a new song

[B.SABBATH]

hey guys,

here is a new tune.. Please rip it to shreds if you must..



as always, I do appreciate any insults, comments, or amusing jokes at my expense..


I am mainly concerned with mix comments.. vocal volume, etc.



'soul less mate' www.nowhereradio.com/samij/singles


thanks!


song # 13..

[mkg]

Mix comments... I like this mix, especially vocals... another great track from you. Creative, compelling... all good, my man, all good. I know this isn't much help, but to my ears it's a gem.

[SLuiCe]

This is great!

OK, now that the assumptions are out of the way, I'll give it a listen...

Very AIC to about :30. Your vox are getting better and better with every track. I hear your confidence growing. It's not easy, I know.

That shit at 2:00 is nice...very creative! The ebow (?) out of 3:00 is very nice too...great transition.

Production is high quality as usual.

Not sure about the ending. I'm not opposed to "drop-out" endings, but you imply something with the string vibrations that sort of left me with blueballs. Oh wait, but isn't that what the song is about?

[jeap]

hey this sounds just like my new thing but your banjo sounds more aggressive!

no wait!

its very dynamic and creative. i like the melody breaks.

dont you have a deal yet?

[powderfinger]

good stuff...........

...the guitars at the very start are a tad to 'canned' sounding in my opinion

...the vocals sound great and the harmonies are very tight.......excellent work on the harmonies....some of the tightest ones i've heard on this board

...the wabbly effect on the lead, i didn't really like.......it fits in to the mix, this is just a subjective criticism.......something seemed just a tad off with the effect............i don't know........i'm sure you have it the way you want it

...the clean part after 3:00 is really cool

...well, pretty much everything i mentioned is just a subjective opinion, it's a solid mix

[Emeric]

Heavy duty guitars, for sure!

I thought the drum beat could be a little more interesting, pretty straight ahead but I guess that works. The vocals at the start are not as good as the ones later on in the song, why ever that may be. They sound a bit thin. The vocal volume could be louder and better defined during the quieter parts. They fit well when the heavy gits kick in.

No Bass guitar or is tuned so low it's out of the capabilities of my monitors? j/k I can't hear one.

Good job, creative stuff!

[Doug H]

I love the guitar breaks, very nice touch.

[Guernica]

............uh......... ........alright, Im scared.
This is the best thing Ive heard from you since Hole Situation. very nice vocs man. Definitely the best yet. .....and clean tight backgrounds. Your voice cleans up nice. Did you get a new mic? The voc. levels sound fine. I really like that gargling guit. sound at :40 ......very cool, This is some very haunting stuff........ disturbing....... NIN in nature. The guitars in this are excellent........ all of them. Mind if i ask you what the guit. chain is on this? .......come on now..... ......that string jangling at the end sounds like youre about to bust into "foxy lady"
Enjoyed this a whole bunch man.


........even if i wont be able to sleep.



Nice work Sam .....Very Nice! G

[participant]

AAAAAHHH YEEEEEEAH! Sam's back, and kickin ass again!!

There's quite the hole when you're gone Sam; kind of a "hole" situation, eh? (cough, gag, , )

Now for the song...

Hafta agree your voice sounds very nice, and crisp...

Cleaaaaan... Oh, love that synth break, and the warbly-fx on the guit(?) afterword. Very crispy mix, Sam...

Man, those words are makin me laff.. "one day I'll make her my wife & she'll make me sad for the rest of my life", etc something etc...

Change at 2:00 rox!! Is this ever original! Never heard anythin quite like it. Very melodic, and still radio friendly (well... alt radio ) Here come da ebow... very creative use of it, with the verb. What reverb are you using, there? Sounds excellent. (I've got the WAVES bundle, but am too nervous to install it considering your computer problems )

Excellence once again. Seems like your stuff comes right outta life experience...

BTW have ye thot about writing a song, saluting your computer problems? Maybe cure you from thumbs-down-itis?

I'll hit ya later with a critical listen, & another bump. Piece.


Chad

[jcmm]

Very Interesting B.Sabbath

Reminds me of early Sabbath.

A very sharp mix...........It even sounds good on my system.

Must have been fun to play!

Nice Job!

[muzeman]

Allright Sam,now this place is cookin!

Nice to hear your voice right up there with the instruments,excellent!

Man you have some interesting sounds going on there,cool.

I really liked the production,nice job of mixing it up ,as usual.

"One day she'll be my wife,make me sad the rest of my life"
Man that's a classic line if there ever was one!

