New Nerd Rock Song - Monsters All Along

  • Thread starter Thread starter VomitHatSteve
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VomitHatSteve

VomitHatSteve

Hat STYLE. Not contents.
It's about old horror movies!

MP3 Tab

As always, comments, critiques, and comparable constructive criticisms are coveted.

(Bonus points for alliteration!)
 
Cool song... Great energy to the tune & the playing seems tight. Production is pretty lo-fi, but I'm guessing that's what you're going for. The thing that I think you need to do is get the vocals really audible... they don't have to be shiny & glossy, just compress/automate them more thoroughly so that when you turn your monitors right down, you can still hear every word.
 
Very interesting percussion sounds, Steve... I like it! Also - I'm listening to this on my monitors, and the levels are incredibly low... Might wanna consider pumping up the jam just a bit.

also - the guitars could probably be brought up a bit.. They're almost an afterthought as is...

haha... "Plunder and Party until we puke" I love it!

Also... I'm noticing that your drums are quite dry... Maybe consider a bit of plated verb on em'?

Nice job. I'm gonna go to sleep now.
 
Very well-written song, Steve, good hookline.
The lo-fi approach fits this style a lot. Nice vocal harmonies.
This is definitely one of your best for me.

Joey :)
 
Alright FF, I'll see about getting those vocals more out front. (I use pretty minimal automation because it's so much work, and I'm lazy!)

PI, it occurs to me that I never did get around to putting reverb on most of the drums. It just slipped my mind. huh.
When you say levels are low, which levels do you mean? Specific voices or the whole song? Or does it just seem too quiet and subdued because the guitars are too low?

Thanks Joey.

"You must spread some reputation around..." *shakes fist!*
Well even if you don't get rep for it. Thank you guys.
 
lol nerd rock at its finest....yeah the vocals are a little buried at parts (more in the first verse), harmonies are great...backing band all suitably lo fi .....good job Steve :)
 
I can dig the lo-fi gargae rock vibe on this...like the fuzzy guitars! Drums are quirky...tight...great song!!
 
(Bonus points for alliteration!)
Well why would we wait?
Surely steve's stuff still sounds singularly swell?
Better bring my bonus, bitch.

I find it hard to think of mixing criticisms for songs that have such a peculiarly consistent sound to them. So take with salt.
Maybe I'd like to hear some of the background sounds more clearly. I'm talking about e.g. that semi-random sounding flute-synth? But then again maybe not. 1:36-2:00 the snare seems a bit overpowering. It's clearly supposed to be whack whack whack but I think I'm missing a bass-drum type of sound to counter the whacks. Or maybe I don't. 1:59 on is neat. I'm starting to look forward to your song posts.
 
When you say levels are low, which levels do you mean? Specific voices or the whole song? Or does it just seem too quiet and subdued because the guitars are too low?

Whole song. I listened to Keith's house tune prior to this one, and I had to turn my levels *way* up to even be able to discern the vocals.
 
KCEarl, Thanks! Ok. I'll do another mix this evening and turn up the vox a bit.

queepy, Thank you!

Speak, I'm clicking the rep button as fast as I can! It turns out there's no mechanic for awarding extra bonus points, so you win 1 Internet instead. I can see what you're saying with the snare on the bridge. I was going for that driving, punk beat, but the kick is a little light isn't it?
 
Whole song. I listened to Keith's house tune prior to this one, and I had to turn my levels *way* up to even be able to discern the vocals.

Hmmm... I normalized the final track. Perhaps I need to compress the final product too?
 
I love the song. I thought it was great - both musically and lyrically.

I think the kick might be a little too loud.

I didn't care for the trashy/distorted snare sound. It was OK I suppose, but I think a more natural sounding snare would fit this song better. Personal preference thing.

The little keyboard thing that plays every once in a while is tough to hear. Maybe a high-mid boost might help it. I think you could get away with it without it getting harsh.
 
Ok. The original link now points to the new mix.

First mix.
Second mix.

The vocals are a smidge louder, especially in the parts where they were really quiet.

The kick is louder on the bridge to match the snare.

The drums have some reverb now.

The guitars are a little louder.

And the whole thing is compressed to bring overall (perceived?) levels up.

Let me know what you think
 
Sounds good man. I like the guitar tone. The mix sounds pretty good. I like the ambiance of it.
 
Levels now sound much louder which is good, however, now the vocals are a bit buried during the verses, and the keyboard sound is all but totally drown out by the guitars. Headin' in the right direction, IMO, though...
 
Still love the song.

I'd compress the vocal just a little harder. Words here and there get lost, especially in the verses at the end of phrases.

Still have to say I don't like the snare sound. I want something that really cuts through the mix and smacks me in the face. The distorted sound isn't doing it for me.

Minor complaints really. Cool song and mix.
 
yeah Steve the general instruments sound better in the second mix but the vocals are a little too low...nearly there mate :)
 
Alright, I'll see if I can find time tonight to do a third mix.
 
The kick is louder on the bridge to match the snare.
Yes it is. Good! I'd up it in the chorus too. There's still the synth that's a bit too quiet to my taste. It sounds very cool so I'd just like to hear it more. Same goes for the "snare" on every fourth beat in the chorus. You've used that sound in some of your other songs as well and it's neat but almost drowning. Details, details, the whole thing's still great.
 
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