Today marks the release of Ducky‘s latest body of work coming in the form of her Optimism EP, so we’ve teamed up with our favorite rave enthusiast to do something special.
Her Optimism EP serves as an emotionally charged production masterfully crafted with each track in chronological order taking those who tune in on an empowering rollercoaster ride of a listening experience. Once again showcasing her vocal prowess, this majestic shares a powerful message.
“This is an EP about falling in love when you’re not sure you’re ready to, when you didn’t plan to, when you’re still broken. It moves through that process in order, from facing that damage head-on, tearing yourself open anyways, and feeling the rewards of intimacy and softness with another person,” she explains.
“It’s about knowing that you can, in fact, that you will, at some point, be hurt by this person – even if it’s inadvertent – and saying fuck it, I believe that I can grow with them. I believe that this time could be different… that it could lead to something new, something blissful, something worth risking my heart for.”
With no genres being off-limits when it comes to her production, especially throughout her new 4-track offering, the pint-sized powerhouse has taken the time to share a couple of her top tips when it comes to producing. Check them out below!
1. eq, eq, eq – make sure there’s not sub information in anything except for your sub-bass, unless you’ve got an element with sub in a section where it’s not competing. You can also do a little dip in a frequency band that’s competing with another element – for example, I automate a small dip in 1k on my synths during vocal parts.
2. Experiment with mid-side eq and what it can do to create perceived width and depth without using stereo widening effects (which can really mess up your mix in mono). You can also use it to cut low end on the sides for most elements which will clean up some stereo muddiness.
3. Low pass your sub!!!!!! this might sound obvious but I forget, so you might too. but experiment with the cutoff frequency – If it’s not coming through you may be cutting off harmonics that you need. oh, and put it in mono (People argue about this but I definitely prefer it that way!)
4. Get an analyser plugin – I think isotope insight and SPAN are both free? It will help you see what’s actually going on in your song! If a frequency band is peaking or way too loud, etc.
5. Finally, remember that all of your favorite producers are constantly learning and experimenting just like you – they just have some years ahead of you in the process, most likely. Don’t be afraid to try weird shit, to make things sound bad and then delete it, and to break the “rules” – there are very few that anybody sticks to, anyways! Have fun and love what you do and stick to it! Happy producing <33
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