With countless new software and plugins getting released each day, it’s easy for musicians to fall into the trap of constantly chasing the next shiny tool when making music.
Though according to 47-year-old producer Scott Hansen – aka Tycho – this obsession with gear is often misplaced—for most music, he argues, can be created with even “the most basic DAWs”.
Speaking in an interview with MusicTech, Tycho shares his thoughts on the gear-focused culture that dominates today’s music-making landscape.
He states that contrary to popular belief, producers and beatmakers “don’t need every sound to be magical and have all that character”.
What’s more crucial, instead, is mastering the tools already at your disposal.
“The most basic DAWs have enough tools in them to be able to make, like, 90 percent of all music ever created,” says Tycho, “So now it’s just down to you learning how to use it, not the lack of access, which I think is so powerful.”
His thoughts on gear and creativity aside, Tycho also opens up about the challenges of being an artist in the digital age, particularly when it comes to navigating the often-toxic online environment.
“Being an artist and putting yourself out there these days…That’s been an interesting thing to watch shift,” he says. “Just to see the dialogue change over time on those platforms. I feel like [the Tycho] fan base is so cool and accepting and understanding, and they’re just along for the ride. But on other people’s pages and on YouTube, I see people paring things down, and being so opinionated and so negative.”
“It makes you start to believe that the rest of the world has this negative tone. But then you go into the real world and talk to people, and people are really cool, kind and caring. So [the online world has become] this ugly, funhouse mirror of what people are really like.”
In the same interview, the producer also reveals what he considers “one of the best soft synths ever made”.
