gimme hell!

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besthellbunny

besthellbunny

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Hello!

hellbunny here, with more "listen to me! listen to me!" business.


So here we are:

https://soundcloud.com/besthellbunny/freestyle-vox-over-reapers

I just recorded a rough draft of the vox for this track today, and I am hoping to get some feedback. (Please understand, I am a noob...using an EV dynamic mic with no pre, connected straight to my laptop, recording in Cubase with minimal effects- etc, you get the idea...so there is a lot of crackle and CPU noise in there, sadly...)

I have submit a few other tracks on here, and received mixed reviews, all I am hoping is that I am improving! I've got a musician friend that insists that wants to do an industrial/EBM project with me, and while i know that filters and distortion are magical tools in the industrial world, I would like to actually *sing*....I am trying to see if he is just delusional or what...haha.

The instrumental track I have featured here is by Reaper, called, "Altum Silentium". I love this track a lot, and on a whim whipped up a few original lyrics for it. Please tell me if this is something that has any potential...looking for either 1.) a reality check 2.) a little encouragement.

thank you so much for taking the time to listen. ^__^
 
I find it quite interesting. Reminds me of Belinda Carlyle. I think that is how it is spelled. The singer from the Go Go's.

That wasn't a 'reality check', but more of a compliment. :)

*le sigh*? Does that mean you are French?

Nevermind. Florida is more Cuban than French. :D
 
yay! feedback! thank you! :) I was beginning to think that perhaps it was just too bad and no one wanted to post. >__< (by the way, criticism is encouraged!)

No, i am not French. However, I did steal the expression from a Canadian friend, recently. And you'd be correct, not so much French down here in the south.
 
:)

Since your post was a week ago, you may have done it on a weekend, which is slow here for home recorders. Seems we all need to spend time with our wives/children then. Site activity is really low then.

Possible, your post just got thrown down as not new. A bunch of arguing in another forum, may have pushed it back also.

Do not ever get discouraged from members not posting to one of your threads. Usually, if it sucks, members will tell you quickly. The fact that you do not suck, usually will result in members not bothering to post anything, because they have nothing to say.

You should think of that as a good thing.

Be ready tho, someone is going to eventually have something to say, that you may not like. It happens...

:)
 
It takes a while to get feedback on these, trust me.

As for my take I don't think it's bad but you have room to improve. Notes sound a little shaky on the recording, maybe practice holding them out or breath control to make them sound more steady. I don't know why but I don't really like the sound of the track overall, like it's not something I'd listen to but that doesn't make it bad. To get more feedback on just the voice you may want to try a recording with less sound overall. Something where your voice can actually stand out some so we can hear it better.
 
On a song like this, I really do think your vocals would benefit from much more reverb. I only say that because the vocals sound pretty dang boxy, like you recorded in a small closet with a bunch of slap echo. I also think the vocals could come down a little bit.

And there really are no magical tools in the audio world. You can't disguise a bad performance. You're recording was a good performance but I really do think you should turn that reverb up.

I like the song, though! :)
 
Cool, thanks for the suggestions and feedback.

Personally, I looooove reverb, and I added a little there in that track, but I didn't want to over do it as to disguise the natural, raw sound as much. I didn't want to seem like I was "doctoring" my sound so much to mask it, ya know? For a final recording, I would def do many things different (like, probably not do it myself haha), and I agree more reverb would really be great. I am glad to hear, at least, that my minimal effort which I was going for was perceived as intended- minimal. I am glad to hear that I could add more reverb. In a previous recording I posted on here a while back, a concern was "too much reverb" and it made me kinda sad. So, soon, I think I will find a nice balance. :)

It is obvious that I need to work on recording techniques...as of that recording, I recorded via an xlr-1/8 jack directly to my computer, and I know that makes the sound suffer- a lot. The CPU noise drives me absolutely mad, and I suppose I should invest in a desktop soon for isolation. I also did not mix the instrumental to the vox very well, I am starting to develop a better ear for that, day by day. Soo much to learn! Nonetheless, I am having fun making mistakes and learning from them.

I have recently invested in a couple new toys to play with- I just got the Scarlett 2i2, so now I have an audio interface and I don't have to directly connect to my laptop via a 1/8 jack- I am excited about this! I also invested in a cheap pre-amp I snagged off of Ebay (despite having the Scarlett which I hear from other musicians should exceed my other recent purchase ) which has the optional tube warmth- the Presonus Bluetube. I have not had a chance to play with those and record at a good volume yet, but soon I shall. I think I will rerecord the track I posted here, and perhaps get a peers help for mixing the vox to the instrumental.

I AM recording in a box...my bedroom! Right next to a very hollow closet and walk in bathroom, so everything is pinging all over the place. Hopefully the new audio interface can help me drown out some noise, at least a little bit, while I am getting more acquainted with playing with the mic.
 
I can't wait to hear it, hope my first post didn't seem mean but I know when I post I'm looking for honest feedback. Also it's very obvious that one persons taste are not anothers and that's exactly why there is no set way to make a hit record. Just keep doing what you're doing. Read up under the recording section here, lots of great tips about mics, mic placement, and the basics that go with it. Setting input levels, eqing, etc.

Wish I could offer more real tips but I'm just like you, new and trying to understand it all. Great people on this forum though with more information that you can take in during a life time.
 
polarity said:
I can't wait to hear it, hope my first post didn't seem mean but I know when I post I'm looking for honest feedback. Also it's very obvious that one persons taste are not anothers and that's exactly why there is no set way to make a hit record. Just keep doing what you're doing. Read up under the recording section here, lots of great tips about mics, mic placement, and the basics that go with it. Setting input levels, eqing, etc.

