Why You NEVER Finish Your Tracks... (and how to fix it)

I call it "to build a strong backbone".

Thanks

Thanks for the gems! I'm always thinking about how MJ for example spent a lot of time on mixing and creating songs and go back and forth with ideas instead it was what he wanted, knowing that he's music is timeless do you think we should reconsider the time spend on our creation - everything is so fast nowadays it like a fast everything culture, just curious to know your take on this (sorry for my broken english i'm french ^^)

Peace and Grace ;)

I waste 4 hours making chord and melodies haha

I always do the songwriting in a couple days but then spend over a month finding the perfect sound or synth, I wish there was a quicker way

Super helpful tip here. Thanks Nathan
!

Awesome tips. The stupid thing is that I already use this kind of structured high-level approach in my job, and somehow never wanted to take this approach with music! But this video has helped validate the idea for me, and I’m looking forward to taking this approach on my next track. I strongly agree with the approach of time-boxing music creation sessions. Even with a timer, I often find it hard to step away and take a break. But it definitely pays to take a break, even if you just stand up and go get a glass of water, that’s usually enough to snap out of the haze and realise that you need a proper break.

This is the worst problem for every artist :/ Keep fighting guys!

this is WONDERFUL advice, thank you so much!

Amazing video bro! Its so true! Structure is the main chunk

re: "2 weeks, a week, that's way too long" - bollocks. It takes as long as it takes. Some songs take a couple of days, some take years.

so i need to learn songwritting

Best tip for me I've realised is to be ruthless and be deliberate

Ive finnaly discovered what my problem is,am sure it will work from now on....am strting to apply these tips right now

U can still know all this and never finish anything lol

My favorite is creating a loop, listening to said loop 1000 times until I’m sick of it, and then starting a new project…rinse and repeat.

Making quick decisions is something I didn’t realize I needed to work on, let alone pay attention to. It’s time to change that. Thank you 🙏🏼

I appreciate how quickly you speak. I'm so impatient.

Very good points!! I think the sound and mixing things depend on the kind of music you’re making maybe. Like for example EDM (mostly trance in my case) lies so much in the aesthetics and how it physically feels on the dance floor. Having the sounds and especially the bass elements right early on in the production will save nerves later on and maybe even feed the creativity and productivity and motivation to finish the track because it already sounds right and has the building blocks figured out that you can arrange more easily. Ahhh I dunno…

I have been recording my whole life. My dad used to do home recording. I really enjoy building all the parts. So nowni write my songs and record them. But I have never "finished " a song.
I am inspired now after hearing your wisdom. Thank you

Right on, thank you.

Dude, heck. Yeah.

Thanks Man! Good direction of thinking!

Thank you. For everything.

Thank you for the advice I would start one song. Don’t know what I’m doing and then start a new one. And repeat the pattern

Nathan Eswine
5 months ago
I think artists try to sequence their albums in a way they feel best captures the journey they want a listener to go through. Nowadays, this isn’t as popular... kind of feels like some artists just try to pack single after single back to back for 10-12 songs. But at it’s core, album sequencing can help drive home the main theme of the album. Similar to the chapters of a book 👊🏻.

Yes, finish the song first! I have a million 'starts'!

I love your enthusiasm!

For some reason I never thought of writing before producing… this was really helpful

Thanks buddy, I have got about 50x Hardcore and Jungle tracks that are all 80-90% finished. The buzz of making a new one is always a huge temptation. I have taken some notes. Nice one ;)

I feel like my process is so complicated for these tips. I try to make music in a way similar to rock and pop bands in the 1970s. Drums, guitars, vocals, keyboards, bass. But I do everything myself. It takes a lot of time to be a self taught multi instrumentalist and sometimes simply setting up the drums takes an entire day. So making a song in a week's time is really daunting for me!

