Avoid The Silence (metal)

M

MetalsTheLaw

New member
Hello everyone.
After about a three year musical hiatus, I've decided it was time for me to get back into it. This is my first attempt with my new gear and software. Let me know what you all think. Thanks in advance!

Updated link:

https://soundcloud.com/the-jericho-saga/avoid-the-silence
 
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I'm not a metal expert buy any means but here's what I hear. There's not many issues at all but I think the vocals could come up a bit in the mix. They're a little too buried for me. I like the low end but I also think the bass could come up in level a bit. What did you use to for the drums..........especially the cymbals? They sort of sound strange.

Having said that...........I think you've got a pretty good mix going there so far.
 
Thanks Mickster,
The drums (downloaded loops) are my biggest issue at the moment. My 12 year old son just started drum lessons, so hopefully in a few years I can use his talent.. ;) But seriously, if and when funds become available, I will hopefully be able to do something about proper drum samples.
 
I thought the guitars sounded very good. Maybe a bit too loud.

The bass is a little too low end heavy, and maybe a bit too loud as well.

The vocals, alternatively, and a bit soft. And they have way too much reverb on them.

The kick sound was ok to me. The snare had too much click and not enough power. The cymbals sounded like they were going through a gate. Not much decay on them.

The song had great energy. The performances were tight too.

The distortion on the bass was a neat idea.
 
Andrushkiwt: Thanks. I have done some comparison shopping and Superior Drummer is on the top of my list.

TripleM: Thank you very much for the extra set of ears. I kept thinking the vocals were too loud but even friends are with you on that point. When I eventually re-do the drums, I will adjust the bass and vox levels, as I also notice the bass a bit "boomy".
 
Man. I am not digging those drums. That kick is all click; it's especially prevalent at the beginning.

The vocals are very distinctly double-tracked. Are you going for a "group of singers" sound or a "one huge voice" sound? If the latter, you probably want to pan them closer together and double-check your performances for consistency.

Guitar tone is pretty good.

I like the low-decay cymbals. I might turn them down a touch tho.
 
Metal drums are hard to get a grip on. The "click" is more old school metal and the newer stuff seems to have more bottom frequency. The problem is with the low end of the bass and guitars chugging along its hard to get the kick to stand out without getting buried. I would experiment with a fuller kick and see if you can get it out there but still carry the beat of the song...you could possibly try side-chaining and see if that helps. With that said, I agree that the bass is lacking and the vocals should come up at least 4db if not more. Its a cool song though....you get the mix right and it would be a great song.

P.S. since Taras suggested Superior Drummer....I would like to put my vote in for Addictive drums....very versatile with lots of options.
 
Ok, I completely redone the intro, all new drums, reworked the guitars and bass, adjusted some levels and added a few things.

Thanks everyone for their input, it is helping immensely
 
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To Vomithatsteve about the vox. Not exactly sure what I was going for but I kind of like the result. I may play around with them again eventually using your advice.
 
I really kind of like this, and I think the production is overall appropriate to the genre and not far off from industry standards.

For my tastes, I'd like all of the vocals down just a little bit, and I'd like for you to clip off the attack on the snare and toms a bit so that you can turn up what you've got happening in the sustain just a touch. It's like what your compressor is doing is cool, but the transients that get through are too much louder. You might get some help by messing with the comps, but that will probably just mess up what else is happening. Hack em off. Use a "transparent" limiter if you want, but a little distortion never hurt anybody either. OR a slew rate limiter! Anyway, that's me digging for some kind of constructive criticism for you. It's super subtle, but it's one of those things that freaks me out about productions like this. Which is to say "meets industry standards".
 
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