First step into real drums

J

Jags

New member
This is the first song I've recorded for a while, bit different from my old stuff, i'd probably describe it as cooler. Bit more authentic too. I'm not too happy with the vocals, especially nearer the start, and I'm pretty sure the mix is muddy, particularly when it starts to kick in, but I have no monitors or even stereo to speak of at the moment. Even if I did I still wouldn't know where to start! Anyway, what do you think?

Jags

"Dragon Sky" - just under 3 minutes long, so it's not a big file.
www.ampcast.com/jags
 
Sorry, Jags- I tried. For some reason it doesn't yet give me the option to play "Dragon Sky"- maybe the site hasn't posted the mp3 yet? I'll check back in a day or two.

Take care,
Chris
 
I only uploaded it last night so I guess that's why it can't be played. I'm sure ampcast used to convert mp3's for streaming within minutes of the upload... good to see they're keeping up the standards now they're a subscription based service!!

I'll post here again when it becomes playable, sorry about that.

Jags
 
Well, real to the extent that it was a real kit and me playing. However it wasn't real time, i recorded each drum seperately then edited a bit to make up for my inadequacies on drums. It was the best I could do with one mic, i toyed with recording the whole part live with just the one mic on the drums but thought this would give a better sounding result.

Ampcast still isn't allowing the song to be streamed, what's going on?!

Thanks for listening shackrock. :)

Jags
 
Kick sounds good,but the snare sounds metallic.

I'm sure if you got the kick to sound that good,with some work on the snare it will be right there.

Everything else sounded fine.
Nice singing too!

How did you record the acoustic guitar,really good sound!

There are some bumps in the recording,like a record skipping,I don't know what would cause that?

Sounds good

Best to you,
Pete
 
The streaming link is up but I kept getting a connection lost error. My cable has been kinda flakey so it could be me.
 
thanks muzeman. I think that the problem with the snare sound is more a symptom of the actual snare more than anything else, very cheap and plasticy! I'll try mucking around with it to see if i can improve it though.

I recorded the acoustic guitar using a shure 58beta through a joe meek pre amp/compressor and straight into the soundcard line in. I think the mic was pretty much level with the soundhole(?) and pretty close (3/4 inches). I also copied the whole track in cubase and pasted it into another track which was discreetly placed on the right hand side with a different reverb, maybe that contributed? Oh yeah, i used a different guitar for the rhythm part later on too, the first part was played on my brothers jumbo acoustic which I don't much like the tone of, so i changed to my smaller, sweeter sounding electroacoustic for the latter parts!

I don't know what the bumps you mentioned are? Possbily just the mp3, but i did sample a couple of things, the keyboard loops, which i played myself then cut up, and the 'ladies and gentlemen' bits, answers on a postcard if you can guess where that came from! Possibly also something to do with the change in time signature?

Tex, I just managed to stream the lofi version on a different computer, so it is working. Maybe ampcast is still picky about which playback software you have to use?? I thought they'd fixed that. The default that loaded up when i tried it was quicktime, not the most popular app I imagine.

Anyway, sorry about that, thanks for trying!

Jags
 
hey jags,

sounds pretty good.. I agree with muze about the metallic sounding snare..

There were a few good vocal harmonies that reminded me of 'Depeche Mode'....and the song was interesting... I like the mood... The things I didn't like would probably be personal preference....

Good Job
 
thanks b.sabbath, it's always good to know you've created a pleasing mood! Something I aim to put across. Like the depeche mode comparison ;)

Jags
 
the bass drum was kinda muddy/thumpy sounding and the snare was pretty shrill sounding...very opposite in spectrum to the bass. Vocals had some very noticeable effect(s) on them, that made them harder to understand, and made them sound separate of the entire mix. Some weird stuff, though...better in headphones than the speakers for me...
 
thanks mixmkr, there are definitely a few things which are just loud enough to be picked up or become more apparent through headphones, I like adding stuff like that!

I've rerecorded some of the vocals, so now the first part is an octave lower, but the original vocals are still in there backing it up. I made a few tweaks to the mix, i hope that the bass drum/ snare issues have been improved a bit... I think the snare is definitely 'fuller', but it's not perfect!

Strangely, the new version can already be streamed!

Thanks

Jags

www.ampcast.com/jags
 
The snare sounds better,mabey lower the volume on it?

This is a really good song,nice melody and production!

Still getting those bumps,if nobody else is getting them must be my connection.

Best to you,
Pete
 
Thanks again muzeman, nice to know the snare sound has been improved by what i did! I'll take your advice concerning volume.

What/where are these bumps, is it a subtle thing, that i might not have picked up on or is it more a problem with the file?

Thanks :)

Jags
 
Jags,

Sounds like a problem with the file.
Mabey someone else can listen and see if they hear it?

Looking foward to hearing the finished song.

Best to you,
Pete
 
I think it must be a problem with the file. I've changed the timing of one or two of the cymbals which might have been an iota out, but I'm not sure if that's what you were talking about!

Anyway, thanks again, I'll keep working on it...

Jags
 
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