Getting back into music production after 30 years, but somehow I've completely lost my motivation
A while ago, I decided to get back into music production.
I've been diving into studio gear, effects, hardware, and all the new technology that's come along over the years. I've even started experimenting with vibe coding, building my own editors for old hardware synths and effects units.
And for a while, I was genuinely having a great time. I was almost ecstatic about what's possible these days, how far technology has come, and how much you can now do yourself.
I also started buying some hardware again.
My history with music production goes back to around 1995 or 1996. Back then, I was messing around with synthesizers, samplers, and other studio equipment. The problem was that everything was incredibly expensive. You needed a sampler, a mixer, effects, cables, and a hundred other things. It never seemed to end.
That was also around the time when producing and mixing entirely in the box started becoming a realistic option. Eventually, I put most of the hardware aside and moved to producing on a computer.
But I never really managed to get the sound I wanted. My productions never sounded quite right to me. Eventually, I stopped making music altogether, partly because of work and other things going on in my personal life.
And now, roughly 30 years later, I've started exploring it all again.
I've been reading audio forums, checking out plugins, looking at what's being released these days, and trying to catch up on everything I've missed over the years.
And I absolutely loved doing that. It almost felt like rediscovering why I got interested in electronic music production in the first place.
But now I've hit a wall.
I've got quite a bit of equipment again, and I'm still slowly building up my studio. I'm trying to learn Ableton Live, and I also have Reaper, which I eventually want to use as part of my workflow.
The problem is that I've completely run out of inspiration.
Actually, it's worse than that. I barely feel like making music at all. I have to force myself to sit down and do something, which feels like such a shame considering how excited I was about everything just a little while ago.
And I honestly don't know why.
I set myself a goal for October: to finish at least one "record". By that I mean two complete techno tracks, an A-side and a B-side. Just two tracks that I'm genuinely happy with.
They don't even have to be released anywhere. I just want to finish something again.
At the same time, I wanted to use this month to properly learn Ableton. I'm particularly struggling with arranging tracks. Cutting, copying, moving sections around, building tension, and turning a few loops into an actual arrangement. None of it feels natural to me yet.
And then there's the sound itself.
I've always wanted to achieve that professional sound I've had in my head for years. The right balance, depth, character, and overall quality. Something that actually sounds like a proper record.
In theory, with today's technology, that should all be possible. I've got the hardware, the software, and more tools available than I could ever have imagined back in the 90s.
But somehow, nothing is coming out of it.
Maybe I'm enjoying the technology, the equipment, and all the possibilities more than actually making music. I really don't know.
Anyway, this turned into quite a rant, but I felt like getting it off my chest.
I originally recorded this in my native language and asked ChatGPT to transcribe and translate it into English so I could share it here.
I'm wondering if anyone else has experienced something similar, especially people who returned to music production after a long break, or anyone who's found themselves stuck between collecting gear, exploring plugins, learning new tools, and actually making music.
How did you get past it? Did anything help you rediscover the motivation to actually sit down, make music, and finish tracks?
I'd genuinely appreciate hearing your experiences or advice.