New song for you guys to critique

[badgerer]

Hi,

You might remember me from a bit ago, I've got a new song for you! Better recorded I think, but you can decide for yourself of course!

http://www.nowhereradio.com/tomewer/singles

It's "Something New".

Tell me what you think! Thanks.

- Tom

[badgerer]

bump...

[B.SABBATH]

you have to give it some time bro.. It usually takes more than an hour or so.. Maybe instead of bumping your own thread, check out someone elses? Just a suggestion.. It may or may not work..


nice song.. there are some bad plosives.. Like maybe you need to retrack the vocals with a pop screen.. the drums come in way too loud imop.. the snare drum engulfs everything.. at the very least bring down that snare if possible..

[badgerer]

Originally posted by B.SABBATH
you have to give it some time bro.. It usually takes more than an hour or so.. Maybe instead of bumping your own thread, check out someone elses? Just a suggestion.. It may or may not work..


nice song.. there are some bad plosives.. Like maybe you need to retrack the vocals with a pop screen.. the drums come in way too loud imop.. the snare drum engulfs everything.. at the very least bring down that snare if possible..

Yeah I do need a pop filter, need to buy some tights, cos i can't afford a real one! Always having problems with the drums, will try and address that. Thanks!

[M.Brane]

There are some pitch & timing issues on the vocals when the backups come in.

The strummin' guitar thing really can't carry the tune all the way past the 3min mark. You need to have the rest of the instruments come in sooner, and stay longer.

When the drums & electrics kick in there are some more timing & intonation issues. That lead guitar tone is way too buzzy sounding for something like this.

I liked the bass line.

[badgerer]

Originally posted by M.Brane
There are some pitch & timing issues on the vocals when the backups come in.

The strummin' guitar thing really can't carry the tune all the way past the 3min mark. You need to have the rest of the instruments come in sooner, and stay longer.

When the drums & electrics kick in there are some more timing & intonation issues. That lead guitar tone is way too buzzy sounding for something like this.

I liked the bass line.

That's good, you're coming up with things I've been noting down just now actually! I was just thinking to bring the drums in on the "woman with your..." line, because that should mark a step up in the song. Also, the bassline does change a little there but I forgot to when I was playing...oops!

I made up the backing vocals just as an idea while I was listening through the song, I will work on them.

What do you mean by buzzy sounding? I'm not sure what kind of tone to use for this, do you mean less distorted? I'm going for an emotional sounding kinda solo, I'm sure you can see that.

Also, my guitar's giving me a huge headache, I spent a long time trying to fix the intonation but it is still off!! I would take it to a tech and get it properly done, but unfortunately I don't have that kind of money.

Thanks very much for the advice!

P.S. what do you think of the birds at the start? I had the window open when recording and noticed their chirping after I'd recorded the acoustic guitar, thought it sounded kinda cool. Keep or chuck out?

[M.Brane]

Originally posted by badgerer
What do you mean by buzzy sounding? I'm not sure what kind of tone to use for this, do you mean less distorted? I'm going for an emotional sounding kinda solo, I'm sure you can see that.

Buzzy would likely be a combination of too much gain, and too much presence. I very rarely run the gain on any of my amps above 7, and most of the time it's around 5. I can crank 'em up real loud here in the daytime though to get the power tubes distorting.

Also, my guitar's giving me a huge headache, I spent a long time trying to fix the intonation but it is still off!! I would take it to a tech and get it properly done, but unfortunately I don't have that kind of money.

It could be that your nut is too high. Does it go sharp when you tune the open strings then play down near the nut? That's real common on cheap guitars. Cutting the slots deeper is not a big job, but it's real easy to screw it up too. A quick Google search on the subject should give you some good info on guitar setup techniques.

P.S. what do you think of the birds at the start? I had the window open when recording and noticed their chirping after I'd recorded the acoustic guitar, thought it sounded kinda cool. Keep or chuck out?

You know when I listened earlier I didn't even notice 'em. My kid was napping in the other room, so I had the monitors kinda low.

I say leave 'em. I dig stuff like that. Makes the recording sound "honest".

