What is 'ear candy'?

Ear candy has been defined as 'music that sounds good but lacks depth.' However, to music producers and listeners, ear candy is a magic ingredient that makes a track memorable and engaging.

Ear candy is a small musical touch that enhances the listener’s experience. A famous example is the four claps after the first line in The Rembrandts’ ‘I'll Be There for You’, the theme song of ‘Friends’.

This clapping, like all ear candy, is small and tucked neatly behind the main parts of the mix but it makes a big impact. It often marks the start of a chorus or highlights the song’s most important lyrics.

Nature has hardwired our love of ear candy. Our brains reward us with dopamine every time we see, hear, taste, touch or smell something new or novel. So, ear candy grabs attention and keeps listeners interested.

Let’s explore the benefits of ear candy, how to use it effectively in your tracks, and why it’s so powerful.

What are the benefits of ear candy?

For artists and producers, six stand-out benefits of ear candy include:

• Boosts memorability: Catchy melodies and rhythm changes make your music more engaging, meaning that people are more likely to remember your track and listen to it over and over again.

• Enriches the listener experience: Changes in volume and mood add extra depth, complexity, and richness to your music.

• Sets your music apart: Ear candy makes your songs and portfolio more distinctive and memorable because musical flourishes grab listeners’ attention and form part of your style.

• Deepens your connection to listeners: Tracks that resonate personally with listeners are more meaningful and help listeners form a personal bond with your music.

• Amplifies your storytelling: You can use varying volumes and moods to draw attention to your song’s narrative, helping listeners remember the messages you weave into your music.

• Ignites and enables your creativity: Experimenting with different sounds and volumes unlocks your creativity, allowing you to explore new ideas and develop your artistic vision.

How to add ear candy to your music

Now you know what benefits ear candy will add to your music, here are eight simple steps to get you started:

1. Formant and pitch

A formant pitch allows you to add a cool effect to your track by changing the signal's tone without changing the pitch. For example, you can do this by making a vocal sound deeper or more nasal while the note being sung remains the same.

This technique is often used on backing vocals to create a fuller sound for short spontaneous vocal melodies. Changing the format can highlight different words or phrases in your vocals.

2. Vocal throws

Vocal throws are effects in which the vocal line is echoed, with added reverb and processing to create a distinctive sound.

They make pauses between vocals more interesting by filling the space with an extra layer.

Vocal throws also often reinforce specific words or transitions between different song sections smoothly.

3. Contrast

Creating contrast between a track's moods, like aggressive and chill elements, helps calm it down.

The same applies if a track is too relaxed. You need to add elements to make the mood more energetic.

Contrast can be created by removing elements from certain sections or muting the piano to make a bigger impact between transitions.

4. Reverse

To create smooth transitions, experiment with reversed elements. A reversed element is a sound or effect played backwards like a cymbal, synth, or vocal.

Focus on individual sections of the song like verses, choruses or bridges. Then think about how to transition one section into the next.

As well as risers, fades and reverbs, you can use reverses to soften the shift and enhance the flow of your piece.

Playing around with the reverse elements in different parts of the track will help you see what works and what doesn't.

5. Noise

Adding subtle noises can add ear candy to your music tracks. Sounds like a vinyl crackle or rain add warmth, depth, and texture without overwhelming the main parts of your track or impairing the listening experience.

This kind of effect works best on quiet and chill songs where your music blends in without getting lost or making it overpowering. 

6. Use silence

Using intentional silence in your tracks can powerfully highlight key lyrics or instruments. Think of the long, pregnant pauses in Steve Harley’s ‘Come Up and See Me’ as a stand-out example.

Silence gives the listener a moment to reflect, making the next sound they hear more impactful.

Experiment with silences to find out how you can use them in a track to bring out specific sections of your song. 

7. Percussion

Using percussion adds rhythm to a section and sounds more upbeat, making a huge difference to the track. 

Think Frankie Goes To Hollywood’s ‘Two Tribes’ whose driving and layered percussion gives it an urgent, intense and rhythmic force.

When adding percussion, pan from the left, right, and middle often to get the right mix level. 

The percussion should be quieter and placed towards the back as it’s just there to add a groove.

8. Delay and reverb

Using delay sounds will make it feel like the music bounces from ear to ear, which works great with pluck-type sounds. 

Reverb works well with transitions. Reverb simulates the natural reflections of sound in a physical space like a hall.

Adding both delay and reverb creates a rich sound that enhances the depth and layering of your tracks.

Consider The Smiths’ ‘How Soon Is Now?’ whose iconic guitar riff strongly evokes feelings of longing, despair, and introspection. This track is fondly remembered 40 years on and it was actually the B-side to ‘William, It Was Really Nothing’.

Adding ear candy to your next track

Adding ear candy is a powerful way to improve your tracks, engage your listeners, and showcase your creativity.

Experimenting with musical embellishments or flourishes like percussion and vocal throws allows you to develop dynamic and memorable music that makes you stand out. 

Production experts and audio engineers treasure ear candy. It makes the songs they work on fun and exciting. It can turn a good song into a great one by getting people hooked on a song so they listen to it again and again. Viral hits are hits for a reason and the royalties are very welcome.

Music supervisors and playlist curators value tracks with audio candy because they stand out and people want to hear them. They’re great for keeping audiences engaged and key to creating memorable shared moments among, for example, clubbers.

Certain types of ear candy work well with specific genres of music. For example, reverse cymbals, risers, synth stabs and arpeggios feature in the best-loved pop music and house music tracks. On dance/eletronica music tracks, lower-end ear candy like sub drops and bass hits give music extra power and weight.

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