Miix sounds great,just the kick seemed like it needs a little more beef.JMHOP

Did I mention your voice sounds great!
Real nice job,glad to have you back!

Best to you,
Pete

BTW,You can fix your thumb,somebody gave you 5 stars!

[Kramer]

Cool song sam and your vocals are rockin man!You've got a great voice and you need to start bringing all of your vocals this far out front in the mix.The harmonies are really good too..."One day she'll be my wife,make me sad for the rest of my life"......ah yes,a song about the backstabbing bitch!

This is a really cool tune man.The mix is solid and clean(except for the blood from that backstabbing bitch)

A lot of cool stuff going on here.2 thumbs up man and dont forget to back up your work this time!

[Scott Tansley]

Nice work Sam, really like it.
Quite moody. Listened a few times and it got even better.
Mix is good, musicianship is good. Thanks for letting us listen in.
Thumbs up.

[Lt. Bob]

Geez sam...........you just get better and better. You definitely have your own sound and it's a good one.
It's great to hear your vocals up where they can be heard. Clearly you're getting more comfortable with them and I'm glad 'cause you do good vocals...the harmonies too.....really cool.
As usual your guitars have that "sam sound" that no one else, and I mean no one else manages to get. And the chord structure and changes in the rhythm are so cool....once again it's a signature sound that you're developing and I'm glad to be around here to hear it as it comes along. I think this might be your best yet.

I give it TWO THUMBS UP!!!!!
(I'd give it more but that's all the thumbs I've got.)

[joro]

what they said......


Excellent vocals and guitar......good mix....
good tune man.....Ozzy style....ya know?

[B.SABBATH]

mkg - thanks for the virgin comments.. Yours were the first ears to have heard it. I would have taken it right off Nowhere if the first comment was a beating..




SLuiCe - Yeah these vocals are bloody loud.. I have a new method for mixing.. I mix the vocals until I think they sound good, then I turn them up one until I think they're too loud and annoying.. that seems to be the way I get them up there.. Although, I have a much lower vocal mix for my own personal use.. As far as the ending, I wasn't trying to wrap everything up neatly.. I have hit a point where I don't really care about song format etc.. If I hear a cool sound, I record it and pretend I planned it that way. thanks Sluice.. Did you get my p.m. about
Quake 3???





jeap - agressive banjo..hehe thanks for checking it out.. The closest thing I have to a deal, is a dealer..




powderfinger - thanks for the comments man.. I am constantly playing around with new guitar sounds, and people don't always like what I come up with.. I appreciate the vocal comments.. I am struggling with finding my vocal sound, and I wonder if I almost get too experimental sometimes..




Emeric - your right on with your comments.. As far as the drums, I find myself just trying to get down a simple beat since they're not programmed, it takes me a long time to get them down.. I could have been a bit more brave with them though.. As far as the vocals sounding better later in the tune, that is true. I eventually pushed the envelope and went for 3 part harmonies.. The beginning stuff was mainly just 2.. I should have replaced the beginning harmonies with a 3 parter, but I thought it added a build up when they come in later.. The bass was ultra low synth bass.. It seemed to sound good with the sub woofer, but it might be lacking with out.. I appreciate your ears on this one man..





Doug H - thanks for cheking it out man!












I will finish the replys later, I have to get to work..



thanks guys!

[CrankyOne]

Good guitar sound again. You seem to have tripled the heavy guitars. I dig the "weird guitar" theme that goes on a few times. What's that effect?

The kick sounds like it's a tad from the left, which distracts a bit if I pay attention to it. The snare could use a bit of reverb I mean really, since this song is kinda mid-tempo or even slow, depends who you ask, so there's enough space for the reverb IMO. The nice mood-changes are here again, and you managed to make them work... again, as usual. I don't particularly like that synth sound at the end, you know that sharp, rainfall type of sound. Not a big problem, but it sounds cheap compared to the general soundscape of the song. Maybe change it to another sound, I don't know. Maybe I'm over-reacting.

A few places in the drumming sound weird, but it sounds like the sounds of your drums don't change that much depending on how hard you hit them. I may be wrong, though. You know, the velocity thing...

Your voice sounds good, and I'm pleased to hear there's not an over-use of effects this time around. You really should mix your vocals like this more often. You got some sick riffs here and there. Good song and good mix again.

[TripleM]

First impression... The harmonies are so cool. Loved them. Very Ozzyish. Not sure about the warbly guitar. I don't like it initially, but it could be something that grows on me. The vocals all around are perfect on this one. LIke most everyone, I really liked the vocals.

