Getting a New Perspective on Your Music

Hey Everyone,

I wanted to talk a bit about how getting fresh perspectives on your music is crucial to the creative process. Whether it's deciding to keep certain elements in a song, testing your mixdown's translation on other systems, inspiring new ideas, or just figuring out if the song itself is any good--perspective is key. So in addition to getting feedback from friends and other producers, you can do any of the following things to help get a fresh perspective on a track if you no longer can be objective since you've listened to it way too many times.

And before I dive in to the list, I'll reiterate that last point: as we listen to the same thing over and over again, our ears start to get used to it and it becomes much harder to properly judge the quality of sounds and ideas as well as the balance of a mixdown. That's one reason why referencing other tracks is so helpful. 

I like to take several days after I finish the first 'final draft' of a song before sharing it with anyone. Coming back a few days later with fresh ears allows me to pinpoint so many issues I didn't hear earlier and sometimes realize that the entire idea is average. When it comes to sending to labels, I've usually sat with the song for at least a month or two (sometimes way longer), unless there's a deadline.

Besides just taking some time off of a track, here are other ways to gain new perspective in no particular order:

-Flip your headphones around so the left earcup is actually on your right ear.

-Listen on as many other systems as possible: other pairs of headphones, airpods, car stereos, portable bluetooth speakers, Alexa/Google Home, TVs, PAs, club systems, etc. Be careful not to make too many drastic mixing decisions based on listening on one random system--though you definitely can use the insights you gain to enhance your mix to be better translated across all systems.

-Walk around your studio while you listen (turn Sonarworks off first!) or even outside of your studio. Sometimes I'll put my ear up against the wall on the outside of my room and listen, or blast it and walk down the hall and listen. This occasionally will make me hear a different inherent groove or only certain frequencies, which often inspires a fresh idea in the track. It's kind of like a "club bathroom test" too.

-Listen under the influence. I don't want to advocate drinking or drug use, but if you're on something, it could be a nice opportunity to hear how your music might come across to many people on the dancefloor. Most substances also change your perception of music in some way.

-Have somebody sit in the room with you while you listen. This is a crazy phenomenon...essentially when you know that somebody else is listening to your music with you (even if they are behind you/out of sight), there is often a psychological effect that makes you more judgemental on your own track. This trick often helps me accept the fact that a certain section of my song is too boring or a certain sound is cheesy.

-Similar to above, try testing your song out in different settings to different audiences. Ideally in a DJ set, but also at a house party with friends, a boombox on the beach, on headphones while exercising, etc.

-Whether or not you have gigs, you can also test out the mixability of your club-oriented music by loading it up in Rekordbox, Ableton, or on your DJ equipment and seeing how it is to mix in and out of other songs.

Hopefully these tricks can help you gain some new perspective on your music! Feel free to post any other strategies you use in the comments.