Weekend Marathon Recording ("Twenty")

[SLuiCe]

I got started on a simple song yesterday morning...and I just couldn't stop.


Actually I had posted an acoustic version of this about 3 months ago and some of you guys encouraged me to give it a full production...so here goes....

TWENTY


This is the first mix...want to have it done before the Christmas gatherings...though this has nothing to do with Xmas.


Thanks for the critiques!

[JMarcomb]

This sounds awsome man
The guitar chops arnt doing so bad man nice! ... the 2nd time through electric guitar sounded a little bit like Brian mays tone. cool
I was going to use that Accordian? in one of my tunes funny you used it.
Great song man! I dig!
Your mixs keep getting better and better

Oh... yeah--- the bass guitar always sounds better when its working like that...


--- I think I read in a previous post that Dust in the Wind was one of the first songs youve sung?

That was one of the first songs I first learned on the guitar!

[mixmkr]

man...don't you know any "straight-disco-club" beats??

yes...nice bass sound and your "unique" singing style and melodies..which I like, btw.

your stuff requires repeated listens for me, as then I begin to like it better and better with each listen.... kinda like getting drunk!!

the accordian almost sounds more like a real melodica.

nice gtr solos. ..and the way the vocals blend in there behind it...there were vocals right?? the end of the solo was pretty cool.

I do miss the SluiCe "supprise [drum] attacks" though

[SLuiCe]

Jeff Hey man thanks for the listen...glad you liked the guitars. I've started telling myself that it's OK to do guitar solos again...it's my main instrument, after all right? Haven't heard Brian May's newer stuff...just the stuff from Queen...I'm sure I'm missing out... Thanks bro!

mixmkr

man...don't you know any "straight-disco-club" beats??

What do you mean? It's 3/4 all the way through! I just chopped it up a little that's all... Hell you could almost dance to it!
Re: repeated listens...I tend to embed sort of undercurrents into the music to try and keep it interesting, not just one piece to the story so to speak. Sometimes I myself go back and listen, and I'm always hearing new things...mostly different ways that parts work together.
I think that patch is in fact actually a melodica....it's definitely not a accordian, but has a similar tone.
Yes, there are vocals under the 2nd git solo...2 parts.
I'll try and work in a drum attack with the next tune Thanks a lot man!

[WATYF]

dang, your stuff is weird...


I agree that your mixes are getting better. This one sounds pretty good... the gits really came out nice. I like how you've gotten a little less obsessive with the china boy hits.. . Seriously though.. your drums sit a lot better in the mix then they used to. I did think the acoustic was a bit loud,.. the vocals were gettin' buried a bit early on.

Nice acoustic leads.. dang.. those are some speedy licks. Wish I could get my hands to do that stuff.


You know,... I was playin my "homerec" mix the other day while I built a computer and I realized that half the stuff in there is yours... (of course,.. the other half is Erland's... )


WATYF

[fprod south]

Wow! I really enjoy your stuff. All the parts are crystal clear.
The only nit picky comment I can come up with is the guitar lead really jumps out at you as it goes into the last section at about 3:45.
Excellent tune!

[teknomike]

Wow, I don't have the skills to comment on this, other than to say, WOW, I wish I could do that !
Excellent performance and mix.
I wish I could get all my instruments to find their own space like that.
Happy holidays,
mike

[B.SABBATH]

excellent man! the drums sound great too.. really great guitar playing.. Damn!! You left me next to nothing to complain about on this one! love it! I downloaded it this morning and I wanted to spin it a few times before I commented.. I searched hard for something I didn't like.. no lie! Those solos around 3:40 kick ass! (notice that I've used a lot of exclamation points in this post!!!!!!) This is one of my favorites..




!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[SLuiCe]

Hey guys thanks a ton for the replies...very encouraging! I've made a quick remix with some pretty big level adjustments. The vocals should be cleaner, and overall space and clarity should be apparent. Thanks for the tips!


WATYF I'm trying to be less weird...it just ain't working so well



fprod south I agree totally about the end of that solo...I think I took care of it...thanks man!

teknomike The finding space thing is always a tough challenge for me cuz I just load ideas into the mix. Finding room for it all....
Thanks for your time...and happy holidays to you too

Sam Thanks a lot brotha...I'm kinda hoping you'll check out the "remix" for me. Since you liked the first mix, I hope I didn't fuck up a good thing

[W.I.S.C.]

