reggae sabbath ?!?

[TripleM]

I thought it was real good. I didn't care for the snare sound. I also thought the shakers were a little too loud. Maybe compress the vocals just a little harder.

Other than that, real good.

 

[heatmiser]

I thought it was real good. I didn't care for the snare sound. I also thought the shakers were a little too loud. Maybe compress the vocals just a little harder.

Other than that, real good.

Damn, I thought I was done! You are very thorough TripleM...thanks for checking it out.

I think I'm set on the snare now, but it still comes in kind of hot sometimes...I bet some fancy automation technique would help that, but that is a bit beyond my capabilities at this time.

The shakers did wind up pretty freakin' loud...they just kind of crept up with each successive mix. I guess I grew to like it...will listen again with fresher ears later.

The vocals are the one thing that still bother me...maybe more compression will help. Thanks again!

 

[Bulls Hit]

Very cool. Really well executed. I loath and detest the Dread Zeppelin treatment so I wasn't expecting much. Even the vocal effect somehow had a little hint of Ozziness to it. Good job on this, fun listen

 

[maximusbs]

Oh, this is fun! Back in the day I never took the time too read the album jacket for the lyrics, and since you can rarely understand what Ozzy is singing, let alone saying, it was cool to actually hear what the lyrics are on this tune. Who'd a thunk you could reggae Sabbath? Nicely done! Rock... er, uh... Rasta on!

 

[79_Les_Paul]

Man, this piece sounds really good, your space around each instrument is excellent. Exactly how do you achieve that?

The shaker may be a bit loud but it wasn't a distraction to me, the rhythm guitar in the center seemed a super slight bit loud, but those are prefernce things.

I'd be really satisfied putting something out of my house that sounds this polished.

 

[heatmiser]

Very cool. Really well executed. I loath and detest the Dread Zeppelin treatment so I wasn't expecting much. Even the vocal effect somehow had a little hint of Ozziness to it. Good job on this, fun listen

Thanks Bulls...while I like the concept of dread zep and think they have a great name, I couldn't even finish listening to any of their tracks. I thought the actual sounds they were getting were awful. I'm telling you...the Easy Star All Stars - "Easy Star's Lonely Hearts Dub Band" is where it's at as far as reggae song conversions go, imo. Check out their Within You and Without You on youtube.

Oh, this is fun! Back in the day I never took the time too read the album jacket for the lyrics, and since you can rarely understand what Ozzy is singing, let alone saying, it was cool to actually hear what the lyrics are on this tune. Who'd a thunk you could reggae Sabbath? Nicely done! Rock... er, uh... Rasta on!

Thanks maximusbs . Don't trust my lyrics here completely, as I found them on some random dude's site and they may not be 100% accurate, although hearing the original again while working on this - I think they're really close. I'm glad you know the original and didn't mind this version...thanks.

Man, this piece sounds really good, your space around each instrument is excellent. Exactly how do you achieve that?

The shaker may be a bit loud but it wasn't a distraction to me, the rhythm guitar in the center seemed a super slight bit loud, but those are prefernce things.

I'd be really satisfied putting something out of my house that sounds this polished.

You are very kind '79...thank you! I pretty much agree with your preferences above...While I have a hard time thinking of this as polished, it is very gratifying to hear that.

As for the space around the instruments...probably more a matter of mixing together clean, staccato guitar parts than any special technique(s)?...there's some inherent space right there.

I'd be happy to share any specifics of the process, but there isn't much to it. I spend a lot of time choosing sounds and effects while tracking and do very little processing after the fact...not how it's supposed to be done I guess, but it makes more sense to me.

 

[79_Les_Paul]

Tracking clean and choosing ahead of time makes sense... You spend more time on the front end, rather than trying to fix issues in the end.

Enjoyed the song..

 

[JRSIV]

Miser your bass sound always makes me smile. Excellent! The groove is just reggae enough; not too sticky and stilted like some if it can be. A Sabbath/Dub track is certainly unique, great job.

I've been away from the clinic awhile and checked out your other 2010 efforts and was knocked out. You've got your own sound and identity and wield your studio like it's a sword-sharp, to the point. Keep it going man...

