I am surrounded by music production gear—some digital turntables, drum machines, midi controllers, mixers. When I first arrived here, the one thing I was willing to try was all of it.
So much of my creative works happens in the undifferentiated confines of my laptop computer, I wanted to touch some keys, buttons, dials, faders. This wouldn’t be new for me. It would be a return to my creative roots.
Standing in the Corner
The first studio I operated in was a blend of analog and digital and I stayed firmly on the digital side. A guy from New Jersey had settled in South Korea and opened up a night club outside Camp Casey and the “studio” was his DJ booth.
Unlike most of the clubs along the strip which were staffed by trafficked sex workers from the Philippines or Russia, the Black Rose was an American-style club that played Hip-Hop and R&B music.
Soldiers from bases all over S. Korea would use their weekend passes and take buses or trains down to Black Rose to catch the party every Saturday night.
On other nights, the atmosphere was more like a quiet dive bar. And on those nights I would be in the corner of the DJ booth, tapping away on the pads and spinning the dial on the MPC 2000XL that was bought with the proceeds of the mixtape we performed on and sold.
The other gear in the booth included a Roland JX-305 Groove Synthesizer that had some really cool sounds but would occasionally crash and lose you projects; a Roland VS 880 Workstation for recording, a DJ set up with Technics 1200’s and Numark mixer, and a criminally under used collection of thousands of vinyl records.
I rarely touched the turntables and didn’t learn how to do the one thing that the MPC was really made for. Sampling. Such a missed opportunity.
Let’s Get Physical
Even though the tools I was using at the time were digital, they required direct physical interaction. You had to use your hands and your ears because the visual feedback only came in the form of meters registering sound levels and the minimal information available on calculator-sized displays. The workflow made sense to me and I was hesitant deviate from it.
I resisted software production tools for years. Even after the output was indistinguishable from what could be produced on hardware, I didn’t think the process of using it would be fun.
But sometime around 2005 I made the switch to software, endured the learning curve and eventually made some things that I felt pretty good about. The lure of hardware never left, but since I was creating primarily as a hobby, I couldn’t justify the expense. During and after my failed marriage I was barely scraping by so if it didn’t make dollars, it didn’t make sense as the saying goes.
Out of Practice
Over the years, I’ve had a few periods of immersion in studios with lots of gear. Each time I am excited to dive in. Each time I notice the atrophy in the skills required to execute an intentional idea. Each time I feel the twinge of regret for not staying in practice.
I imagine how good I might be had I just stayed the course and invested focused time in mastery rather than chasing the next thing. Eventually, if there is enough time, I start to have fun with it. Occasionally I make something that I can bear to listen to again.
This morning, I download the latest version the software that I've been using for almost 20 years. They've been continuously updating it over the years and I was a few versions behind. Even after two decades of casual use I have barely scratched the surface on the capabilities of the program.
So as I sit here, surrounded by all these opportunities for novelty, the new thing that I most want to try is right here on the laptop where I am typing these words.
In Depth
Shiny new objects can give you a spark of motivation or inspiration to start creating, or they can be a distraction to keep you from doing things that need to be done. You can chase novelty in an effort to avoid the difficult things.
There is a balance to be struck between exploring the new and making use of (or sense of) what you already have. Once you find a process, approach, or tool that works, you want keep working it. But if you don't continue to explore, and things stop working, you may not have the resilience and flexibility to pivot.
One way to find balance between exploring new things and executing on what already works may be to seek novelty in depth. Seek a deeper level rather than a different approach. If the goal you are pursuing remains the same, the differences in the processes and tools you may employ are superficial. Go deeper.
Even if the process you master becomes obsolete, the skills you acquire can still serve you. You gain a deeper understanding of the problems to be solved and questions to be answered as you move towards mastery.
When you really know where you are trying to go, you can find a way to get there.
What is one thing you are willing to try?
I am willing to try out some of this gear in the room where I sit. But I plan on skipping the nostalgia and regret and get straight to the part where I am having fun.
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