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rprnj

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Hey guys - new to register but have been lurking.

I am a guitarist & singer (kind-of). I record myself, and have learned things throughout the years, but still have a ways to go. I'm highly influenced by the Grateful Dead and have a lot of bluegrass/folk overtones.

Lately I've been messing around with loops (something I've never gotten into) and really the art of putting the whole picture together if know what I mean.

Anyway, I'd really like, if any of you more knowledgeable than me, could take a listen and critique the recording style. I guess I'm for things that could help me get the most of my recordings

The links to a couple mp3s stream on my homepage, but here are the links...

Blue
A Cold Winter's Day
(Talkin' 'Bout) Love

P.S. Don't hold back...if you think there's something I'm seriously effin' up on...let me know.
 
Erockrazor said:
https://homerecording.com/bbs/forumdisplay.php?f=15

Post this thread in the MP3 mixing clinic. Your chances of feedback are greater over there. I can't listen right now, laptop speakers wouldn't be a fair judge of your work.

Good luck my friend!
Click to expand...


I was trying to decide between the Newbie forum and that one you linked but wasn't sure which to go under...and clearly decided wrong :P

Can a mod just move it over?

And thank you very much ;)
 
rprnj said:
Can a mod just move it over?

And thank you very much ;)
Click to expand...

Done.

Gave a listen to Blue. I like the song. good performance and recorded pretty good. You've got the one wah guitar on the right channel and nothing on the left to balance it out. I think a second guitar part would help a lot. If your influence is the Dead, then you'll know they've got a lot going on all the time.

The drums seem to be in the center only and not spread out across the stereo field. I think opening them up pan-wise would go along way towards adding depth to the recording.

Welcome to the site. Nice to have another dead head around.
 
I listened to Talkin About Love. Timing could be a little tighter (especially in the beginning). Something seems a little rumbly and muddy in the lower sounds. I like the lead guitar work, but the tone is a little off (maybe too much distortion? guitar also sounds slightly out of tune to me). I like the feel of the song though!!
 
Chili said:
Done.

Gave a listen to Blue. I like the song. good performance and recorded pretty good. You've got the one wah guitar on the right channel and nothing on the left to balance it out. I think a second guitar part would help a lot. If your influence is the Dead, then you'll know they've got a lot going on all the time.

The drums seem to be in the center only and not spread out across the stereo field. I think opening them up pan-wise would go along way towards adding depth to the recording.

Welcome to the site. Nice to have another dead head around.
Click to expand...

Thanks man. Its great that you're a dead head so you understand the direction I'm trying to go in.

I originally had recorded a guitar track on the left, as I understand you want an overall balance, but at the time I felt like it make the mix TOO thick. Its something I'm gonna go back and check out.

Depth is what I'm after so I'm gonna open up them drums some too. Thanks bud!!
 
sharonclowe said:
I listened to Talkin About Love. Timing could be a little tighter (especially in the beginning). Something seems a little rumbly and muddy in the lower sounds. I like the lead guitar work, but the tone is a little off (maybe too much distortion? guitar also sounds slightly out of tune to me). I like the feel of the song though!!
Click to expand...


I definitely hear you on the muddiness, definitely something I need to look into.

This was my first attempt at recording straight from the guitar > audiobox > guitar rig. Normally I'd, obviously, just mic the amp. Because I'm not micing the amp, I'm missing the speaker breakup that a tangible speaker has. I'm actually a guy who plays clean, but pushes hard on that preamp to push those tubes and breakup that speaker. I'm trying to emulate that to some degree here, but I'm clearly just off mark.

Thank youuuu :)
 
Are these vocals what they should be? Not necessarily a question of how talented or untalented they are (though feel free to answer that as well) but more about how they're mixed. That's, in my mind, one of my biggest shortcomings. Are they compressed too much, too little, do they sit right in the mix, blah blah blah blah blah.
 
I haven't given it a 2nd run through, maybe later today I will... but I remember the overall tone of the mix was kind of muddy. Not by much, though.

but at the time I felt like it make the mix TOO thick
Click to expand...

If you add a 2nd guitar track, it should be brighter. Be sure to roll off the low end of your individual Guits and Vox tracks to allow the bass and kick some room.

You can provide sonic space to each instrument by EQ, panning and time-domain effects (reverb, delay, etc).
 
Chili said:
I haven't given it a 2nd run through, maybe later today I will... but I remember the overall tone of the mix was kind of muddy. Not by much, though.



If you add a 2nd guitar track, it should be brighter. Be sure to roll off the low end of your individual Guits and Vox tracks to allow the bass and kick some room.

You can provide sonic space to each instrument by EQ, panning and time-domain effects (reverb, delay, etc).
Click to expand...

Hey thanks I appreciate that.

I think I misspoke and chose the wrong word by saying thick. What I was trying to convey was that the extra added rhythm guitar track made it feel...cluttered? Like there was just too much happening at once? However I'm sure what you said would still apply to, as you said, give it that space. It was at least thru the medium I was using to monitor...just giving the me too much to listen to at once.

I'm going to continue to tinker, so keep it comin' man. Once again I appreciate any and all suggestions, ideas, etc.
 
Hi rprnj,

I listened to Blue - cool tune. Sounds pretty good, I like the vocals and the song has a good energy. I totally agree with Chilli though, the panning is really lacking. You've got the wah guitar out to the right, which is good, since otherwise it would be all over the vocals, but your sound field is lopsided with nothing to balance it on the left. Maybe another bit guitar part, some keys, whatever, but something over on the left would help a lot. I also agree about the drums. Spread them out some if you can. You've got some percussion in there that you might be able to play around with in the stereo field too. Don't go crazy with it :) but you could move it around somewhere other than dead-center, and that would help bring wideness to your mix.

