How I knew I Was Becoming A Music Producer

Neon Notes — Week [20] 

Like most music producers, I started with tons of curiosity and a creative itch.

Of course when I started I was just messing around, trying to figure out how it all worked. No thoughts of anything more than some fun songs I could play when I'm by myself.

I saw all the possibilities and I was in awe, such a big creative world was at my fingertips.

I talk about how I got started in January of 2023 in a previous blog which you can find here.

Fast forward 7 months to July of 2023. I released several tracks that got some attention, and I began to think. Maybe this is just more than me messing around.

My desire to learn something thoroughly like music production, accidentally led to me actually being a music producer.

Of course I knew that I still had a lot to learn, and still do. I was just making music I wanted to hear.

Looking back, it wasn't just one specific moment that made me think I was becoming a music producer, it was actually a bunch of smaller moments that I started to notice.

Things like finishing more songs with cohesive arrangements, getting vocals to sit right in the mix, making my drums more interesting. 

All those small moments were adding up, and I started to view all of this differently.

I switched from thinking "I'm learning music production" to "I'm a music producer".

This new outlook took my already obsessive need to learn and turned it into an all out passion to create.

The funny thing is, nothing changed overnight.

I didn't get a certificate in the mail that said "Hey, you're a music producer".

No one game me permission to be one.

At some point, I realized I didn't need permission.

I earned it by learning, putting in the work, and not accepting that my songs couldn't get better.

I think I became a music producer long before the interviews, radio appearances, or signing with a label.

Those are all great moments that I'm proud of, but that's not what made me a producer.

What made me a producer is when making music became part of my routine. Not because I had to make music, but because I wanted to make music.

I didn't wait for inspiration, I didn't wonder if I should start a new song. 

I was just making music because that's what i did.

My rule has always been, finish the song. If there is something I don't like about it, I make sure it's fixed in the next one.

Adding up all those small things changed me from someone who wanted to make music, to someone who actually did.

Now Creating

• New music soon
• More collaborations coming
• Replacing old ai cover art

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. New posts go live every Wednesday.

The First Time Someone Wanted To Hear My Story

Neon Notes — Week [19] 

When I started making music, I never expected to be interviewed for it.
At the time, I was just trying to figure out how to make a coherent song.

I started making music at the beginning of January 2023, and within a year and a half I signed with Triptych Music, a sync label, had two written interviews, and appeared on Neon X Radio, formerly KSWV Radio Shockwave, an internet Synthwave radio station out of California.

All of this was so surprising because I had such little experience and never thought anyone would be interested to hear my story.

It all started when I met a Synthwave artist (Memory Design) on YouTube. At the time, I was making much more Synthwave style music and was in the early transition into the sound I make now.

We started chatting and they invited me to a Discord channel with other artists, fans of retro music, and the hosts of KSWV Radio.

I introduced myself and instantly found a connection.

The person who introduced me encouraged the hosts to play one of my songs, and they asked me to send it to them.

In my head, I was thinking there is no way they'll play my song next to some of the biggest Synthwave artists at the time.

I sent them the song, and to my surprise, they played it on the next show.

I was humbled, excited, and a little nervous. That meant my song was being heard by thousands of retro music fans. This is a niche audience that is looking for a particular sound, and my song was in the mix.

A short time later, they played a few more of my songs and they were well received. It eventually led to them asking me to be an on air guest on their main Saturday night Synthwave show.

They asked me about how I got started, my production techniques, and my influences. Just the basic questions to let people get to know me.

Unfortunately, the recording is no longer available, but it's a memory I will always cherish.

Just a few months prior to that, two internet magazines, Full Send and Ready Mag, reached out for written interviews. Answering all those questions was so much fun and made me take a step back and really look at what I was doing.

People were actually starting to notice my music.

This really shifted the way I thought about my music. It let me know that I could make what I wanted to hear, and that there was still an audience for it.

That was something I never expected when I opened Ableton for the first time.

Now Creating

• New song Thursday at 3pm est.
• Continued art replacement
• More collaborations soon

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. New posts go live every Wednesday.

Why I Don't Make Pure Synthwave

Neon Notes — Week [18]

I love everything about Synthwave music. From the retro 80's drums, to the tape distorted synths. I just love the nostalgic sound that it gives.

So you may be wondering why I don't make pure Synthwave.

I briefly touched on my organic shift from a more traditional Synthwave sound to my current Synthpop/Retro Pop sound in a previous blog, but I thought that I would really dig into the reasons in this post.

The main reason is that I love to process vocals, and a lot of Synthwave is instrumental. I just really like the process of building a song around the vocals, and making it all fit.

Ultimately, I view the vocals as another instrument, the topline of the song. And sure, some might say that it's easier to build a song around vocals because you have a built in melody.

But, it can get tricky because you must make everything else in the song fit the vocals, or get creative and change some of the vocal notes to better fit your vision, which is what I like to do.

(My layering, chopping, and pitch adjustments of vocals could be an entire blog post itself, so look for that in the future.)

The next reason why I don't make pure Synthwave comes down to the production aspect. I really like the sound of modern pop, the crisp drums and overall polish of the songs drew me in.

I understand that a certain talent is needed to make a song sound like it came from the 80's. The semi washed out drums, and the overall spacey feel is not easy to get right.

But getting the punchy drums, several synths, synth bass, fx, and vocals to all sit while sounding crystal clear is a challenge as well.

It's ultimately the challenge I have more fun with.

And I really think that's what it boils down to, fun. I really liked making my early instrumental stuff, but I love making Synthpop with vocals.

Because I am the target audience, I want to hear it.

Obviously, I still carry the pure Synthwave influence into every track I make. I still put tape distortion on my synths or chords. I still put a gated reverb on my snares, but I also try to make my kicks and percussion really punchy to balance it out.

I try to give it a retro sound with a lot of clarity and energy, at least that's my goal.

When I first used vocals, I just thought it was a cool experiment. Then I used them a few more times, and suddenly, I could hear my "sound" forming in real time. It just kinda clicked, and I knew from that point what I wanted to do.

