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Overall I am happy with the feedback I got from last years work. My grades were higher than expected, and all feedback was very helpful and critical of the work I submitted.

Here are some SMART targets, reflecting from last year to improve on for this year:

Specific -
To research how other drummers mix and master their drums.

Measurable -
To mix and master a few drum stems over the course of the term.

Attainable -
To produce and complete beat a fortnight.

Realistic -
To give myself alone time twice a week to focus on producing, and mixing drums.

Time-bound -
To have produced a beat demo by mid term, which I am fairly happy with.

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Being inspired is to be mentally stimulated to create or feel something. For example, a recent or past event may inspire you to write a song.

My inspirations:
- Previous/existing music, which could inspire me to sample and recreate/re-write.
- Existing drum grooves, which could inspire to create or change previous grooves.
-Other drummers such as Yussef Dayes, who inspire me to improve my craft and become a better musician.

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To be influenced is to be affected and act upon differently due to something. For example, you may be influenced to write a song in a similar way to other musical idols.

My influences:
- Other drummers such as Yussef Dayes, Steve Gadd, which could influence me to play or write in a certain style
- Fellow music students, my band members, which could influence me to practise or learn new styles or songs
- Emotions during certain periods, which could affect my style of playing, i.e if I am in a bad mood I might play heavier

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1. Musicians around me
- Being in a band were we all are very interested and focused on the genre, playing with my guitarist, bassist and vocalist, it inspires me to try and bring out the best grooves and playing in which I could write, not only to write the songs to best of my ability, but to lock in with my band even more, and become tighter musicians.

2. Existing drummers
- Drummers like Yussef Dayes and Steve Gadd inspire to improve my craft and become a better musician. Hearing these drummers play at such a high level, it only motivates me too practise, and hopefully one day with lots of time and dedication, reach half of their level.

3. Hip-hop
- Hip hop is my most listened to genre, and I have been 'studying' it since I was very young. The drum grooves in hip hop, especially boom bap, influence and inspire me to write different grooves and to incorporate these into our band. I am also influenced to produce boom-bap, and to make beats in my own time just be to be in touch with hip-hop.

4. Emotions
- Emotions play a big part in music, as they influence you to write or play in a certain way. When my emotions fluctuate, I definitely play or write in different ways. This allows for me to create different sounds I wouldn't usually get, and can bring a different side out of me.

5. University -
- Since coming to University, it has really inspired me to play and practise a lot more. Not only seeing all these musicians around me, but having classes where you need to practise and prepare before hand is a big tester. This has really brought a lot more practise out of me, as there is nothing I hate more than turning up unprepared and not knowing a part, as it makes you look worse as a musician.

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Here are two research tables, one for each case study artist.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1nWGnSrbxTLnf_1hKtCqrnNGvmvp-3_zA?usp=share_link

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The Alchemist -
Daniel Alan Maman, AKA The Alchemist is a famous hip-hop producer from California. Having been producing for over two decades, he has worked with artists from Dilated Peoples and Mobb Deep, to his massive presence in the new Boom bap era with artists like Griselda, Roc Marciano and many more. Considered one of the best to do it, Alchemist's presence as a producer in modern day hip-hop is massive.

Yussef Dayes -
Yussef Dayes, South East London, is jazz/funk/afro cuban drummer who has rose to fame in the last decade. Starting off as the drummer in 'United Vibrations' in the early 2010s, Dayes has collaborated with multiple musicians in his way to fame. Having released 'Black Focus' with Kamaal Williams, then later 'What Kinda Music' with Tom Misch (earning Dayes his first top 5 album), Dayes has made a name for himself as a respected phenomenal drummer in England.

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Here is a timeline for the first 5 weeks of this module.

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For my live performance track, I have decided to go a song written by our band. This track is nearly complete with an ending being figured out. The track contains a swung jazz pattern in the chorus with lots of syncopated snare hits, as well as an off beat accented hi-hat groove in a verse. My inspiration is a groove similar to something that Yussef Dayes does, despite me being very far off of anywhere near to his ability.

The second verse groove is inspired by an Alchemist drum loop off of the track 'Surf & Turf' with Boldy James, featuring Vince Staples. This groove links up with the bass and guitar, allowing for the song to feel tight, as well as filling up the space in the song

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For my DAW studio track I have decided to go with a beat, and have two inspirations for it which I am not sure which route to go down.

