bargain beats
Drum pattern building
Whether you want to use drum machine hardware, software or just a set of samples, there are a few key indicators that will stand you in great stead before you start building patterns
In just the same way that you would rarely compose or produce a rock track without the right type of electric guitar sound, the same can be said for the myriad of different drum sounds that we have available to us, thanks to the extraordinary age of access to samples and drum software.
To amplify this further, there are so many genres and subcategories of commercial music, meaning the right choice for your drum sounds could make the difference between commercial hit, or designation to the download bargain bins.
Finding your sound
One of the most extraordinary factors when it comes to drum sound selection and choice is how in vogue certain sounds can be. In much the same way that fashions and tastes repeat every few years, the same can be true of drum sounds.
Let’s take one of the most ubiquitous sounds of the last 40 years, Roland’s TR-808. It has supplied everything from bright and breezy patterns, as heard on Marvin Gaye’s Sexual Healing, to the beginnings of the hip-hop movement, with the likes of Afrika Bambaataa and the Soulsonic Force. But the 808’s influence does not end there.
The 808 bass drum has provided the bassboom in so many tracks, thanks to its elongated release tail, that it’s become part of the hip-hop soundtrack for the last 40 years. Take this concept onto its next logical progression, and not only has the 808 kick been sampled more times than a James Brown scream, but once sampled, it has been used to play basslines. This was a common production pursuit throughout the drum & bass era, with a bass becoming something of a substitute for the bass drum, as drums loops were pitched upwards, resulting in an increase of both tempo and pitch.
While the 808 feels like it has never left us, the 808 hi-hat and snare have drifted in and out of fashion as the years have passed on by. Historically, the sound might be ancient, but they have never been more fashionable than they are right now, thanks to the trends for trap, where hats and snares will become interjected with rolling, repetitive and fast fills.