 

[heatmiser]

Miser your bass sound always makes me smile. Excellent! The groove is just reggae enough; not too sticky and stilted like some if it can be. A Sabbath/Dub track is certainly unique, great job.

I've been away from the clinic awhile and checked out your other 2010 efforts and was knocked out. You've got your own sound and identity and wield your studio like it's a sword-sharp, to the point. Keep it going man...

Hey man...I hadn't seen you here in a while. Good to see you're still around! Thanks for checking this out and for offering encouragement .

I never really know where I'm at with this stuff, but I do keep going.

Sometimes I feel like the 40 year old hippie from the underground comix - "200 trips and they've all been bummers, but I ain't giving up yet!"

 

[squibble94]

Awesome job man! Snare doesn't sound fat enough. Just add some low-mids. Did you update to EZ Drummer/Superior Drummer? Sounds a lot better than the drum machine. I like the double tracked vox. The little synth whistle sound is cool. I like the shakers. Again, great job.

EDIT: Oh wait, don't listen to my comment on the snare. I forgot I was listening on computer speakers and not monitors. Hahaha

 

[propman]

Oh my got man! How long have I been gone? You've gotten so great! You were great before but you've gotten so much better! This is astounding! I love it! Are you still using a tape machine? I'd still love to collab or hear you cover a tune of mine. I know you'd find some way to make it different! Oh, and the transitions weren't bad. In fact, if they were easier I think the tone would have lost something. Keep up the great work!

-Adam.

 

[heatmiser]

Awesome job man! Snare doesn't sound fat enough. Just add some low-mids. Did you update to EZ Drummer/Superior Drummer? Sounds a lot better than the drum machine. I like the double tracked vox. The little synth whistle sound is cool. I like the shakers. Again, great job.

EDIT: Oh wait, don't listen to my comment on the snare. I forgot I was listening on computer speakers and not monitors. Hahaha

Thank you squibble! I have been using a product called Discrete Drums (which I think is like 10 years old now) on the last few songs - a huge advancement over the Boss Dr Rhythm machine .

It was the only product I could find compatable with the roland vs2400 I bought a few months back...still learning what to do with these sounds. Thanks again .

Oh my got man! How long have I been gone? You've gotten so great! You were great before but you've gotten so much better! This is astounding! I love it! Are you still using a tape machine? I'd still love to collab or hear you cover a tune of mine. I know you'd find some way to make it different! Oh, and the transitions weren't bad. In fact, if they were easier I think the tone would have lost something. Keep up the great work!

-Adam.

Ha! If I'm so much better I can't have been that good at this before . ...anyway, thank you. I think at least from a technical standpoint, I am slowly improving.

I still have the tape machine, but this was done on a roland VS2400 which I've had for a few months. I love this unit...already outdated technology, but it brought me about 2 decades closer to the present. Huge difference between 8 tracks on tape and 24 tracks on a hard drive!

Now that I have the option of a digital format, collabs are probably possible, although this thing doesn't connect directly to a pc, so I think I have transfer WAVs to disc and back again...not sure...we should try it.

 

[grimtraveller]

Firstly, a disclaimer. I'm not really any use in terms of critquing a mix because, unless there are serious deficiencies that mess up a mix, I accept peoples' mixes as they present them. Not to go against the spirit of the clinic (which I think serves a vital function), but I don't think it would be fair to bring my biases to bear - I just don't think I have those specialist ears. So I gauge a "mix" on whether I like the song, first and foremost.

