Laid back rock tune

T

tallman

New member
Laid back rock tune [anoyone?]

I'd appreciate any feedback. This isn't as scary as the usual metal stuff I post here.

http://faq.ath.cx/index.php?query=a130.html

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hey, I'd appreciate anything. Why does nobody want to critique my stuff? Is it that bad? Even a "love it" or "hate it" would be appreciated. Specific comments would be better.

My main problem is that I seem to be able to get a really full body to the sound. Tips appreaciated.
 
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Not bad, like the effect on vocals. I dont care for the one guitar part or whatever it is... 7/10

Whatd you use to record?
 
Dude, your website is too confusing. I had to click on about 5 different links to find the mp3. Even then, it wouldn't let me download it until the 3rd try. Your link needs to say Here is the fucking song or something, so idiots like me know where to click.

So, I'm listening and, well, I'm not sure it was worth it. The mix is loud, heavy, and sounds pretty decent, overall. Polished. I really don't like the vocal effect or the wah guitar, though. The guitar playing is solid.

O.K., now it stopped and is completely changing direction. You had a good tune going and you've gone and jacked it all up. This part is just boring. If this was on a film soundtrack, or something, it might work. Blah. You just wasted 6:30 of my time on an unfinished song idea.
 
Strong Vox. Maybe mix the high harmony a little lower or verb it a bit more.

Great dynamics and nice tune.

Viva la Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh pedal(or ring mod.)!!!!!!!!!
 
your guitars are out of tune in you weirdo part.

I won't use the cheeze word.... might be not the current word, or somthing.

Drum intro rocked...made my dog jump off the couch!!

not to crazy on the vocal sound.

song directions? ah...none of mine have them either.
 
Thanks for the comments guys.. scott, that one guitar part seems to be the "love it" or "hate it" part.

What did I use to record?

It's mostly simulated. The drums are battery2 using a drumkit I found lying around my home-network. It's not included on the battery2 disc unfortunately.

Bass is a short-scale bass I found under the stairs and did some quick solder work on, being pumped through one of the bass-settings in amplitube. i am not really happy with the bass sound, but I'm not sure what to do with it.

Guitars were on a borrowed electric. I dunno what kind, sorry. Some fender knock-off. It's running through amplitube. Vocals were a 58 through a milder amplitube setting.

Scrubs.. sorry, I thought the website was obvious.. but it's always obvious to the guy who made it. It's the green link (Recording) with the info about the file beside it. I'm not feeling the second half any-more either. It's a punchy 3 minute rock song without it, so maybe I should just seperate them.

Flaming Lip: Harmony mix point taken.. I've been playing with those for days.. not sure whether I want them loud or quiet. I'm thinking of just rolling off the high-end again. I don't *usually* like reverb on harmonies.

Mixmkr: Don't worry.. whenever I play it for anyone, I ask them first if they wanna hear a cheezy song.. haha.. it's not my usual genre. I usually write math metal and heavy-metal. I find it hard to reign myself in and write a pop-song.

The guitar isn't really out of tune.. it's *me* that's out of tune.. the notes are all two string bends -- it's supposed to sound like -- um.. a cry perhaps?

Thanks.. just curious if anyone has more general comments on the mix, like "y'know, you're losing a lot of energy in the xxx to yyy frequency range" or "your xxx is getting buried by yyy because of zzz".
 
mixmkr: I just realized what part you're talking about.. yes.. you're right, the guitars are out of tune there. I'm working with guitars I find under the stairs & so forth. I'm missing intonation screws on this bad boy and the neck is warped.. sorry :( In all fairness, I was more curious about putting my finger on the quality missing from the mix overall, not individual notes in the song so much.

BTW, thanks to whoever said the guitar playing was good. I've been really nervous about my guitar playing. I was classically trained on Piano and at singing, but until recently, a guitar has always felt slightly uncomfortable in my hands.

The wah sound is an auto-wah.
 
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Well, the sounds are good to my ears. I like that guitar a lot, the tuning isn't bugging me here... HEY!?

Ok, what the hell are you trying to pull here....is this two half-songs for review?
Ok, this is putting me to sleep here.

