Courtesan's Lament -- two mixes -- which is better?

  • Thread starter Thread starter zacanger
  • Start date Start date
zacanger

zacanger

musician and audodidact
Here's two different versions of the same song. Hayley (singer, synth) hated the first one, everyone else I've asked hates the second one. I'm thinking of doing a third going in an entirely different direction, but I don't know just yet.
Any comments, advice, opinions?
First mix
Second mix
Thanks,
-Zac
 
It’s quite a good song.

The first mix is better. (That's the one with less distant room sound on the vocal.)

Here’s what I notice, just my opinion: the vocal is well performed and recorded, and sounds best with minimal effects. Some angst there and it comes through best without gimmicks. The drums are played well but the sound is too distant and roomy, with some distortion on the cymbals. The sine wave keyboard line that goes throughout isn’t very expressive and detracts from the dark message of the vocal… a gtr or bass gtr doing the same line could be good.

Keep working on it. Lots of potential there.
 
I say first mix for sure:D

As far as mix A goes, if it was me............

I would totally dry the vocals off until the drums come in.
The synth get resonant on a certain note at the point the track gets centered in the mix. If nothing else I would pull some gain from the synth once it centers maybe a hi pass too. Drums get pretty destorted/over compressed sounding as the song goes along. Vocals sound very nice! I would make them the highlight of the song and bring everything else down around them.

In general it seems like the song should sound more open than it does to me.

Cool stuff. Looking forward to the next installment;)

F.S.
 
I like the first mix better but, the synth gets a bit annoying after a while and the drums get very muddy. The vocals are the heart of this song and everything should be built around them....sometimes less is more!
 
Interesting material there.

I think I'd use mix 1 as a starting point. But IMO, the mix is too static, I'd try to put more dynamics in it. The mix should build up towards the "life is my cabaret"-line and break down directly afterwards, featuring the "hook"-keyboard line more until the vocals come back in. Maybe try to gradually increase the distortion on the drums and maybe also change the keyboard sound throughout the song.
 
Timothy -- Thanks! Actually, the drum tracks are entirely distorted -- because of my extremely limited equipment, I can only record a stereo pair at a time, so that's the entire drum send being distorted. Unfortunately I can't get rid of the roominess, really, because it's a huge room I've got to record in. I may yet be able to convince Hayley to let me change the synth. Thanks!

FS -- Thanks! I'll work out something for the synth, then. Vocals are definitely the focal point of any of our songs. I'm having trouble transitioning from doing mostly instrumental or guitar-based rock to this... hehe. Thanks!

JPW -- Thanks! The consensus seems to be the drums get to be too much and the synth is too bland.

Nessbass -- Thanks!
 
first mix was better here. i agree with the comments on the synth. i kind of liked the drums.
 
I like the first one. BTW in your second mix what's your vocal fx? Double sounds quite interesting.
 
TheHunter said:
I like the first one. BTW in your second mix what's your vocal fx? Double sounds quite interesting.
Click to expand...

No FX, actually, on that one. The first mix has the same vocal track copied with different distortions on it, but the second just has three good takes of the vocals, two of them with mics picking up a lot of the room.
 
Alrighty, here's a new mix, working on making it more focused around the vox and less monotonous.
Mix 3
 
zacanger said:
Alrighty, here's a new mix, working on making it more focused around the vox and less monotonous.
Mix 3
Click to expand...
This is probably the best of the 3....I liked some aspects of the other 2, but this has teh best overall feel. Maybe bring the drums up just a hair.
 
I think a bass would help fill things out some (especially if it's a good bass line). 3 sounds different here but not better or worse.
 
I still like mix 1 best. I think it frames the vocal better. But I'd replace the synth with a distorted elec gtr.

zacanger said:
Unfortunately I can't get rid of the roominess, really, because it's a huge room I've got to record in.
Click to expand...
So just round up some scrap lumber, some old carpet or blankets, and make some gobos.
 
Last edited:
Timothy Lawler said:
I still like mix 1 best. I think it frames the vocal better. But I'd replace the synth with a distorted elec gtr.

So just round up some scrap lumber, some old carpet or blankets, and make some gobos.
Click to expand...

You'd be surprised at how much scrap lumber is around when you go looking. I needed some once and came home after a couple of hours of looking with a truck bed full. Mostly scavenged from construction site dumpsters. I probably saved a couple hundred $.
 
The thing is, our band is strictly synth and drums. Even the synth is a little wacky for us -- usually organ. So using a guitar or bass would be way out of the question.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top