Dirt Roads - Original

DM60

DM60

Well-known member
OK, I think I have the mix pretty good. I started this one awhile ago. I have a whole album's worth of material. But when I was ready to push the button back in February, I just didn't think it had what it needed.

Reworking the songs, this is the start of the rework. If you can let me know if I am nearing the target, it would be greatly appreciated.
 
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I like the overall vibe of the song.

The verses are great. The chorus could be improved. It's a good chorus, but it needs some reinforcement.
The drum fills detract from the potential power of the chorus.

'I' got a million miles behind me..' (question / call)
(drum fill / answer)

The drums are kind of doing the answer, which can work, but I think another instrument
would do a better job.

'I'd be driving on dirt all the way..' (question / call)
(guitar lead / answer)

Some lead guitar / slide guitar or even some basic chord reinforcement with
a different sounding instrument (I hear lightly distorted guitars), to do the answer / response.

I find the kick drum a little bit 'stabby'. A more open sounding boomy kick might work better.

Enjoyed the song.
 
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I Really like the synth/pad sound , creates a cool mood for the song and sets up the vocals/lyrics very nice. Agree with previous post that a few guitar fills/leads would enhance song nicely.
 
I think the mix sounds Good. I'd love to hear some harmony Especially on the choruses and a few other phrases. I think your Very Nice voice could be brought up about a db. Great overall feel on this one. Loved it .. mark
 
nice tune!
the others before, all make good suggestions, i'd go with almost all of them.

the drum fills sound a bit too 'stock'. it'd almost be better to not have them, and let the drums just keep that hypnotic groove going..
otherwise, i'd choose some more 'left of center' drum fills.
the chorus would be very happy to have a harmony or two along with it.

again, nice tune DM60
 
Thank everyone. Since I didn't read any negatives on the mix, I will be looking at the production comments. My original has harmony and I agree, they should be there. I agree with everyone on the guitar lead.

Drums, I was using the drums as a que for the changes, the vocals and guitar were done in one take, so I needed a guide. I will revisit all the comments, very good and productive points.

Thanks to all, much appreciated.
 
Nice song. Not sure about the synth part. Maybe it needs to grow on me. Kinda reminds me of Moody Blues musically (probably the synth), but not so much vocally. The vocal also reminds me of someone, but it escapes me who at the moment. Nicely done.
 
Mid lows are a little muddy to me...
While I listen, I'm craving a drastic change... I want the vocal to really belt it out!
Try dropping this a step or two so you can jump up an octave.
(No, I generally don't practice what I preach lol) :)

Good voice!
 
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Follow up. Thanks to everyone for your suggestions. I think I am dialing in the sound and vibe I have been looking for.

Added harmonies, tried an experiment to get the vocals to sit well without being forward/on top.

I didn't do a lead per say, I tried adding some textures with the guitar. I am not the best guitar player, options are limited.
The backing vocals was pretty hard. I find my voice doesn't like to pitch that high in my "later" years. I think I pulled it off, but couldn't sustain that for a long period :).

Thanks once again to everyone who gave it a listen. Hopefully I get the album out in the next couple of months.
 
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DM60 said:
Follow up. Thanks to everyone for your suggestions. I think I am dialing in the sound and vibe I have been looking for.

Added harmonies, tried an experiment to get the vocals to sit well without being forward/on top.

I didn't do a lead per say, I tried adding some textures with the guitar. I am not the best guitar player, options are limited.
The backing vocals was pretty hard. I find my voice doesn't like to pitch that high in my "later" years. I think I pulled it off, but couldn't sustain that for a long period :).

Thanks once again to everyone who gave it a listen. Hopefully I get the album out in the next couple of months.
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Hate to say it, but I think I prefer the original one. There's a harshness to this version. Mostly in the synth I think. Makes it hard to listen to.

The vocals are clearer here though.
 
dachay2tnr said:
Hate to say it, but I think I prefer the original one. There's a harshness to this version. Mostly in the synth I think. Makes it hard to listen to.

The vocals are clearer here though.
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Let me revisit that. Not a hard fix. I might have bumped them up or changed something as I was working on getting the vocals right. Vocals screw up everything :)

Thanks for the feedback.
 
DM60 said:
Let me revisit that. Not a hard fix. I might have bumped them up or changed something as I was working on getting the vocals right. Vocals screw up everything :)

Thanks for the feedback.
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That’s funny, I enjoyed the second mix better. A definite improvement to me. Only thing that jumped out to me (treated room with Neumann KH120, medium volume) was that the vocals are a little too loud in the verses. They sit PERFECTLY in the chorus. Listen, for example, to the transition right around 1:10 where it becomes apparent. It would make the overall volume of the verses a just little lower, but in turn make the choruses bigger with more impact. I really think this simple change would help a ton. People would turn up the volume of the song to the right level at the beginning, then the chorus would surround the listener a little more. Pure magic!

You have a great voice, and this tune has a really cool feel to it. It’s not necessarily my main genre, but I delve into this type of music periodically …so I’m definitely looking forward to hearing what you have next.

Also, let me know if you need some guitar work. This would be a fun one to collaborate on.
 
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Flyguitarfish said:
That’s funny, I enjoyed the second mix better. A definite improvement to me. Only thing that jumped out to me (treated room with Neumann KH120, medium volume) was that the vocals are a little too loud in the verses. They sit PERFECTLY in the chorus. Listen, for example, to the transition right around 1:10 where it becomes apparent. It would make the overall volume of the verses a little lower, but in turn make the choruses bigger with more impact. I really think this simple change would help a ton. People would turn up the volume of the song to the right level at the beginning, then the chorus would surround the listener a little more. Pure magic!

You have a great voice, and this tune has a really cool feel to it. It’s not necessarily my main genre, but I delve into this type of music periodically …so I’m definitely looking forward to hearing what you have next.

Also, let me know if you need some guitar work. This would be a fun one to collaborate on.
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Thank you for the listen and the feedback. I am still working out the final, so your input is noted. I have noticed the closer I get my mixes to the way I like them, the more the little things start to pop out. So thanks a bunch for the response.

Always looking to expand my music, any additional creative inputs would always be welcomed. As a stated, I play guitar only to create music, I am not the best and a good guitar player would be great.
 
DM60 said:
Thank you for the listen and the feedback. I am still working out the final, so your input is noted. I have noticed the closer I get my mixes to the way I like them, the more the little things start to pop out. So thanks a bunch for the response.

Always looking to expand my music, any additional creative inputs would always be welcomed. As a stated, I play guitar only to create music, I am not the best and a good guitar player would be great.
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You bet! Take it or leave it, but they are my opinions and I stand by them!

That’s just like me with drums/vocals. I’ve done my best to pick them up over the years so I can make music. I’m definitely stronger at guitar and bass (though there were some sloppy parts I leave in a lot of my tunes because it’s mostly punk rock and I have very limited time to write/record!).
 
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