Getting vocals to soar (Incubus style)...

[guitarsg1]

I am recording vocals for a hard rock/emo-ish project and the singer wants his vocals to "soar" like Brandon Boyd's from Incubus. I must admit, Brandon's voice is amazing on it's own, but I know they added some form of reverb/EQ to get his voice to blend so perfectly with the guitar tone. I am mainly talking about Incubus' earlier stuff, off of S.C.I.E.N.C.E. For example, listen to the song "Favorite Things." The chorus is nothing but "yeahhhh" yeld over and over, but it blends so well with the guitar tone that it sounds exciting. Any tips on achieving this? Maybe boosting the same frequencies in the guitar as in the vocals? Or would I want to "cut a hole" in the guitar, say the 3K range, and boost the same frequency in the vocals? Anyone?

 

[Seventh]

First off....

First of all, try mixing the song WITHOUT the lead vocal for a bit.

Listen carefully.

Listen to make sure that the drums, bass, guitar misc instruments aren't all taking up too much frequency spectrum.
Carve out a spot for the vocals. Vocals don't "compete" well in mixes. They need to be given room.

This often means cutting mids out of drums, and instruments and such to "carve" out a hole.

Next, after you have a frequency band opened up for the vocals, ensure that the surrounding dynamics aren't going to bury the vocals. This means making sure that guitars, bass, drums etc are compressed as necessary to keep things from being so overly dynamic that it dynamically will "mask" the vocal.

I usually mix without the lead vocals for the first two or three passes until I have 1) Frequency availability, and 2) Smoothed dynamics. Only then will I start mixing in the lead vocal.

Once you have most of the bed tracks in place and mixed properly, you can then spend your time on the dynamics and EQ on the lead vocal. You will still have to go back and tweak the bed tracks, but at least you will have a starting point.

On the lead vocal, carefully pay attention to the compression applied. Play around with attack time, release time, threshold, and ratio to make it "fit" the best. This is usually different for every song and singer.

If someone asks to have a sound that is something similar to their favourite band, I usually listen to the recording and the band when the singer ISN'T singing. Listen to the way that the "hole" is created for the vocal dynamically and spectrally.

This of course, assumes that the singer being recorded can sing well enough to "soar"

SH

 

[apush]

On a lot of the "earlier" Incubus stuff there was very little verb. If there is any at all. Try adding come chorus with a slow rate. Other than chorus the tracks seem pretty dry (except Nebula). Try doubling lead vox and doing at least one harmony track on the choruses.

Something for the singer to consider to make the vocals cut a little more is to pick note progressions that harmonize with the guitar work rather than mimic them note for note. That way they aren't competing for the same freqs. It will make your job easier.

 

[spiral]

Brandon's voice is amazing on it's own, but I know they added some form of reverb/EQ to get his voice to blend so perfectly with the guitar tone. I am mainly talking about Incubus' earlier stuff, off of S.C.I.E.N.C.E. For example, listen to the song "Favorite Things."

I actually downloaded this song to hear it. Seventh and apush answered your question quite well i guess but i just wanted to say i did research! I hear much compression and perhaps a bit of shelving around the instruments. The lows on the voice seemed to be quite controlled too. Most importantly i think you answered your own question: amazing voice and "carving out" with eq.

 

[MrBlackthorne]

I personally would do just the opposite of Seventh - I guess it's just a matter of what you're comfortable with. I've had a lot of problems mixing the lead vocal last. My suggestion is to start with the lead vocal. Get the vocal to sound the way you want it right off the bat. Check the dynamics of the vocal, and compress it to taste. Play with reverb options until you find something that suits your fancy. Maybe analyze the vocal's frequency range, and write down what you think are the dominant frequencies - you might want to boost these a bit. Then you'll have a good idea of what space the vocal should occupy and you can carve out the rhythm instuments to give the vocals room.

It's easier for me to hear what's going on with the vocal if there isn't all that mud going on around it. I usually play with the vocals first, mute the vox, then do some work on the snare and kick. Then play with the toms, bring in the overheads. Bring the bass on top of that, and make sure all those levels are lined up and sounding sweet. Then the vocal can come in. Make sure the vocal isn't dwarfed by the drums and bass. You want it to sound dominant, but not TOO dominant (Or maybe you want it to be really dominant, I guess it's a matter of taste).

Once you have all those instuments sounding good, bring in the guitars and keys. This is where you'll may need some work. But since you know the dominant frequencies of the vocals, you have a pretty decent idea of where to start cutting the EQ on the rhythm instuments. To be honest, if the guitar is amp is miked thoughtfully and carefully, you shouldn't really need a lot of EQ on it. I'd much rather get the sound of the guitar right from the start than have to waste CPU time running a lot of EQ on the guitar. But this is besides the point.

Anyway, that's what I would suggest. Start with the vocal, and bring in the guitars and keys last. I've had a lot of bad experiences starting with the music, first. But that's just me, I say do what you're comfortable with.

Peace.

Rick