Alchemist Inspired track -

For this, I would be looking to create a groovy, jazzy/soul sampled beat. I want the beat to either sound similar to a mellow song by the alchemist, such as songs like 'TV Dinners' or 'Elizabeth' or similar to a heavier song such as 'Ajax' or 'Broken Bottles'. I plan to listen to lots of different albums to find songs I feel as if I could sample with.

G-Funk Inspired Track -

For this, I would look down the route of a G-Funk track. I would like to make a track that has a funky bass line that drives the track, along with lots of piano or synth. I'd consider sampling but would also be up for creating my own parts and writing the song myself. I'm looking to create a track similar to songs like "Never had a friend like me' Tupac, 'Im A Player' Too Short, or 'Take A Hit' Dr Dre/Mack 10.

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Here is an analysis of techniques used in some of my case study artist's songs.

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Reflecting on the requirements of this case study, I feel as picking two artists is the best option for me. It allows me to pick two artists which I am passionate about, and research them to fullest, learning new information.

Reflecting on the artists I have picked:

The Alchemist -
I feel he is a great choice for me as he is my favourite producer ever, and I am inspired by his samples and production techniques.

Yussef Dayes -
I feel he is also a great choice for me, as he is one of my favourite drummers, and I take a lot of ideas from his playing.

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Here is a playlist containing three songs from both of my case study artists.

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Here I have linked a practice routine I have made to this first term.

Warm Ups -
This terms warm ups consist of playing doubles.
I play these in all types of paradiddles.
2s, 3s, 4s ,5s ,6s ,7s ,8s ,9s (left and right hand lead).
5 and 6 stroke rolls.

Setlist -
I practise our set list everyday to get tighter at our songs, as well as to always be prepared for up and coming gigs.

Groove Systems -
Purdie, Elvin Latin and James Brown grooves all come from the Groove Systems book by Tim Carmen, which allows me to learn and combine different snare, kick and hat combinations.

Other -
Everything else on my routine is something I feel needs working on, or something that I enjoy doing such as writing new grooves or learning new songs.

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Live Track -
Having wrote this song before the module, we have been working it for a while. Originally there was a different ending to our song, with a more funky part and drum solo, but due to feedback we felt we changed the end as it did not fit.

This week we wrote a new ending for the song. At the end of the 2nd chorus we build into a 6/8 climax, accenting on the crash to give a heavy feel to the song.

I think this is a suitable ending for the song, with the depressing lyrics, which then goes into the final ending of the story.

DAW Track -
For this I have started making a beat. I have sampled 'Love Is The Reason' by keys 1970. This a funk/soul song, which I have chopped up.
My idea is to go for an Alchemist/Westside Gunn beat, so I have tried to make a musical jazzy soulful with minimal drums, allowing space to the beat to be heard, and if I had a lyricist in the genre, space for him to perform on top of the beat.

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I have done some research on both of my case study artists. Here are some videos which I have watched to learn more about their playing/production.

Alchemist -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rC5n52k8H7w&t=40s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKtmBSwpzt0

Yussef Dayes -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTrv7a-uxUA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVUMSUtxma4

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The Alchemist & Boldy James in the studio making the BOLDFACE ep.

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Reflecting on my timeline, nearly everything is going to plan and on time. Our weekly practise is going well, with the song getting tighter, as well as we keep improving and adding to the song to really finish it and give it that edge it needs. All lessons are going and well, and my progress is looking a lot like my timeline, excluding a few issues.

Issue 1 -
I have fallen behind on my diary's, and need to catch up on them. This is due to me getting distracted and putting the work aside to do other things. However I know to pass I need to do all the work at my best ability, so after the formative, I aim to complete all previous, and next diary's by week 7.

Issue 2 -
I have also not developed enough of a beat. By this point of the term I have made multiple, and scrapped multiple beats. I have been unable to produce something I'd consider good enough, and just keep starting over. Knowing I must do this, for the formative I will submit whatever I have, and will force myself to finish the beat. I may make another beat by the summative deadline, but if not I have a beat to fall back on and submit.

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Here is an interview with the singer of our band, where she questions me about some music related topics:

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Description -
I submitted two demo tracks, one a live audio clip of an original song with my band, and another a DAW demo of a work in progress beat.