Wish I could offer more real tips but I'm just like you, new and trying to understand it all. Great people on this forum though with more information that you can take in during a life time.
Click to expand...

Very true. The beauty of this place is that you get people with completely different takes on what is good. The wealth of information is something you base your own opinions on. When listening to critiques of your music, take them for what they are worth, and build your own opinion from them. Even if you read something you don't like to hear, it came from someone who is not stroking you like a friend would. Members here are taking the time to give opinions, because they are learning as well. We all gain from hearing opinions from people with similar goals. :)
 
I really really like the instrumental part! I would suggest with the vocals though to make sure you are not singing towards a wall. I couldn't figure out why my vocals sounded boxy on some tracks and not on others, and it turns out that this was my problem. Now I sing in the middle of the room and even open a window to let a little bit of the voice escape (;
 
Wow, I think you have a lot of potential.
You can clearly sing, i.e. hit the notes reliably. I think the lyrics are quite good, intelligent, different and evocative.
Now my advice...
I don't know if I can explain this correctly, and it's only my opinion:
it sounds amateurish because it sounds like you're trying too hard. Like you're thinking too much about hitting the correct note and staying with the correct beat.
I think it should sound more organic, more confident. Take it for granted that you can sing, that you're the #$%@. Then play with it and express yourself. Growl. Whisper. Get loose with it. You know what I mean?
Good work! Good luck!
 
I like the vocal-lines. Not my kind of music, though. Anyways, as of the vocals, I would say that you hold back too much. LET IT GO!
When I listen to posts here, where people have recorded themself, it's like whispers almost, there is no spine to it, you know? To this song, it fits with a "monotonic" feel, but it needs more "punch", you need to loosen up.
You need to work with your pitch, throughout the whole song you often miss on the notes. I kind of like your vibrato-ish singing, but sometimes that makes you miss on the notes, and it doesnt sound so good. From 3.50 and out its is really terrible, I mean, really! I'm surprised you didn't hear it yourself. I don't think you hit one right note.

Try again, I'd say, and give it more feel, more spine, more punch, I'm sure it will be better!
Also, to this song, go crazy with effects! Have lots of reverb. To me it was easy to hear that the song was a song for itself and you just recorded some vocals over it. If you use reverb, you can make it blend in a bit more, and it will sound more natural!
Experiment with effects like chorus, tremolo(not all the time, but just at the ending of the lines or something), delay and/or distortion/overdrive-ish-effects. Just try everything!

Good luck

Haarfagr
 
Thanks for the feedback, especially Haarfagr. I appreciate all of the detailed pointers you have given me. "Letting go" is a limitation I hear many other novices getting hung up on when listening on this forum and others, including myself! I did try to be more expressive in that recording but I realize I can probably dig quite a bit deeper. It seems to be a balance of technique and confidence that I am still weighing out, but I do plan on trying again, and soon!

For me, vibrato is fun and easy to produce, but I see how it could possibly become overkill and could ruin hitting proper notes. I really need a vocal coach so I can understand these things better! For now, it's been a journey of trial and error, a sort of shot in the dark. Not having any classical training is really making this a tricky journey for me, and it is hard to pinpoint what I am doing wrong on my own since my ear is quite literally, not in tune...

As far as the effects, I definitely would like to play with some more.When I do it again, I would like to layer several vocal tracks, one with a distortion or even a little bit of vocoder effect so it sounds grittier and more robotic, and then a clean track with- well, what a few people have been suggesting, more reverb. I didn't want to over-saturate the original recording with a bunch of effects because I wanted a critique of the sound quality of my voice as it is- with limited effects. So, I appreciate all of the honesty here, and at least I know that the feedback I have received thus far has not been skewed by my attempts to polish and shine my sound behind overly clean and compressed vox. I need to find a quiet place I can be uninterrupted soon, and then I will do a retake...especially now that I have an audio interface- which I know will not magically make me hit proper notes, but will make the other annoying sounds greatly reduce, and I think build some confidence because I will be able to hear a nicer sound being emitted, and then I can try to get more loose with it since I'll be happier). Again, thank you so much for taking the time to listen and critique, and being so thoughtful and detailed, very helpful!!! :)
 
Well, "Letting go" is kind of a bad way to describe it! First of all, I want to say that you do not need a vocal couch or classical training. I do not know what kind of music you listen to(and sing), but just singing songs you like, explore your voice, get to know it, that is for me the most important thing you can do. You should also explore songs you normally would not sing, as it is good to have variety. You can learn from that! Of course both a vocal couch and classical training is good, it can't do any harm, but it is not necessary to be a good singer! I do not think you should focus on the technique just yet. Just sing, it will come naturally. Use your voice for what it's worth, do not hold back! Then you will see that the confidense in your voice will emerge from the deep! Hehe..

I think you have your mind at the right place, and I wish you good luck! Your plan with the vocoder and dist-type of effects togheter with the reverb-effects is great! Please post it here, as soon as you have recorded it!

Last tip: Create your own songs. Your own vocal-lines(Which you did here)! You can learn so much from doing that, and it is so fun when you come up with this vocal-melody which is nothing like you've done before, completely different, but at the same time still you! Nothing is better.

Hakon/Haarfagr
 
That was really cool girl! I'm a complete newbie when it comes to recording vocals so i wish i had something more to offer you other than encouragement. But encouragement wise ... you got talent, the song and your vocals really drew me in.
 
i would recommend getting a new mic, i certainly dont think your bad you have a good voice and alot of potential i just wish you would put more emotion into your singing
 
Nice voice. I would like the vocal to be just a touch louder. I think the song benefits from the vocal a lot. Nice job. Just a little pitchy at the end (about the 4 minute mark on.)
 
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