[band 4 hire]

Yeah that guitar is too rough, or overdriven. what kind of drum sounds are you using?

[badgerer]

Originally posted by band 4 hire
Yeah that guitar is too rough, or overdriven. what kind of drum sounds are you using?

Cool, I'll mess around with the tone, knock the gain off some and see what I can come up with. I'm not sure what you mean by drum sounds...it's an acoustic drum kit, just a cheap £300 set, and the snare wire on the snare's broken as is the hi hat stand, so it's a bit of a mess. I think I needed to bring the cymbals forward in the mix a bit. Any other thoughts?

[mbuster]

Well, I'm not sure how to put this. I think the song itself is pretty good, writing-wise. I think the performance is pretty shakey all around. I think I'd have left those BG vox out. Needs some work, but I think with the right sounds this would be a pretty good tune.

[badgerer]

Originally posted by M.Brane
Buzzy would likely be a combination of too much gain, and too much presence. I very rarely run the gain on any of my amps above 7, and most of the time it's around 5. I can crank 'em up real loud here in the daytime though to get the power tubes distorting.

You've kinda nailed it there, up until very recently I've always cranked my pre-gain and presence full on. I'm self taught, so I learn everything by the mistakes I make! I'll roll both those off a bit - you think the EQ on the guitar is okay? I'm still searching for a tone I really like.

It could be that your nut is too high. Does it go sharp when you tune the open strings then play down near the nut? That's real common on cheap guitars. Cutting the slots deeper is not a big job, but it's real easy to screw it up too. A quick Google search on the subject should give you some good info on guitar setup techniques.

It's a MiM Tele, so not too cheap...for me anyway! I think it's a fault thats developed, intonation was fine when I first bought it. I'll have a good look around Google for help.

You know when I listened earlier I didn't even notice 'em. My kid was napping in the other room, so I had the monitors kinda low.

I say leave 'em. I dig stuff like that. Makes the recording sound "honest".

Cool, that's the answer I was looking for! Thanks very much for your help, sorry to ask so many questions but I don't often get advice like this, as I know no one offline who records aside from me!

[badgerer]

Originally posted by mbuster
Well, I'm not sure how to put this. I think the song itself is pretty good, writing-wise. I think the performance is pretty shakey all around. I think I'd have left those BG vox out. Needs some work, but I think with the right sounds this would be a pretty good tune.

Well don't try and sugar coat it, sounds like your holding something back? What do you mean by shaky? I think the acoustic guitar and bass are fine, but the rest needs more work. The BG vox...I'd like to have them in (but not in their present form), I think it would provide more variety. Maybe just some straight harmony? Thanks!

[mbuster]

Yeah, Some background vox would be cool, but I think as is they kind of step on each other, you know? Maybe you could drop the BG's back a little, or add some long reverb. Just an idea though. I did like the bass line pretty well. The drums just kinda jump out at you, though, and most of this tune call for a more laid back sound. Just my opinion though.

[badgerer]

Originally posted by mbuster
Yeah, Some background vox would be cool, but I think as is they kind of step on each other, you know? Maybe you could drop the BG's back a little, or add some long reverb. Just an idea though. I did like the bass line pretty well. The drums just kinda jump out at you, though, and most of this tune call for a more laid back sound. Just my opinion though.

And your opinion is what I'm looking for! I know what you mean, they do clash a bit, I need to completely perfect the melody if I'm gonna have background vocals, I'm just always too eager to get some feedback! What would long reverb do to help? I've not used any effects (compression, reverb, etc.), basically because I can't afford them! I'm recording through N-Track.

[mbuster]

I've never used Ntrack, but surely it supports plugins? There are plenty of free effects plugins to get started with. try Directxfiles.com . Once you play around with some compression and reverb, You'll discover what you've been missing.

[badgerer]

Originally posted by mbuster
I've never used Ntrack, but surely it supports plugins? There are plenty of free effects plugins to get started with. try Directxfiles.com . Once you play around with some compression and reverb, You'll discover what you've been missing.