I wanted a sound that worked in headphones, in a car, at a club, or Saturday night at the roller rink.

Now Creating

• Finalizing songs for Electric Skyline Vol. 2
• New website on hold for now
• More collaborations coming soon

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. New posts go live every Wednesday.

How Collaborations Unlock My Creativity

Neon Notes — Week [17]

Making music alone is great. I can just be in my own head, getting lost in ideas. It's perfect for an introvert like myself, but sometimes I have to push against my comfort zone. Especially if I want to work with other people.

And up until I had my first collaboration, I had no idea the ideas and creativity that could spark from that.

New people means new ideas, decisions I might not have made had I been alone.

Hearing input that another producer or artist has totally changed the way I think about music production.

I knew that in order to get better and perfect my craft, I couldn't do it alone.

When I'm working alone, I am most comfortable, but this comes with certain downfalls. I tend to just do the same thing I've always done when I produce a song. There is nothing wrong with that, but I think I would just stagnate if I just always produced alone.

Collaborations forced me to look at music from someone else's perspective.

While I might not agree with every choice that a collaborative partner makes, I at least get to see things in ways that I probably never would've noticed.

For example, I was working on a collaboration for the song Cold Front with an artist and another producer.

I went into the project with solid ideas on how I wanted to produce, but after talking with my partners, I completely changed the way that I processed the vocals. Instead of heavily processed pop type vocals, we opted for less processing and a more intimate sound.

The song itself is still a retro inspired track similar to my other songs, but with a little less super processed vocal. And that is a decision I would not have made had I been on my own.

We also opted to use a real bass guitar for the main body of the song instead of my usual synth bass. This changed the dynamic, and also changed the way I had to mix the song slightly.

Another thing is the excitement. Working with another person can build momentum quickly. One idea leads to another, and then another. And soon, we're feeding off of each other's excitement, and there is no better feeling than that.

Collaborations also force me to make quicker decisions. Simply having another person involved prevents me from sitting on an idea too long. I have to make deliberate decisions in order to keep the group dynamic moving forward.

Just getting out of my own head every once and awhile, and letting someone else hear my idea is sometimes all it takes to unlock new ideas.

Plus, I can adapt my sound in new and different ways, and that's exciting on its own.

So don't be afraid to step outside of your comfort zone, you never know where it can lead.

Now Creating

• Steady music releases on the way
• Website is on hold for now (Personal Reasons)
• Still updating old artwork

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. New posts go live every Wednesday.

Why I Don't Wait Until I Feel Inspired

Neon Notes — Week [16]

There is nothing better than having inspiration when doing something creative. Ideas flow effortlessly, stress is almost non existent, you're just doing whatever it is that you love.

But what if you're not in the mood? What if you just have no desire to be creative?

Sometimes it's best to just do something else.

But often times, I open my DAW anyway. Not to force myself to make something, but to just sound design for a while, or organize some of your sounds. Maybe tweak your template.

I do these things when I don't feel inspired, but guess what. I often start making a song because something hits me while I'm doing these necessary yet mundane things.

In the back of my mind, I know that if I at least open my DAW, there's a chance that something might spark. At the very least, I can get some other work done.

I also do this to stay sharp and improve my productions. I think that at least doing something related to your creative outlet can only be a positive.

When I first started, I just had idea after idea. As soon as I was done with a song, I was right into the next one. For over 2 years, I just kept coming up with songs. Were they chart toppers? Absolutely not, but I was getting better with every song.

As I started to run out of instant ideas, I had two choices. Wait until I had inspiration, or do some form of work around the music. I chose to do something related to music more often than not.

I have more experience now, and it would be ok if I waited for inspiration, but I still jump into the DAW almost daily.

And more often than not, something valuable is gained from doing this.

I come out of it with a new synth design, or a drum pattern. And often times, I come away with the beginnings of a new song.

At the very least, I did something that might help me in the future.

You don't always have to be inspired to start, but sometimes inspiration happens after you begin.

Now Creating

• Several new songs coming soon
• More collabs coming soon
• Refining my sound

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. New posts go live every Wednesday.

Why I Rarely Use Loops

Neon Notes — Week [15]

Let me start by saying, there is nothing wrong with using loops in your music. Using loops or samples creatively is a skill in itself, and I have used a few loops in a couple of my early songs.

I used a sax, ambient pad, and a guitar loop. But I've always wanted to try to create everything in my songs.

That also includes my lead synth and bass design, and my drums are always created from scratch on every track.

The reason why I do this is to force myself to be creative, and to stay sharp.

I also think that not using loops or samples other than vocals has helped me solidify my sound. It's given me a chance to train my skills into something that I think is recognizable.

Now when I start a new project, either solo or with another producer or artist, I can fuse my sound into any track.

Sure, loops can speed up the process, and not using them did slow me down in the beginning. But by not using loops, I've trained myself to be able to create a desired sound relatively quickly.

Sometimes the easy path is to just use a loop when I'm having trouble dialing in a sound that I want, but I push forward with my sound design anyway. I want those sounds to be my creations.

And over time, my drums have evolved into something that sounds like me. I try to give them lots of life and movement by making the fills between sections sound a little more human. And my synth sound has become more consistent with each release.

I would never have been able to do that had I just used loops.

This is not to say that my way is the right way, it's just the right way for me. I love opening a new project and trying to create what I hear in my head.

In the end, just do what feels right to you.

Now Creating

• Refining my drum sound. More punch and clarity
• Starting to finalize the songs for Electric Skyline Vol 2
• Recent life changes have put the website redesign on hold

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. New posts go live every Wednesday.

How I Use Remixes For Inspiration

Neon Notes — Week [14]

Writer's block is a real thing, whether you write lyrics, instrumentals, or both, this can be frustrating.

When I'm having a little writer's block, I tend to do a few things to help me overcome it. I'll either go into an old project and make a new version, sound design in Serum for future songs, or remix someone else's song.

