Superchunk -- Hyper Enough (Cover)

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https://soundcloud.com/4-tracker-1/superchunk-hyper-enough

Do you guys have any thoughts on this mix? What you would improve, etc? To me it sounds a little muddy.

Also, something with the drum is driving me nuts, but I can't pinpoint it. It's almost like it's in 2/2 instead of 4/4, or maybe a latency issue? I feel like the guitar is just a few ms behind the drum during the verse, but when I played and recorded it live it sounded in time.

Anyway, this was my 2nd recording. I'm trying to learn as much as possible [about recording] from each one before embarking on originals. So any suggestion or observation is welcome.
 
Wow, this is such a cool choice of cover! I hadn't heard Superchunk in years, but this is great to hear. I love the lo-fi feel and the guitar tones.

Vocals sound great - is that a ribbon mic? I think the saturation may be a little too coloured in spots, but I love that warm sound. It's hard to know what to suggest. If you're after hyper polished rock, then I'd say you're way off - but if you're pitching in the general direction of The Breeders/early Pavement etc. then I think it's sounding pretty great.

Are you doing everything on 4 track, or are you doing some on a PC too? I reckon that even if you do nothing else, a limiter on the overall mix will make it sound 'bigger'. I don't know if you've added one to any of your stuff before, but I just ripped a chunk of your tune and ran it through one to demonstrate the difference if not: Hyper Enough limiter

Hope it helps man :)
 
The vocals again, are sounding really great. There is a little bit of distortion on them that sounds amazing.

The drums are a little bit muffled. But your mixes remind me a lot of The Pixies and 80-90's stuff...really great.

I dig the raw vibe.
 
robgreen said:
Wow, this is such a cool choice of cover! I hadn't heard Superchunk in years, but this is great to hear. I love the lo-fi feel and the guitar tones.

Vocals sound great - is that a ribbon mic? I think the saturation may be a little too coloured in spots, but I love that warm sound. It's hard to know what to suggest. If you're after hyper polished rock, then I'd say you're way off - but if you're pitching in the general direction of The Breeders/early Pavement etc. then I think it's sounding pretty great.

Are you doing everything on 4 track, or are you doing some on a PC too? I reckon that even if you do nothing else, a limiter on the overall mix will make it sound 'bigger'. I don't know if you've added one to any of your stuff before, but I just ripped a chunk of your tune and ran it through one to demonstrate the difference if not: Hyper Enough limiter

Hope it helps man :)
Click to expand...

I can't believe someone remembers superchunk:guitar:

The limiter definitely sounds louder, and I think I used a peak limiter at the end of the chain. Maybe not. It sounds pretty cool your way.

I forget what vocal mic I used. I do own an LRM-1 ribbon and love it, but I can't remember if I used it on this song. I feel like it was either an RE-11 or Shure sphere-o-dyne 533SA (I'm leaning toward it being this mic because it's a hi-z harp mic and naturally breaks up a bit). I love recording vocals with harp mics for this reason and even use crystals here and there (if they have a good, responsive crystal).

I use a mix of pc and 4-track (tascam 244). I most happy you like the guitar tones -- those are actually sims that I put a lot of effort into getting presentable.
 
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i don't hear any timing issues anywhere on any instruments. i haven't heard this before, but I like it. Like someone above wrote, this style of music is almost a mix style in itself...so if this is the sound you're going for, then you're really close. Unlike some of the above posts, I didn't care too much for the saturation on the vox...i thought it was bit too much. it really distorts when they get louder, a bit too much for my taste. now i have to check out this Superchunk.
 
So I have never heard of these guys(and girl) so I found the song on youtube. Pretty cool song. Are you trying to emulate the song or do it in your own rendition?

First off, I do like your retro sound of the band. Just sound good and raw. However I do have a couple things. I think the drums can come up, at least the kick. Hard to hear. The guitar doesn't have as much drive as the original. The vocals are very inconsistent and at times very hard to hear. I am with andrush on too much saturation..and I really like saturation! I would consider background vocals just to bring that chorus part to life. When she drops down and sings it softly it just takes away from the energy of the song.

I do like the song though, I think you have something good here...just a few fixes.
 
Thanks guys. This was done a few months ago when I knew less, but it was just a project for fun so I probably won't mess with it. I'm just posting it to try and see what I can learn from it.

Regarding whether it was a straight cover, I'm not sure. It's nearly impossible to find tabs for songs like this, so I just played what I thought sounded right/close and went with it, then removed parts of the song I don't like (e.g. I am not a fan of the bridge in this song - the 2:11 mark in the official video on youtube). Brutish, from what I remember Superchunk doubled their guitars in the studio, so that could be why there isn't as much drive, but I also had to use sims since I have neighbors, and I'm sure that didn't help. I don't know how to record doubled guitars yet. When I saw them live in the 90s they had a thinner sound than on record, so I believe they probably doubled guitars on the record.

Superchunk is a great band. They're a punk/indie hybrid. My favorite record of theirs is called Tossing Seeds -- it's a collection of material from the late 80s through early 90s and very very good. I recommend that as a starting point for anyone interested in this band.
 
I liked it. I have never heard the original. I agree that the retro sound of the band is cool. I really like the guitar...the sound of it and the performance. It had a lot of attitude in the delivery and I love that. the vocalist really has a great voice and phrasing for this style. She got a little off pitch in a couple of places but overall very nice vocal.
Good job.
 
There is a definitely a timing issue with the guitar on the right, but it's not behind the drums; it's rushing. It's very consistent, so maybe there is a latency issue or something. ... strange.

I've never heard Superchunk before, so I don't know how the original sounds. The vibe of everything is very cool, and I dig the garage-rock thing. The vocals got fairly pitchy at several spots, but when she was on, she sounds really good. Guitars sound great, and I dig the drums too. Thanks for sharing -- fun song!
 
Hey thanks, Beagle. Your opinion means a lot so I'll look into all that. I knew something felt off with the timing
 
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