Been a long time...a couple new mixes (indie rock type music)
- Thread starter Nola
- Start date
Random dude
Well-known member
I'm not going to comment on the mixes because I care more about how songs make me feel, as opposed to the technical aspects. I will say that I love the vibe in all these songs. Genuinely happy music. I love it. Who's singing?
Random dude
Well-known member
....a few hours later......
Holy crap, I can't stop listening to "Snow Day". That's one of the most beautiful home recorded songs I've ever heard. I can't even describe how this song makes me feel.
I'm really glad I heard this song today.
I'm a little high, but I didn't need the high to enjoy this song. I needed this song to enjoy the high.
Holy crap, I can't stop listening to "Snow Day". That's one of the most beautiful home recorded songs I've ever heard. I can't even describe how this song makes me feel.
I'm really glad I heard this song today.
I'm a little high, but I didn't need the high to enjoy this song. I needed this song to enjoy the high.
Nola
Well-known member
....a few hours later......
Holy crap, I can't stop listening to "Snow Day". That's one of the most beautiful home recorded songs I've ever heard. I can't even describe how this song makes me feel.
I'm really glad I heard this song today.
I'm a little high, but I didn't need the high to enjoy this song. I needed this song to enjoy the high.
Oh wow, thanks so much, random dude. The song is about being a kid and hearing on the radio you had the day off from school. I loved that as a kid and wanted to make a song about it. That's my partner, Emily, singing! She does drums and vocals. I do guitar and sometimes bass and vocals. Then we have some friends in the band, too, who do violin and bass. If you have a YT please follow us because we have a lot more stuff coming out over the next few months.
Random dude
Well-known member
Yeah, I just subscribed.
You know who "Snow Day" reminds me of? You ever hear of Vashti Bunyan? Same kind of positive, uplifting vibe. Emily doesn't necessarily sound like her. But it feels the same.
You know who "Snow Day" reminds me of? You ever hear of Vashti Bunyan? Same kind of positive, uplifting vibe. Emily doesn't necessarily sound like her. But it feels the same.
Nola
Well-known member
Thanks, Dobro. VU are my biggest influence, though probably not my favorite band. But as an influence, yes, definitely.
Is there anything wrong with the mixes where the mix itself is getting in the way of the songs? As a band we're trying to figure out if home recording and my mixes are good enough, or if we should go into a studio.
Random dude
Well-known member
There's nothing "WRONG" with the mixes. The songs still put across the vibe you're trying to get across. There are a few little things that might make them better, though.
For me, the biggest thing is that you seem to have treated the drums as an afterthought. Same beat all the way though, weak drum sounds, and pretty low in the mix. But it doesn't ruin anything for me, and I'm a drummer.
Musically, there's one note that bothers me in "Snow Day", and it's recurring. On the main melody that the vocals do and the guitar repeats, you're ending the line on an "E" note, but it's falling on an "F" chord. So, it leaves it hanging instead of resolving the phrase and giving the listener the satisfaction that the rest of the song gives. I would either go right to an "F" note instead of the "E"...OR....Still hit the "E" but then finish it on an "F". I hope you know what I mean.
I still adore "Snow Day" as is.
Nola
Well-known member
Thanks, that actually helps a lot. Our drummer is our singer and she simplifies the beats to sing/play at the same time (we record drums, guitar, vocals live in one take to give it a more live sound with room bleed that we like). She's also new to drumming...basically our last few drummers were so busy we just moved her to drums to force things to be simple. So we're definitely very simplistic there. Maybe too much so, though, yeah.
Oh yeah I know what you mean with the E. The chords are C-Fmaj7 mostly with some Cmaj7 to Fmaj7 at times, so that E on the F chord I thought was fine since the E is in the Fmaj7 chord (F-A-C-E notes). Wasn't there an uber theory guy, Beagle here? Is he still around? I'd be curious to hear his thoughts on that! Thanks for the feedback.
Eric Malone
Member
I liked both of them. Great songwriting. 'You and Me' is my favorite of the two. The timing starts to fall apart near the end, but that's all fixable.
I don't mind the non resolving on Snow Day. I'd have no songs if I followed music theory.
Sound-wise, I like it. It's kinda lo-fi - but I think that adds to the whole vibe. It can be bumped up a level just from a bit of remixing with what you have. (minus the timing issues, need to retrack that). You've got the hard stuff out of the way - writing good songs.
I don't mind the non resolving on Snow Day. I'd have no songs if I followed music theory.
Sound-wise, I like it. It's kinda lo-fi - but I think that adds to the whole vibe. It can be bumped up a level just from a bit of remixing with what you have. (minus the timing issues, need to retrack that). You've got the hard stuff out of the way - writing good songs.
Random dude
Well-known member
Yeah, just to be clear, I don't care about music theory either.
I didn't figure out the chords and melody and then conclude it's not "right". It was the other way around. I heard something that sounded weird to me and then figured out the chords and melody so that I could explain it.
But, either way, it's just opinions, nothing more.
I didn't figure out the chords and melody and then conclude it's not "right". It was the other way around. I heard something that sounded weird to me and then figured out the chords and melody so that I could explain it.
But, either way, it's just opinions, nothing more.
dobro
Well-known member
Exactly. That's why I didn't comment on the mix - I wasn't sure what you were trying to achieve - kinda lofi or something more standard. So... anyway... what were you trying to achieve with the mix?
Nola
Well-known member
Something that sounded good to me (I kinda like VU and those older lofi sounds), but where it wasn’t so lofi people would turn it off.
