Mastering for Electronic Music

Start Your Project

Category: Letters

  • Thoughts About Promotion

    A process that started over 20 years ago has finally culminated into the launch of my label Rhytual and my new album “Axia”.

    Rhytual is not about any genre of music in particular. It’s about connecting to my core as an artist, and to something universal. Removing excess and even trying to get myself out of the way of the music as much as possible – and seeing what happens.

    Staying on the theme, I thought I’d share some notes with you about promotion.

    Marketing has never been my strong point. In fact I always hated it. 

    But I want people to hear and buy my music. Not only so that I can do more of what I love. But so I can provide for my family. It’s a responsibility I don’t take lightly.

    I took this as an opportunity for growth and improvement. And the more I looked into it, the more my outlook began to change.

    I’ve come to realize that art extends beyond the actual piece of art (in this case, music). Creativity can be found in anything. I can view marketing as an extension of my art.

    Furthermore, I want to use my music to convey meaningful stories and messages. I want it to be a vehicle to connect with other people, whether that’s listeners, artists or industry folk. 

    Finally, I wish to do more good in this world as well through my music.

    Marketing is a way to achieve all of those things. It is my responsibility to help people discover the music and the stories behind it. 

    How you showcase your art profoundly influences people’s perception of it. It’s important to be aware of it.

    The promotion of “Axia” will be an ongoing mission for me in the coming weeks. I’ve been very much winging it. We’ll see what I can still come up with. Let me know if you have any ideas.

    I think my biggest takeaway so far is the realisation that promotion and marketing is a fantastic opportunity to connect with others and build genuine relationships. A lot of people are happy to help you out if only you ask them.

    The music industry is full of nice people who are happy to hear from you. You just have to approach them in a thoughtful and respectful manner.

    Check the album here (let me know your thoughts):

    Resound – Axia [Rhytual]

  • Embracing action: My new label & album (+free song download!)

    Lately, I’ve been on a mission to fuel myself with execution rather than planning. 

    Here’s a story of how this new philosophy has shaped the birth of my new label Rhytual and it’s first release, my album Axia. 

    This summer, I decided to finally step up and bring my label to life. I had been dwelling on the idea for about 15 years. There was lots of material and I had made many kinds of plans and ideas in the past. Most of them never happened.

    This time I decided:

    There is no plan. 

    Just execution.

    I’ll get the ball rolling. And I’ll aim and adjust on the fly. From that moment on it was all about taking swift action.

    I wanted to release an album, as I had many albums worth of material anyway. 

    I named it “Axia,” an ancient Greek term meaning the true worth of actions.

    I spent a day finalizing the concept and tracklist, then about a week or two fine-tuning the music, giving each track the attention it deserved.

    I took a further few days to do the mastering. I developed a very strange analog chain for it which contributed a lot to the overall sound of the album (I wouldn’t do that for clients but with my own art I have the freedom.)

    Then I took a few days to research and sort out distribution, and decided the release date.

    This week I’ve been figuring out the launch and promotion. Talking to people. Sending them music. Asking questions. Reading. Watching videos. Getting many new ideas. I still don’t know what everything is going to look like exactly, but things are shaping up nicely. Working on it hard every day.

    All of this has happened on the fly, with almost zero planning. 

    Just focusing fully and acting on whatever task I needed to do at any given moment.

    Moving forward in some unorthodox, but very effective ways.

    I’ve realised I can make a lot more happen on my own than I would have thought.

    Right now I am feeling more motivated than ever. Motivation follows action. Not the other way around.

    The album is coming out next Friday (August 4th).

    I don’t have any expectations in terms of sales. In fact it’s probably not going to resonate very well with my existing audience because it’s a significant departure from my previous released work. The label will find its audience, but it will take time and much more diligent & consistent work.

    Rhytual is not about any specific genre of music, but connecting to the core of my artistry, and to something universal. 

    With support from people like Laurent Garnier and Gilles Peterson, I have confidence in the music.

    External factors aside, in my own world I have already achieved success.

    Because I got this far. I showed myself I could do this with good standards.

    Now I’m in a great shape to move forward. NOW I have a plan. Things are set up and I have a blueprint to follow for the next releases.

    If you want a free sneak peek, I’ve put up an alternative version of the title track “Axia” for you (to be honest, I prefer this one to the one that is on the album).

    Click here to download it for free:

    https://resoundsound.bandcamp.com/track/axia-the-true-worth-mix

    I want to encourage you to consider this idea of putting less emphasis on planning and focusing on action. 

