Completely recorded and mixed in my bedroom.

CMolena

CMolena

Active member
Hey everyone.

So I wrote this song in my bedroom. I played every instrument on this track as well.

The one thing I experimented with this mix is mixing in one kind of old speaker lying in my bedroom, so 50% of the time I mixed in mono. Believe it or not when I switched to headphones the mix needed little to none tweaks. I was amazed at how I liked the results mixing that way.

But I'm a crazy person so I want to hear what you've got to say about the mix.

The only tricks I did is a little compression on the drums (it was sounding too harsh and I guess comping it made it more smooth...IDK) and just a tiny bit of reverb on the snare. Thats it...I just tried to make it more...ambient sounding.

Now the rest is exactly what I recorded with little EQ.

Thanks everyone.

https://soundcloud.com/caio-molena/2009a
 
I like it. Wish I spoke Portuguese so I could understand what you're singing. The mix sounds good. The guitars, bass, lead, and backing vocals all sound great. The drums--sound a little MIDI. Not bad though. Issues: I thought I heard something dragging behind the beat in the third and fourth measure of the first chorus and maybe the third chorus too. The guitar solo started out well, but some of your bends are flat. I think I mentioned the same in your last song. Hitting the pitch when you bend up might be something to work on in your playing. Maybe I'm hypersensitive to flat bends because it was a habit I worked to break in my own playing. Good job!
 
Hey man. Portuguese is kind of a tricky language. But I can send you the lyrics if you want...haha.

What do you mean by MIDI sounding drums?

And yeah, I guess the bends are something to work for...I'm catching too much slack in guitar solos.
 
Why don't you post the lyrics, Portuguese and all. I read French and Spanish, so I could probably make them out apart from colloquialisms.

By MIDI sounding, I mean they sound programmed, somehow lacking in dynamics or impact. Now you're going to tell me they're real drums...

The flat bends are just a habit. It's a pretty easy habit to break when you become aware of it. It's just a matter of deciding what pitch you're bending up to--whether a half step, a whole step, a step-and-a-half--and then bending the string enough to get all the way up there. Flat bends have a place. You'll often hear a quick flat bend in blues licks. But it should be an artistic choice, not the default.
 
Robus said:
Why don't you post the lyrics, Portuguese and all. I read French and Spanish, so I could probably make them out apart from colloquialisms.

By MIDI sounding, I mean they sound programmed, somehow lacking in dynamics or impact. Now you're going to tell me they're real drums...

The flat bends are just a habit. It's a pretty easy habit to break when you become aware of it. It's just a matter of deciding what pitch you're bending up to--whether a half step, a whole step, a step-and-a-half--and then bending the string enough to get all the way up there. Flat bends have a place. You'll often hear a quick flat bend in blues licks. But it should be an artistic choice, not the default.
Click to expand...

I think I'll post the lyrics in the soundcloud comments!

They are real drums, because I've played them, lol. I'm not sure if it is a good thing though...because I guess I payed too much attention on playing it right and in tempo, that I've messed that up....
 
Mix sounds good to me. The guitars in the chorus sound kind of hollowed out though. I'd play with the EQ a bit.

Cool song!
 
Yes everything was sounding good to me until the chorus. The guitars didn't have any bite or life to them.

Also, there's a good bit of pitchiness in the vocals during the chorus, especially. I think you probably have some better takes in you regarding that.

Cool tune, and thanks for sharing.
 
I didn't read what everyone else said, but what I hear the distortion guitars sound wrong. They come in with a way different tone I think. I have the same problem. Sometimes less is more. The vocals need more energy in them. Try singing em like if your life depended on it. Try the "Big Dump" technique. It's where you push in your stomach like you were taking a big ol' dump while you sing lol.
 
I think the recording sounds really good. There is a little too much presence and volume on the lead guitar...and its too dry for the context of the song. Vice versa on the rythym guitar. Use your rythym guitar setting for the lead and you lead guitar setting for your rythym...Then adjust the volume levels accordingly. I think it would sound pretty good. The vocal is a little pitch in places but it's not that bad. Overall it's a very impressive recording to be done in a bedroom IMO.
good work
 
Listening right now on crappy system so take it for what its worth. I like the vibe you have going on. I like the effects on the background vox, gives it tasteful flavor. I have to agree on teh distorted chorus guitars. Just doesn't fit. They are too thin sounding. EQ some low-mids back into them or re-record them with different mic'ing technique. It has good potential...just a few little things to work out.
 
I had a similar problem with overdriving guitar, I thought going for a real sound was best so I put my pedal on and set a mic in front of a practice amp like I read you should do. It sounded really limp. I since moved to DI with amp sims, night and day difference. One of the few times digital trumps the real thing for me.
 
I like the distorted chorus, Cmolena. I wish the guitars were a little louder during that point -- they sound very far away and this takes away some power. I also think a 5bps tempo increase along with a lead guitar line (not the solo, but a higher guitar line) could do some wonders.
 
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