Producing Disco House Explained
Studio wiz Larry Holcombe delivers a comprehensive series of video tutorials on producing Disco House! If you want to know how to make your disco house tracks come alive and hit hard with creative use of EQ, compression, side-chaining, and more, this course is for you. Larry takes you step by step creating a complete disco house track from scratch, singling out each component and demonstrating the processing and techniques used to create the finished, professional product. These videos are for anyone looking to make their first house track, or go further with their disco house productions.
Videos
• Playthrough & Introduction (07:48) - In this video, we introduce the series and also play through the track we are about to create.
• Kick (08:54) - We take a kick drum and apply eq and compression to make it mix ready.
• Clap (07:18) - Next up, we add 2 clap samples creating a "flam" style disco effect. This increases the thickness of the backbeat.
• Hats & Top Loops (12:05) - In this video, we fill out the groove with hats, shakers, and vintage top loops.
• Percussion Loops (02:39) - We concentrate on adding two extra percussion loops next, which allow us to again further fill out the groove and vibe.
• Bassline & Filtered Loop (15:43) - We add the core musical idea next in the form of a Disco loop with an alternate B section variant, using side-chaining to create that trademark rhythmic pumping. Finally, we layer the bassline from the sample with a side-chained patch from Retro Synth.
• Guitars (09:31) - Next up, we introduce some guitar loops to add some melodic/rhythmic variation.
• Extra Sounds (09:32) - Additional sounds help flesh out the track, including a string stab, vocal hit, B-section bassline, and high string.
• Arrangement Pt. 1 (14:02) - We start diving into the arrangement next, taking inspiration from an existing track. This allows us to break out from the dreaded 8-bar loop!
• Arrangement Pt. 2 (10:16) - Filter cutoff automation is next, which brings the arrangement to life a little bit more. Additional minor adjustments are made upon listening to the arrangement to improve the track's flow.
• Arrangement Pt. 3 (15:47) - We create some arrangement "resets," cutting out low frequencies on the whole track to create tension and release within the track"s development. We also filter automate the drum and guitar busses and the filtered disco loop to create exciting buildups within the arrangement.
• Arrangement Pt. 4 (14:52) - Again, we flesh out the track with some extra "ear candy" and arrangement effects.
• FX (15:25) - Explore some effects that are interspersed throughout the arrangement. We also create edits in the arrangement to enhance the impact of certain sections.
• Extra Sounds (13:09) - We punctuate the arrangement next with an impact effect and add in a snare roll and ride loop to make the build more exciting.
• Arrangement Adjustments (16:27) - This video covers some arrangement adjustments to improve the flow. We also explain how to move sections around, including automated busses.
• Quick Mix & Master (14:12) - Last up, we organize the track and dial in a basic mix for our Disco House track. This includes using the "Pultec EQ trick" on the kick and bass and some unifying bus compression.