Feeling -
With my audio track, I am really happy with how the song is turning out. I feel as if the parts I have wrote fit song well, and am quite proud with my 2nd verse groove.
With my beat I am not so sure. Producing music is something I am not very good at, so I've tried to make something similar to my most listened to music genre. I feel as if every beat I make lacks and does not feel professional.

Evaluation -
The positives of my formative was that everything was submitted and I didn't hesitate to submit something I don't like. Our audio track was at a good level to submit, and has been a long time in the working.
The negatives of my formative was that I was 5-10 minutes late with a submission, due to me going back and editing my beat more and more to get it good enough to submit. Another was that my beat was lacking a lot of layers/detail, and juts continually looped without having a change over.

Analysis -
Having done the formative, I've come to realise that when it comes to making a DAW track and or beat, I always struggle and dislike everything I make, often deleting and scrapping a most to nearly all my beats.

Conclusion -
To challenge that, I need to force myself to complete a beat, and not give up and delete it. I should sit through, and if I start to feel as if the beat isn't good and want to scrap it, I should just try to finish a 16 bar loop just for practise.

Action Plan -
When next making a beat and I feel as if I want to scrap it, as well as making it a 16 bar loop, I must play it to other people to get a second opinion (something I've never done). Even if it's just playing to my girlfriend, I need to get some feedback to challenge my own thoughts, not only could this give me some ideas it could also ease stress.

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Beat -

For my beat, I have taken influence from Alchemist’s style. With his stripped back beats, which allow space for a lyricist to perform their talent, parts of the song don't contain too many layers. For this I have decided to sample a song, and have looped a part of the song, then reverse it, so the whole song feels like one sort of phasing loop. I have then used a dry and dull drum kit over the top which brings a groove to the track, keeping the parts fairly simple to not overcomplicate things. I wrote my own basic bassline, sticking to the root notes of Em just to build up that dark, grimy feel. Having scrapped my previous project to then make this beat two days ago with not much time on my hands, the beat lacks a lot of layers and parts, as well as not being mixed. I plan to add a piano melody, most likely holding certain chords to fill space, and many more intricate little details to add flavor. I would also like to add a beat switch to change up the feel of the song, and create something contrasting to the first beat.

Knowing my track record, I may even lose this beat at one point and make an entirely new one, as I am not very good at sticking to an idea and often listen back a week later or so and doubt what I have made.

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Kerplunk -

This track was by my band, I wrote all the drum parts. For the verses, I have taken influence from both Yussef Dayes and The Alchemist. I have taken the groove from Alchemists ‘Surf & Turf’, and rewritten it, changing the accents of the groove, linking up with the guitars and bass. There is also an influence from Yussef Dayes in there, having the 2nd verse groove contain lots of ghost notes, and a tight groove that sounds like a lot is going on, contrasting with the guitar and bass which hold back a bit. I have also thrown in off beat hits in the chorus’s at points, whilst having a jazz swing on the ride. The ride groove feels the space in the chorus, whilst the guitars bass and vocals play their own part, as well as the off beat snare hits create texture to the song. When going into the 6/8 finale, I have crashed on every snare hit to make the accents land heavier, creating a sort of half time feel. I have also added small tom fills at points that lead into the next accent, splitting the groove from the accents. Then finally, the song finishes with a 4/4 drunk groove on the ride which is stripped back, and that rides out through 4 times round to the end of the song. This relates to the lyrics of the song as the lady in the story has finally drowned at the end of the heavy 6/8 part, so now the song is a bit jagged and lacking the layers it had earlier, relating to someone having drowned.

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Here is my timeline for the second half of term.

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The Alchemist -

Alchemist’s unique selling point is ability to sample at a higher level than most other producers. Al is able to sample multiple songs at once, and mix them into one, always making a beat that is grimy, heavy but often jazzy. He is also recognised for his drum sounds, usually having a dry dull kit sound, with a snare that punches but not rings. When hearing a beat by Alchemist, you can often distinguish he produced it just through the drum sounds.

Yussef Dayes -

Yussef’s unique selling point is his tight and groovy, and phenomenal playing style, alongside his involvement as one of the best drummers in the new wave jazz era. Yussef has the ability to play an incredible groove over any piece of music given to him, and always delivers excellence. His love for jazz, funk and reggae is incorporated into his playing style, and is expressed by his grooves, which make him stand out.

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Considering my influences, I have tried to sum-up what could possibly be USP.

My USP could be my ability to take my influence from hip-hop, funk and existing drummers, and compile that into my grooves and playing when writing for new songs.