If my recording gets in the way, I’ll bring the band into a studio because I think this is the best I can do at home.
famous beagle
Well-known member
Hey Nola,
I just checked out the song, and yeah, that note doesn't bother me at all. As you said, it's the major 7th of the Fmaj7 chord, so there's that. But even if you were just playing an F chord instead of Fmaj7, I doubt the note would bother me. It's very pretty, and it's a well-established melodic device in pop music: that major 3rd of the key (the E note, in the key of C) against the IV chord (F). It is subjective, of course - it may bother some people, but not me at all.
I think it's just a matter of the song's vocabulary. Right from the opening guitar hook, you're establishing that strong major 7th tonality right away over the F. (You even play the major 7th of the C chord as well in the higher octave.) And the melody is almost all (if not entirely - I can't remember) C major pentatonic, so that's firmly established as well.
Anyway, yes, it is technically a dissonance, but it's one that I think most people find pleasing.
As for the songs, I really enjoyed them. You have a simplicity in your writing that's deceptively hard to do (for many of us). You and CrowsofFritz seem to have that in common. Thanks for sharing. I can definitely hear the VU influence for sure, but it doesn't sound derivative, IMO.
As for the mixes, I think they sound nice overall. The weakest link to me is the vocal sound. They sound pretty dull, IMO - so much so that I'm having a really hard time understanding the majority of the lyrics. It kind of sounds as though they were recorded by singing through a PA and miking the PA speaker or something.
What mic are you using for the vocals?
Sorry ... I don't mean to go on and on. It's just that the rest of the instruments all sound one way, and the vocals stick out to me, so I'd like to know what's causing it. I really enjoy the songs!
I just checked out the song, and yeah, that note doesn't bother me at all. As you said, it's the major 7th of the Fmaj7 chord, so there's that. But even if you were just playing an F chord instead of Fmaj7, I doubt the note would bother me. It's very pretty, and it's a well-established melodic device in pop music: that major 3rd of the key (the E note, in the key of C) against the IV chord (F). It is subjective, of course - it may bother some people, but not me at all.
I think it's just a matter of the song's vocabulary. Right from the opening guitar hook, you're establishing that strong major 7th tonality right away over the F. (You even play the major 7th of the C chord as well in the higher octave.) And the melody is almost all (if not entirely - I can't remember) C major pentatonic, so that's firmly established as well.
Anyway, yes, it is technically a dissonance, but it's one that I think most people find pleasing.
As for the songs, I really enjoyed them. You have a simplicity in your writing that's deceptively hard to do (for many of us). You and CrowsofFritz seem to have that in common. Thanks for sharing. I can definitely hear the VU influence for sure, but it doesn't sound derivative, IMO.
As for the mixes, I think they sound nice overall. The weakest link to me is the vocal sound. They sound pretty dull, IMO - so much so that I'm having a really hard time understanding the majority of the lyrics. It kind of sounds as though they were recorded by singing through a PA and miking the PA speaker or something.
What mic are you using for the vocals?
Sorry ... I don't mean to go on and on. It's just that the rest of the instruments all sound one way, and the vocals stick out to me, so I'd like to know what's causing it. I really enjoy the songs!
Nola
Well-known member
Thanks, Beagle! I was hoping you'd chime in on the theory. I remember reading an article years ago that literally everyone hears music slightly differently, so it doesn't surprise me that dissonance would bother some and not others. I don't even hear it as dissonance tbh, but instead more as the natural note against that maj7 chord and sticking with pentatonic as you noted and the song's main motif. When I tried going up to an F yesterday to experiment it lost the pentatonic sound and actually sounded more strange to me because the motif changed. But I get why someone else would hear it differently and want that resolution on the chord.
I actually forget what mic I used. My guess is a Shure 545S Unidyne III (the old made in USA one) since that's what I use for most things. It's like the old precursor to the SM57. But it might have been an Se V7 - sometimes when tracking live I use that because it's pattern blocks out a lot of bleed. It's more of a live mic, but I kinda like it for other things. I like to record the band playing together in the room for that old-timey sound of the room with bleed, so I'm wondering if that's what you're hearing. There probably is some bleed between mics into the mix. Thanks for your comments. I love when you talk theory!
famous beagle
Well-known member
Yeah, I was thinking the same thing; it wouldn't sound as good to me if you played F there, because the melodic theme would be compromised. And that's what's driving the musical phrase at that point, IMO.
I like the vibe of both songs. I like the stripped down sound. Cool sounding rhythm guitar. They're both have a very narrow stereo spread, but it works well with the stripped down sound.
The vocal has a lot of reverb and is slightly buried, which makes it a bit hard to understand. Words at the end of lines get real soft. Some timing things. Quite a few pitch issues.
Great feel to the songs though.
The vocal has a lot of reverb and is slightly buried, which makes it a bit hard to understand. Words at the end of lines get real soft. Some timing things. Quite a few pitch issues.
Great feel to the songs though.
HumanPlanet
*Gen Xer*
It's been interesting reading the comments regarding the chords and melody, I wouldn't change a thing there.
Mix wise (Snow Day), I like the simplicity of what you've done but I think if you'd have sent this to me I'd have gone more this way with it (without the artifacts introduced in stemming it out!):
View attachment Snow Day.mp3
Keeping it simple, a bit less lofi and focusing on Emily's vocal.
Lovely song.
Mix wise (Snow Day), I like the simplicity of what you've done but I think if you'd have sent this to me I'd have gone more this way with it (without the artifacts introduced in stemming it out!):
View attachment Snow Day.mp3
Keeping it simple, a bit less lofi and focusing on Emily's vocal.
Lovely song.
Nola
Well-known member
Thanks, 3M!
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Nola
Well-known member
Thanks, HP. That's super interesting to hear a different mix. Bass seems louder, too? My guitar parts! Gone. Haha.
How did you even do that without the tracks??
I like that more muted tone on the bass. What did you EQ out of it? Sounds more like motown bass now, which is an awesome sound.