I’ve had Traktor for a while now and been mixing away nicely, getting all my favourite songs flowing together nicely. However recently I’ve become quite bored of Traktor and attempting to mix in general. I keep finding myself trying the same things and constantly looking at BPMs as a way to gauge what songs will work well together. Basically, I’m stuck in a rut!
In the last week I’ve found I power up my pc and open traktor only to close it again 20 mins later due the boredom. All the fun is gone!
Any ideas on ways to keep things fresh and make the process interesting again?
Route the audio into Ableton, create your own smart knobs, try to lose your preconceptions on what is possible You could even try your hand at making your own content using synths and putting that into your mix. Resample old beats and bring a fresh feel to them. With this new age of mixing no one should be getting bored, there are too many unexplored avenues to wonder down.
If your on a budget you could try FL Studio Producer edition for $200 US. These programs are typically pricey, but you certainly get a HUGE bang for buck. Try out the demo, you can do everything except save your project
You will find your self in a rut with all type of mixing. Not just with traktor. Force your self to figure out new ways of doing things. For instance- try finding a way to mix with some random controller. Exploring mixing in keys can also be a new way to find fun new ideas.
It’s weird alright, just got some new MSTRKRFT tracks today and messed about with them, the beatmasher is my new godsend, i had always neglected what it could do! Their new track VuVuVu partnered with that can make for some strange, strange combinations!
Try the “Less is More” tactic. Take your tracks and dig out the loops in them. Take these tiny pieces of audio and layer them into new beats, new pieces. See if you can produce building highs and spectacular breakdowns using just these pieces and your live touch with effects.
x2 on new music. whenever i start to get bored, i just start shopping, pick up a few tracks that i LOVE and and start rolling again. or throw on a some older music/mixes and just get excited about the music.
When I’m in a rut I go out and listen to other DJs and will give me one of 2 things . 1 if the DJ is good I’ll be inspired and want to go home and practice or 2 I’m reminded how good I am at this DJing thing . But another good thing to do is to put away the idea of mixing while at home and just focus on track selection and finding songs that have to be found by digging deeper within your collection or the web or even digging around in a good old fashioned record store .
You could even try your hand at making your own content using synths and putting that into your mix. Resample old beats and bring a fresh feel to them. With this new age of mixing no one should be getting bored, there are too many unexplored avenues to wonder down.
