Sampling has always been polarising. Some call it stealing; others call it one of the most creative acts in music. What is undeniable is that it brought old music to new ears and created a new form of music - hip-hop. When DJs like Grandmaster Flash looped the instrumental break of a record, they created a new kind of energy on the dance floor.
Today sampling is everywhere, far beyond hip-hop: turn on the radio and you will hear samples - some obvious, some obscure, some a whole loop, some a hundred tiny fragments. Fan-made breakdowns of classic albums such as Dr. Dre's The Chronic and A Tribe Called Quest's Midnight Marauders show just how many sources a great sample-based record can draw on.
The sampler as an instrument
J Dilla's work on the Akai MPC3000 is the clearest demonstration that a sampler is not a shortcut - it is an instrument. Chopping, re-pitching, re-sequencing and playing samples by hand, with deliberately loose timing, he created a feel that producers still chase. Find footage of him working and watch his hands.
Crate digging
Crate digging means searching for records to sample - in record shops, charity shops, flea markets, online archives, parents' collections. Diggers prize obscure records: an unknown soul, jazz or library record no one else has used.
- Listen beyond the obvious section. The best sample might be two seconds of a horn stab, a vocal breath or the room tone at the start.
- Dig across genres. Jazz, soul, funk, rock, folk, film soundtracks, world music, classical.
- Note everything - artist, title, label, year - for clearance later.
The YouTube series Rhythm Roulette, in which producers make a beat from records picked blind, is a great source of inspiration.
Recording vinyl
- Set levels carefully. Avoid clipping, but keep the signal well above the noise floor - peaks in the region of -6 to -3 dBFS.
- Record in stereo, not mono.
- Record the whole track, not just the part you think you want. You may find something better later.
- Label everything with the original tempo and key.
- Keep a raw, untouched copy before you start editing.
Preparing samples in the DAW
- Warp it. Use your DAW's warping (Ableton Live) or Flex Time (Logic) to sync the recording to your project tempo. This saves time when you add drums and other parts.
- Find the moments. Listen through and mark every section that might work - longer looped sections and short fragments.
- Transpose. Try the sample up and down a few semitones. Pitch changes the feel and helps it fit your key.
- Try different time-stretching algorithms. Each colours the sound differently, and artefacts can become part of the character.
Royalty-free alternatives
Sample libraries and subscription services such as Splice offer loops and sounds licensed for commercial use. They solve the clearance problem - though popular loops can turn up in many other people's tracks.
A useful exercise: write a song idea around a royalty-free loop, then delete the loop. Keep everything you built around it, and write a new part inspired by its key, tempo, rhythm and timbre.
Do this now
- Pull a record from a crate - or an online archive - and find something worth sampling.
- Record it at a healthy level, in stereo, and label it with tempo and key.
- Warp it to your project tempo and mark at least five possible sample points.
- Do the delete-the-loop exercise with a royalty-free loop.