work on my music page, and if you're interested in working together I'd love to hear from you!

a studio outside the machine.

not a label. not a brand. merely a studio with the following approach to the creative process:

WILD

I believe in unconventional practices when it comes to sound design, and prefer to not leave any breadcrumbs. What we make together won’t be a collection of used production tricks.

VIOLATOR

If we work together, we won’t be making art for the music business. We’ll be making art to make art and if it ends up being successful, so be it. We won’t play by genre or trend rules. Reference tracks are helpful, but in our case, they’re not the boss.

REPUBLIC

We’re going to make music by people for people, not for corporations or dollar signs. I believe that when you take commercial success out of the driver’s seat, it can free you up to say what you really need to say without trying to fit into a box for a company’s bottom line.

Why I think the “chorus+post-chorus” analysis doesn’t work.

I believe a traditional chorus has a vocal, plus a musical release of tension - for the most part. There are exceptions.

The problem with labeling the section that happens before the drop a “chorus” is that harmonically and rhythmically, that is the section where all of the tension is built, not released. It is a transitional section that builds tension in order to work you up to wanting a release. Sure, the melody and vocal sound “chorus-like” because it has a singable hook, but the overriding function of that section is to build tension. Guess which section of a song typically has that primary duty? The pre-chorus. The function of a pre-chorus is to transition you to the chorus - that moment of release.

Is it possible to to have a pre-chorus without a chorus? Technically no. I think that’s why we’re subconsciously confused right now as we’re transitioning out of this model.

In this particular situation, if we’re going to label it either a “pre-chorus” or “chorus,” I think both are fundamentally wrong. But if I’m going to pick the lesser of two evils, this section functions emotionally like a pre-chorus. It’s a tension builder. I cannot in good conscience label it a chorus. I would much prefer we just label it a “build+instrumental break.”

Food for thought, anyway. Just my opinion. I am currently working on a more academic version of this argument.

a music nerd's observation.

A sidenote here in light of my recent Ableton talk:

I love electronic music, and I still listen to dubstep on occasion. And yes, I've done work for clients that include drop-like sections. I'm not against any certain usage of form, and I'm not putting a stake in the ground saying using drops or instrumental breaks are evil practices. This was simply an observation of where we're headed collectively as producers. I'm just a music nerd who loves to observe things, and have been studying this shift. I hope that it's a conversation starter!