Getting stuck in a loop, how you fight with that?

Every musician I know has been there… :hourglass_flowing_sand: And you might be there right now (yeah, you reading this :sunglasses: ) You get an idea or a picture for a track or a song and you start getting the parts more and more :rocket: … and again Mooar! It’s stucks in your head and don’t letting go… :moyai: You just can’t stop listening or maybe playing that with such words in mind: Maybe I can make it even better… And so you keep on tweaking’n’tweaking, perfecting again and again, trying more to make that loop “even better”. :smile_cat:
But the more you try…the worse it gets. Your brain is almost as much of a mess as your DAW screen.
Ok. And now it’s time to move on. Start the arrangement. But no matter what you try, it doesn’t work.
So there you remain. Totally lost… Thing is, this is a very common problem, right? So howow do YOU fight with that?

2 Likes

I’ve been in that situation many times, but usually I take some elements and start the intro with those or something. Things are slower that way and more mind troubling.
But I think its better to start with the beginning. Start with intro, things are flowing and keep coming fresh ideas in mind, instead of making a loop full of sounds that is a part after in later time etc.
But definitely its a matter of taste and experience…The more experience you have the more ideas come to mind.
And ofcourse its a psychology matter. :stuck_out_tongue:

Nice topic! Would like to hear more opinions! :slight_smile:

Yes, it has happened to me many times:) Really is both funny situation and at the same time irritable. I’m distracted by other things, listening to different music or go to drink tea :slight_smile: brain needs a rest sometimes too :slight_smile:

Yeah, just happened to me… I don’t have a solution, but here’s my latest experience of this kind:
I started an acoustic guitar based track by recording the main guitar part and I really loved it. The more parts I added, the less I liked the way the track sounded.
In this particular situation I think I might just throw out all of the additional parts and just make a guitar loop out of the original guitar recording (maybe I’ll just add some pads in the background or something).

1 Like

Yeah, happened to all of us. My solution is to leave the tune for a day or two (sometimes it takes longer) and after you start working on it again you’d definitely catch some new ideas.
Sometimes while we are stuck in a loop we already have an arrangement in our head but nevertheless continues to work on another layer/sound/bass/etc, if so - just go and start working on the arrangement, and it also might be the starting point to creative process.

1 Like

Leave it for a few hours! Listen to some similar tracks, watch some tv…Talk to friends for a bit!
And lastly, eat an apple or some fruit! :wink:
It will stimulate you to continue the fight the loop warriors!

I feel your pain. I’ve felt that way about my AJ portfolio for the last month so I simply worked on other ventures. The constant corporate loop can be demotivating at times and I needed a break. Now I’m back and I’m excited to hit the Uke again and drop a few “fresh” harmonics on a track! LOL!

1 Like

Without a doubt it’s happened to me. Best thing you can do is take a break (even when you really don’t want to!) and come back with fresh eyes and ears.

1 Like

You can never have too many harmonics on AJ :sunglasses:

1 Like

When it happens to me, I set it aside and work on other tracks which are at different levels of completeness. Maybe a day or two later I’ll look back in at the tough track and see if things pop out at me when I play it back.

2 Likes

Find some loop slicer :slight_smile:

Hey fellas need help, i’m stucked in a loop - A G A I N :tired_face:, give me some new hints.:scream:
image