In the studio with George Smeddles

1. How do you choose the right samples to create punchy, club-ready house drums?

I always start with a punchy kick & build from there, sampling drums from old records is a great way to get a nice thick drum groove going as they are already processed & can really keep things flowing when your in the creative mode. Choosing high quality samples is key, the drums are the foundation of your track so don’t cut any corners and spend time on them, its always with it!

2. What techniques do you use to make basslines feel deep, warm, and powerful in a house track?

I definitely have to start with a bass synth my ear likes that day & something the gels with the drums I have, SH101, Diva, Sub boom bass, all are common plugins that find their way into my productions nearly every time

3. How do you layer synth sounds to build energy and atmosphere in your tracks?

In all honesty I don’t really have a set way I work when it comes to synths, I just play what feels good on the day, sometimes from synths or sometimes Ill go through loops & one shots to see if anything inspires me, and I always look to build energy in different ways in my music.

4. When selecting loops or one-shots from a sample pack, what do you look for to maintain originality?

I just go for sounds that my ears like, sometimes I put in one shots or loops, but they haven’t gotta stay in the projects, if I like the groove or melody I can just put them in to inspire me to play something else

5. What are your top tips for designing bass and synth sounds that cut through a club mix?

I would say give everything space, there’s nothing worse than throwing sounds on top of each other, all that will do is suck up the energy from the very sound you liked in the first place, I would say if you like a sound, focus on it & try new plugins (even stock) and find ways to make the sound more interesting and gel more in your mix, when you look back at the chain you have created you will find something unique that no one has done, save it and use it again on another track!

6. What’s your approach to processing basslines so they feel full without overpowering other elements?

I guess I go for pretty mid range bass sounds, and the plugins I mentioned earlier are great for those types of baselines.

I try doing most of the work inside the Vst. Again this can be polished later so I would always suggest first finding something close to what you like and just playing it in for workflow.
And depending on the style, I then sometimes add some EQ, distortion/ saturation, compression, and finally mono the bass.

7. How do you use modulation, filters, and effects on synths to add movement and groove?

I like playing around with sequencers, the auto filter in logic is class and something I’ve used since I started so I’m pretty familiar with how it works, I think people really overlook the power the stock plugins have in their DAW’s!

Its so easy to see people using these nice shiny plugins & go and buy them, but if you don’t know how to use them properly the won’t work no where near as good as something your really familiar with.

8. What advice do you have for producers trying to get cohesive melodies and harmonies from sample packs?

its such a great way to get inspiration for your track, especially if you don’t know exactly what your looking for in a melody for example.
but as I previously said, they don’t have to stay in the project. I like to throw a loop in now and again if I like the melody only, the sound or even the swing, and let that inspire me to do something else. Workflow is so important, 9/10 my best tracks I’ve made have been the quickest.