Tips for Noise
 

Recently I've been kind of interested in creating (harsh?) noise music, but, at the risk of sounding stupid, I'm not too clear on how I would even go about doing so. I know there are many possible approaches, but does anyone have any suggestions? Not knowing what to do, it's difficult to just jump in and make that sort of sound.

Put distortion on everything.
Just be selective about it. Like, don't put the same distortion on everything, otherwise nothing will be intelligible at all. Say you put a certain amount and type of distortion on your guitar. The drums should get some too, but at different settings and a different type. Vocals, too. Practically everything you distort should have its own character so that it doesn't become just another part of the overall distortion level.
EQing comes into play as well... remember to EQ things differently so they have some kind of definition, because it won't be long before all your different distortions are sounding the same because of frequency insulting. I.E. don't boost your highs and lows on EVERYTHING. Make little EQ zones for each instrument. This is a standard mixing practice for any scenario, but it's even more important when you have the same type of effect on everything, otherwise you'll just have a bunch of distortion and nothing else.
Also remember to not put as much distortion on particular elements as sounds good when it's solo'd. All that distortion is going to add up. Put less than you would think.

And finally, at the end of it all, when you're done mixing everything with all the distortion, put some heavy compression on the overall mix to get it up in your face.

Some extra tips... don't be afraid to distort reverbs. A fun and creative way to make a distorted ambience is to let an instrument have a dry channel and a distorted reverb channel. This means you have one instance of the instrument with no distortion or reverb, and another instance of it with reverb first in the chain, and distortion after, but set so that no dry channel comes through. Meaning, completely wet, no dry. This then becomes your effect and you can set it so that it blends in well with your original signal. Same goes for any other effects.
But the key remains... distortion.
You just have to use it creatively and apply some basic fundamental forethought.

Thank you, that is very helpful. I still need to get some decent recording equipment (when I can afford it) before I can put this all to use, but it's great to have some tips now to have an idea of what I'm doing when that day comes.

Pick up a pill-bottle slide and make friends with the gain knob on your amplifier. most of all don't be afraid to experiment.

As Freebase was saying, using an analog EQ (ie. Boss or EHX) will let you change the sound of anything with an output to your liking.

use unconventional instruments in odd ways. my cousin uses singing bowls, didgeridoo, and anything else. good example is luigi russolo (spelled wrong?), he invented this orchestra of weird ass instruments in the early 1900's, i think there is like 27 different ones, maybe. Oh, when you record, you can also just blow the recording volume way out, that will add distortion.

freebase dali is correct for the most part, but another effect could be something called bitcrusher

Yup. Decimators do great for lo-fi effects. Adding a hi-pass filter to take out all the low end helps it along too.

in the same vein as this, where you're looking for harsh tones you might be pleasantly surprised by what running everything through a wah pedal does also (especially coupled with fuzz). just don't funk it up, use it like a tone filter. cheap flangers coupled with harsh gain also work really well for creating unique noise tones.

also, again this only applies for making 'noise', hit your local pawn shops and start collecting cheap guitar effects. anything that can be run through a 1/4 inch cable can be run through a guitar stomp box. it may not sound pristine (and not something normally recommended to most) but for noisier stuff it's a cheap method of collecting lots of tone manipulators.

Danelectro pedals are great for that. They are no more than 15 bucks new and sometimes produce a fantastic sound with a little tweaking. Only downside is there isnt a huge variation in tones you can get. I have used my FAB over drive pedal for slight blues rhythms and whatnot over many other pedals. That thing cost me 5 dollars used.

http://www.premierguitar.com/Stream/...mage_Type=full

i was about to say those HAVE to be the minis in plastic cases hehe. you're right they're not bad and a decent bang for the buck. i quite like the dan-echo but it's about 10x the price of a mini, then again it's also a big chunk of metal.

For being plastic/metal there still surprisingly well built. I have used mine in a love setting a few times now and it holds up just fine. Although I know what you mean about having plastic pedals :( It feels super cheap next to my Big Muff Pie which is built like a Russian Tank.

hahaha i usually have my puny little 'Fish & Chips' EQ tucked into the gap between my own green commie bastard and the wahs. :thumb:

How does that work? I have heard mixed opinions.

it's what it is, a cheap ass EQ. i just use it for making noise noisier.

The trick with noise is you gotta view it not as a series of patterns or melodies or whatever, but rather like a canvas. A space, and once you get into that space, its about putting the right textures and colors in the right places. It's about feeling, or lack thereof.

Unless it's your goal from the get go to make music that's bland and artificial.