You seem to have a great ear for sounds and composition but you meander around a bit lost here in my opinion. Get somewhere with this, another part or something. If it was on an album I guess this would be fine but as a single this just runs out of gas.
 
tallman said:
Scrubs.. sorry, I thought the website was obvious.. but it's always obvious to the guy who made it. It's the green link (Recording) with the info about the file beside it. I'm not feeling the second half any-more either. It's a punchy 3 minute rock song without it, so maybe I should just seperate them.
Click to expand...

Glad you took it the right way. Like Jake said, on an album it would probably be o.k. for two songs to blend together, however, here it just feels unfinished. I kept waiting for it to kick back in and raawwwkkk!!! some more, but it never did. It needs another verse or bridge, or something.
 
Hey scrubs & jake.. I figure I'll explain the link between the first and second half.. They were intended to be placed at the beginning and the end of the same album. They're written about the same topic, and neither is intended to be a single. They are linked together in this file cause that's how I wanted to archive them -- they both share the same guitar hook, performed in different ways, so in my head, I see them as being related.

I *really* only wanted reviews for the first half. The album will have narrative sounds and effects, which is why the ending for the first part is intentionally so abrupt. *and* I'm a *little* more concerned about the recording and sounds than the music itself.

Anyway, while you're here, let me ask some specific questions about the recording.

1. If I were to use REAL guitars and REAL guitar cabinets, would distance miking help me achieve the feel of "big sound" that I feel I'm missing using this guitar simulator with delays & reverbs?

2. There are no guitar overdubs except during the bridge (Where they are faked by cutting and pasting the second half over the first half and vice versa). Is this okay? Overdubs make it sound bigger, but if i use them through the whole tune, I have nowhere left to go during that partial resolution at the bridge.

If you're at all curious at all, the song is about my life in the music scene, and how so often I would be waking up to go do shows when my GF is falling asleep. (ie: our worlds come clashing down). The alarm going off, the lullaby (yes, it was designed to put you to sleep, haha, so no offence taken) and if you listen careully at the end (I love you, goodnight).

I do really appreciate all your input. Thanks.
 
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BTW scrubs, if you thought I would take your comments harshly, you've gotta meet some of my favorite sound guys. They don't spare my feeling at all, and as much as they scared the shit out of me when I was 15, I know now they only did it cause they thought I was good enough to be better.

Now I tour with signed indy bands doing their sound. I just never feel like I can get out of my own tunes what I get out of theirs. Of course, there's a big difference between doing live sound on a K2 with a 20Kw PA and doing recorded sound in Cubase on a 260w home theatre.
 
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tallman said:
If I were to use REAL guitars and REAL guitar cabinets, would distance miking help me achieve the feel of "big sound" that I feel I'm missing using this guitar simulator with delays & reverbs?
Click to expand...

I am no expert on recording distorted guitars, but it is a common topic of discussion around here. I have heard some decent recordings with amp/cabinet simulators, but most of them do not sound as good to my ears as a mic on an amp. The technology is constantly improving, but I don't think it's there yet. Use the search feature to find more threads about guitar recording techniques and check out the first article at the link below:

http://www.recordingproject.com/features.php

BTW, I dig the first part of the song. It has real potential. Out of curiosity, was that all you singing, or did you use some auto-tune? Either way, the harmonies sounded nice.
 
It's all me. I was actually worried cause it goes out of tunes in spots, but it was more of a rough take and I've learned to leave imperfections alone, unless they sound wrong. I'm selling the song to some pretty-boy after I deliver it to my GF. Might as well give it to someone who can make money with it.
 
I gotta be honest here, I didn't think the sounds were to shallow or small. They sounded fine to me. Read my sig though, I am on some cans. When I get my control room wired (working on it today) I will be in a much better position to guage these things.

Answer to your question about real guitars...probably.
 
jake-owa said:
I gotta be honest here, I didn't think the sounds were to shallow or small. They sounded fine to me.
Click to expand...

I guess I'm comparing myself to my favorite recordings, but it's also an unfair comparison -- worlds top producers on the worlds best studio rigs vs. me in my bedroom. But doesn't everyone want to sound like the worlds top producers? I just don't like to blame the rig. I'm going to burn off a copy and take it to the club where I mix.

The compressors I'm using are pretty shit (a lot of the compression is simulated tape compression using "magneto") and I've never listened back to something compressed in this way on a big-rig.. so I hope it's not too dull sounding on a big rig. Please let me know your mileage! Thanks.
 
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