A documentary has recently caught my eye called Everything is a Remix by Kirby Ferguson, a New York-based filmmaker. The documentary is split up into parts with part 1 being of most interest to visitors of Remix Comps as it goes into a bit of history of remixing in music. Personally I never knew about Led Zeppelin and their 'ripoffs' so I learned something from it.

There are 3 parts with Part 2 going into Hollywood which can be watched here and Part 3 going into Technology which can be watched here, Part 4 is due out in the Fall 2011.

So is Everything a Remix? Personally I think the word remix is being used too broadly for this to be the case, but an interesting watch none the less.

Visit the official site for this documentary series called Everything is a Remix.

This is part 3 of a 3 part series of articles on entering remix contests and how to remix. You may want to start at part 1 or start at part 2.

The Remixing

Note: You should know how to use your sequencer to be able to understand this section.

Once prepared you are probably ready to get to the fun part of remixing and building upon the ideas of the original track. Many people will start creating a remix the same way they create a normal track. Many people will begin in a loop (of maybe 16 bars) by layering the individual parts of a track up until they feel they want to expand it outwards from their starting loop. Others will have a different way of working by starting with the intro and building it up by introducing new sounds at specific points that sound right. There is no right or wrong way and none of the following information and ideas are a necessity. Different producers will do things different ways and yet end up with the same or similar result.

The best way for me to show you how to remix is to go through each part of a track and then give some ideas for you to take and use in the way you approach that section.

The Drums
The drums is usually the main thing which defines the style of your remix. You will probably have the drums from the original in either loops or single shots. You could create a drum beat from scratch using the samples you cut out from the original drum track or even create your drum track completely from scratch with your own samples. A nice technique to think about is to layer drum shots from the original with some of your own drum sounds, think of it as a compromise between the original and your own style.

The drums can make or break a track so make sure you take the time to get them sounding right. Listen to hear what effects are already on the drum sounds that came from the original. You won't want to overdo the effects on certain drums that already have lots of effects on.

I've sometimes found that layering a quieter version of the original drum track underneath my own drums has worked well and given a nice effect. Also take a look and learn about parallel compression and parallel gating and learn how to use them as they can be a great technique for remixers to learn and give a lot of control over the final sound of the drums from the original.

Pitching certain single drums up or down to get different effects, reverse certain drum samples and experiment to make your drum track the way you want it to be. Variation in volume of each drum hit can help to make your drums sound more natural as well as bringing forward and back certain hits in small time increments. Basically emulating what a human drummer would do gives a human feel to your drums.

The Bass Line
This is a section which you can do pretty much what you want with. You could keep the bass exactly like the original or change it completely to your own. My best advice for you here is just whatever you do just make it fit well with the overall feeling of the remix you want to create.

The bass line should also fit well with the drums and obviously the main sections of the track by being in key with the main melody. You may want to use the original sampled bass or create your own synthesized bass. If you have access to a bass guitar, then maybe get it out and record it in rather than sampling or synthesizing one. Make sure your bass line sticks out and sounds different to all the other remixes which are being entered the remix contest.

To make the bass stand out well on your remix, read up about side-chaining compression your bass alongside your kicks or other drums. This dips the volume of the bass when your drums play and will make your drums stand out and bass fit and blend together better with them.

The Instrument Parts
Synth lines, guitars and other parts are extremely important.You may want to drop specific parts completely from your remix but it is advisable to have at least something that is noticeable to the listener from this section. It is useful to know how to play these sections into your sequencer using the MIDI controller yourself by learning them. This allows you to add not just a human feeling but also to bring in your own concepts, feelings and even add new, but matching musical phrases.

Layering up new sounds alongside the original sounds to get new sounds can work well. If you have one synth sound playing one part and another synth playing another part why not swap them over to play each others melodies. This is also the place where you can add new sounds of your own, think about where your strengths lie. If you are a good guitar player, why not add your own recorded guitar playing over the top. If you are good at creating synth lines then add more synth lines.