And I have to say, I really like this version. To bear out what I said earlier, I liked all three mixes. Nothing distracted me. It may not be bona fide Jamaican reggae, but who cares ? I do like reggae, it was very much part of my younger days, but I always much preferred reggae flavoured songs or bands. There's a revolutionary piece from early 1964 that set the tone for ska/reggae in rock - the Beatles do a mad middle 8 in "I call your name".
Your cover carries on a long and rich tradition and to be honest, is one of the best I've heard. I like the snare, even when it was supposedly tinny and the percussion adds lovely colours. The kick may not be always obvious but I love the patterns it plays. In parts it's actually like separate deep percussion itself. The vocal is really cool and certainly doesn't need any sneer in it. And I can say that because the original vocal wasn't sneering. Black Sabbath's first six albums (up to and including "Sabotage") are among my favourite albums, a real premier league sextet of LPs, utterly underrated and misread in the annals of rock history. In those days, the Sabs were melodically strong and SBS has two of the most melodically beautiful in "Looking for today" and "Spiral architecht", especially the latter. And your cover has demonstrated that their songs and melodies lend themselves to other styles although it's taken your imagination to cause me to see that.
You got the lyrics OK, it's got some great lines in it. My wife's a town planner and the lines "Spiral city architecht/I built-you pay" often remind me of her and her profession. The song's nothing to do with any of that though, it's on the same subject as "A national acrobat", this time about the actual experiences that are added to a person's DNA that make them unique and cleverly addresses the question of whether we are born as a blank sheet or whether we are to some degree 'programmed' by the genetic information inside of us. Deep eh ?
In many ways, this kind of imaginitive rendition sums up for me much of what home recording can really be.

 

[heatmiser]

Firstly, a disclaimer. I'm not really any use in terms of critquing a mix because, unless there are serious deficiencies that mess up a mix, I accept peoples' mixes as they present them. Not to go against the spirit of the clinic (which I think serves a vital function), but I don't think it would be fair to bring my biases to bear - I just don't think I have those specialist ears. So I gauge a "mix" on whether I like the song, first and foremost.

And I have to say, I really like this version. To bear out what I said earlier, I liked all three mixes. Nothing distracted me. It may not be bona fide Jamaican reggae, but who cares ? I do like reggae, it was very much part of my younger days, but I always much preferred reggae flavoured songs or bands. There's a revolutionary piece from early 1964 that set the tone for ska/reggae in rock - the Beatles do a mad middle 8 in "I call your name".
Your cover carries on a long and rich tradition and to be honest, is one of the best I've heard. I like the snare, even when it was supposedly tinny and the percussion adds lovely colours. The kick may not be always obvious but I love the patterns it plays. In parts it's actually like separate deep percussion itself. The vocal is really cool and certainly doesn't need any sneer in it. And I can say that because the original vocal wasn't sneering. Black Sabbath's first six albums (up to and including "Sabotage") are among my favourite albums, a real premier league sextet of LPs, utterly underrated and misread in the annals of rock history. In those days, the Sabs were melodically strong and SBS has two of the most melodically beautiful in "Looking for today" and "Spiral architecht", especially the latter. And your cover has demonstrated that their songs and melodies lend themselves to other styles although it's taken your imagination to cause me to see that.
You got the lyrics OK, it's got some great lines in it. My wife's a town planner and the lines "Spiral city architecht/I built-you pay" often remind me of her and her profession. The song's nothing to do with any of that though, it's on the same subject as "A national acrobat", this time about the actual experiences that are added to a person's DNA that make them unique and cleverly addresses the question of whether we are born as a blank sheet or whether we are to some degree 'programmed' by the genetic information inside of us. Deep eh ?
In many ways, this kind of imaginitive rendition sums up for me much of what home recording can really be.

Wow...reading this really made my day. Thanks grim !

Yes, this forum is, first and foremost I guess, about the technical aspect of things and it is hard to divorce the song itself from the mix. But, whenever I have a mix up here that seems ok to people, I still wonder sometimes whether the material I have was worth mixing in the first place. Your thoughts here are very encouraging in that regard.

I've loved this tune since I first heard it in the early '80's but it was always sort of a guilty pleasure as the arrangement always struck me as overblown and dated (in a nice way, but still...) I have been carrying around an arrangement more or less like this one in my head for years - wanting to hear this in a simpler, stripped down format. It was good to actually lay it down for once, and then to have someone "get it" and say that it works on some level is really nice.

Thanks for the in-depth analysis of the lyrics...honestly I didn't get all that from it, but I'm listening again with your thoughts in mind...yeah, deep .

Thanks again for taking the time and for your thoughts!

 

[queepy]

Awesome!! Love this...funny reading a few Dread Zep ref's in the thread...just caught them live last week here in Detroit, even got the chat with Tort Elvis and Charlie Haj...great show!(ducks under chair).
Groove is awesome hear,and you got the vocal melody right on, in the reggeae vibe...fantastic guitar..this goes right to the mp3 player for todays trip out to the lake/bbq!