Listening further, liking the warbly guitar a bit more (I'll get there). The thing at 2:00 is cool - the panning there is nice. The change at 2:30 is a good touch too. Ok now into the synth part - good sound but the instrumental section is getting a bit too long.

No mix suggestions, you did a great job. My only suggestion on the music would be to cut the time down on instrumental section and add another verse after it. But then what do I know?

Good job as always Sam.

EDIT: good lyrical hook with the soul-less mate thing.

[boydrj]

This song wastes no time in getting right into it. It sounds like it begins with a chorus and the verses are instrumental (that is how it sounds to me ... interesting concept) And then the change at about 2:03 is a cool diversion.

Very good vocals and I love the background harmonies. Excellent playing throughout! The lyrics really caught my attention on this one ... some humor showing through "One day I will make her my wife ... make me sad for the rest of my life"

I love the ending. Very deep.

Excellent work! I don't have any mixing advice or otherwise. I was too into the song, plus lo-fi doesn't really allow for much in the way of mixing/mastering anyway. I guess if I had to say one thing, it may be that the vocals may still come up a little bit ...

Great job overall!

[erichenryus]

sam, didn't read the other posts. there's just too much to read when you post anymore

you definitely have a style that's your own. i like the addition of confident vocals to your arsenal. your singing is improving as is your production. the backups sound really good!

only gripe is the drums on this one. i'm not sure how to fix it but they sound real fake for some reason. they've sounded better in the past on your tunes. are you able to split them into their own tracks?

[GONZO-X]

heavy intro...... cool harmonies happening..... still reminds me of AIC, which is a good thing.......

nice grungy guitar tones, with clarity and grunge at the same time....a good performance here.........

i like the break down parts, the synth pads are cool and kinda far away, and the solo guitar has a real nice tremelo warble effect on it, man, it's fucked up!

nice job of programming the drums......or are these synth drums played? good sounds on em.......

nice quiet section........ lots of space there....... reverbs are a nice touch for that otherworldly effect........

the ending quiet section, i think, could go on for some time..... for me, it's too short.......

once you've gone there, and gotten that mood, which you've accomplished, you can sustain it for a while........
nice job.

[JR#97]

kick ass. you're definitely a seasoned home rec'r and it shows. all the right things in all the right places. awesome vocals.

[Erik O.]

HI Sam,

I have to second the others comments. The mix is ear candy. The arrangement is very varied and interesting, the structure of the song is surprising and creative.
The musical performance is tight, the vocals are strong and clear and well placed in the mix.

I really like the atmosphere you've created here; it sounds as if you're in control of things, knowing where you're heading (many times I wish I did - with my own stuff, that is! ).
The guitar parts/sounds support the mood perfecly as well as the synth strings are cleverly added, almost as an mitigating circumstance.

The bass is comming through allright through my headphones and stereo but I definitely miss a real rock bass on this particular track. That's about the only objection I can think of.

Great job. Congratulations !

Best regards
Erik

[SLuiCe]

Originally posted by B.SABBATH
[Bthanks Sluice.. Did you get my p.m. about
Quake 3???
[/B]

Nah, I didn't. I looked for it for a few days, then I figured you were touring with Tool or something. It never came...

BTW, I've been trying that same method of mixing vox a notch above what sounds good to me, and I still get bitched at. You've done well with this one though. I think the trick to mixing your own vocals is to wait a day or two after recording them, when the subtle flaws you were desparately trying to improve on (or a vision you are trying to match) are no longer at the forefront of your attention. If I don't get the vocal tracks down within a few hours, I let it go and move on. There are only so many hours in a day and I've got a hammer to swing and you've got pipes to soulder.

[participant]

Originally posted by SLuiCe
If I don't get the vocal tracks down within a few hours, I let it go and move on. There are only so many hours in a day

Must be what's takin me so long... you guys are naturally better singers (sam KILLS me with that "... AAAAND LEEEEEEAVE YOU A MESSSAGEEE!" from "unwell") Here I am easily doing 300, 400, 500 takes... just to throw out about 95% of them, and comp the rest. Then, I go back and listen to each word. If a word sucks (pronunciation, rhythm, or off-key), I resing that line several times and comp it in. Then, during early test mixes, I'll listen to vocs, paying attention to EVERY WORD. A word's too low? Automated fader adjustment, and move on. Word's too quiet? Yeah... it get's that anal

Vocs are almost done on this toon tho. Just a few words need fixed now... seems a KEY to this is to listen on different set-ups. Vox that sound in-key on the monitors may sound like a drunk, constipated moose in the car

Bump #2... sooner or later, the monitors will get a shot at this song, sam


- C