I haven’t started the video but I wanted to say first… I’ve been in a musical bind for years and it’s made me so depressed… It’s honestly messed with my mental health.
Now with the video

I would say distractions are my number one problem. Like playing videogames or something, if these are exciting enough to occupy my free time for hours, then my mind isn't going to look for that excitement in more fulfilling things because well... videogames are a lot of fun so it doesn't need to. But intermittent boredom is actually great for getting focused.

This video helped me a lot! Thank you for these amazing tips bro🖤

So simple and so hard. Thank you for such videos that remind you how simple everything really is, that you don't need to complicate anything yourself.

My hang up is more technically based. For example, I have a piece I've worked on where I'm nearly completed mixing, EQ, etc. AFTER the song is done and I don't know where to go to make the mix pop. As in, really make the frequencies jump out, sound balanced, and THEN finalize the piece to max volume to compete on streaming platforms. Where are there videos for this process? I see videos on Mastering but never the in between steps. I'll see if you have any. Great vid regardless!

I stumbled across this accidentally as I was researching how to make my midi keyboard ply on time with my song. This is exactly what I need since I have about 7 tracks I don't know how to finish. They are either 8 bar tracks to about half a song

Man, I need like ten more videos on this topic. As someone who's just getting things going, trying to get ready to release my first album in a couple of months, I feel this. It has taken me way too long to get things ready. From working full time, to making time for my wife and kids, sacrificing a lot of sleep, etc, it's a struggle to actually be able to calm my mind enough to be creative when I finally get some time to work on my music. Yes, it takes me sometimes a couple of weeks to finish a track, because I've got about two hours a day that I can actually sit down and work, and by the time I get there, I'm usually so tired that my brain is fried along with my creativity.

Thank you, Nathan. It seems really helpful ideas.

Thanks for posting such good quality content. I rewatch this video after seeing it 1 1/2 years for the first time. And all these tipps are still relevant to me. I think the hardest part for me is also to make quick decisions. But for me it is my own demand to the quality of music i am able to put out (my skill) in comparison to the quality i am use to listen. You know, stuff like: will this be a good chord that people like, is this sounds like people would dance to it etc. Because I am unsure about how people would judge me based on my skill in music making.

One of the biggest problems is weak songwriting. Some people start songs about shallow, BS relationships and breakups then lose both the inspiration and the motivation in the process.

Do you think one reason why people ask you about plugins is because you put out mixing tips and tricks? Every single video is the same lecture Where's the solution? It's like we've focused on the problem.

I know why. Cause channels like yours don't focus on the "how to" arrange an entire track. Just mindless mixing techniques followed by being told don't focus on plugins. I have to buy the course don't I but I haven't heard that one yet. Least I'd know. My best advice to new producers is to reverse engineer your favorite tracks and take notes about the arrangements of these tracks you like so much. Then attempt to recreate it. You'd be surprised how much this happens. I was listening to a VR track and could totally tell he got it's arrangement from Skrillex Rock n Roll. I can tell but your average person won't.

pretty helpful advice with the timer thing. Thanks a lot

I love the hour timer trick thnx for that!!

great video bro

Pro tip: if your break is going away to take a rip of ganj, you’re going to come back and immediately think “this is shit” or “this is incredible” when you listen to what you just did.

Trust that.

Man, thanks for this video, I'm going to start applying all these tips today!

Really interesting. I watched this video, but not because I've struggled to finish songs (in general - although some fought harder than others). I watched it because I wasn't sure why I rarely struggled. And I realised that there is a wrinkle in my psychology somewhere that actually helps. I find it difficult to move on to another song if I haven't "finished" the track I'm working on. And by finished, I mean either (a) getting it to a point where I think it's fine (not perfect! Just "fine"); or (b) make the decision that it's going nowhere so I can abandon it and move on. Like all wrinkles, however, it has a down side! I've recently had some real time crunches from life stuff, but was also coming up with loads of song ideas. So I started noting them down, and somehow broke my "finish before moving on" process and mindset. So I've been stuck with ten (and counting) unfinished songs for months now! But I've recently committed to starting on the one song I'm most excited about, and work to finish it is ongoing. After that, another none and counting!) to have a go at... :)