Most of the time, sound designing or going into an old project just help me stay sharp, but remixes usually give me some kind of inspiration.

There are various ways to get vocals from popular mainstream songs, but that's another post on its own, and any remix I make using these vocals are only for me. While I may let people hear them, they are never uploaded to any streaming sites.

One example is a remix I'm working on using the stripped vocals from a song by Dua Lipa titled Break My Heart.

When I do a remix like this, I purposely stay away from referencing the original song. I may be familiar with the song, but I don't want any influences other than my own creativity and the vocals to drive the song forward.

I want my song to sound completely different from the original, so this is how I use remixes for inspiration.

I listen to the stripped vocals, no music, no beat. I just listen and try to imagine my own song around the vocals.

I may leave the vocals lined up like the original song, sometimes I'll chop or rearrange them.

For the Break My Heart remix, I chose to leave them as is, follow the sections and put my own spin on it.

I wasn't too familiar with this particular song, so when I heard the vocals, I had no song reference to go by.

I laid the vocal track into my DAW and got to work.

From there I start the remix like I start all my songs.

I experiment with tempo, bass patterns, different drum patterns until I get something that feels good, and complements the vocals.

I may go through a few iterations until I have something that works, but this is where this helps with inspiration.

Once I find the starting point, the rest of the song tends to fall in place.

This is the beauty of remixes. Sure, I might not always finish the songs, but great ideas come from them. I may use the main drum pattern in another song, or use a whole section to rewrite a song around that.

Sometimes, I'll just strip the vocals and keep it as an instrumental, or add different vocals that are royalty free.

Remixes have helped me get out of that stuck feeling.

In the end, it's not about making a slightly different version of the original, it's about sparking inspiration to make the song mine.

Now Creating

• The last song of the EP is out
• Still working on website
• Working on new artwork for old songs

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. New posts go live every Wednesday.

How I Use Deadlines To Finish More Songs

Neon Notes — Week [13]

Deadlines are very important, and they are the key factor in why I'm able to finish most songs that I start. 

I briefly touched on it in an older blog post, but I thought I'd dig a bit deeper today.

I made up my mind early on, that I needed to create deadlines for myself. I viewed it as a way to force myself into making more deliberate decisions.

So I landed on a two week deadline. This did two things for me. It gave me enough time to use every bit of my limited skillset, while also forcing me to make more concrete decisions.

And let me say that while I have collaborated on a few projects recently that used real guitar and real bass. My solo Laxrax projects are purely electronic based  songs, so I'm aware of the extra time it takes when using instruments.

My idea after "finishing" my first song was to give each song two weeks. I give it all I have and once the two weeks is up, I listen to the song, find one thing I'd like to improve upon, and then I would upload the song to SoundCloud and YouTube.

Then I would start a new song the day that I uploaded the newly finished song, and do it all over again. For the longest time, the song I was currently working on was the only song that wasn't finished.

I didn't have a 20 or 30 projects that were half completed or barely started. I just had the one I was working on.

Moving into the next song, I would look at my notes from my last song and try to make sure to fix at least one thing. 

Looking back to when I uploaded my first song, I wasn't really too nervous to share it publicly, but it did give me a pretty good rush. It felt really good, and I was proud that I was able to make a somewhat coherent song.

It also taught me that getting it out there, even with all it's flaws, was better than waiting for it to be perfect. If I did that, then I'd never release anything.

Fast forward to today, I don't use the strict  two week deadline anymore. I've conditioned myself to finish songs without it now. My workflow is faster now that my decisions are more concrete, and my ear is a lot better.

I also no longer just have one unfinished song. At the time of this post, I have 15 finished songs waiting for release, and another 10 in the works. 

I may not use hard deadlines anymore, but they are the main reason I'm so consistent today. They are a direct influence on how I make decisions now, and my deliberate workflow might not have happened without it.

Now Creating

• One song left until the full EP is available everywhere
• Finalizing new website tweaks
• More consistent music releases
• More collaborative music planned

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. New posts go live every Wednesday.

How I Blend 80's Sounds With Modern Production

Neon Notes — Week [12]

In last weeks post, I talked about WHY I blend 80's sounds into my music. Now I'm going to tell you HOW I blend them together.

It's actually a very simple concept, and just by adding this one element to a song, I can instantly give it a retro feel. 

The gated reverb snare.

The gated reverb snare was discovered by accident, and is a staple of the retro sound. But this is not the only thing I add to my songs to give them a retro feel.

So let's dive into.

The vocal samples I use are definitely not retro, so there's the first step in making the song sound modern. The next steps are what I do to blend the modern vocals with retro sounds.

I don't use it in every song, but my go to snare is the LinnDrum snare from the iconic LinnDrum drum machine. I like the snap and punch of this snare, and also the retro sound.

In Ableton I use a return track to send the gated reverb signal to the main snare track.

The way I create my gated snare is to put a reverb onto the return track set to 100% wet, 5 - 6 seconds of decay with a low cut to get rid of mud. 

After the reverb I put a gate, set it to sidechain from the snare channel, and I have the floor set to -inf dB. I bring the threshold down until I start to hear the reverb in the snare and adjust it to taste, usually somewhere between -40dB to -50dB.

Depending on the tempo of the song, I set my release and hold so that the reverb tail fades out before the next snare hit.

Lately I've been using a retro sounding kick, and I really only have about 4 kicks that I use. They all have good punch to give the song a modern feel. I just go with whatever I think sounds good for the song.

Next, I like to use a lot of synths in my productions. In my older songs I used the stock Ableton Operator or some of the stock Ableton presets before getting Serum. Currently I use Serum 2 to create all my synth sounds.

Once I get the chord progression laid out, I like to sound design either a soft pad or an aggressive saw wave patch, depending on the mood of the song. Most of the time, the next step is to add a warble, or a slight wavering detune to the chords.

I will either use a plugin called Tape Cassette 2 or add lfo's to the oscillators in Serum 2.

