Short Quasi Latin Jazz ditty

S

sammydix

New member
This is an old song I pulled out for an updated re-mix. I play everything (percussion programmed), but the "keys" are Lounge Lizard driven by my guitar using JamOrigin's Midi Guitar. Still getting used to simulating a keyboard style of playing, because the keys on the right near the end still sound very much like it was play on guitar.

All comments for improvement welcome.

EDIT: For the few who could stomach this--
Got a real keyboardist, tried your suggestions, add a few new things of my own.

https://app.box.com/s/xg5muosxcn6hqwhuyx3zaimw5l2qsxv0

Hopefully better vocals this time.
 

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  • Preguntas+.mp3
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This is pretty cool! I dig the vibe, and it reminds me of the Beatles a bit --- especially something like "Michelle." The keys sound fine to me other than the fact that they seem a bit noisy. On headphones, there was kind of a noticeable hiss that showed up once they came in. Bass and percussion sound good to me, as do the guitars. The vocal performance is nice, but something about the sound could be nicer, IMO. They seem to be a little sizzly, for lack of a better term. It's as if there's too much hyping the top end and not enough of the fundamental tone, which would be around 400-600 Hz maybe. I'm not sure if that's it, but that's what it sounds like to me. I like the song though -- muy bien. :)
 
hey thx FB! I added a bit of high shelf to the final mix, so easy enough to tame that sizzle: remove it the shelf. Hiss on keys was on purpose, but also can be easily removed if distracting or annoying.
appreciate that man.
 
Yeah, I'd get rid of the keys hiss. During the 'chorus' part ~ 0:45 the vocal is competing with the guitar and key for EQ space, I'd scoop the louder guitar on the right side, at least and see how that works. Same thing happens during the scat part towards the end. Good vibe on the song!
 
mjbphotos said:
Yeah, I'd get rid of the keys hiss. During the 'chorus' part ~ 0:45 the vocal is competing with the guitar and key for EQ space, I'd scoop the louder guitar on the right side, at least and see how that works. Same thing happens during the scat part towards the end. Good vibe on the song!
Click to expand...

hey MJ and thanks man. I did one better than getting rid of the hiss: I got a real keyboardist to do the parts. I'll repost with the new keyboard and your and beagle's suggestions once I receive the wav file.
 
Percussion is very nice. Short or not, it's well done. There's something in the main vocal, some destruction/distortion that's just a bit overdone. One of those effects (IMO) that should be there, but not be noticeable on this type of song. Could even be what FB was alluding to.
Stereo image moves around a lot, and keeps the attention rolling along with the song. Props on the Spanish verse. Very nice.
 
Nice song man, great melody and chord progression. Love the electric piano over on the left. Percussion is a lot of fun too here. Guitars (both rhythm and solo) sound great. The mix balance really sounds good on my system. Just enough oomph in the low end.

Something sounds overcompressed. On first listen, I can't tell if it's the vocals that are squished too much, or if its the mix as a whole. I think it's just the vocals. You could ease off the vocal compression or saturation and I think it'd help it sound a little more relaxed. The vocal performance is terrific.
 
Very odd for me to hear anything about over-compression because I use so little...almost to a wimpy point. Not much sat either because it's far too easy to overdo. So I think it may come down to that extra unneeded high shelf and/or perhaps (on vocals) some cumulative element that i WILL track down since so many hear it. I personally don't, but four ppl can't be wrong, so it will be address on the next repost.

Thanks much TP.
 
sammydix said:
Very odd for me to hear anything about over-compression because I use so little...almost to a wimpy point. Not much sat either because it's far too easy to overdo. So I think it may come down to that extra unneeded high shelf and/or perhaps (on vocals) some cumulative element that i WILL track down since so many hear it. I personally don't, but four ppl can't be wrong, so it will be address on the next repost.

Thanks much TP.
Click to expand...

Interesting. It could be the microphone itself. The "cool" thing that budget and midrange mic manufacturers seem to be doing lately is really hyping the high end of their condenser mics. I have a few MXL mics and they're all pretty harsh in the high end.

A high shelf EQ doesn't sound like a bad idea to me when it comes to the homebrew "mastering" that most of us home recorders do. I think that the high end of this mix sounds fine overall, it's just something in that vocal that sounds overcooked. Maybe do a little parametric EQ sweeping with an outrageously high gain and narrow Q and see if any of those 5K thru 15K frequencies leap out at you, and then cut a few dB off of the vocals in that frequency range.
 
now what a coincidence, my mic is an MXL, but I've used it for years with no 'high end' problem. It's most likely me and how I mixed the vocs in this case. I re-do a sweep where you suggested. thx again.

...found it!!!

it's SDRR in tube mode with the saturation knob turned up way higher than I normally would (rarely go past "1" and it was like "5". I also had the harmonics leaning towards "odd" and since all SDRR's settings are influenced by the amount of sat, it really increased the effect of that choice.

Simple carelessness. Glad you guys made me take another look!
 
It still sounds great to me. I could still do without some of the ambiance/delay on the lead vocal. The rest of the mix is so chilled out and relaxed. But it sounds much better to me than before, it's not conspicuously sizzly. I think at this point it's down to personal preference, I don't dislike it at all.

Still an awesome song, and an excellent mix.
 
I wonder if you mean the double-tracked vocals. I took care of the 'sizzly' with a bit of tape emu to tame. always good to have those extra sets of ears to catch those things I miss.
thx Tadp.
 
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