This doesn't really set me apart too much compared to the other drummers on this course, but this is only the start of me considering my USP and could develop over time.

I feel as if compared to some drummers on the course, I have spent a lot more time practising my groove rather than fills, and have focused on getting a certain feel on each song we write.

I would say my USP is centre more round technique and song writing. Having focused on my grooves and upping my ability, it has allowed me to write better parts over the years.

When it comes to engaging with an audience I am not too sure how I would do this. As of now I would rather say I connect with my band more, and as a whole we connect with our audience rather than just considering how I would be able to. But overtime my USP will develop, and I will learn what allows me to engage with our audience.

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Gibbs Reflective Cycle - Formative Feedback

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Gibbs Reflective Cycle - Formative Feedback

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Description -
Overall I was told that my influences shine through strongly in both of my tracks.
My live track feedback was that the track and my groove was really tasteful with a strong feel and pocket, but that I needed to focus in the tempo as at points it fluctuated a little.
For my beat, I was told it had a great feel and lilt, and the up-front dry drums at the front of the track is very genre appropriate, alongside the tape distortion. But more layers are needed, and the beat needs more flavour to it.

Feeling -
I feel happy with my feedback for both my live performance track and my beat. I feel all criticism is very helpful and understand where Greg is coming from. I am very happy that my beat was well received as I was not confident in it at all.

Evaluation -
The positives of my feedback was definitely that the parts I wrote for my live performance track. Greg said the parts were really tasteful, and that they all fit with what the guitar and bass was playing. Another positive is that my beat had a good feel, and blended into the genre I was trying to create.
The negatives are that my tempo fluctuated during the live performance track, which can ruin the feel of the song. As well as that my beat was missing a main melody on top of everything that had already been made.

Analysis -
My tempo needs to be worked on to ensure that I can deliver the best performance. As well as when beat making, I need to add more melodies and layers are needed to create a full feeling beat.

Conclusion -
To challenge that, I will practise my live performance track along to only a click more often, rather than to a previous recording of the track to lock in with the tempo. When making another beat in the future, I will make a melody line first, and build off of that instead, flipping the way I beat make to see the outcome.

Action Plan -
To ensure better time keeping, every time we write or I learn a song, I will always play along to a click after fully learning the parts, to make sure I lock in with time keeping. With my beats, as I am still not confident in them, my aim is just to play them to my friends, so I can get honest feedback which will help.

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In order of the images.

I first found a song I wanted to sample.

I then chopped up a part I liked, pitched it down and quartered the speed.

I then reversed it, adding the two together to making a waving never ending loop.

I then wrote my own simple bass line and matched the key of the song.

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Last week I decided to make a new beat, as I am not really a fan of my previous one anymore.

In order of the screen shots:

I started by writing a bass line to a drum groove, which was made out of my sample pack.

After this I added some chords on the piano, playing the wrong notes (or right notes - jazz) on certain chords.

I then added a cracking sound over the top of the beat to give it some texture.

After this I took a sound from a Sopranos scene I have sampled, chopped it up, added some EQ and placed it in my beat as little bits of detail.

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Aims -
Live performed original track demonstrating mine and bands technical ability.
To make a boom-bap esc beat.

Resources -
My band is a resource, as we all play and write together.
The internet to research production techniques for my beat.

Inspiration -
My band members who inspire me to try and improve my ability even more to write the best possible part.
Hip-hop as a whole being a big genre in my life, inspiring me to make a boom-bap beat.

Case Study Inspiration -
Alchemists producing style which inspired me to make a grimy boom-bap beat.
Yussef Dayes who inspires me to become a better drummer, and become more technical and versatile, along with his grooves which I inspire me to write like him.

Challenges -
Producing a beat has been my biggest challenge due to my lack of commitment to one beat. I often dislike it eventually, delete it and start over, causing me to have a lack of content.

Defining Features -
In our live performance track a defining feature is all accents landing with bass drums and guitar, which is something we often do. Another is the 2nd verse groove being a re-written Alchemist groove, which I didn't realise I had used into hearing the song 'Surf & Turf' a few weeks later. The groove contains lots of ghost notes which I often add into my playing.

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Origin -
The instrumental was written before lyrics, with the lyrics being written afterwards giving the song a bigger impact. We had to change the end as it juxtaposed the story, with us then adapting and building the song to create the feel we wanted, resulting in a song we are happy with.