If I use Tape Cassette 2, I will adjust the wow and flutter knobs to give it a warped tape effect.

If I use Serum, I'll add lfo's to the fine tune section in the oscillators, and I'll adjust how exaggerated the detune is based on taste. What this does is forces the oscillator to slightly detune up and down, which gives it the warble/warped effect.

Tape Cassette 2 is quick and easy, but using the lfo in Serum 2 gives much more control, although it's much more work if you're going for a very specific effect.

Depending on the song, I might add some tom drum fills. I like to add a little reverb to the toms to give it a retro sound, but this is on a song by song basis.

Next is my bass design. This is where I use a lot of modern ideas. A few of my songs have deliberate 80's sounding bass, but most of the time I use modern techniques like a Reese bass or a modern Deephouse bass. 

I want the bass to sound current with a lot of warmth and impact. The basslines themselves usually sound retro, but the actual design is based on current ideas.

My go to bass is a patch that I designed consisting of a saw wave and a squarewave with heavy unison on both oscillators. I like to put a utility on the bass track and set everything under 125-135 Hz to mono to avoid phasing.

Depending on the tempo and energy of the song, I like to adjust the filter cuttoff to give it a bounce. 

Another thing I like to do is add a clear break or bridge into my songs. Most new songs these days are shorter and they skip these, so i think that's another way that I can give the song a retro feel.

Now on to the actual mixing of the songs.

Most retro songs go for the true retro sound, keeping everything kind of washed out, like it was recorded on old equipment. I love songs like that, but I want a modern sound with my music.

I like my drums to hit, I want you to feel it when it's playing at a club or a roller rink on a Saturday night.

In the end, it all comes back to a balance between the two. In my last post, I talked about why I like the 80s sound, and this is my idea of how to bring that into what I make today. I’m not trying to exactly recreate the 80's, I just want to a mixture of the two ideas. Something that takes both ideas and gives it my spin.

Now Creating

• New song later today!
• Replacing old ai artwork with my own, real artwork
• New website ideas
• Remixing/remastering old songs

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. New posts go live every Wednesday.

Why I Blend Modern Production With An 80's Sound

Neon Notes — Week [11]

I like to blend modern with retro.

I make sure everything is clipping, and I also make sure that the snare is so gated that it disappears completely.

And of course, I always remember to export at the lowest bit rate to give it that vintage sound.

April Fools! Now, on to the real post.

I touched on this briefly in a previous post, but there’s something about that 80s sound that keeps me coming back.

From the warm analog synths to the slight imperfections and warble, it just feels nostalgic.

But I never wanted to make music that could be mistaken for something that actually came out of the 80s. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, it just wasn’t what I had in my head.

I wanted something more modern while keeping that love of the 80s.

Something that takes the feeling of the 80s and blends it with the clarity and punch of today’s pop music.

A lot of that starts with the vocals I choose. They have a definite modern sound, and I try to build a song around them with retro sounds that complement them.

Looking back, I don’t think I fully appreciated 80s music at the time. My taste has always been all over the place. But once I started making music again, it hit me all at once that those songs from the 80s were so unique and were much more than I first thought.

There are also a lot of newer artists recreating the 80s in their music, and they’re keeping it more faithful to the whole 80s aesthetic, which I love.

But the sound I’m going for sits somewhere between the 80s and now.

I want my songs to have a retro vibe, but with clarity and punch.

When I moved away from more instrumental synthwave style tracks, I immediately had an idea. I wanted less of the washed out drums and fuzz of the 80s sound, and more of the polished modern pop sound fused with the 80s.

From artists like The Weeknd or Dua Lipa, I wanted a modern, hard hitting pop sound with lots of retro elements like gated snares and synth sounds with some tape distortion.

That’s what keeps me coming back to this style.

It’s not just about recreating the sound. It’s about making it my sound

Now Creating

• More website redesigning
• Refining my sound (A definite shift in my sound)
• Lot's of new music coming soon!

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. New posts go live every Wednesday.

Why I Build Songs Around Vocals

Neon Notes — Week [10]

At first, I didn’t think I wanted vocals in my music.

The creative part of me had other plans.

I started experimenting with vocals just to see what would happen. I really had no idea what I was doing. Just dropping them into a track, messing around, chopping them. I didn’t really plan on using them much.

That didn’t last long.

The vocals quickly became more than just a layer. They started to become the foundation.

I’ve talked before about how I usually start a song. Sometimes it’s chords, sometimes vocals. But what I didn’t really get into is how different a song can be based on those early decisions, and why I build songs around vocals now.

When I start with chords, I’m really laying the foundation of what I hear in my head. It’s because I already have an idea going in.

But when I start with a vocal, I feel a bit more emotion in what I’m writing.

Sometimes I’ll leave the vocal as is, and other times I’ll chop it up, timestretch it, or completely change the tempo based on how the song evolves.

It’s less about the vocal deciding the direction, and more about seeing how I can turn it into something I want.

Instead of asking myself, “What kind of song do I want to make?”

It becomes, “What can I turn this into?”

Asking myself that question changes everything.

It puts me into an experimental mindset. I’m just moving with the music, letting my creativity take control.

Sometimes that means letting the vocal carry the emotion. Other times it means building something more nuanced around it, adding atmosphere and texture.

I’ll loop the vocal over and over and just listen. No writing, no sound design, just letting my mind figure out where the song is headed. I try to let the ideas form naturally and not force anything.

A melody or chord progression might come from the rhythm of the vocal. A bassline might pop into my head, or a drum beat might form.

Things start to connect.

And even if I decide to change the vocal completely, chopping it or stretching it, that original idea is what sparked everything.

That’s why I keep coming back to vocals.

Something about the human voice is so powerful, and it makes me approach music completely differently than before.

It's a different way of building a song from when I first started, but it feels more natural now.

The challenge of taking the vocals and changing them into something that's mine is so satisfying.

And that's what it's really all about.

Finding that spark, that idea, and following it wherever it takes you.

