Sharpshooter Soundworks — “Breakin’ All The Rules (Massive)”
With “Breakin’ All The Rules (Massive)”, Sharpshooter Soundworks is entering a new phase, the single being designed around the simple joy of making music without overthinking it. The track was produced in about an hour during a weekend session by Chicago-based producer Andrew Shabazz, and this spontaneity is one of the features that define the song. Instead of having a overly deliberate sound, it comes off as energetic and instinctive, the foundation of the production being a 70s-style sample. Shabazz produces that retro character from scratch using VSTs and then sends the sample through saturation and degradation effects, thus giving the track a warmth similar to that of older recordings.
What is so interesting about “Breakin’ All The Rules (Massive)” is the way its sound was created. Since Shabazz has been writing and producing in a variety of genres over a period of more than ten years, he has seen this single as a chance to experiment with a style which he had not previously tried. Using only his home studio with FL Studio and a MIDI keyboard, he carries out the songwriting, composition and production himself, so that the track emerges directly from his own ideas. There’s a pleasant aspect to this method—the song wasn’t based on a sophisticated concept or a complex story, but simply on the wish to make something fun as he learned a new production style.
In the end, “Breakin’ All The Rules (Massive)” reflects Sharpshooter Soundworks being in a phase of discovery. The sample with a vintage feel is what gives the single its character, while the lively energy beneath it keeps the track progressing instead of becoming just a straightforward attempt to evoke nostalgia. The song demonstrates that experimentation can arise simply by sitting down, trying out something new and then going with the idea as it develops. Since there is more music already in the pipeline, Shabazz seems to be viewing this release not as the end of a journey but as just one step in the continuous process of exploring what he can create.
“The fact is that Sharpshooter Soundworks has shown that the best tracks can be obtained by just pressing play, having faith in one’s instinct and violating a few rules in the process.”
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