Remixing can be one of the best ways of getting your name out there - you're presented with a selection of samples and loops, you don't need to worry about getting the track signed, and if the release does well it can put your name out there very effectively, for a comparatively small outlay of effort. The downsides, though, include the fact that there are so many different ways of going about the process. So let's take a look at some of the options!Any remix will, of course, depend on the parts that you are sent by the original artist. Some are better than others, and sometimes they'll be so good you can just drop them straight in. Alternatively, you may just be given a few samples, and increasingly often in this author's experience, producers don't send you their drums! Perhaps this is because they want to hold on to their secret samples, but it often pays to email back and ask for the drums. After all, they can be crucial to retaining or working the groove of the track.
With regard to actually sitting down to do the remix, then, the first and simplest option is just to keep as much of the original track as you possibly can, adding your own signature with the drums, groove, or production style. And this is quite possibly what the label or artist will have wanted when they came to you for a remix; if it's a good track, then sometimes staying true to the original will give good results. If you have a strong idea of what you want to do with the track - for instance, to dispense with some of the melodies and roll out a dubbier mix, or emphasise certain aspects and lose others, then you may be able to use some of the original stems and get moving on your mix quickly.
Another way of staying relatively true to the original is to copy it with different instruments. You may find that a bass guitar line sounds good melodically, but doesn't really have the impact that you're looking for - so you can load up a soft-synth below it, loop up the melody and copy it with a MIDI part. The same applies for melodies, harmonies, strings and anything else - you can keep the melodies and structures of the original track but change the vibe from a guitar pop tune to a pumping house track or downbeat hip hop effort. Using MIDI in this way will also afford you a much greater flexibility with regards to tempo - you'll be able to increase or decrease the pace by a substantial margin, without having to worry about aliasing and audible timestretch artifacts. The more musically literate will also be able to make other changes like switching the track from major to minor, for instance.The next step down in 'staying true' and possibly the most common way for most people to remix, is to take a small part of the original - a vocal loop, maybe a short melody of a few bars, and build a new track around it. This allows you to keep your favourite part of the original but write what is substantially a new track, or re-envisage it in your own style. The remix will thus keep a flavour of the original, but you get the fun of playing with that sample that you wish you'd found for yourself!
One way that a lot of remixes are done, unfortunately, is to completely ignore the original track and just write a new one - then, somewhere near the end of the writing process, attempt to crowbar a couple of samples out of the original track in there, so that it is at least recogniseable as a remix. This is a frustrating approach for all concerned - the remixer, who is basically writing an original track but not getting any publishing or royalties, and the remixee, who won't hear a new and interesting take on their music. The way to avoid this is to only remix tracks that you like, or that you can imagine what you want to do with the stems. Sadly, many people go ahead anyway (and your author has been guilty of this in the past) - sometimes producers just need the cash, and can't really afford to turn down offers of paid work!Remixing has become a key part of the electronic music world, and it's here to stay. But hopefully some of these tips will give you a few ideas for when you next get stuck in to do your own remix. So sit down with the original track for a little while, grab a drink, let some vibes marinate, and then get remixing!
