Post: #1Re-engineering Another Brick in the Wall Part II

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Electric Eddy

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Friendly Greetings,

If there's enough interest I'll show track by track how I created in Cubase a version of Another Brick in the Wall Part II.

This version is obviously what it sounds like before any comments were applied so leave a comment below, or on YouTube and I'll include it in the next version.

At the end of the exercise I'll include a video log relating to everything I've picked up which might be beneficial to some.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KyMXvaRC0pE

See YouTube extract below:

This is a re-engineered version of Pink Floyd's track Another Brick in the Wall Part 2. The bass was recorded direct using a Line 6 Bass Pod XT and the guitar tracks were mostly through a Boss GT-10 with some external stomp boxes for heavy distortion. The solo was recorded clean with some compression and the tracks were mixed in cubase where basic reverb added. If anyone is interested in seeing how this track was made using cubase let me know as I'm considering making a video of how it was recorded and produced track by track.

The video was compiled and synced with the song using YouTube clips from documentary footage relating to 2001 space odyssey, atomic and hydrogen bomb explosions, building of the Berlin wall, international space station project, and the extinct excessive race from Easter Island
 
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I've picked up some good advice already from different sources such as:

- Timing in the solo for specific bends is slightly out.
- The backing tracks sound too digital.
- The reverb used on the vocals is a bit naff.
- The bass is to high in the mix.
- It lacks top end.
- Too much fog.
- Etc.

All of which I will try and address in the next version which I will post for re-review.

Other comments will be really appreciated.
 
I think it was pretty good. Yeah, the vocals have a tad too much echo... but they sound pretty faithful. A little more "oomph" in the vocal... a little more feeling and attitude... not too much... on the choruses... would help.

The solo was pretty good, very faithful... although towards the extreme end... the timing went out. Like the last two licks (about 5-7 seconds before the end of the solo)... were out of time (compared to the original). A minor thing, but I heard it.

I would also bring up the keyboards / organ sounds a bit. Also, some of the rhythm guitars need to be brought up a bit.

Great job! You put a lot of work into this and it shows. I wonder what kind of original stuff you can do now that the 'education' part of this cover track has been achieved.
 
First of all, on every instrument save the drums (the vocals popped at me first, then the guitar solo, then the bass guitar during the solo) there are present timing issues. The drums sound nice and tight, how were they done?

And to that end, why did you choose to record the guitars DI? You'd probably do really well to experiment with some kind of bright, short plate reverb on the guitars and make them a little more lively instead of simply making them brighter with EQ.

I will disagree that the vocals need more 'umph' or 'power'; I think you need to work on conveying the vocals in a darker, moodier tone. Maybe a little bit of air in your tone to add some hiss and breath to the track. Like Darth Sidious/Emperor Palpatine from Star Wars! I think the reverb sounds good and I also think you have it in you to sing the chorus ("Hey! Teacher! Leave those kids alone!") in the original key; even if it makes you tired or a bit hoarse, you have to convey that line in an energetic, pompous manner in contrast to the rest of the vocals (smooth, dark, airy, laid back) and lyrics.
 
Hi,

Thanks for the great constructive tips.

When you say "popped at me" was it occurring all over the place which would constitute a complete retake are something I could adjust with a bit of track editing? I know within the solo that there's a very noticeable timing issue with the bass and other sites have pointed out that the solo goes a bit pair shaped from the sweeping bend. The problem I've got now is the more I work on a track the more I become accustomed to it.

If it's not happening all over the place I'd very much appreciate your input as regards to where specifically it's popping out at you.

The drums are a combination of me chopping up the beats in the original track where there is a two bar gap between the first and second verse. If you listen closely to the original track the first drum bar is polluted by a leftover vocal reverb so I chopped this out and replaced them with beets from the second bar. If you listen to the gap in my version you will hear a little trace of the original vocal reverb which spilled over into the second bar. After I got a suitable two bar wave I complemented it with some drum samples from my XV5080 and repeated it through the track until the end where I bring in the sample of the teacher shouting at the kids.

You must have a very good ear for music because what you detected was the best part of the track came form the original dude :)

Re recording the guitars DI, I was trying to replicate what was done for the solo for the original track and after completing the solo I rushed the rest of the tracks to make it into a complete song. You might have noticed if you happened to look at the other YouTube videos I uploaded https://www.youtube.com/patricksimons79, I had originally just done a solo over a MIDI track I found on the Internet. When someone commented, "was I playing to a karaoke track" I decided to replace all the midi with my own stuff, but failed at getting a decent tone from a Marshall tube amp I've got and opted to use a GT-10 with some boss stomp boxes. The chords are the same as the original however, that's about it, so I planned to replace all the rhythm tracks in the next version. As regards the heavy distortion, the tone I got from the GT-10 was so bad all I could do is bring it down in the mix so you can hardly hear it.

In the original the main backing tracks used an Electric Mistress which in addition to the tight rhythm, I believe has a lot to do with the sound. If you have any tips on how to get some decent tone from the Marshall I'd appreciate some insight. When you say plate reverb is this something that can be done using a plugin?

I've a 79 Les Paul which I think is the right type of guitar for the solo but I'm considering getting a Fender Strat and other amp because what I've got in my opinion is only covering half the guitar tone spectrum.

Re the vocals, I was trying to soften them a bit and put my own spin on them. Like the original track, I think it really needs to separate vocal tones singing (different people). On the track I did two takes and panned them and I tried a bit of harmony which wasn't in the original. For the "Leave those kids alone" section I only picked up that they sounded like they were shouting the lyrics out, so I sort of tried the same but never considered what key they were singing them in. I must listen to it again to hear. Was I singing in a completely wrong key for this section? I'm not really sure how to record vocals i.e. adding air, hiss or breath to the track. I take it you incorporate it into the vocals as opposed to trying to add it afterwards, although I've two Revox P99's MKIII which would definitely add so hiss to the vocals.

Thanks again and I look forward to any comments.
 
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