Just keep repeating, "Tall, deep, and wide. Tall, deep, and wide!"

Best Regards,

Dave DeWhitt
http://www.soundclick.com/davedewhitt
 
dewhitt said:
Hi rprnj,

I listened to Blue - cool tune. Sounds pretty good, I like the vocals and the song has a good energy. I totally agree with Chilli though, the panning is really lacking. You've got the wah guitar out to the right, which is good, since otherwise it would be all over the vocals, but your sound field is lopsided with nothing to balance it on the left. Maybe another bit guitar part, some keys, whatever, but something over on the left would help a lot. I also agree about the drums. Spread them out some if you can. You've got some percussion in there that you might be able to play around with in the stereo field too. Don't go crazy with it :) but you could move it around somewhere other than dead-center, and that would help bring wideness to your mix.

Just keep repeating, "Tall, deep, and wide. Tall, deep, and wide!"

Best Regards,

Dave DeWhitt
http://www.soundclick.com/davedewhitt
Click to expand...

Awesome man, thanks. Its seems the general feeling is that I need to open 'er up a little bit more. That's definitely the vibe I got. I felt it could benefit from a little extra depth, but couldn't quite put my finger on where it was coming up short.
 
Well guys I went back today and using your advice revised things. Wow huge different. So much more life to it.

Tell me what you think

 
Hey man,

Some good stuff here. I'm listening to each track as I type...got hooked in by the mention of the dead at the top (love 'em!!). Pleasantly surprised that your tunes don't sound like someone trying to sound like them, ya know?

Anyway, the new mix for Blue does sound way better. The addition of the 2nd guitar part addresses some of the panning issues people wrote about. I like the tune. I think currently the vocals are too low relative to the guitars.

The mix is pretty clear and the sounds you have are so dry that there aren't any issues with separation or clarity. Arrangement-wise, I think you have all these dry, ryhthmic staccato parts, but it could use something to tie it all together. It just seems a bit disjointed to me. Not to belabor the dead thing, but you need Brent or PigPen or whomever laying down a melodic backdrop or something...keys, synths...a guitar drone thing...whatever. Just my opinion of course.

A Cold Winter's Day had really cool instrumentation especially at the beginning where it almost sounded like a Dead-Fugazi hybrid, but then I thought the vocal delivery was a little lacking in spirit or oomph or something. Then it went into this knockin' on heaven's door jam which didn't seem to fit. The lead guitar had a really harsh DI sound to it there as well. Interesting tune though...I like the idea there.

Talkin' About Love comes close to coming together into something pretty cool in an out-there kind of way particularly during the lead guitar sections, but the beat is really kind of jumbled, and the pieces of this, while cool on there own, don't quite fit together tightly enough to give the listener something to latch on to. I really like what you're going for here though and i dig your vocals - I think they should be featured more prominently in each piece.

Man! this turned out pretty long - sorry!
 
heatmiser said:
Hey man,

Some good stuff here. I'm listening to each track as I type...got hooked in by the mention of the dead at the top (love 'em!!). Pleasantly surprised that your tunes don't sound like someone trying to sound like them, ya know?

Anyway, the new mix for Blue does sound way better. The addition of the 2nd guitar part addresses some of the panning issues people wrote about. I like the tune. I think currently the vocals are too low relative to the guitars.

The mix is pretty clear and the sounds you have are so dry that there aren't any issues with separation or clarity. Arrangement-wise, I think you have all these dry, ryhthmic staccato parts, but it could use something to tie it all together. It just seems a bit disjointed to me. Not to belabor the dead thing, but you need Brent or PigPen or whomever laying down a melodic backdrop or something...keys, synths...a guitar drone thing...whatever. Just my opinion of course.

A Cold Winter's Day had really cool instrumentation especially at the beginning where it almost sounded like a Dead-Fugazi hybrid, but then I thought the vocal delivery was a little lacking in spirit or oomph or something. Then it went into this knockin' on heaven's door jam which didn't seem to fit. The lead guitar had a really harsh DI sound to it there as well. Interesting tune though...I like the idea there.

Talkin' About Love comes close to coming together into something pretty cool in an out-there kind of way particularly during the lead guitar sections, but the beat is really kind of jumbled, and the pieces of this, while cool on there own, don't quite fit together tightly enough to give the listener something to latch on to. I really like what you're going for here though and i dig your vocals - I think they should be featured more prominently in each piece.

Man! this turned out pretty long - sorry!
Click to expand...

No man, all these reviews are totally write on. Thanks.

Regarding the vocals, I'm recording in my apartment. To some degree, I hold back instead of letting the vocals open up. I guess I kinda feel naked singing in my thin-walled apartment. Haha. I think studio time would solve that.

You're totally right about the keys. That void was actually a problem in the little group I was jamming with before. I could midi them in there now though and they'd probably sound pretty sweet.

The concept behind a Cold Winter's Day is meant to be exploited live - where segues would get thrown in. I'm still not really sure how to really get the most out of the idea in the recording setting.

The biggest problem I have is mixing vocals. I just have a hard time judging where they sound best. I've remixed A Cold Winter's Day and Love today before I read this, which means these new recordings should at least be another step in case you'd like to check them out.

Thanks again
 
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