New song for review

Enigma

New member
Ok guys... it's been a while. Finally got a new song ready for everyone to check out.

Please, I need your honest feedback (good or bad)!

The song is called "I'll Be There", and is located at:



Also there is an updated version of "Had To Go", which I posted on here a few months back. Grab and re-rate it too! :)



Thanks!

Chris
 
Enigma,

I like the tune... Good tune. Good vocals.

Let me get into the mix...
It almost sounds like you've got the guit tracks on center channels (no panning)... although I'm not quite sure if that's the case on the distorted guit. If so, you might want to try and record the guit tracks twice (no duping), actually play the clean guit part twice on two different tracks, and then do the same for the distorted guits..... Then pan those suckers left and right hard, or semi-hard. You might be able to leave the clean guitar on a center channel if you like, but I think the distorted guits need to be panned to make room for your vox down the center channel.

Additionally, I know it's hard to mic drums (and I have no room to talk since I use a machine), but the drums are a bit thin. It might also be that the cymbals are just overpowering the skins... I dunno. How do you feel about the drum track? They're played well, just thin sounding to me.

Some folks might say to add some reverb to the vox... I'd probably just add some gentle compression to the vox track. I dunno... and maybe a very very slight touch of verb to taste... I personally have the worst luck adding verb to my vox... It never sounds right with my voice... So I've been leaving mine clean and up front lately. Personal preference... just that.

Also, let that end fade out a little longer and smoother... that sucker just flew away like a scared bird.

This song is really good, I hope to hear any remixes you do of it... keep me posted.

Good job Enigma.
 
Thanks!

The clean guitar IS only on one track, but the distorted guitars are on 3 (not copied) tracks. One hard left, one hard right and the other down the center. I'll play with it and see what it sounds like after removing the center guitar.

Well, considering the room that the drums were recorded in, the brand of the drums, and the equipment used to record them, I think they turned out pretty darn good. :) They are a $200 set (plus about $150 in extra cymbals and stands), recorded with 1 SM57 and about 4 CAD MP10s (hey, they were on sale :) ) in a 14'x14' room with 7' ceilings. Not exactly ideal for drums, but it's all I have at the moment.

What drum machine do you use? I think they sound pretty darn good for being a machine!

I know what you mean about adding reverb to the vocals... I'm working on another song right now that has pretty heavy reverb on the vocals, but I think it sounds good on it. Every other song I've tried adding it to sounds horrible to me. BUT, I'll keep playing until I get it right. :)

Yeah, I need to work on that ending a little... :)

Again, thanks for listening and taking the time to critique... Your input is much appreciated! And I will keep you (and everyone else) posted on any updates!

Btw, if you don't already, you should do this stuff for a living. You're quite good at it!

Chris
 
Enigma said:
Thanks!

The clean guitar IS only on one track, but the distorted guitars are on 3 (not copied) tracks. One hard left, one hard right and the other down the center. I'll play with it and see what it sounds like after removing the center guitar.


Yeah, you should try and see how it sounds without the guit down the center. I mean, I think of putting the music together like a puzzle (somewhat). If I've got my two guits on the sides, then I've got a nice spot in the center for bass and vocals, maybe even have one or the other (bass or vox just a little to the side... just a little bit). Take into account the sharing of freqs too... try to leave low freq room for your bass by shaping the sound of your guits to not use the freqs your bass will be filling in... I make this mistake a lot on my initial mixes and the overall sound is too boomy until I roll off the low end of the guits.

Enigma said:

Well, considering the room that the drums were recorded in, the brand of the drums, and the equipment used to record them, I think they turned out pretty darn good. :) They are a $200 set (plus about $150 in extra cymbals and stands), recorded with 1 SM57 and about 4 CAD MP10s (hey, they were on sale :) ) in a 14'x14' room with 7' ceilings. Not exactly ideal for drums, but it's all I have at the moment.


Hey, yeah, I know... They sounded alot better than anything I've been able to do with my real drum set, for sure. When I lived in a better environment for banging on my real drums (regular house, not a townhouse), I had a very hard time micing... in fact, I never got it right... and then my ex-wife destroyed my drums... so - no more drums :) Anyway, definitely sounded good for what you're probably working with, just thought I'd point out what I was hearing.

Enigma said:

What drum machine do you use? I think they sound pretty darn good for being a machine!


Thanks. I use a Roland R-70 unit. I bought it a LONG time ago, like 10 years ago(?) for like $700 bucks... I wonder how much something comparable would be now-a-days... This old unit has been pretty reliable so far. I owned the R-8 before this one, but my ex-wife did something with that too... I think I liked the R-8's better, but the pads on my R-70 are nicer to touch.

