The rUbba nEck manifesto

Just do it… and get it done

Debut rUbba nEck EP uses ReBirth for iPad

Sometimes limitations can be a virtue. I remember an interview with UK electronica act Underworld in, I think, an edition of Future Music magazine from the mid-90s. Karl Hyde was talking about how little gear they had. That’s the same gear they use to make seminal dance tracks Cowgirl  and Born Slippy. Their limitations forced them to be inventive, resulting in a tight, dada-inspired concept and some phenomenal beats. And, to be honest, nothing they’ve done since has had the impact of those early tracks.

There are no experts in electronica.

That’s what makes it so exciting – and provocative. Just as DNA mutates into new forms that either survive or die, a lot of making music is trial and error. For those forms to survive, develop and thrive, you need a long enough timeline. For evolution, that means millions of years. Fortunately for musos, we’re talking hours. Even so, putting in the hours is crucial. It’s no good sitting around talking about producing music.

To produce music, you actually have to produce music.

This is harder than it sounds. Everyone I’ve ever met has had at least one idea that’s better than OK. But that doesn’t make them creative. To create, you need to do stuff. Creative people take an idea and test it out. And that leads to more curiosity, more questions, more ideas. So anything that helps you do stuff, no matter how limited your gear or your means, will help you become more creative. I suppose we’re talking about ‘learning by doing.’ Or even, ‘practice makes perfect.’ This is what rUbba nEck is all about.

rUbba nEck is not the name of a band. Or a person.

It’s a set of rules.

The rules set limitations that force you to be inventive. They set time limits to force you to focus. And produce. The time limits are short, so you can actually get stuff done – and switch from being a dude with an OK idea to someone who’s truly creative.

Well, that’s the general idea.

So, what are the rules?

Anyone, and I mean anyone, can make a rUbba nEck track if they follow a few simple rules:
– use an iPad app (ReBirth, iMS20, Electrify, Chip Box, iElectribe, …)
– 1 hour to make the beats
– 1 hour to arrange the track
– upload to Soundcloud as a rUbba nEck song
– share

That’s it. There are no limitations to ideas, genre, number of people involved… the rules only restrict your tools and the time you can spend on each track. So you focus on production.

You can view it as a way of trying out ideas. Or as a warm up. Or just a bit of fun.

And you can hear the first ever rUbba nEck EP – 5 tracks made on ReBirth for iPad – here:

http://soundcloud.com/rubba-neck/sets/rubba-neck-rebirth-ep/

Before long, there’ll be a rUbba nEck group on Soundcloud for anyone to upload their rUbba nEck tracks to.

I’ll keep you posted.

Tags: Born Slippy, Cowgirl, EP, iPad, manifesto, music production, produce music, production, ReBirth, Underworld