My first song, would love your input...

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h2ogun99

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Hello,


I grew up in the 80's and was influenced by groups like Devo, Kraftwerk, Depeche Mode, etc. I enjoy Electronic music, but I am not a big fan of Dance music. I enjoy vocals in a song. It has taken me a good long while to get the time to make my first song, but I enjoyed it. I would love to hear what you think and welcome you input!!

http://homepage.mac.com/lanceelliott

Thanks in advance!!
 
you certainly captured the 80s dance hall sound here. now lip sync this and call up bandstand. hahah good work how did you record all this???
 
sounds good....the vocals give it that Duran Duran sound, if you ask me....and that is what dates it. Nicely recorded.
 
Nice re-capturing of that side of the 80's music scene.One thing about those songs even if they were just one hit wonders etc is that they always had a nice melody and vocal hook.

You have a nice hook in this tune.The keys sound a little more like 90's stuff instead of 80's but the vocals identify it with the 80's for sure.Nice use of reverb on the vocals.Excellent use of the various keyboard patches throughout.

Are you a Howard Jones fan?I always liked his music.Its in this same vein.
 
Thanks!


I used Digital Performer 3 and Reason. I have other synths but I wanted to see if I could use reason for more than a "four on the floor" song. I did listen to Howard Jones, he was and is very talented. I agree about the 80's, what made those songs work was the fact that they had great melodies. Something as simple as repeating synth line. I don't get the "warm fuzzies" when I hear todays music. I wish I could, I listen to a lot of different groups in hope of finding that one that does that for me. I guess thats why we make our own music.............

Lance
 
I liked it.. very Duran Duran sounding, but I like them..:o

I thought the vocal 'sound' was strange.. to me, it sounded like it was processed differently than the rest of the music.. Like the music was done somewhere, and the vocals done somewhere else.. I don't know, but I liked the song..
 
Duran Duran sound for sure, but hey, that ain't bad. I hear Kraftwerk influence too. Not bad.
 
I loved it! Takes the best of Kraftwork, Pet Shop Boys, ABC, Howard Jones (or whoever did "Shoot that poison arrow through my heart" and adds a modern feel with the 4/4 techno beats and tb 303 sounds. Nice Job. Great vocals as well. Did you read the 80's edition of Future Music mag? Some good tips in there.

Nice mastering too by the way. Share some of your secrets. Could you provide a URL where we can actually down load the song instead of stream it. My weak internet connection always breaksup.
 
Nice sound. Sounds pro.
Good job.

Hey, Virtual.
Go back to his site, right click on the download button.
A menu pops up.
click 'save target as' and you'll beable to download the MP3.
 
Way cool

The extreme compression and slow release on the vox sounds really cool...

Reminds me a bit of them bands from Jerma-nieeay... (uh... Germany :cool: ) Front242, Nitzer Ebb...

Vox are almost Simon LeBon...

Mix could have a few more highs... you know... that K-Tel sound :D Otherwise, fabulous job. A keeper.


Chad
 
Wow...Thank you,

I am about 1/2 way finished with my second song.
Since everyone was so kind I will be sure and post it here.
To be really honest I did not know what I was doing. I am new to the DAW thing and just tried to judge what sounded best. I am sure I will get better with time and practice. One bit of advice that I was told was to just finish what you start. I have little bits of songs on tape recorders and even on my voice mail, yet I would never do anything with them. Even when I got very frustrated with what I was doing I just kept working on it. Thanks for the encouragement!!

Lance
 
Excellent! I'd rather say it's Depeche Mode-ish than like Duran Duran.
I'm not really into electronic music but I regard Depeche Mode's Violator as one of the best albums ever..
Especially your vocals deserve a compliment. Very ear-pleasing. This song is a keeper.
 
Cool song! Kinda reminds me of Erasure. Nice use of compression for sure. I like the instrumental break. Top notch. Goes on a bit long, good for club music I suppose.
 
I've listened to the song a few more times and each time it confirms more and more what a great song it is.

Was most of it done in Reason? How do you like its sequencing capabilities? I fool around with Fruity so I am always curious how the other side feels.

Tell us how you tracked those vocals. They were great. Did you do them in your bed room or in a studio? What kind of compression did you use, kind of mics etc.

Can't wait to hear more from you. I totally agree regarding the warm fuzies from some of those old 80s songs.

Hope you stick around awhile and check out some of the other forums as well.
 
Nice !
Some of the voice takes seem a little muddy compared to others.
A definate flashback sound.
Nice use of the sonic space. Also not overdone from a mix standpoint.
Your voice is great. A fine job all the way around!
 
mmm yes, rather depeche modey. I enjoyed it...alot, I too am curious how much of this was done in reason? was everything but the vox done in reason?
 
Thanks again for the positive words!

Yes, all the music was done in Reason 2. I thought it would be a great place to make a first song. I was not sure how it would turn out. Usually when your hear an electronic songs with vocals, it was done by a person/s with a room full of gear. I was not confident that Reason could make it work. I will say that it was a joy to use. It goes highly recommended. I had the melody on a mini tape recorder that I keep on me to hum out ideas. I just kept it in mind while making the music on Reason.

When it was time to record the vocals, I took my AKG 4033 mic. and removed all of the junk from my hall closet and hung a sleeping bag on the wall (very high tech). I did the singing in there. Some of it was while holding my 1 month old baby girl (she was upset by all the noise I was making at 2 in the morning).

I used Digital Performer 3, and took the finished Reason song (in 24 bit) and dropped it on a stereo track. Then I began recording the vocals. This was very frustrating in that I sounded like I was in my closet. Without permission from my wife :) I went out and bought a Focusrite Trackmaster. This made a big difference. Although I am sure I had the settings all wrong. After several re-writes of the chorus and verses, it was finished.

It was a good learning process and I can't wait to finish song number 2.


Lance
 
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