Simple Beats

[Haze47]

ive been listning to CoFlow a lot recently, and have noticed that almost all of EL-P's beats dont really have more than 4 layers, and seem really simple. However, if any of us made beats that simple, we would get burned for being too easy, not enuff changeups etc. So, my question is how do these famous producers get away with making simple beats? Is it because they have a crew of emcees already? Is it because they own the record labels?
Cuz im sure funcrusher was made before Co were famous/signed didnt they? Ahhha i dont know

 

[Cold Truth]

because we must learn the art of the vocal! we tend to forget how much of the melody and space comes fro m the artists voice. when people tell me a rtarck is "empty" i just tell them to wit till they hear vocals on them. taht accounts for a lot.

 

[Formant024]

Word, the mc must complement the beat, therefor the beat must be basic driven to give him space. A good mc will play with the beat to motivate the flow.

Coflow - Vital Nerve

nuff' said!

 

[incogneeto]

i defenitly think that some producers make "easy beats"......for example...the new mobb depp song.....not going to pack my cali, but the other new one that is gettin radio play (damn i wish i remember the name), but anyway listen to it........i did and broke it down to 5 layers/tracks.......THATS ALL IT WAS AND IT IS STILL A HOT BEAT.....dont forget half of a hot track is WHO'S FLOWING OVER IT..............holla back...incog

 

[Copenhagen]

Yeah, definitely leave space for the vocals. If you analyze the beat without vocals, then a very important element is missing from your analyzis.
Also, with tracks that contain real instruments, you will also find that some layer 2 basses, 3 snares, 2 hats, 2 kick, a horn with a stab, a guitar with a plucked string (just examples)...all these elements together with the right mix makes the track whole...at leat in my opinion.

 

[afriquedeluxe]

yeah, but sometimes us producers overcomplicate things lol, we want all the fancy runnin strings, complicated arpegiated progressions, chop this, chop that

 

[mono]

because we must learn the art of the vocal!

true. + good beats hardly ever sound complicated. listen to premo, insight, coflo as youve said, its in how genius ways they flip, cut, envelope, eq and play their samples.
its about how well it is mastered.
always when you judge a beat, you should get the original sample and compare it to the raped one.
if only one of us could make beats like this.....wheeee man, we'd be sendin of mp3 snippets to the labels and later just collect the money.
reality is, their beats are the dopest, but us, we (most of us) are just beginners.

its not that they made to easy, they just sound so fuckin harmonic that it seems like.
the easy on the ear sound, is the hardest to create.

 

[classic]

truth u hit the nail on the head

the beats ive made that i think are wack would get 5 mics if i had andre 3000 flowing on them.

We as produces need to realise that we are nothing without and MC
NOTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Architect]

It's okay if you want to get a little fancy, shit push the envelope make it exciting for the listeners but I'm a firm believer that a lot of "simple" Hip-Hop tracks could just be mixed better to give the song more action. I'm working on my mixes, and yes Hip-Hop music mostly is focused on the EMCEE but back in the golden years the DJ would mix shit up and keep it exciting and make a SONG out of the music, nowadays people tend to just make BEATS. Don't lose sight of legends of Hip-Hop and how they made music fuck all this technology, if you can clap on beat and stomp your feet your good LOL.

 

[gram green]

simple?

the thing is ... it sounds good if it sounds good... period... i come accross simple little loops sometimes and i just have to loop it up real quick cause it sounds ill... that doesnt make the shit any less.... and on the other side of that.... many producers and musicians i know, their downfall is over producing their shit and just doin too fuckin much at once.... i like shit that is "simple" if you wanna call it that.... people trying to hard to do stuff to their shit just end up making it sound shitty

 

[def1nition]

I do believe if something is hot it's hot but I want a sound that other people can't copy it doesn't have to have a lot of layers but be creative with sounds effects etc. flip shit in interesting ways anyone can loop a sample I want to make tracks that have a signature sound I think it's the track that inspires the M.C. ussually. Thats why producers like jay-Dilla mad lib pete rock are ill it's hard to recreate their sound. A lot of producers aren't being creative and trying to push the envelope.

 

[Equality 7-2521]

yeah i think its cos the vocals are missing like Truth said. but yo, sometimes an established producer might make a simple beat but its catchy and put together really well and gets ya head nodding. sp give them credit for that (and im not saying al established producers have never made a simple wack beat, cos lots have). thats the main ingrediant to a beat which is to be laced by an mc. but its a different story when making instrumentals. there are no vocals so the listener needs way more intracacies and change ups to hold their attention.

but i think harsh feedback (as long as its constructive) on illmuzik is good. it gets you to raise the bar.

 

[1d3nt1tY]

I like a peice to be a lil more complicated than the dun dun dun dun dun single note fruity shit I've been hearing lately...


My stuff has been pretty complicated, and vocals STILL sound tight over the top of em.


It all depends on the cut too, and how well it was all put together.

 

[UnOwn]

Yea, it is all in how it goes together. I found a perfect example when lookin at 45 King's website yesterday. He has a new virtual mixer in which you can see that like 4 or 5 layers is all he uses. But he fits them together perfectly and makes dope tracks.

 

[Phonetik]

El-p's beats are by no means Simplistic man!

 

[UnOwn]

El-p's beats are by no means Simplistic man!

I don't think he meant that in a negative sense. Hip-hop is simplistic sometimes and it is just a matter of how it is done.

 

[Nuff B]

Truth i think a lot off famous producers get slack sometimes jsut look at the neptunes man and listen to the milkshake, now how easy is that beat you have to come hard in the begining get ya name and then you can party and bullshit on ya beats. A lot does come from the presentation of a voice on a song though but it all depends on the person. look at the 9th wonder beat on j's album so simple it's sick kid but if jay is on it it's fire you feel me maybe it's just me but the media can gass you twice kid holla back.
www.soundclick.com/basssquadprod

 

[jwalk]

I like a peice to be a lil more complicated than the dun dun dun dun dun single note fruity shit I've been hearing lately...


My stuff has been pretty complicated, and vocals STILL sound tight over the top of em.


It all depends on the cut too, and how well it was all put together.[/
i agree i have made some well put together full beats that sounded even better when you had vocals on the hook or whatever because it also works as layering the harmony of the beat so i dont think you need to leave the artist some space the more you give the artist if there talented the more they will use they might hear a instrument or like a melody that might add to the hook where if that sound wasnt there they wouldnt bother

 

[Complexxx]

It's funny how people talk about creating there own signature sound so that is why they try to make their beat a little more complicated than usual. When I think of a producer who has his own signature sound but keeps his beats simple a name we all know and admire comes to mind......Dr. Dre. His beats can be so simple but when you hear it on the radio or a CD you know right off the back who produced it. Have you noticed in most of his beats you'll here the same basic drum pattern.......kick 1 2 3 snare 1 2 3 kick 1 2 3 snare 1 2 3.....and so on and so on for 48 straight bars. And he uses a lot the same sounds and effects. I think we all want that unique complicated sound....but when it comes down to it......ain't nothin wrong with takin it back to the basics.

 

[Holla]

not only just takin it back to the basics, but do u agree that its really not about the big variety of sounds you have, but the way you use those perticular sounds. I hear the same basses and snares in both Dre and the Neptunes beats. The reason they're hot is because they utilize those same sounds in many different ways. Only problem for me is, to do that it sounds a lot easier said than done. My "same" sounds cause my beats to sound way too close to the same....