Now Creating

• Working on new music, and a new sound
• Still updating the website
• Almost done with Electric Skyline 2

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. New posts go live every Wednesday.

How I Got Signed With Only 8 Months Of Experience

Neon Notes — Week [9]

When I began making music again in 2023, I didn't have any notion of it being anything more than just a hobby. Sure, I uploaded my first song to SoundCloud and made it public, but I really didn't expect anyone to listen. And I was right. At the time of this blog, "Synthia" has 44 streams on SoundCloud.

But streams aren't the goal with my music. Sure it feels great, but if you're not making it for you, then I think that misses the point of making art in the first place. I initially put them on SoundCloud so I could listen to them wherever I was, and I just decided to share them publicly because I was proud of them. I am still proud of them.

I just kept making songs and uploading them, trying to improve with each release. I studied everything I could about music production, and still study today.

After about 6 months of producing, I noticed that my songs sounded so much better than before, and I started getting a lot of scam messages on SoundCloud about how they loved my song or how some big-name artist wanted to work with me. Of course I dismissed all of them.

Then a few months later in July, I released several songs that I feel were a step up in my production. Songs like "Mistakes and Perfume" and "Toxic" had spikes in listeners on SoundCloud, and "I Fall" got over 10,000 views on YouTube. Shortly after that I released "Wide Awake" and "Everything", a song I dedicated to my dog that passed away.

At this point I felt like people were noticing my music. I was starting to get messages on SoundCloud and YouTube telling me how much they liked my music, and not just from people trying to scam me.

That's when I got a message a few months later in October on SoundCloud that was different from the rest. Normally, when it's a scam, they don't get specific. They say things like, "I really liked your song" or "Your music resonates with me."

This message was specific. It mentioned "To Love You", the title of the song they liked, and seemed more genuine than the other messages.

Of course I was skeptical. Who wouldn't be? I wasn't going to message them back, but my wife said, "What's it going to hurt? If it's a scam you'll know." So I messaged them back about five hours later.

We had a brief discussion on SoundCloud, then moved it to email correspondence. In the emails, they introduced themselves more formally. The label was Triptych Music and the publisher was Blue Pie Records, a company that works with music licensing and sync placements. Lauren, who runs the label, explained that they were interested in signing me as a sync artist.

At the time, I had only been producing music for about ten months, but the songs she was referencing I made with only eight months of experience. So hearing that a label wanted to work with me just didn't seem real.

For anyone that doesn't know, a sync deal means your music can potentially be placed in things like television shows, films, advertisements, or other forms of media. Instead of focusing only on streaming platforms, the music is pitched for opportunities where it can be licensed and used in visual media.

Of course, I did my homework. I looked up the label and publisher, the artists they worked with, and tried to make sure everything was legitimate. After all the scam messages I received on SoundCloud, I had to be skeptical.

But the more we talked, the more I realized that this was real.

I wanted to be transparent and explained that I had less than a year of music production experience. I think Lauren was a bit surprised when she found out, but I also think she realized I still had room to grow, and that my productions would only get better.

So I did it. I signed, and they released several of my songs on all the major streaming platforms and pitched them for sync placements.

• To Love You
• Let Go
• Just A Game
• I Need Your Love
• See Me Fly
• I'm The Darkness
• Cold Embrace
• Too Late
• Good Liar
• I Am The Storm
• Drown Me In Your Love
• Are You Lucky Now?
• Put Your Love On Me
• I Don't Need Saving
• Eyes On Me
• Don't Worry
• All I Need
• Out Of My Mind

It was also humbling. I never expected anything like this. Not to say I thought my music was bad, but I am a realist and I try to stay grounded.

Signing that deal didn’t mean I had it all figured out. I was still learning and trying to improve with every song I made.

What it did show me was something really important.

Just share your work. Let people hear it.

If I had kept those early songs private, none of this would've happened. The only reason that opportunity existed was because I was willing to share my music while I was still learning.

Looking back, those first songs were rough, but I still enjoy them. Now my mixing is better, my writing is better, and my production skills are way ahead of where they were back then.

Those songs were the best I could do with the knowledge I had, and I think sharing each one shows the progress I've made.

Getting signed wasn't something that I ever thought about, and getting signed from songs I made with only eight months of producing experience was definitely unexpected.

I was just making music and not being afraid of letting people hear it.

Sometimes the best thing you can do as a creator is just make it and share it.

Now Creating

• Replacing old cover art
• Physical merch?
• Finishing up some songs for Electric Skyline Volume 2

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. New posts go live every Wednesday.

From Death Metal to Retro Pop: How Did I Get Here?

Neon Notes — Week [8]

I wasn't always into electronic music.

Don't get me wrong, there were some great Synthpop and New Wave songs that I loved from the 80s, but I was more into Rap and R&B at the time.

That all started to shift in 1999, when Slipknot's first album came out. I had listened to some rock over the years, but Slipknot was an awakening.

After my short experiments with MTV Music Generator in the early 2000s, I had all but moved away from anything that didn't have distorted guitar. I couldn't get enough. It was like a drug, and I had to find music that was heavier and heavier just to get my fix.

To me, 2005 was a golden year in metal. So many bands were making their mark, and I was there for it. The Black Dahlia Murder, Killswitch Engage, and As I Lay Dying, just to name a few. That's when I decided to get a guitar. I thought, if I couldn't find the next heavy song, I'd just make my own heavy riffs.

So that's what I did. When I wasn't listening to heavy metal, I was writing riffs. I had no formal training, just a guy with a guitar, figuring it out. At first it was all power chords, no nuance, just right to the face. Then it became palm-muted, chuggy riffs that had groove but still sounded angry. Lots of hammer-ons and pull-offs, keeping the riffs tight and melodic.

But then another shift happened. I discovered Dubstep. It was raw, and it appealed to my love for distorted guitar. It was a short stint, but it was enough to nudge me back toward electronic music.