Enigma said:

I know what you mean about adding reverb to the vocals... I'm working on another song right now that has pretty heavy reverb on the vocals, but I think it sounds good on it. Every other song I've tried adding it to sounds horrible to me. BUT, I'll keep playing until I get it right. :)



I dig it... Yah, it's a personal preference for me, specifically to my vox... My vox tend to sound tacked onto the music if I've got verb on it... It makes me cringe.

Enigma said:

Yeah, I need to work on that ending a little... :)


Just let it fade out smooter :)

Enigma said:

Again, thanks for listening and taking the time to critique... Your input is much appreciated! And I will keep you (and everyone else) posted on any updates!

My pleasure.

Enigma said:

Btw, if you don't already, you should do this stuff for a living. You're quite good at it!


You're too kind, bro. Thanks.
 
Teddie said:


Hey, yeah, I know... They sounded alot better than anything I've been able to do with my real drum set, for sure. When I lived in a better environment for banging on my real drums (regular house, not a townhouse), I had a very hard time micing... in fact, I never got it right... and then my ex-wife destroyed my drums... so - no more drums :) Anyway, definitely sounded good for what you're probably working with, just thought I'd point out what I was hearing.

One thing we've thought about doing is recording the drum tracks in a pro studio, and everything else here. Only problem is the pro studios charge a little more than I'd like to pay. :) I absolutely HATE trying to get the drums to sound right in this little room I have. Maybe I can talk my cousin into buying a drum machine. Wanna sell your R-70? :D


Teddie said:


I dig it... Yah, it's a personal preference for me, specifically to my vox... My vox tend to sound tacked onto the music if I've got verb on it... It makes me cringe.

I think your vocals sound pretty good without reverb. Fits your style well (the many styles you have, actually :) )
I'm putting the latest song up for you to check out if you want. This one has lots of reverb on the vocals. It's not 100% complete yet. It has sampled drums (which, btw, makes my cousin cringe :D )... I'll post it as it's own thread when we get the drums recorded for it. Let me know what you think if you download it.


Any other comments from anyone? The song has been downloaded several times, but Teddie's the only one who has replied. :)
 
Hey - good tune!

1. At the beginning, it sounds like the drums, guitar, and vocal are all set in the same place as far as panning. I think I would spread them out a bit.

2. A touch a reverb would dress up your vocals. I would bring up the vocal volume - it gets buried at times.

3. For what you had, the drums weren't too bad - a little thin sounding - but hey, for $200 and a couple of mics - okay. If your budget is still pretty low, you may want to get a decent drum machine. I know some folks hate 'em but I think they're okay when used right.

4. The bass isn't very distinct - it gets kinda mixed up with the dist guit. I would add some highs to it or something to give it some more pop. I think I would also pan it out of center a bit more.

I know Teddie covered some of the same things, but you wanted another opinion. I agree with him that it's a bit too much center panned.

But it's a good tune!! Keep working!! :D

mutt
 
mutt said:
Hey - good tune!
Thanks!

mutt said:
1. At the beginning, it sounds like the drums, guitar, and vocal are all set in the same place as far as panning. I think I would spread them out a bit.
Yeah, I agree. I am going to re-record everything PROPERLY. I have to go out of town tomorrow, and won't be back until later next week. Hopefully by next weekend I'll have everything sounding a lot better!

mutt said:
2. A touch a reverb would dress up your vocals. I would bring up the vocal volume - it gets buried at times.
I'm going to redo the vocals too. I think I'll try adding a touch of compression to it also. Maybe that'll help.

mutt said:
3. For what you had, the drums weren't too bad - a little thin sounding - but hey, for $200 and a couple of mics - okay. If your budget is still pretty low, you may want to get a decent drum machine. I know some folks hate 'em but I think they're okay when used right.
I'm going to run this by my cousin and see what he thinks. Most drum machines I've heard sound too mechanical, so I've always steered clear of them. I think Teddie gets a pretty good sound from his, so I may try to find something similar in quality. Of course, I'll have to learn to program it if I get one. :D

mutt said:
4. The bass isn't very distinct - it gets kinda mixed up with the dist guit. I would add some highs to it or something to give it some more pop. I think I would also pan it out of center a bit more.
Actually, the bass in that song was my guitar with the highs sucked completely out. :) I think I'll try it again with an actual bass this time (I tried the first time, but the bass I have isn't a very good one... but I've gotten it to sound a little better, so it's worth a shot).

mutt said:
But it's a good tune!! Keep working!! :D
Thanks again! I appreciate you taking the time to listen!

Chris
 
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