Now I Understand

[ido1957]

Thanks for the listen Gerry. The first part is supposed to be echoy and reverby... a little confuse (ish). Then when the second half hits (at the first "Now I think I understand" with the big cymbal roll, it clears. So, what you're describing is EXACTLY what I wanted it to do. Maybe there should be more clarity to the vocal. Listen to the version in my sig and see if it's better...

I listened to the sig version and at 6am when my ears are better. I still think the vocals could use a db on the first section - I try to sit the vocals equal to the snare and any solo part (the pyramid of the song). The rhythms on the side are nice and full but the vocals don't match their level. On the "prechorus" section just before the "understand" you jump right up to where I would place the previous section. Then the next part is good because everything jumps up together. Other than the vocal level

To get some clarity in your mic take a look at reducing the 4K - known as the brittle edge, and retrieve some of the resulting loss of brightness at around 7-8K. My Sputnik and NTK have a brutal harshness in the 4K area I didn't notice until I really cranked the mix and the vocals just killed my ears. All mics are different so whether this works will depend on what make/model and how they have set the internal eq. I'm not referring so much to brightness either but giving the mic a spot in the eq that is all it's own. It won't have to be loud if there's nothing in the same spot (or relatively).

Another thing to look at is the harmony generated by the mic's eq. My mics seem to have two distinct spikes roughly 250 (main vocal) and 500 (harmony) on my range. Look at keeping those generally balanced and it gives a nice chorus/almost doubling effect. The look at the 4K and 8K as mentioned above.

Yep totally understand the part about vocals at my age. I've lost a bit of my range and have less stamina but that's mainly due to lack of consistent practice and other bad habits. I do try to sing at least once a week in the basement when not writing, but nothing better than a steady regimen like gigging 4 hours straight on the weekend to keep your voice in shape. But I'll pass on the gear lifting, and 3am bed times.

 

[heatmiser]

I can read a few things between the lines, but I'm leaving that alone.

Oh, I hope I didn't offend? I didn't mean to imply anything in my comments really...I guess I was pointing out that the epic, classic rock kind of format (sort of like Kansas a little, maybe?) isn't something I normally gravitate towards along with the religious content. But plenty of people dig both of those things, so I'm not sure why I even mentioned that.

Probably says more about me than it does your song. lol Sorry, I didn't want you to read too much between the lines there! I respect what you did here.

 

[BroKen_H]

Yeah, the between the lines is when you say "thematically outside your zone" and using jesus instead of Jesus kind of gave me the hint about religious content. But that's kind of a verboten topic round these parts, so I left it alone.

No sweat, no offense. I really did appreciate your comments!