That's when I heard a few songs from Ladyhawke. They were rock, but they had a retro sound. I couldn't quite place them into a genre in my head, and that led me to my first real synthwave experience. "Collateral" by The Midnight was the first time I heard anything like it, and I was enamoured all over again. I all but moved away from metal this time and had to consume more and more of this newfound love.

Fast forward to the present day, and all those experiences helped shape the way I write music. Instead of a guitar, I use a synth, and instead of distortion pedals, I stack synth layers.

I may not consume as much metal as I used to, but it's still with me when I write synth melodies and in the way I program my drums. I still think in riffs and technical drum fills. I use repetition with intention, and I still try to keep the melodies tight.

Even when I’m writing shimmering leads or thick synth basslines, there’s still a part of me thinking like a guitar player. I’m looking for that moment where a section locks in and I get goosebumps. I want the drums to hit with purpose. I want the melody to feel like it could stand on its own, just like a good riff.

The sounds changed. The mindset didn’t.

Metal taught me about energy. About commitment. About not holding back once you find something that works. Dubstep reminded me that texture and grit matter. And synthwave showed me that atmosphere and melody can carry just as much weight as distortion.

So how did I get here?

Not by abandoning what I loved before. Not by randomly jumping genres.

I got here by following whatever moved me at the time.

Every phase left something behind in my writing. You can hear metal in the way I structure sections. You can hear electronic influence in the sound design. You can hear nostalgia in the melodies.

The guitars might not be front and center anymore.

But the riffs never really left.

Now Creating

•  Remastering some older songs
•  Working on a new and improved website
•  Finishing up some songs for Electric Skyline Volume 2

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. New posts go live every Wednesday.

Why I Stopped Using Generative AI For Cover Images

Neon Notes — Week [7]

When I first started making music again in 2023, it was a whirlwind of excitement and rediscovered passion. I was completely absorbed in the process. Writing, arranging, producing. It took up most of my time and headspace in the best way possible.

Like I mentioned in an earlier post, I uploaded my first song to SoundCloud after about a week of producing. A few months later, I put it on YouTube. What I did not think about at all was artwork. Suddenly I needed a cover image for every single release.

At first, I took some pretty bad photos and used those. I didn’t care how they looked. I was just proud of the music and wanted people to hear it.

Around that time, I discovered an AI image generator website. I will not name it here, but it felt like an easy solution. I make music, not visual art… right? I convinced myself I just needed something that looked decent so I could upload my songs.

So I started generating image after image. I would edit them in Canva, add my artist name and the song title, and call it a day.

But I was never under the illusion that I created anything.

Whenever someone asked about the artwork, I was honest and told them it was AI generated. I was not pretending otherwise. Still, something felt off. The music was deeply personal. The artwork was not.

To be fair, I did use some real photos on a few releases back then. But most of my covers were AI generated until I did some real soul searching.

I asked myself a simple question. If I can learn how to produce a song from start to finish, including mixing and mastering, why can’t I learn how to create my own visuals? I used to paint. I used to draw. Creativity was never limited to one outlet for me.

So why was I outsourcing this part of my art?

Fast forward to March 2025 and the release of my single One More Time.

When I sat down to write that song, I made a decision. From that point forward, all my cover art would be built from licensed photos or photos I took myself. I would edit them. Shape them. Make them mine.

The working title of that song was A New Beginning.

It fit for two reasons. First, the lead synth in One More Time was the same lead I used in my very first song. Maybe slightly tweaked, but still there. A full circle moment.

Second, it marked a shift in how I approach my visuals. The music was always personal. Now the artwork would be too.

Now I am in the middle of the painstaking process of replacing all of my old AI generated images with real, genuine photos. Even my artist avatar and logo are getting a rebrand soon.

I am not against technology. AI can be a tool like anything else. But for me, it started to feel disconnected from the creative process that I care so much about.

I want every part of what I release to feel intentional.

Not perfect.
Not polished beyond recognition.

Just real.

Now Creating

• Rebuilding my catalog artwork with genuine photography
• Finishing songs for the next EP, Electric Skyline Volume 2
• Exploring new writing techniques

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. New posts go live every Wednesday.

How My Mixing Has Changed

Neon Notes — Week [6]

Lately, I’ve been thinking about how different my mixes sound compared to when I first started.

Back in 2023, I had a general idea of what mixing was supposed to be, but being a beginner brings beginner mistakes. I would write and arrange the song and then mix everything at the end. What I was left with were mixes that were way too loud, muddy, and lacked low-end clarity.

Now I mix on the fly.

As I write and arrange the song, I'm also making mixing decisions and getting problems out of the way sooner in the process. By the time the arrangement is done, most of the mixing is done, besides cleaning up sibilance in the vocal samples, that step always comes last, right before mastering. But mixing on the fly changed everything for me.

One of the biggest differences is what I listen for first.

Now, I listen for frequency clashes as soon as I start writing and deal with them right away. Back then, I would stack sounds that I really liked but that also clashed frequency-wise. I would try to force them to work, which just created a mess. Cleaning things up early keeps the mix tidy and makes later decisions easier.

Looking back, I realized that my mixes weren't bad because I lacked talent. They were rough because my ears weren't trained yet. By analyzing each song as I finished it, I started noticing patterns. I was beginning to understand why my mixes were off.

The funny thing I didn't realize back then is that mixing really is more about adjusting volume first. Getting the levels correct goes a long way before ever introducing plugins to the mix.

Knowing what fits is one of the biggest advantages when it comes to mixing.

Learning to mix properly has been one of the most rewarding things about this journey, other than actually making the music.

And like everything else in my music, my process is still evolving.

Now Creating

• 3 songs left to be released for the Electric Skyline EP
• 1 collaboration to be released soon
• Working on an instrumental synthwave style song

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. Look for new posts every Wednesday.

What I'm working on right now

Neon Notes — Week [5]

Working on my EP Electric Skyline has made me really think about where I'm heading creatively. I know that with EPs, they're usually just songs that didn't make the cut for an album, but I'm treating them like a mini album. I wanted to see if I could make a small collection of songs that sound a bit more cohesive, like they were meant to go together. I think I've accomplished that goal, but to be fair, I think a lot of my songs have a similar sound, so I think it was easy by default.

