Creative Limitations - Where to Start When There Are too Many Choices

From time to time, I find a question on a Facebook group that gets me going on an answer. While it might only take a few minutes to write out the answer, I look back at it and I say to myself that it would make a good post on this blog. At least I can keep a record of my thoughts if nobody else reads it.

The question this time was regarding the situation of what to do when there are too many choices and no idea of a starting point. This generally happens when people do not know how to fully use the equipment they have. I know because I have more equipment than I know how to use at this time. I am currently in the process of learning how to use about three synths and that is enough to get a surprising amount of variation in my music.

Ideally, you should learn how to use each piece of gear before you buy another piece of gear. This is often not the case and many a musician will complain of Gear Acquirement Syndrome - GAS! I believe the root of GAS is really lack of discipline in learning how to use the equipment you have. To put it bluntly, laziness. The effect of this lack of discipline is making music that is not up to your expectations and when that happens, people often look at other people's gear thinking that their equipment might allow you to make the music you want to be able to make.

This brings us, you the reader, and me, the writer, to the point of asking the question of what to do next? Read on, "salvation lies within" (a little quote from one of my favourite movies, The Shawshank Redemption).

Try paring it down to three synths and see what you can do. If you do not have room, store the rest in a closet or somewhere safe. Once you think you have working those three synths down, push your creative boundaries or set some limitations so you can make some new stuff. At that point, you have to imagine that you are still limited to those three synths. Resist the urge to bring another synth back into the mix. By the way, learning those three synths means learning how to use each synth in its entirety, not just making one patch and how to use that sound in one song.

You might need to learn about subtractive synthesis in general. Or, maybe your synth is an FM synth. Maybe you have a sampler or it is a sequencer you are trying to use. So, yes, learn your synths in general, but all the other equipment needs to be learned as well. Effects pedals and guitars also fall into the range of your equipment so it does not have to be just your synths.

Once you can focus on your work to get beyond the idea that you have too many choices by making yourself accomplish the work with those three synths, add another synth. The end goal is to be able to form a basic idea and build it up.

Three synths is just a creative limitation. You might have read how some bands will give themselves creative limitations for an album. It helps you to limit your choices and be creative within that framework.

Once you create enough, you will understand how to use all that you have and not be bogged down by choices. This is a truth and essentially masters do it in all arts and sciences. People work with their tools so much that they understand how to use everything.

The image I have in mind as I write this is the YouTube videos on Junkie XL's channel. Have a look at his Studio Time series where he shows different synths that he uses. If you gave all that stuff to a noob they would have no idea where to start unless they picked just one thing. Yet he uses it all and he knows what each thing can do. I also imagine that he can make very new sounds using all of the equipment.