    Embrace the chaos and uncertainty that comes with it. Because you can handle that, and that’s a process that brings you many serendipitous moments which propel you forward in unexpected ways.

    Don’t hesitate to get after your ideas. To be agile, move boldly from conception to execution, and correct course along the way.

    You don’t have to have a great plan to start. Just start and make up your plan along the way.

  • The Emotional Resonance

    As I sit here, I’ve just begun listening to the new Sci-Clone album on Metalheadz for the first time. 

    Wow!

    As usual, I came in this week facing a blank canvas and no idea what to write. But this music has sparked an important topic.

    Over time, the process of making music has become increasingly technical. 

    There’s so many tools, so many possibilities and so much information out there.

    Sometimes I feel I’m contributing to the problem by talking about these things.

    It’s so easy to get lost in the complexities.

    To lose sight of what’s important.

    Amidst the technical details that often demand all of our attention, we mustn’t forget the true core:

    The essence of music lies in its emotional impact.

    That’s where it all begins and that is what matters at the end. 

    Make it a habit to take a moment to step back from the technicalities and reconnect with how whatever you are doing resonates on the emotional plane.

    Don’t just do that with the obvious stuff like when writing melodies or recording something live.

    Also think about the emotional resonance when you’re working with the EQ. Or adjusting the mix bus compression. And so on.

    In fact, the more technical you are getting with the work at hand, the more you should be thinking about it.

    Is whatever you are doing adding to the emotional impact, or taking away from it?

    This is what matters.

  • You Don’t Have to Love It

    Here’s something that often catches folks off guard when I reveal them:

    I am seldom content with my finished work.

    I lose objectivity, I get bored with it, perfectionism is always at work.

    I try not to care.

    I aim to deliver regardless, and move on.

    I don’t always succeed with that (I have a lot of “almost finished” material that is just sitting there).

    But I do finish enough to have a steady flow of releases that keeps up my momentum.

    (BTW the latest by me and Loxy just came out on Future Retro – with remixes by Tim Reaper, Double O and Basic Rhythm – vinyl and digital – link here:

    https://futureretrolondon.bandcamp.com/album/fr012)

    Now look.

    If you’re struggling with finishing and not getting your music out there – 

    Maybe all you need is a mindset shift. 

    Manage your expectations.

    Don’t aim for flawless outcomes.

    More importantly, understand:

    You don’t have to love every aspect of your work in order to put it out there.

    Go easy on yourself.

    Good enough is good enough, and worth presenting.

  • Does It Get Easy With Experience?

    Does music production become easy with experience?

    Well, you surely become better at many things.

    But you’re also always zooming deeper.

    Further and further into the fractal.

    You take on harder trials.

    Face more pressure.

    Fight your fears.

    Push limits.

    Struggle.

    Easy?

    No.

  • Focus on What You Need to Know

    Are you tired of drowning in information? 

    Spending hours or days learning something only to realize it wasn’t even necessary for your project or goals? Then hating to admit that to yourself…

    Been there, done that. There were times I lost direction completely.

    Some time ago I came to a game-changing realization.

    I was lacking the ability to properly manage my attention. 

    The world I grew up in the 80’s and 90’s was vastly different. That probably contributes to the problem.

    It simply wasn’t as necessary to manage attention and filter information back then as it is now.

    In today’s paradigm we are bombarded with fragmented bits of information from various sources. It’s easy to get overwhelmed with noise and not see a clear path forward.

    Our natural human curiosity towards all kinds of topics makes it worse. 

    So, what’s the alternative?

    Knowing only what you need to know.

    How?

    Close the floodgates and learn something new only when the need arises.

    For me this could mean spending lots of time to deep learn a new mastering tool I’ve invested in. Or it could mean taking 5 minutes in the middle of production work to figure out how to do something better.

    The key is being conscious about what you’re taking in… 

    Focusing all learning on something you’re working on…

    And not needlessly ruminating on and confusing yourself with fragmented information that isn’t helping you one bit.

    This approach helps you avoid overwhelm, gives you breathing space, and keeps your thinking leaner.

    It makes things happen.

    Because you are always focusing your mental resources on the task at hand and resolving problems related to it.

    As with learning any skill, it took some practice over the past few years for me to adopt this new approach. 

    I’m still not perfect (nor will I ever be).

    But you know what? 

    The results have already been significant.

    That’s what matters.