But right now, I think I'm in the middle of something new.

Recently, I wrote a song called Don't Look Back that came from losing my mom. I won’t go too deep into it here, but making music has always been how I process things, and this one came straight from that place. Sometimes songs aren’t about chasing a sound, they’re just about getting something out.

The reason I bring this up is that this directly points to what I'm working on right now. Before her passing, my sound started to shift, still retro, but more refined. Creating Don't Look Back really cemented this new sound for me. I love the new dynamics and layers in this new direction. Right now, I think I have three distinctive periods in my very short music career.

The beginning was when I thought I wanted to make pure Synthwave. The songs were pure electronic and very rough. The second period is when I shifted to Retro Pop, a little bit more modern sounding, but still very retro. Someone described it as “Neon dreams for the broken hearted”,  they know who they are.

And now, this period is much more modern pop. Super polished production while still sounding retro. Hints of disco, ’90s freestyle, and ’90s RnB. Obviously, the Retro Pop is still in there, and I still make instrumental Synthwave songs, but this shift is organic just like the last one.

My new sound really started a few months ago. I was experimenting with the way I process and write my drums on an instrumental track I titled Journey. I guess you could describe it as Progressive Synthwave, it's very spacey, but almost has a live band feel. This new sound really hit me, so I started using it in more projects. Then I created a personal remix of Dua Lipa's song Break My Heart for fun, and it just fell into place. Now I'm going for more natural sounding drums, which in turn changes the way I process everything else.

Here's a rough snapshot of what's on my hard drive right now.

The titles of these songs could change, but Drown My Pain and Falling For Your Love have a very prominent disco sound, Release Me has a dark RnB sound.

Been On My Mind has a party vibe. I Surrender has a groovy bassline, very smooth overall, and Dangerous has a very dramatic sound with sexy vocals.

I have a few untitled songs as well as some other songs from my previous sound that I'm working on. I can't guarantee they will all see the light of day, but knowing me, they will.

I don’t know exactly where all of this will lead yet, but I do know I’m excited again. And right now, that feels like exactly where I’m supposed to be.

Now Creating

• Writing new material in this more polished, modern-retro direction

• Experimenting with more natural sounding drums and layered synths

• Letting ideas develop organically instead of forcing them

• Sitting with a few untitled tracks and seeing where they want to go

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. Look for new posts every Wednesday.

How I Know When A Song Is Finished

Neon Notes — Week [4]

Knowing when a song is finished isn’t something that is absolute. Is a piece of art ever truly finished? Finished, to me, probably has a different meaning for you, so let’s look at how I know when a song is finished.

When I began this music journey in early January 2023, I had no idea where it was going to take me. I thought it was just going to be something I would do to pass the time when I was bored. That was not the case at all. Within an hour or two of messing around with Ableton, I was all in.

I spent the next several hours with my DAW open, watching YouTube videos on music production, and just learning everything about it. I “finished” my first song, which I called “Synthia,” on January 16, 2023.

At that time, I didn’t know if a song was finished. I just knew that I had no more to put into the song with my limited knowledge. So, with my limitations, I decided to give myself a two-week deadline for every song. This forced me to make deliberate decisions, and if I didn’t like something about the song when the deadline was up, I just made sure to fix that problem in the next song.

Fast forward to the present.

More knowledge, more confidence, more discipline. These things can only improve by doing, by pushing yourself, by showing up consistently. My workflow is faster, my sound design is streamlined, my decisions are deliberate. I still go into a new project with almost no idea what it’s going to be, but two things are for sure: it will have a retro sound, and it will have a lot of synths in it. Now I spend more time crafting the finished song instead of crafting the ingredients that make the song.

I hear a lot of talk about not being able to finish songs, and that’s totally understandable. Knowing when my song is done is not some clear-cut line in the sand; it’s more of a feeling. After all the hours put into my song, I could tweak it forever, trying to make every detail absolutely perfect, but I have to keep moving forward. So, when I think I’m close to finishing a song, I’ll put it on loop and listen to it over and over. If I let it loop and I don’t have the overpowering urge to change something, that’s the moment I know it’s done.

Someone once told me that their favorite part of creating music is when a song is done. For me, the song I’m working on at the time is my favorite song, so finishing a song is a bittersweet moment, because I can’t work on my favorite song anymore, but I also get to start my next favorite song.

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. Look for new posts every Wednesday.

How My Song Usually Starts

Neon Notes — Week [3]

Ok. Now that I've gotten the introductions and the "Why's" of my music out of the way with the first two posts, it's time to explain the "How's".

Very rarely do I go into a song knowing what it will be, not that I don't have inspiration, but I like to feel where the song takes me. There are some occasions where I'll start a new project with a specific idea, but the organic flow of not knowing is what makes it most fun for me.

This is the order in which I make a song:

• the first two are chords and vocals
• simple drum beat 
• bass
• lead synth melody
• main verse
• chorus
• intro
• Arrangement adjustments (if needed)
• break or bridge
• synth solo (if it has one) 
• second verse/half
• drums/percussion finalization
• fx
• Final arrangement
• Outro

I always start a new project in one of two ways, a chord progression, or a vocal sample. If I start with a chord progression, I'll pick a minor key and start building the progression. The structure of the progression will then determine the tempo of the song, of course I may tweak the progression later and decide to change tempo at that time, like I said, I love the organic approach.

If I start with a vocal, that sample usually dictates the tempo, mood, and feel of the song right away. Although, I could change the cadence of the sample to be more upbeat or downtempo. It all depends on what hits me.

The next thing I do is create a really simple beat just to get a rhythm going. I'll let the beat, chords and vocals (if the song has vocals) loop for a while and just listen. At this point I'll start writing a bassline for groove that fits the chords or adjust the chords to fit the bass.