Nature -
The nature of this track was to create a jazzy song for our band. By building it up we have created 'sad' song, where the nature has changed to creating a song where all instruments and parts compliment each other, and the story.

Power -
The power is to move the listener, and creating relation or sympathy between the listener and the story.

Purpose -
The purpose of the song is to have a technical jazzy song, which tells a story. The listener could feel sympathy and or relation to the lyrics, creating a deeper meaning of struggle and suicide.

Creation -
The guitar part was wrote first, along with the bass and drums. I tried to write something that fit the feel of the guitar part, whilst writing a groove I was really happy with. The song had a different ending with a drum solo, but once the lyrics were written, we decided to remove it as it did not fit. We the new 6/8 build all together, along with the 'drunk' section, which matches the climax 'death' of the woman in the story.

Reception -
The music is for fans of new wave jazz/funk, with the chords and progression being jazz. As well as for people who can relate to, or feel something from the story.

Meaning -
The meaning of the song is to have the instruments and lyrics link up to create a story. Both sections complement each other, creating a story about suicide and suffering finishing with an unanswered end, leaving the story up to interpretation.

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Origin -
After doing a lot of listening, I had a few influences and went on my DAW. I started off the piano chords, I then wrote a bass line but decided to go back and re-arrange the chords to fit the bass line better. The drums were then placed down using a sample pack that I had, blending the kick with the bass. The rest of the effects so far came from a Soprano's sample, where without intending too, I took sounds from the audio, chopped them up and placed them on the beat.

Nature -
The nature of the song is to match the Griselda/Alchemist/boom-bap genre. The song relates to other tracks in the genre, and allows space for a lyricist to perform over the top.

Power -
The power of the song is to give off what I would call a 'head bop' track which you could play in your car. It creates an eerie, hard feel with bouncy drums over the top being the main forefront of the track.

Purpose -
The purpose was the make an Alchemist sounding beat, similar to his heavier work like 'Ajax' and '5 To 50'. The track may give off a grimy, dark feel, which could complement a lyricist over the top talking about 'depressing' or 'evil' topics.

Creation -
After giving up on all my samples, I felt it would easier to make a beat without sampling a melody. Creating an off-putting chord sequence, alongside a heavy grimy punchy bass line and bouncy drums, created a simple typical boom-bap beat. I sampled a scene from The Soprano's just to put in a section, but ended up chopping up sounds or words and layering them over my beat. I created a beat switch which is more eerie than the first, have a heavy drop and grimy feel to match the boom-bap/Alchemist aesthetic.

Reception -
The song is for classic boom-bap/new wave listeners, but is ultimately for myself. I would not consider it good enough to be released, so realistically it is for myself, and this module in my course.

Meaning -
To tell the truth, there is no meaning to this track rather than it being made my own intentions. Hip-hop being my favourite genre, I would just like to feel a bit more involved in it.

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With the big link between the mafia and hip-hop, I have decided to sample a scene from my favourite TV programme.

With my inspirations like The Alchemist, Nas, Benny The Butcher and The Black Soprano family all using mafia samples or references, I felt it was necessary to add a scene from the Soprano's into my beat.

I have chopped up little parts and layered them over my beat to add detail and texture.

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Last week I started to type up my case studies after finishing my research. Here is the two paragraphs I have written for each artist.

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Here are some screenshots of beat beat development.

I have pretty much finished both sections of my beat. I have a section in-between with a sample scene from the Sopranos, which the audio is a fight, leading into the second, grimier part of my beat.

I have also started to mix a few tracks as seen in my second screenshot. Adding EQ, compressors, reverb and more to build texture.

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Here are my programme notes for both assessment songs.

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Overall I am quite happy with our live performance of Kerplunk. We have played it better on stage before, but I am still happy with this take. All instruments link up and the vocals deliver over the top perfectly.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xyDLnUPdWyEe3L3eG7QNldyaGguqXgEy/view?usp=share_link

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When it comes to my un-named beat, I am satisfied, but not too impressed. I feel I could have don better, and if I hadn't left it so late I would have been able to add a few more details I feel it needs. I am also not so great at mixing, so the mix is not prefect, and feel I need more time and practise to overcome this.
So my aim for the break before next time is to learn more production techniques so I can do better in the future.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/17aaOkdUtKVS-FYDdqy6ySs6yO-K1i8ue/view?usp=share_link