Untrained singer looking for feedback

Big Thier

Member
Hi guys, I usually post in the mix section but this time I would like some feedback/critics on my singing. I've been singing for about 4 years, but have never taken lessons (I know I should, and I will soon). Obviously, my vocals are heavily tuned on my songs, but I'm looking to identify mistakes in the way I sing, like my breathing, if I strain too much, etc. Also, any comments about my vocal range, if it is considered average or high for a male, and if I'm a tenor or what. Thank you.

Music | Eve Of Spring
 
If you use autotune, I am not sure you need any special "breathing" technique. As for range, the range of autotune should be available in the software package specification.

The questions you have asked relate more to singing without autotune. Nothing wrong with singing for autotune, if that is the way you want to go. That itself is likely to become an artform (but I know nothing about it). Autotune is now a sound.

If you are asking about singing raw, so to speak, a clip of your singing with the background music very quiet or muted would be most helpful.
 
Autotune is now a sound.

If you're referring to that overused, beaten to death Autoune "chirp" that's been used by every R&B artists for the last 10 years...and that was originally first used by Cher on her "Believe" song...

...no, it is not a "now sound"...and people need to simply STOP using it as a vocal effect.
It's done...over...just STOP.

AFA using autotune for actual pitch correction (without the "chirp" effect)...hey, do what you have to. Even the best vocalists need some help, and are not able to always hit everything perfectly. You just don't want to depend on autotune as a way making you sound better as a singer.

To the OP...

The vocals in the first song (left to right) are reaching way to far. Basically there are just too many words to phrase comfortably within that rhythm.
Your vocal timing is off throughout...and you are struggling to keep up.
Also...the melody is almost monotone throughout...I don't think there are more than 3 notes in the entire vocal melody.
You can do better than that.

The other two songs are a bit better, and show slightly more developed melodies, but I thihnk you can do better to lose the monotone sound,...also our phrasing is more in sync with the song rhythm. I think you just need a bit more work...but in the last song, your vocals sound the most improved...but just STOP with the autotune "chirp" FX...:facepalm: ...it really is old news.
Don't depend on that to give your vocals some kind of catchy "ear candy"...because it just makes you sound like you're late to the party.
Just go for natural singing without any FX...that's what works best 100% of the time.
 
If you're referring to that overused, beaten to death Autoune "chirp" that's been used by every R&B artists for the last 10 years...and that was originally first used by Cher on her "Believe" song...

...no, it is not a "now sound"...and people need to simply STOP using it as a vocal effect.
It's done...over...just STOP.

You might not like it, but..

...it is becoming an art form. There are whole genres being built around it, deliberately going for that sound.

I can't stand the sound, but I also can't pretend that it is not happening. It may have started off as a pitch correction tool, but some people seem to have acquired a taste for the cheap and awful sound, lol. I suspect that its success is due mainly to cost savings in production, allowing the sound to be pushed cheaply.
 
...it is becoming an art form. There are whole genres being built around it, deliberately going for that sound.

Ahh...it's been used that way for the last 15 years now...so there's no "becoming" to it.
It's sounds very dated to still hear that on new songs these days. :rolleyes:

It would be like hearing a wah-wah pedal on every new Rock song...when the wah-wah kinda had its glory days many years ago....
 
Thier, it's going to be important to establish whether you're intentionally trying to create the robotic effect with autotune, or if if you're trying to remove imperfections in your vocals to make everything sound smooth.
It's pretty common for vocals and backing vocals in your genre to be unnaturally perfect; It's part of the sound but the robotic transition thing isn't particularly common there, I don't think.
If you're 'achieving' that unintentionally I'd suggest some practice with your tuning plugin, paying particular attention to making transitions between notes more natural then using the plugin to smooth out variations in the sustained note.

If, however, you're intentionally going for the robotic transitions, I have to agree with Miro in that it's really sounding dated these days.
No doubt there are still people doing it and, no doubt, sounding flawless through use of autotune is, unfortunately, more or less a requirement these days in commercial pop,
but my personal opinion would be to ease up on the transitions.

I know none of this is what you asked for, but hopefully it's helpful anyway. :)

I'd say it's more like using reverb than wah-wah in that it really is a staple now in commercial music and you're probably not even aware of it half of the time, but there are ways you can use it which will sound very dated.
 
Yeah well, I like very smooth vocals, and I'm not very good at singing, so I always tell the guy that corrects my vocals to go heavy on the tuning. I'm not trying to sound like Cher or T-Pain, and I don't think I do. But thanks for the comments, a lot of people bring it up. For my next song I'll try to go easier on the tuning.
 