Then I move on to writing the main melody using the soft synth called Serum. Once I have the synth melody, this is when I start dialing in the main synth and the bass design. I'll tweak the synth and bass depending on where the song is going, is it up tempo? Is it more chill? That's what determines if my bass and synth have more groove or more emotion.

Once that's done I start on the main verse or core of the song. It will either have a vocal or stripped down version of the main melody. It's usually 16 bars with the second 8 bar section a little more energetic leading into the chorus/hook.

Now it's time to work on the chorus or hook of the song now that I have the main verse done. My goal here is to build a catchy earworm hook that makes me want to hum or sing it all the time. This is where I use the main melody of the song, and it always has the most energy or emotion. 

Now it's time to move on to how I want the song to start, if it's an upbeat dance song, I might start with the chorus/hook, right into the meat of the song and keep the energy going. Or, I may have a moody slow building intro if the song is lower tempo, and more emotional. It all depends on my mood.

At this point I have lightly arranged the song, and now I'll deliberately make changes to the arrangement if needed. I'll move sections around so that they make sense to me in the context of the song. Sometimes, this can lead to major changes in how the song feels, like I said, it's all an organic approach.

Once I have a basic arrangement down, I start work on a break or bridge after the chorus/hook. This break/bridge is usually in the middle of the song, and will lead into one of three things...A synth solo, the chorus/hook again, or directly into the second verse. If it's a solo, I'll write 18 bars, 1 bar at the beginning as a lead in, 16 bars of actual solo, and one bar at the end for an outro that leads into the second verse or chorus/hook. 

Now that the bridge and solo (if there is a solo) is done, I either go into an even more energetic chorus/hook or the second verse. The second half of my songs almost always have more elements, energy, or emotion than the first half. It's just the way I like to write.

This is where I start adding percussion, like rim shot grooves, shaker grooves, tom fills, and I also finish the drums. I either make it a simple 4 on the floor or I make it groovy depending on the feel of the song.  I also start adding drum fills and beat cuts, as these can make a huge difference in how interesting a song is.

Next up is all the fx and ear candy, swooshes, blips and bloops, ambient breaths...all the things you hear, but wouldn't notice until they're no longer there. The fx and ear candy can make take the song from plain and boring to super interesting with just a few additions. 

Now it's time for the final arrangement. This is where I solidify how the song is structured. Sometimes this step only takes a few tweaks because the arrangement works, sometimes I make major adjustments (rarely) because something seems off. The goal of this step is to keep the song as interesting as possible so that it makes me want to listen to it over and over.

Finally, I work on the outro. Now...when I first started making music, I just did a fadeout because I just thought that's how it's done. Now, I write deliberate, meaningful endings to my songs.

And that's it, that's how I build a song. It's one of the most rewarding things I've ever done besides becoming a husband and father. Music has always been apart of my life, it's always been there to cheer me up, or make me think of a certain time of my life when I hear a specific song...and now, maybe I get to do that for someone else. 

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. Look for new posts every Wednesday.

How I Found My Way Back to Making Music

Neon Notes — Week [2]

I’ve always been creative.

Before I ever thought about releases or “finishing” songs, I just liked making things. Back in 2000 - 2001, I was using MTV Music Generator to make simple tracks. Nothing serious, just experimenting and seeing what sounded good. I even found a way to record the audio from my PlayStation and was able to burn a few of my songs on CD, but that’s a whole blog post in itself.

I ended up making around 20 instrumentals that way.

And then… I stopped making music.

But music itself never left my life.

Even during the years I wasn’t creating, music was always there, always playing, even if it was just background noise. I’ve gone to bed with headphones on at low volume for as long as I can remember, and I still do. It’s something I’ve done since I was young. I just love music.

For years, music wasn’t something I made. It was something I lived with.

That changed on January 7, 2023.

I was browsing bundles on Humble Bundle, not really looking for anything specific, when I came across a bundle focused on creating music. Something about it immediately sparked my interest. All these old memories came rushing back to me..

I downloaded the 90 day trial of Ableton Live 11 and started learning from scratch.

For the next seven days, I experimented nonstop. Clicking things, breaking things, starting over. Watching tutorials, trying to absorb everything I could. Just trying to understand how ideas could turn into something listenable. Besides my family, I don’t think I’ve ever been more excited, or passionate about something in my entire life.

After about a week, I made my first song.

I uploaded it to SoundCloud under the name “Synthia.”

It’s obviously a beginner track. I can hear the newness in it, the mix choices I made, and there was no mastering done. So many things I’d do completely differently today. I just did the best I could, but I’m still proud of it.

Not because it’s perfect, but because it’s something I created… it exists because I made it.

Around that time, I also needed a name.

Laxrax wasn’t something I came up with for music. It’s an old online gamer tag, one of those names that never taken when I start a new game. I've been using that name for years, so I figured, why not.

For some people online, it’s the only name they know me by.

Using it for music just seemed like a natural fit. It wasn’t about creating a persona or rebranding myself. It was just carrying a name that had already been part of my life into something new.

At that point, I gave myself a challenge.

I decided to see if I could make a full album before the 90 day trial ended.

I tried not to overthink things. I just worked on each song, and took them as far as I could before moving on. I made deliberate decisions with the ability I had. 

I ended up completing that goal.

Right before the trial ended, I released my first "album" on SoundCloud, We Are Lights. I call it an album, but it's really more of a collection of songs that have somewhat of a structure.

Looking back, it's strange that I didn't continue down the path of music production after making simple instrumentals in the early 2000s. It really had me hooked, but I guess other priorities took over.

But We Are Lights wasn't about making something that topped the charts. It was to prove to myself that I could achieve something that not a lot of people get to do. To have the privilege of sharing my music with people.

This blog is part of that continuation.

I'm normally a very private person, so this is one of the ways for me to continue talking about music, and sharing a little about myself.

Thanks for reading.
If you have thoughts about any of this, I’d love to hear them.

This post is part of my weekly Neon Notes series. Look for new posts every Wednesday.