Funk Song, which i did all myself.

R

Rassoodocks

New member
hrm... well this is kind of a overly funky funk song that has a slightly melancholy name/theme. I couldn't help following in the footsteps of so many mega dorky jazz muso's who play a funky tune and sing about lost love. This isn't quite lost love, but it's not s club 7.
Click the link, get the song!



this is my third mix with my new gear. Also, my first bass line i've bothered recording. I'm a guitarist singer. The drumming is ok, for my standards, it took MANY takes.
my equipment is as follows.
Aardvark direct pro 24/96
2 x nt1000's (vocals, acoustic, electric, bass guitar and drum oh)
shure bg 4.1 (snare drum)
akg d550 (bass drum)

i mixed on headphones. Don't have 1500 dollars to throw around, sorry.

I also recorded the project in 24bits 48000khz, using cakewalk.

please give me any information as to how i could get this sounding better. Is it worth recording in 96000khz. i've tried it and the aarvark seems to growl at me (not literally)

looking foward to your comments
Rory.
 
Nice funky groove...everything's clicking but the rhythm guitar. It needs to be cleaner, punchier, and tighter to make the track simmer. Cool song, change at around 2:35 was interesting, and I dug the fill guitar on the right. Nice work.
 
yes, i know what you mean about the rhythm... i've been recording it direct, because this room is horrible in the mids/mid highs.. ok for anything else because it's not loud enough to cause too much out of phase reflection, so i go direct. I've had some trouble getting my rhythm guitar sounding 'big' and 'punchy' i guess it's the room.. cos everything else sounds fine... although.. i still want better quality. the song called 'unconditional' is in my opinion, pro studio level. I don't know if i'm getting the best with what i've got...

we'll see.
 
Rassoodocks said:
...so many mega dorky jazz muso's...
Click to expand...
ROFLMAO...I don't think I've ever heard that particular characterization before. :D

Oh yeah, the tune. It's painfully late, so I'm listening on headphones...to a tune that you mixed on headphones...so, OF COURSE IT SOUNDS GREAT...but my headphoned opinion is probably of no value to you. But what I CAN tell is that you can sing.

Okay, "ALL I CAN REMEMBER IS YESTERDAY" 4X - That's my favorite part. Diggin' the bass slides too. Did you say that you PLAYED the drums on here? They sound real on headphones, and (being a guitar player singer myself), I literally cannot play a straight beat using only the kick and snare (my drummer laughs his ass off during EVERY soundcheck when I try) so if that's you playing...KICK ASS COOL DRUMS!!!!!!!

I passed rambling about 20 lines ago.

I agree with MKG that the clean rhythm git could be beefier, but maybe that would kill the feel. Man, part of this reminds me of (don't laugh) ZEPPLIN. Seriously.

Okay, I should leave enough room here so that the next response isn't on PAGE 3.

Take care, cool song,
Chris
 
yes, i played the drums, i did the pitiful bass line and the rest i ALWAYS do...

erm.. like i said... i'm not happy with the rhythm either...and my voice, well.. i'm still coughing up stuff from a chest infection.. so.. i think i still can get it better...

'painfully late'

pleaseeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee explain... i don't know what you mean by that at all other than 'it's not good'

Don't worry about drummers. Drummers are the guys that stand at the back of the band and everyone thinks they're the 'roadie' but they're actually a 'muso...'

My drummer gets so upset with all my rhythm changes that he stops playing... that's one for the rhythm guitarists... such a victory : ) He's a big woos though.

Anyway, please elaborate.

and does anyone know if recording in 48000khz instead of 96000khz makes a considerable difference ?
 
Rassoodocks said:


'painfully late'

pleaseeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee explain... i don't know what you mean by that at all other than 'it's not good'
Click to expand...

BAHAHahaha...Man, I really AM the most misunderstood person here. The comment had nothing to do with the song. It's late. Like, after 2 in the morning, and THAT'S why I'm listening on headphones.

hehehehehe... I meant what I said about the drums...Great.

Sorry 'bout that.
:D
:D
-the riddle wrapped in an enigma.
 
you're a typical harris chris... my last name is Harris also : )

we're a strange breed.. originating from the southern most islands.. only coming out after dark.. with.... *raises brow* headphones on. We can't afford the monitors anyway.

We all like jazz and wear loose linen clothing and sailing shoes.

we also, have berret's in our jungle closets.