Ah someone else does the tuning? Ok.
If you mention to him that you don't want the unnatural transition sound, he should know what you mean. :)
 
Ahh...it's been used that way for the last 15 years now...so there's no "becoming" to it.
It's sounds very dated to still hear that on new songs these days. :rolleyes:

It would be like hearing a wah-wah pedal on every new Rock song...when the wah-wah kinda had its glory days many years ago....

The nonsense is taking over in West Africa. Not dated at all, there, for example.

9ja pop (Nigerian pop), for example, which is very popular from West Africa through to Zimbabwe.

The problem there now is finding MODERN music that does NOT have that ghastly sound.

Yes, the sound has been around for some time, but now it has become established.

Trouble has been that the rhythm has always been the selling point to the detriment of the melody.

 
Yeah well, I like very smooth vocals, and I'm not very good at singing, so I always tell the guy that corrects my vocals to go heavy on the tuning. I'm not trying to sound like Cher or T-Pain, and I don't think I do. But thanks for the comments, a lot of people bring it up. For my next song I'll try to go easier on the tuning.

If you're not going for that "chirp" effect...then tuning of the vocals should NOT be heard/obvious at all...so yeah, pull back on that.
The idea is to tune them so they sound natural, without obvious tuning...and not noticeably tuned, since then people will slag you for that. :)
 
The nonsense is taking over in West Africa.

Most new Rock/Pop/R&B sounds originate in the USA or GB...sometimes in France or Germany...and then from there that new "sound" spreads.
The fact that some places adopt it and hang on to it longer than they should or longer than it's still popular worldwide...doesn't make it or keep it "fresh".

I love a lot of the older Pop music of West Africa and Zimbabwe, stuff from the 80s/90s. There often are so many flavors and influences mixed into a unified "sound" with a lot of that music...but without any disrespect intended, the autotune "chirp" thing is pretty dead everywhere else in the world, and anyone using it, is quickly dated by it....especially if you are making new Pop music in the USA or Europe...but for West Africa it may still be the hot ticket. :)
 
The fact that some places adopt it and hang on to it longer than they should or longer than it's still popular worldwide...doesn't make it or keep it "fresh".

Nah. That's just Eurocentric.

Yes, some sounds are not relevant to particular genres, today, but the world of music is big, and there is no "should".

A lot of African music catches on in Germany, Japan, China (increasingly), etc. Nobody rules the roost.
 
Lol, but I don't sound like that though, do I? The African song?

He! he! No.

I deliberately went to look for an extreme example. And you don't have the right accent, lol. (Even I don't, quite have it.)

I was debating with some folk who had influence in the genre to please, please do something about the scourge that is blighting a region that was once so inspirational and influential on the music scene. Finally, I had to admit that it was only my own prejudice kicking in. You don't know which turn music will take. For sure that stuff is being exported from Africa, and it could end up anywhere.

---------- Update ----------

...little bit. :eek:

Stop scaring him, man!
 
Oh, wow. Well...

I really liked it all when it first started. I thought, this is my stuff. But those vocals are killing the vibe, dude. The tuning is VERY apparent. And really not in a good way. It's so obvious, and it isn't flattering to the music. I'm commenting on the fist song right now, it's all I've listened to thus far. But I will check out the rest since I like what this could be.

You need natural vocals here. Promise you. They don't have to be completely untuned, but they can't be as obvious as they are right now... I can literally hear the chopping of the words between phrases (bad editing) and then the note transitions as well. Fix those vocals and you'll have something really good here.

Importantly, don't overlook the comment someone gave you above about the lack of melody in the first song. My mind went to so many different notes when listening to that verse, and you didn't hit a single one of them...you just stayed in a comfort spot that portrayed little emotion and went with bland instead of confidence. Every other line in that verse has the potential to do something great and full of emotion with the array of melodies that are available to you, but you chose to repeat the same thing over and over. I'd rethink that one man.

Really, the guitars sound great. I could take something from this, as far as that goes. But the vocal editing/mixing/delivery needs work. But listen, it's all there! You have what you need. You're just not using it right. That's better than not having it at all. Just means you need to take time and develop a better melody, hit those notes the best you can (do 10-12 takes of the entire song all the way through, then pick the best lines later), and keep the tuning to a minimum. If you can hear it, it's not right. This isn't TPain, it's alt rock...just a nudge is all it needs - not a t-bone accident at the intersection. Don't overdo it.

Also, there's way too many words throughout. You can do an overbearing verse, or sections of a verse, but that theme carries on for too long. There's no chance for tension buildup. It's just constant - and then, I ask, what is the point of that instrumental slowdown at the end of the chorus? If the lyrics are going the same pace throughout, it seems odd that the music is slowing down.

Your vocal tone is very good and it fits this genre well. I would spend more time developing the lyrical meter and flow, and find the musical theme of the vocals in relation to the music.
 
Your timbre is good you just need to stop autotuning. I'd rather hear you off pitch than auto-tuned.
 
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