Category: Music

Embrace Limitations

Many people think negatively about their limitations. I think we should embrace limitations. Some of the greatest artists, writers, and musicians became great, not in spite of their limitations, but because they made their limitations work in their favor.

In fact, if you want to become better at something, you might even purposefully set limitations. As a writer, I’ve started limiting the length of my online essays. It makes them easier for you to read, and it forces me to learn to use pith, be more concise.

As a musician, I’ve purposefully set limits on how many sounds, instruments, or tracks I use in any given recording. Ambient musician and famous producer, Brian Eno is known for adding extra limitations to his music production process. Setting limitations forces you to get more creative.

Don’t fuss over your limitations. Find a way to work with them, around them, and even use them to your advantage. Embrace limitations. – dse

Tools

No matter the creative endeavor, we use tools. Writing and music have taught me the valuable lesson of promoting creative thought by switching up the tools I use.

A tool doesn’t have to be a physical thing. In the case of writing, I have a toolbox of strategies and ideas that also work when I feel a little stuck.

  1. Physical tools: As writers, we mostly write at computers. But sometimes going back to a pen and a legal pad can promote new ideas. Or try the notes app on your iPhone. In music, every instrument I play is a different tool. I’ve prompted new music simply by switching from the guitar to the piano, or by using a digital audio workshop instead of a banjo.
  2. Substitute the method: One way to get the creative juices flowing is to use another method. Instead of trying to force yourself to write a novel that doesn’t seem to be working, write a series of poems. Rather than composing more pop music, switch genres. Try jazz. Use distortion. Write backwards. Anything different.
  3. Go completely outside the box: So you’re stuck trying to compose a new piece at the piano? Go build a workbench or dig a ditch. Use a tool completely unrelated to your craft. It can work wonders.

A great thing about switching up your tools is that it helps you to become a better artist. Having great pencil drawings, paintings, and multimedia art in your portfolio gives you more artistic clout.

Be willing to try different tools and strategies next time you get stuck. You might be amazed. – dse

How I Make Music

Times have changed since the days of going to the 4-track recording studio. I have more musical options at my fingertips today than the Beatles ever did. So, here’s how I make music.

I’m not a minimalist by lifestyle, but I do use minimalism in my creative work. For music, although I’ve got a room full of guitars and such, I most often simply use an iPad Pro with GarageBand. I do have a few other apps in my toolbox, but I keep it limited.

I compose music in a simple and fairly linear fashion. Anderhill music isn’t really written or played as much as it’s programmed in real time. If you know anything about digital audio workshops, (DAWs), you may understand the editor function. That’s what I use. I simply play a few notes on the keyboard on the iPad in GarageBand, and then I go into the editor and program the rest.

Most tracks take from one to four hours to create, but I might keep editing and mixing here and there for a couple of days.

I make a purposeful attempt to limit how many instruments I use, and I shy away from pop-sounding beats and melodies. (And believe me, I can make those, too. It’s almost a curse that I have to continually fight.)

I often sample everyday sounds like fans, washing machines, cars, and squeaky doors. I also sample instruments such as guitars, banjos, mandolins, and drums. I haven’t done much for lyrical content with Anderhill, but quite a few tracks still feature samples of my voice.

That’s how I make music. In the end, it’s simple and fun, and I usually like the results. – dse

The Noise We Make

On Anderhill’s 10th EP, I considered human hustle and bustle, the noise we create as a society. I’ve always found the idea of incorporating the sounds of cars, busses, and squeaky brakes into music fascinating. Some call it sound design. Some call it ambient.

The machinery we create makes it’s own music. One of my goals as a composer is to capture those sounds and weave them back into my own music for playback. It’s a loop.

The Noise We Make includes samples of traffic, electronic hums, and other everyday sounds. – dse

Bones

Bones are what hold us together. Bones are also the core of good rock & roll music.

Every kind of writing, art, and music has its bones, the core structure that keeps it from falling apart. Bones might include a primitive beat, a sketch, a pentatonic scale, or a simple sentence. They’re simply the basic building blocks needed to make something.

Don’t mistake formula for bones.

I’ve been known to rail against formulaic art and writing. Rail I will. Bones and formula are two distinct things. Bones are the basics, the building blocks, the primitive qualities to any type of work. Formulas are preset rules and templates in which we can organize the bones. Formula gives way to mediocracy.

This website is based on formula. Most popular music is based on formula. Sometimes, we need to adhere to formula to make our work make sense. I might argue that the most admirable goal of the true artist is to do away with formula as much as possible and get back to the bones of it all. – dse

Three to Fly

Three to Fly is Anderhill’s ninth EP. Released in May, 2019, the four-song EP continues my journey in experimental electronic music. The third track “Featherlight” is a slight departure from the original Anderhill sound, but the rest of the EP finds its way into a familiar groove.

Too much familiarity is good and bad. When bands and musical artists get stuck in a groove, everything starts to sound the same. On the other hand, it’s good to have a signature sound. As you listen to more of my music, you’ll slowly discover that Anderhill has music that both falls into the groove and music that breaks the mold. – dse