There is a lot to think about in this instrument section, you could change the original sounds beyond recognition or you can make it almost exactly the same as the original letting the differences in your drums and bass line sections do the work. Whatever you decide to do here it is probably good to get a balance between your own work and the parts of the original. You need to make the remix be recognizable as a remix of the original so don't want to go too far, but you also want to go far enough that it isn't like every other remix being entered into that contest.

With this section it is very important that you observe which effects are already present on the original samples. It may be that the original synth line has a lot of reverb on and by adding more reverb your remix starts to sound muddy and unclear, so be careful.

Vocals
Vocals are the thing that you will definitely need to use if vocals are present in the original and you probably won't be able to drop all of the vocals from your remix. You could always just use specific sections such as the chorus and then drop the verses.

Vocals can either be layered over the top in one go or they can also be cut up and loaded into a sampler and then triggered when needed which is probably a more workable option. Vocals can be the thing that kills the whole remix if they aren't done correctly, I've heard many remix contest entries which have some great instrumental parts going waiting for the vocal to come in only to be ruined by an out of time vocal that hasn't been lined up correctly, so make sure the vocals are perfectly in time. You might even want to get a second set of ears to listen in just to make sure the timing doesn't sound odd.

Try cutting up sections or phrases and rearranging them. By cutting out a single word and putting it through a delay can give some nice effects. You could also cut off a section of vocal and put it through a very wet reverb effect changing the vocal into a pad like sound. Placing this underneath the original vocals gives a great effect which may fit well.

Adding effects is great if you have a vocal without any effects put on (dry vocals) because adding effects of your own gives extra control over the final outcome. Just like with the instrument parts, if there are already effects present on the vocal be careful that you don't add too much and muddy your mix.

Some Other Things to Think About...
The arrangement is another place where you can show off your production skills in your remix contest entry. The best thing you can do with your arrangement is experiment and try to keep your track interesting throughout. To do this make sure you bring in a new sound, new effects, drum fills or something else which is ear-catching at least every 16 bars to keep the listener entertained. Different variations of each of the parts a good idea.

Create new breakdowns different to the original and use new sections which sound like they could fit in with the original but were completely made by you. Sometimes trying to recreate an instrument part on a synth can give your remix a whole new feeling.

Get opinions before you finalize your entry into the contest from friends family or other producers. If the rules of the remix contest allow it, post a link on a music forum to where people can hear your remix and ask for some constructive criticism. You could even post the link on Remix Comps

After mixing down it is best to give it a day or so and then come back to listen to your remix, you might find that after a break you notice things which just aren't right about the mix. Maybe a sound is too loud or a part just isn't perfectly in tune or time. Things can sound fine when you first did them but after giving your ears a break they don't sound fine at all, you may even find a part slightly out of tune or time.

If the remix just isn't working out, remove the problem sections and come back to it later. It may be that later on when other sections are added you can make it fit better. Don't be afraid to scrap a section when it isn't working out.

Experiment, experiment, experiment. Remember that producing a good remix capable of winning a popular remix contest will take time.

Listen to entries as they roll in to get an idea of what the other entrants are up to. You may find that what you have done sounds exactly like what every one else has done and your remix doesn't stand out well enough amongst the crowd. It is also interesting to hear the way other producers thought about where to take the track.

Think about when you should submit your remix. If you submit it too early, it may be that the people judging the contest have kept on listening to your remix and by the time they judge are a little bored of it. If remixes are on show, you may also find other remixers copying your ideas on how to recreate a certain part.

Make sure that you stay legal, any additional sounds that you add cannot be from copyrighted sources especially if the remix has a chance of release, there are plenty of royalty free samples about if you want to add extra samples as well as paid for samples from sites such as Loopmasters.

And most of all have fun as you create your remixes.

• We know our guide is very basic, if you want a more detailed guide we suggest you check out the book 'The Remix Manual' by Simon Langford. You can read our review of this book here.