Artists like Nohr and Oskar Med K are shaping melodic house with an emotive, mellow sound. This breakdown builds a track in that style, from the minimal drums to the layered bass, the Moog-style LFO synth, and the extra textures that complete it.
The Drums
Minimal on purpose, to leave space for the synth lines. It is about the right sounds and placement, not busy programming.
Key settings:
- A round kick, transient boosted, with a bit of saturation for crunch
- A crunchy percussion instead of a typical clap, EQ'd to roll off the low mids
- A closed off-beat hat plus a shaker slightly off the grid for a swung feel
- Low toms, used sparingly on the off-beats
The Bass
The key detail is the separation between sub and mid: the sub plays short notes with pauses, the mid bass stays sustained and pumps through the sidechain with the kick. A key between F and A works well.
Key settings:
- Sub: a saw filtered with a Low 18, phase randomness at 0, a slightly lowered sustain with very short attack and release
- Add a sine on the sub oscillator, phase at 0 so it is perfectly in phase with the saw for a fuller low end
- A third oscillator, a saw with 5-voice unison, then remove the fundamental in the wavetable editor to leave room for the sub
- A more sustained saw layer filling the midrange, low end rolled off so it does not clash with the sub
The Moog Synth
The heart of the track: a Moog-style modulated saw. The magic is as much in the harmony as the sound, an open voicing and a Lydian move that give it that dreamy, hopeful vibe.
Key settings:
- A standard saw, closed filter, plucky envelope; LFO 1 in free mode at a fast rate to Oscillator A's fine tuning, and a second LFO in Hz mode on the filter cutoff (rate mapped to a macro for performance)
- Chords in open voicing (root, root, fifth, third an octave up); the progression A#maj to G#maj to E#min, descending and landing on the relative minor
- Lydian mode, so the second chord turns major for that hopeful colour
- FX: reverb, EQ and tube distortion, with a macro tying tube mix and an EQ boost together for brightness, and the mod wheel on filter cutoff for expression
Additional Layers
The finishing textures. Same chords, different sounds, to fill out the picture without stealing focus.
Key settings:
- A deep pad and a crunchy pad
- Mellow stabs for groove and a pluck for ear candy
- An extra sustained layer and a one-note atmosphere running through the whole track
Grab the full project
Want the full project? Afterglow has 9 Ableton project files, 350+ samples, and 80+ Serum presets with matching MIDI, everything behind this emotive melodic house sound.
Watch the full breakdown
See the full walkthrough in the video:
Reference artists
Artists that define this style are:
- Nohr
- Oskar Med K