*snaps out of it*
 
Very cool Song Rass......... very.......,
GREAT groove. You need to re-track the bass line though. Your idea for the part is great, but the performance slips a little here and there. did i mention this is a great groove....... this is a GREAT groove...... I love this kinda shit. I agree w/ Chris about the drums.....cool. Your voice is also very happening. I also like the guit. part that follows the voc.

work on the mix and the bass part, its gonna be nice.

Great work man.....
 
Very good man......I especially like the time change part.
The bass could use a little bit-o-highs. I liked the places where the guitar played the vocal line with the singer....cool.
48k (not 48000k) is not going to sound worse than 96k except for the very most delicate acoustic stuff and even then the difference won't be great. Best thing to do is record something both ways and see what you think. But I wouldn't worry about it and 96k will use twice as much disc space.
Very cool song my friend....only thing it's missing is some saxophone. ;)
 
This is really good.

I don't hear any problems!

Wicked snare, good playing all around, multi-talented!

I hear the Led Zeppelin too, not in the music style but your voice sounds a bit like Plant when he's not screaming.

Great job!
 
Santana comes to mind (especially the second right guitar)...

The vocals jump out a bit too much in spots. I like the groove, nice feel and interesting changes. Production quality is good as well, drum sounds surprisingly good (snare hits just right in the mix). 3 guitar tracks make for a nice balance (I usually do three, even if there's only rhythm parts, layering just fills things the way no single or double tracks can).

Good job!
 
Nice vox there rasso... Seems like the bass is uneven, so I agree with G... also sounds "fuzzy", or something...

Great composition, tho. Open strings & things happenin' on the guits, very sweeeet....

Seems you're having the same slight problem I am with a current mix -- the highs are... too low in the mix... everything above about 9k isn't getting a fair shake. I hate to boost highs (or boost ANYTHING for that matter) but a small boost around 11k on the cymbals could open up the track a bit, IMO (this is what I'm trying, currently, on my mix).

Very nice stuff... & I'd like to offer you an invitation to stick around... you'll hear a lot of cool stuff on this board, & we'd like to hear more from you :)

Piece,

Chad
 
far out guys.. thanks for all this input... and the person saying 'production quality suprisingly good' ... eeerrr.. this was my third attempt at recording with the aardvark. my FIRST attempt at recording/playing bass... no, i haven't played bass ever before....

i agree i agree... i do eq my final output track and boost the mid high's - highs. i find it really colours the track nicely for stereo...which is what i'm aiming for, tis a demo after all.

as i said, thanks so much for the interest/input. but if you're gonna say something about production quality, say it about Guernica's song 'unconditional..' The difference i can see between my stuff and his... means i've got a long way to go. With his, it's pure silence.. and i mean NOTHING, then massive huge acoustic....
listening to mine, it's silence, then... TRACK SILENCE ie : i know you're there and you're making some fuzz noise!!!

gating is great.. but i don't like clipping close, so i don't use it.

*shrug*

I'll shut up now..

thanks again.
Rory.
 
Wicked groove! Can't say I'm particularly into this genre, but this is damn good. Nice voice, and for a non-drummer, drums are excellent as well. As has been mentioned, the acoustic guitar could be brightened a bit. Can't comment on the overall tonal balance cos i'm only listening on some likkle bookshelf speakers, but I like it! Keep it up!

Matt.
 
Killer groove - I very much dig this type o' stuff. The drums sound a bit live, but I like that - it gives it a "real" feel. Maybe even a bit flat (surprising with the NT's). Nonetheless, they sound good with the piece (IMO).

Vox performance is great, but needs some compression to even it out - not too much to hurt the dynamics you have goin' on, just to even out some of the louder parts. Same with the bass.

I record at 24/48 as a standard. I rarely use 96. I'm sure there is a difference, but I've been happy with 48 (my C-Port growls too).
 
liked the groove as everyone it seems ... you need funky bass player for this one with some "slapp" :) ... anyway there are performance/sound issues like others mentioned but the fact that it's a cool tune comes through IMHO ... and the arrangement ideas are good too...
cheers
 
Well, before I get started, let me do this first..