 

[squibble94]

Thank you squibble! I have been using a product called Discrete Drums (which I think is like 10 years old now) on the last few songs - a huge advancement over the Boss Dr Rhythm machine .

It was the only product I could find compatable with the roland vs2400 I bought a few months back...still learning what to do with these sounds. Thanks again .

Wow! They sound really good. Do you find it easier to work with hardware recorders than DAWs? I don't see anything wrong with it, I'm just curious.

And by the way, to this day I still go back to your profile to listen to Can Of Beer. It's my "come home and chill song"

 

[heatmiser]

Awesome!! Love this...funny reading a few Dread Zep ref's in the thread...just caught them live last week here in Detroit, even got the chat with Tort Elvis and Charlie Haj...great show!(ducks under chair).
Groove is awesome hear,and you got the vocal melody right on, in the reggeae vibe...fantastic guitar..this goes right to the mp3 player for todays trip out to the lake/bbq!

Cool queepy - thanks for checking it out. Glad you liked it. I have nothing against that band other than checking out some youtube vids and finding their sound to be a little grating. I would probably give them a go live if they came nearby to play though...

Just got back from the lake myself...beautiful day...boats everywhere already jockeying for position for the fireworks tonight. Crystal clear cool water 5' deep with a smooth sandy bottom everywhere...nice! Happy 4th everyone!

Wow! They sound really good. Do you find it easier to work with hardware recorders than DAWs? I don't see anything wrong with it, I'm just curious.

And by the way, to this day I still go back to your profile to listen to Can Of Beer. It's my "come home and chill song"

Thanks again squibble .

I really can't compare as I've never used a computer for tracking, mixing etc. I've only had standalone units. I had a fostex 4 track, then upgraded to a tascam 8 track (which is awesome, but somewhat limited) to this roland. I want something that is reliable, intuitive, fun and sounds great. Based on my experience with computers, they don't really fit that description .

This thing is like a portastudio, but it has VGA out, so I have a monitor hooked up and can mouse around much like you would with a DAW. This is just simpler I think. When I hear people talking about all of the plugins out there and whatnot, I imagine I'd be overwhelmed.

Can of Beer was the first original I did that got a genuine response from anyone. I am really glad you like it. Thank you. I have been thinking about re-doing it with my new equipment, but can't decide if that simple lo-fi version is how it's meant to be.

 

[squibble94]

Cool queepy - thanks for checking it out. Glad you liked it. I have nothing against that band other than checking out some youtube vids and finding their sound to be a little grating. I would probably give them a go live if they came nearby to play though...

Just got back from the lake myself...beautiful day...boats everywhere already jockeying for position for the fireworks tonight. Crystal clear cool water 5' deep with a smooth sandy bottom everywhere...nice! Happy 4th everyone!



Thanks again squibble .

I really can't compare as I've never used a computer for tracking, mixing etc. I've only had standalone units. I had a fostex 4 track, then upgraded to a tascam 8 track (which is awesome, but somewhat limited) to this roland. I want something that is reliable, intuitive, fun and sounds great. Based on my experience with computers, they don't really fit that description .

This thing is like a portastudio, but it has VGA out, so I have a monitor hooked up and can mouse around much like you would with a DAW. This is just simpler I think. When I hear people talking about all of the plugins out there and whatnot, I imagine I'd be overwhelmed.

Can of Beer was the first original I did that got a genuine response from anyone. I am really glad you like it. Thank you. I have been thinking about re-doing it with my new equipment, but can't decide if that simple lo-fi version is how it's meant to be.

That's awesome that you could hook it up to a monitor. I think you should give Can of Beer another shot. Just see how it sounds, you know? I've re-done one of my songs about four times already and it still sounds incomplete

 

[j.harv]

I have always loved this Sabbath song.Your version is REALLY cool!!!!!
Love it.

 

[joeym]

Wow, Pete, real good, man!
Sabbath are my fave band of all time (and I actually hate reggae....), but this sounds so original. The recording's beautifully 3-dimensional, totally well-balanced. Well done, great job!

Joey