Damn...Fan for life ,here...Amazing as usual.GREAT Guitar solos!!!!Drums are mint!so's the mix.Frig the re-mix!

[dres]

Very snappy ! Love that acoustic git sound ... I wish I could get a tone like that. Snappy snare and bass sound too... I really like it. really really like the acoustic solo 1:43-1:52 I'd swear you had arabic blood in you sometimes !! Check out your little vocal wobbles 2:52... sounds just like those arabic/islamic chanters

constructive critisism:
I thought maybe the little lead section from 3:45 - 3:50 was just a bit too weird.. maybe clipping too ? and sort of a little out of character with the song considering the acoustic start.

Great sound. Great energy

cheers
dres

[WATYF]

Originally posted by dres
I thought maybe the little lead section from 3:45 - 3:50 was just a bit too weird..sort of a little out of character

Well sheesh... all his stuff is "out of character"... I don't think there's a "normal" meter that you can use to judge this stuff..


one more thing... everybody in my band (and previous bands) says I'm a little bit of a busy drummer, and a little too heavy on the cymbals... but geez man... you got me beat by a mile... You are one tom playin' fool...

oh yeah.. and I dig that rest/swell at 4:24.

WATYF

[Guernica]

Hey Man,
.......cool tune. Is the eq re: the bass different on this one. It kinda seemed to disappear more on this one. ...like its a touch thinner. It might be the key layer...crowding in just a touch.

I was gonna jump all over that snare at the beginning .....but after listening to the whole tune.. it doesnt offend anymore.

...very nice acoustic lead..... ......tasty!

Nice stuff man

[WATYF]

ditto the snare at the intro... that was a little hot. Mid-song you can't notice it (that is, if you're even using the same snare sound) but that intro snare really bit my ears off...


WATYF

[caryindy]

Wow. I love the tone of the electric guitar solo. I think everything sounds good, i just love the tone of the electric.

Nice tune.

[zbert]

I'm impressed!!
I like the snare sound in the beginning. It's supposed to get your attention. It adds more meaing to the syncopation against the melody.
Cool job

[SLuiCe]

Should be a lot cleaner now.

Goals:

More bass presence/definition.
Vocals cleaner and sitting better....less clashing of the harmonies.
Normal songwriting...yeah right.
Find a compromise on the snare
Overall blending

TWENTY <---you know you wanna...

WISC Thanks for checkin' out yet another attempt at self laceration and moral degradation!

dres Thanks a lot for the feedback. I suppose it depends on your definition of "weird." There's no clipping by the way. You might be hearing the pick of the acoustic hitting the pick guard. I do that every now and then and the condensors just love to rub it in my face Thanks again.

WATYF You really make me not want to do drums anymore, but that's just a poor self esteem thing on my part. Thanks for staying on me...just remember I'm a guitar player, not a doctor.

Guernica I did make an adjustment to that snare in the beggining...should blend a little better, and I brought the bass into the picture more. Needed a night of fresh hears to hear the problems. I'm too eager to share this shit sometimes. Thanks a lot man.

caryindy Ya I love that tone too. It's the first time I've accomplished it. It's a Paul Reed Smith through a Marshall head through a Fender cab that I've had about 8 years. No effects except a little reverb in the mix. The mics are SM 57 and an Octava mc012 overhead...in case you were interested...
Thanks man!

zbert Thanks man...I think they were mostly referring to the level of that snare, which was IMO up about 1.5 db's too high.


You guys rock! Have a great holiday!

[B.SABBATH]

Originally posted by SLuiCe
Sam I'm kinda hoping you'll check out the "remix" for me. Since you liked the first mix, I hope I didn't fuck up a good thing

I think you may have.. I'm not sure what mix I'm listening to.. I downloaded it today, and I accidentally erased the other one when I was told, "the file has the same name, do you want to replace it?" I said yes, and that erased the original.. I should have saved it with a different name, or in a different spot..

For some reason I have some complaints with this one.. the vocals sound a little harsh to me now, and I don't remember not liking the high-hat in the beginning.. I'm pissed that I accidentally erased the original.. It sounds like there is more mid range in this one.. I remember saying that you left me nothing to complain about in the first version, but this one sounds different.. Maybe I'm just being over critical, but this is what I'm hearing right now..

I think maybe you should have left it alone dude.. It doesn't sound bad by any means, but the mids sound exaggerated on this one imhop..


is it just me?

