Deep House Dissected
Electronic music producer pro Chris Herrera puts Deep House on the operating table and dissects it right before your eyes and ears. Watch and learn how to make authentic Deep House by identifying and understanding all the elements that make up this popular electronic genre.
Videos
• Introduction & Playthrough (08:20) - Chris signs on and gives an idea of what went into remixing "Pleasure", as well as an overview of the series. Chris then plays through the entire song in his Logic session.
• The Stems Pt. 1 (08:12) - Here, we begin to analyze the original audio stems sent over from the band. We begin to clean up and organize the stems as we familiarize ourselves with each part.
• The Stems Pt. 2 (04:28) - Now we continue analyzing and memorizing the parts and discuss which parts will or won't work and why. We also crack into the MIDI parts and discuss their importance.
• The Stems Pt. 3 (04:04) - Grouping and colorizing each part makes our first creative session much more fun and productive. Let's look at what final preparations for our remix look like. Also, we'll talk about some early EQ concepts.
• The Drum Mix Pt. 1 (07:15) - Back in the final session we put the entire drum mix under the microscope, and then talk about the importance of detailed sound design work when building a groove. Also, we dig deep into our classic 4 on the floor kick drum.
• The Drum Mix Pt. 2 (08:27) - Chris continues to explain the processing, effects, and plugs in used on different drum sounds, and begins to touch on some basic bus effects.
• Main Percussion Pt. 1 (05:05) - Let's move from our programmed drums and start looking at how to incorporate percussion loops to fill out the groove. We'll also go into details about EQ, sidechaining, and saturation.
• Main Percussion Pt. 2 (04:07) - With most of our drums and percussion in place, let's decide on a reverb to unite our groove and look at some unusual bus EQ settings.
• Additional Percussion Pt. 1 (06:41) - Now that the programmed drums and main percussion are in place, let's examine some addition loops, edits, and treatments, to round out our drum mix. Filter automation also begins making its appearance.
• Additional Percussion Pt. 2 (07:59) - See how one more loop and and some well placed shakers will finalize our drum mix.
• Drum Mix - Final Treatments (04:54) - Now that we've worked hard on the drum mix, let's begin looking at the arrangement of the song. New plug-ins make an appearance including the API 550A, Waves TransX, and the FET circuit on the Logic compressor.
• The Bass Mix Pt. 1 (10:05) - With the bass guitar being a primary presence in our track, we begin to make decisions about its relationship with the programmed synth bass. See how we pick apart the synth bass patch on Massive and how it's layered with another patch from Sylenth.
• The Bass Mix Pt. 2 (09:28) - This bass player is a monster, so let's dig through his stems and make some decisions about his different tones, phrases, and placements. Additionally, we look at using CLA Bass to sculpt the overall sound.
• The Bass Mix Pt. 3 (05:20) - The band has a totally new section introduced towards the end of the song, so let's re-edit and re-shape the bass relationships to get a different curve.
• The Loop (03:32) - Now that the drum mix and bass mix are done, let's step back and take stock of the backbone of this track. The name of the game is sound design. If you don't have a big sound at this point, you don't have a track.
• Parallel Compression Pt. 1 (07:27) - There are many opinions and arguments about how parallel compression should be used. Here we look at what elements got this compression technique and how and why.
• Parallel Compression Pt. 2 (04:27) - Let's finish our discussion and explanation of how parallel compression has benefited us in this mix.
• Effects Pt. 1 (07:55) - What dance track is complete without effects and risers? Here we look at how the FX group was created, treated, and automated.
• Effects Pt. 2 (07:38) - Here, we complete our analysis of what elements make up the FX group and how they support the tracks, highlight phrases, and drive the track forward.
• Incidentals Pt. 1 (06:06) - Apart from the effects, there are small and even tiny regions that add spice and interest to our track. Let's dig into these incidental sounds, fills, and edits that round out the phrases and drive transitions.
• Incidentals Pt. 2 (05:21) - Watch the conclusion of our incidental sounds sculpting, including guitar licks and jazzy vocal stabs.
• The Arrangement Pt. 1 (09:01) - Dance tracks are often in excess of 200 measures. How do you arrange a track to light up the dance floor, but also to keep it interesting? Let's begin looking at that here.
• The Arrangement Pt. 2 (08:36) - 4, 8, and 16 measure phrases are the name of the game. With our intro mapped out, let's move into the core of the track and through the breakdown.
• The Arrangement Pt. 3 (08:46) - Finishing the arrangement can be one of the hardest things. Coming out of the breakdown we look at how our stems, drums, and bass drive us home.
• The Master Channel Pt. 1 (06:23) - There are many arguments about how the master channel should be treated. Clearly, it's important to avoid clipping, but what are reasonable uses of plug-ins for EQ, compression, and stereo spread? Watch and find out.
• The Master Channel Pt. 2 (06:24) - Take a peak at Chris' master channel plug-in chains, from very light and limiting, to heavy duty sonic plug-in combos.
• The Master Channel Pt. 3 (05:15) - Chris talks about his current favorite chain of plug-ins on the master buss, but more importantly, when he feels it's ok to use it.