Hm well I had a look around, downloaded the only free compressor they had, and needless to say I didn't have a clue what I was doing!

[boydrj]

Listening now in lo-fi, so can't give you much sonic advice.

Arrangement wise, this kind of needs to go somewhere. I think the writing is fine, but there is really nothing to fill out the arrangement for a good two minutes until the bg vocals come in and then the drums and electric at the 3 minute mark. I'm not sure what it needs, but it needs something because the verses get a little bit old by the time anything begins to happen. This kind of sounds like a guitar demo which is fine if that is all you are going for, but, to keep the audience interested, I think this needs to have some kind of arrangement filled in -- maybe some percussion -- I don't know, just something -- imho --

I think the background vocals are a good idea, but they were a little bit off pitch wise (and I have tons of pitch issues, so I guess it is okay for me to say this -- I know I need a lot of work in this department as well)

The drumming on my end seemed a bit out of place...not sure if it is the sound or just the levels, and the electric was a nice touch, but again, when the arrangment is not building towards it, it kind of seems a little bit anti-climatic.

Sorry if it sounds like I'm being harsh. I just really think this song deserves a second chance...build an arrangement and see where it goes. Experiment, add some strings, add some percussion, see if it makes a difference? Maybe it will, and maybe it won't, who knows, all you can do is try. Check around for different sounds and just go for it.

This is just my $.02 and since I don't know much, take it for what it is worth.

Thanks for giving us a listen!

[badgerer]

Originally posted by boydrj
Listening now in lo-fi, so can't give you much sonic advice.

Arrangement wise, this kind of needs to go somewhere. I think the writing is fine, but there is really nothing to fill out the arrangement for a good two minutes until the bg vocals come in and then the drums and electric at the 3 minute mark. I'm not sure what it needs, but it needs something because the verses get a little bit old by the time anything begins to happen. This kind of sounds like a guitar demo which is fine if that is all you are going for, but, to keep the audience interested, I think this needs to have some kind of arrangement filled in -- maybe some percussion -- I don't know, just something -- imho --

The drumming on my end seemed a bit out of place...not sure if it is the sound or just the levels, and the electric was a nice touch, but again, when the arrangment is not building towards it, it kind of seems a little bit anti-climatic.

Sorry if it sounds like I'm being harsh. I just really think this song deserves a second chance...build an arrangement and see where it goes. Experiment, add some strings, add some percussion, see if it makes a difference? Maybe it will, and maybe it won't, who knows, all you can do is try. Check around for different sounds and just go for it.

This is just my $.02 and since I don't know much, take it for what it is worth.

Thanks for giving us a listen!

No need to be humble, honest advice is what I'm looking for! You've covered a lot of stuff I've noted, which is good. I've already said I'm gonna start the drums in a bit earlier, as your right, it does get a bit old. Also, gotta change the levels a bit on them.

I'd love to have strings, I've always thought how great it would to have some in some of my songs, but I haven't got a violinist/orchestra handy! Any advice on computer generated strings, or whatever they're called?

Thanks for the advice!

[boydrj]

Originally posted by badgerer


I'd love to have strings, I've always thought how great it would to have some in some of my songs, but I haven't got a violinist/orchestra handy! Any advice on computer generated strings, or whatever they're called?

Thanks for the advice!

Wish I could help you out. I record everything on analog and I have a couple of old keyboards with some string patches that I like. Nowadays there are some pretty good sounding patches out there, but I don't record on the computer, so I couldn't tell you where to look (I'm sure someone else around here knows)...of course, the optimal thing would be to find someone to lay down some actual stuff for you, but we can all dream can't we...

[badgerer]

Originally posted by boydrj
Wish I could help you out. I record everything on analog and I have a couple of old keyboards with some string patches that I like. Nowadays there are some pretty good sounding patches out there, but I don't record on the computer, so I couldn't tell you where to look (I'm sure someone else around here knows)...of course, the optimal thing would be to find someone to lay down some actual stuff for you, but we can all dream can't we...

Yeah...I'm gonna start learning to play the violin

I'm sure there must be something free to get started on? I hope, because I am beyond broke at the moment!