What's your workflow?

[whyterabbyt]

Wait until the alignments of the stars is correct
(IA! IA!)
Incant select verses from an 18th Century, skin-bound copy of the Book of Eibon.
(IA! IA!)
Ignite funerary incense stolen from the tomb of a Jewish Pope.
(IA! IA!)
Carve the Elder Sign into the forehead of a sacrificed black lamb
(IA! IA!)
Wibble about with OnePingOnly through a chain of 23 different effects processors for exactly three hours and seventeen minutes.
(Zowwwooopppnthingclangtsssssssssssssfklllllllllwoooooooooo)

[advaya]

Wait until the alignments of the stars is correct
(IA! IA!)
Incant select verses from an 18th Century, skin-bound copy of the Book of Eibon.
(IA! IA!)
Ignite funerary incense stolen from the tomb of a Jewish Pope.
(IA! IA!)
Carve the Elder Sign into the forehead of a sacrificed black lamb
(IA! IA!)
Wibble about with OnePingOnly through a chain of 23 different effects processors for exactly three hours and seventeen minutes.
(Zowwwooopppnthingclangtsssssssssssssfklllllllllwoooooooooo)

There's not one part of that post that wouldn't offend some religeous organisation! Well... except for the OnePingOnly part... But a numerologist might find fault with the 23 followed by a 3 then a 17... It does sound kinda sinister...

[Thoth93]

I would imagine the whole process is quite diffrent in some ways for those of you who are actually getting paid for your work.

The reason I'm spending a billion bucks I don't have right now and dinking around with all this music stuff, at least personally, is purely because I want to.

I've always wanted to get seriously into electronic music because I enjoy it, as poor a player as I occasionally am. I've never had the resources until now (and it's still a strain), but I've just decided to go for it.

I have no dreams of record deals or even having anyone other than just a few people on the Internet who take the time to listen hear my music. This may be strange, I don't know.

It's possible that someday I may want to do something commercial.

I've written some music for a pal of mine who's still in college (and in his 30s like me -- time for him to get out). He's in a computer programming class and learning game design. He had to design his own silly little 2D game, so he did a remake of the old arcade game Commando. He asked me to write some simple two or three minute looping tunes for it, a title screen, etc., because he knew I had always wanted to do something like that. The entire current madness extends from that project and it reawakening my desire. It's not something I got paid for, but it is the first thing I ever did with a deadline. I think that helped some.

But in the end: I'm still a newspaper reporter, not a professional musician. I don't know what it would further do to the creative process if I was actually getting paid to do this. Might strengthen the impulse, might kill it. Not sure.

[The Chase]

i do one of 3 things:

1) mess around with synths and effects to make a sick sound that i would want in a song, and then build the rest of the song around it, usually heading off with percussion after that.

2) program a beat that I'm satisfied with, and then add eitherFX or bass to that, building the song around it.

3) create a wierd effect that would do a song nice. I then either build the track around it or put it in another project that is not finished.

Usually it just takes off after i complete one of these tasks.

[Thoth93]

Wait until the alignments of the stars is correct
(IA! IA!)
Incant select verses from an 18th Century, skin-bound copy of the Book of Eibon.
(IA! IA!)
Ignite funerary incense stolen from the tomb of a Jewish Pope.
(IA! IA!)
Carve the Elder Sign into the forehead of a sacrificed black lamb
(IA! IA!)
Wibble about with OnePingOnly through a chain of 23 different effects processors for exactly three hours and seventeen minutes.
(Zowwwooopppnthingclangtsssssssssssssfklllllllllwoooooooooo)

"It was then that my from my keyboard there erupted a hideous clangor, a screeching wail rent forth from beyond the unforgiving stars. In its tenebrous tones, I heard the screams of a thousand spirits of madness and (I shudder to write it) a sample from a Milli Vanilli album. Looped. Over and over and over and over ...

"And thus, I know I shall never sleep soundly again, for even now that horrid, horrid sound echoes forever in the darkened chambers of my mind. I pray that this revolver gives me respite from that devilish din, the Groove That Should Not Be."

[HanafiH]

[SuitcaseOfLizards]

Wait until the alignments of the stars is correct
(IA! IA!)
Incant select verses from an 18th Century, skin-bound copy of the Book of Eibon.
(IA! IA!)
Ignite funerary incense stolen from the tomb of a Jewish Pope.
(IA! IA!)
Carve the Elder Sign into the forehead of a sacrificed black lamb
(IA! IA!)
Wibble about with OnePingOnly through a chain of 23 different effects processors for exactly three hours and seventeen minutes.
(Zowwwooopppnthingclangtsssssssssssssfklllllllllwoooooooooo)

"It was then that my from my keyboard there erupted a hideous clangor, a screeching wail rent forth from beyond the unforgiving stars. In its tenebrous tones, I heard the screams of a thousand spirits of madness and (I shudder to write it) a sample from a Milli Vanilli album. Looped. Over and over and over and over ...

"And thus, I know I shall never sleep soundly again, for even now that horrid, horrid sound echoes forever in the darkened chambers of my mind. I pray that this revolver gives me respite from that devilish din, the Groove That Should Not Be."

Feeling a little down in the.. dhole?

Gibbering ghouls in mouldy grave, or
Those night-gaunts that like to slaver
Don't get up or try to slog off
From a slowly crawling shoggoth
Priest in Yellow? Never fear!
Just load up on Elder Beer!

[Ildon]

Thoth, my friend, you have the makings of a successful video game music composer. You gotta do it because you like it, and what's more fun and challenging than writing for video games?

A lot of us start out that way. My first project was some MMORPG I didn't get paid for... I did it because I loved it.

Video game music is the best.

[james0tucson]

Workflow? Well, I start by plopping down in front of the computer. Then I logon to KVR, and spend an hour or two ranting about something or other. Then I look to see if there's a group buy for something interesting. Then I download some demo. Then I maybe get up, and then plop back down in front of the keyboard rig. I boot my DAW. About now, the phone rings, or someone comes in to remind me that I was supposed to be doing something else, and that's the end of my musical endeavor for today.

[the_nihilist]