[participant]

A helllluva song... this song never made it to CD-ROM in its first incarnation... it will now, for sure. It's been said by others in this thread Tom, and it bears repeating... your stuff just keeps getting better, and better... recording & performance... everything. I swear you're losing that balls-in-a-vise tone you once had, & now you sound much more comfortable behind the mic.

The accordion is a good choice... very natural in this piece. Hardly any complaints. IMO mix two was better, for some reason... also don't remember thinking it could be improved. In this one, however, IMO the secondary vocal is much better.

"...show me HOW to grow..." 1:01... does that sit right with you? Sounds a bit off to me...

But, that DELIVERY right there in that area... very nice, and impassioned. Shows your singing performance & technique has improved 1000%.

About what Sam's saying... in mix 3 (over mix two) ... it appears the acoustic & snare & vox are starting to crowd each other just a bit... right in the midranges... they sounded fine (separation-wise) in mix 2 (maybe because the snare was M.I.A. in mix 2? ) Very very picky, anyway.... This stuff is the tops... can't believe there's actually ANYTHING bad to say. Probably just paranoia

BTW excellent little lead runs on the acoustic, there. It would be years before I could do something similar... reminiscent of JMarcomb... great stuff.


-C

[muzeman]

Man,I posted a reply last night,must have forgot to hit submit, AGAIN!

Sounds really great,SLuiCe,guitars are Sweeet!
I liked the vocal treatment,how did you reverb it?

You are one talented dude,great writing.
The mix/production really brought it to life!

I enjoyed it very much,thanks.
Have a great holiday!

Pete

[WATYF]

Originally posted by SLuiCe
WATYF You really make me not want to do drums anymore, but that's just a poor self esteem thing on my part. Thanks for staying on me...just remember I'm a guitar player, not a doctor.

Aw dude... don't even take that stuff the wrong way... Your drum programming really does fit your stuff well... and it's a hell of a lot more complex than I would've ever thought up... I'm mostly just bustin' yer balls... (especially aboot the china boy thing.. )


Anywhoo... on a side note... I'm with Sam... I liked mix 2 better... sorry. This one doesn't have the "oomph" that 2 did... (yeah.. that's my technical term for it... who needs to pinpoint frequencies when you can use concise sonic descriptions like "oomph"? )


WATYF

[CrankyOne]

Cymbals sound weird, since there seems to be distortion in them. Or maybe it's just the media player... The song is very good. Kinda desperate and eerie at the same time. Your singing is great also, you can really show some emotions here. The solo guitar tone is good. I don't know how you do it, but it sound like it's coming from the back of my head... weird.. You're using some way weird 3d-stuff here, or maybe I'm just imagining things

I can't find mix problems, other than it sounds a bit too compressed at places.

[erichenryus]

i think i'm listening to the older mix but wanted to comment anyway.

this sounds definitely less 'weird' in the backing vocal category. very nice job there in my opinion. the lead vocal is also very well done.

as always, your acoustic sounds outstanding. i'm noticing a signature rythm in your music. it's that 1and2and with the accent on the second 'and' making it sound like a triplet when actually it's an eighth. cool stuff.

you definitely have your own sound between the tasty guitar playing and your unique (it's late and i'm not sure i spelt that write) vocal style. i mean unique in a good way. always look forward to your stuff.

[SLuiCe]

Hmmmm... I'll have to give it a listen.

I'm realizing there's two things I should not do after working outside all day in Maine- sing and mix. Both my voice and ears go to hell. One from the cold and the other from the saws AND the cold. I'll figure something out I guess.


I actually CUT a lot of mids, so I'm a little fucked up now. I'll check it out in the truck today.


Sam when did you download it? I posted the latest version at about 6:30 last night.

Sorry if I'm being a pain in the ass. I'm trying new drum sounds so I have to do everything a bit differently.

Chad and Crankyone, I'll be looking into your comments as well...thanks so much! RE: That lead coming from the back of your head. Ya it has that effect on me too! It's just a stereo track...double miked amp. Nothing really magic or anything.

Originally posted by muzeman
I liked the vocal treatment,how did you reverb it?

Muzeman- Just a tiny bit on the lead and a tiny bit more on the harmonies. Subtlety, I'm finding is better for reverb in such a big mix!

WATYF, thanks bro...I'll be looking to recapture that oomph!

Peace guys!

[SLuiCe]

oh hi Erich...and good morning. I just missed ya...thanks a lot for listening. You've walked into the middle of yet another of my mixing struggles I gotta start just doing 3 track tunes before I go mad

Well off to work...good night Erich!