<steps forward and gently removes sizable Jazz-and-drummer chip from Rassoodocks' shoulder>

There, now we can talk with clear air. :D

<Never know when a Jazz drummer will be reviewing you... ;) >

Let's do the minor bad stuff first so we can move on the sizeable good:

The bass guitar is muddy, probably more a function of you not being a bassist and therefore not understanding the nuances of the right hand (which is far more important than the left in bass playing). No shame in that, you're new, and frankly, it's not BAD, just a little muddy. For all I know that could have been an exercise in style.

OK, now the downside to mixing in phones is that you fall prey to misplacements in panning, and that's because the soundfield is logically inside your head, instead of physically in front of you, like monitors at mix position would be. (And you don't have to spend $1500, just $300 for a pair of Rolands. If you're mixing just for placement, you don't need thundering lows, just accuracy.) And that's what's happened here to a certain extent; the piece is over-panned, to my ear. Not drastically so.

No, you don't need to crank your sampling rate; don't get so hung up on that. CDs are 16 bit 44.1KHz, so when you convert to Redbook, you're dithering like crazy anyway. The higher the rate of acquisition, the worse it that gets, geometrically. You can introduce all kinds of oversampling/dithering artifact. Personally, I record at 16/44.1. But, then, I'm "old school". :)

At any rate, your sample rate is not your problem, because the acquisition of the live mics is simply not good enough to merit the higher rate. The drums sound distant and thin, and not because of your playing, which is way better than you think it is. Sounds purely like mic placement issues.

Anyhow, enough of that. On to the good:

As a fellow multi-instrumentalist (I'm a bassist and drummer that plays keys and guitar), I tip my hat to you. The groove is substantial, urban, dark, cloudy, and down-home. Great rhythm guitar work, and VERY expressive and tasty vocals. Man, I wish I could sing, but I can't, at least not with anywhere near that style. I like the ideas on bass, and the execution is decent, just needs to be locked down tighter with the drums (difficult to do on separate passes, I know, unless you REALLY know your playing style on drums). Also, the fingering technique needs to be crisper. I suggest avoiding the 5th string at all costs until you have the articulation piece well in hand (so to speak) :)

Great transition in the middle section; kinda Doors-like... In all, a really cool, trippy piece. I played it about 10 times. Usually, I get bored sooner. Lots of interest all through. Well done!

If you'd like to hear what you can do at 16/44.1, head over to my website and check out Dewpoint...

Cheers,
Phil "Llarion: The Jazzinator" Traynor
www.llarion.com
- Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons;
for you are crunchy, and go well with ketchup.
 
llarion! woooooo hooooooo.. jazz chip not uninstalled... it's all inbuilt.

i'm, not a multi instrumentalist.. i just don't like my little brothers drumming..

i agree.. i can't play bass.. i have the best bassist in the world in my band and the best drummer, in my opinion, but they've got girlfriends and are too scared to fight them for 'recording time' where as i'm always fighting my girlfriend :)

i copied stings bass playing technique.. and my bassist said exactly that.,.. 'i like more definition' so i know it's a little fat. i did boost the mids.

drums i'm a little suprised about. i play everything through completley.. if i make a stuff up.. i drink some coffee, settle down.. then do it again.. the drums took 70 takes. 70 + actually. That's just the way i do it..

vocals/guitars even more so, cos that's my bag.

i'll give away my reference for micing things and general 'studio techniques.'
http://www.saecollege.de/reference_material/index.html

Other than this place.. that's where i learnt my drum mic placement.

the rest i just stuff around with until it sounds right. Although.. no micing of my guitar amp sounds right unless it's a lead line.. rhythm guitar sounds shocking through mics to my ear. so i go line in.

as for these 'roland speakers' ... are they like special hi fi speakers.. because i was given the option by a local p/a music store to get a hifi amp and buy some 'nexo' speakers. Is that the 'roland' option you're mentioning here.. llarion.???

i better stop now, i could go forever. god george bensons 'boardwalk' is awesome.. love his jazz/guitar scat. brilliant.

btw.. most of my music isn't this 'groove' orientated. It's quite a bit more like the break in the song. I find myself writing doors/jeff buckley/radioheadish esque stuff.. but i don't like it.. i'd rather write unmarketable jazz. : )

i'm not good enough to write that sort of 'miles davis' jazz.

anyway.. give me more info on this cheap option for monitoring.
btw.. 1500 dollars is aussie dollars. not american. so 300 american is about 600 aussie.. why not spend the extra money to get a way better monitor ?

Rory.
 
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