How Four Tet Created 'Looking At Your Pager' in 15 Minutes: Ableton Session Breakdown

Kieran Hebden, better known as Four Tet, breaks down the production of his KH track "Looking at Your Pager".

Thanks to Tape It for supporting this episode.

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[TapeNotesPodcast]

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[rachidow]

4:37 legit a funny joke and u see his dissapointment when Four Tet is not reacting lmao

Oh, I see I was not the only one that noticed it xD

[alimay]

this 10-min video will be hugely inspiring and encouraging for many

[PeterPepper]

Proof that sound selection is everything, thanks Kieran, fucking legend

[aidanruddmusic]

I love how its clearly more about making the music and being in the groove rather then focusing on sound designing and creating every little sound! I feel like because our DAWs are so complex and technical that we sometimes forget we are making music and instead get bogged down tweaking every little thing just because we "think" that's how the pros do it. Very refreshing to see this legend break down such an iconic tune!

[BatmanHQYT]

4:37 is the best thing I've seen on the internet this week.

[TeddyBaas]

I’m about to go to bed and this video came up on my feed which feels like the universe is trying to tell me that I’m overthinking too much and to keep things simple.

[brandos]

No panning. 14 tracks. Kind of insane given we live in an age of endless possibilities

[notoriousmole]

I've watched the Disclosure sessions and it scared the life out of me tbh. Chains of like 10 different plugins, 50 layers of instruments and I was convinced this is what it takes to create a professional track. Watching this is amazing to me, a simple idea, build upon it but only do the minimum that the track needs. If it sounds good, then it is good! Endless tinkering is not the solution if you dont feel excited by that initial loop.

[djtomoy]

Anyone who finds this inspiring should watch his interview with future music from 2010, when I saw that back then it blew my mind.

[outbacknoir]

Proof that the best ideas always come out the fastest.

[TheValueOfN]

This podcast was enlightening. It seems that it's possible to create a banger with minimal effort. Grabbing a preset from here, another one from there... no panning, no processing... drop in a drum loop with random pot twists and a vocal sample that someone else created... there IS hope for me yet.

He's obviously very talented and has an ear for what works and what doesn't but this podcast definitely fortifies the confidence of a lot of us hobbyists who haven't yet learned the intricacies of multiband compression, sidechaining and all of the other fancy technological terminology.

[ijazzmunki]

This is so refreshing - Omnisphere is soooo deep that even if you use presets they always come out a little different and there are so many good ones they never repeat - it's all about tasteful use and not overdoing it - but also this is how the best music is made, quickly, instinctively - if it feels/sounds good it usually is...

[aaronmarxsen]

I absolutely needed some sense of direction with Ableton and the infinite amount of of options. This is just what I had been looking for thanks.

[burn_after_reading]

He’s so damn amazing! Doing nothing unnecessary if a sound works! So much experience and flava!

[earlsfield]

4:39 when a joke falls flat lol great interview.

[EAD_]

This man is an absolute legend. Track is absolute fire as well.

[Jaded-Wanderer]

Kieran Hebden aka Four Tet, best DJ and dance music creator?
I think he's a top contender and a very cool person to boot.
KH, thanks for all the super groovy music you bring to the world.

[anism.]

Love this track so much!! Some of the best Kieran's track are made spontaneously - just like the everything ecstatic project. Massive support!

[timpo]

using a short phrase from a vocal chop and looping it in the background for rhythmic purposes is genius