Mixing help needed.

  • OK, just as long as I only need to listen the first 15 seconds to find it ?

    LOL. That's why I write a strong hook - keep you dancing longer. ;)


    Seriously, I am really digging this tune. I thought I would get sick of it rehearsing. I'm listening to it all day long, and I get the feeling "this is it!". But I know it won't be everyone's cup of tea.

    Larry Mar @ Lonegun Studios. Neither one famous yet.

  • I think the song length standards probably grew out out of analog recording limitations. Vinyl singles could only hold so much music. Albums were also constrained by the ability to cut grooves in a 12” piece of plastic. Those limits became the defacto standard even though technological improvements meant they no longer had any relevance.


    Obviously radio airplay, audience attention limits and the need to squeeze in adverts also played a part in song length conventions. Mind you the audience attention concept doesn’t really stack up in the digital generation. Technology allows almost limitless song length but audience attention spans seem to have shrunk to about 4 seconds if my kids and their pals are anything to go by ?

    Yeah, I think you're right on the money about all of that, because....


    Ooh! Squirrel!


    I'm sorry, you were saying? :)

    Kemper remote -> Powered toaster -> Yamaha DXR-10

  • All the more reason not to conform and dish up what everyone wants and expects. What if Queen had left Bohemian Rhapsody off A Night at the Opera? What if Pink Floyd had missed out Shine on you Crazy Diamond? What if Mark Knopfler gave up on Telegraph Road. What if U2 had let Eno have his way with Where the Streets have no name? Our modern world could do with a bit more thought provoking challenge and a lot less over produced shallow pap. (Yes I know this is a generalisation, so pinch of salt time)

    In my experience, attention spans will last out if the brain is being appropriately challenged and interested by what it is hearing. Does the music have resonance with the audience? Do the words have depth, do they connect? Does the melody create mood interest, surprise, intrigue?
    Does the production let all that shine through, or does it just mould it into the same shape as everything else? If everything is mixed so loud with Heart Throb vocalists in touch with their inner bling, why not produce quiet brooding, though provoking tunes that communicate about the human condition beyond ‘Baby You’re so Cute’ or ‘Oh my heart’s ripped out and you trod on my dreams etc…’ blah, blah.

    Obviously, there’s a huge market for all that and music should reflect all aspects of life, race culture and creed, so if you want to add a solo, go for it, have faith in your idea, you won’t be the only one who gets it…

    Good Luck

    Pre-Amp

  • One thing I want to do is write songs that people can sing to. I don't mind a few instrumentals here and there, but I believe the majority of people want to sing along with songs, and be able to understand the lyrics fairly clearly.

    Larry Mar @ Lonegun Studios. Neither one famous yet.

  • I've just finished the solo -at least enough to what I can live with for now. The song has been extended to 4m10s. Next up is to see if I nuke the vocals or not. Either way, I'm posting by this weekend. Thanks!

    Larry Mar @ Lonegun Studios. Neither one famous yet.

  • I've just finished the solo -at least enough to what I can live with for now. The song has been extended to 4m10s. Next up is to see if I nuke the vocals or not. Either way, I'm posting by this weekend. Thanks!

    I think if you nuke your vocals, it's only fair to let your wife sing. :)

    Kemper remote -> Powered toaster -> Yamaha DXR-10

  • I think if you nuke your vocals, it's only fair to let your wife sing. :)

    LOL.


    I just nuked it. To my defense, I need to sing much louder from the diaphragm, get a pop-filter, get a SM58 (instead of my 57), get a mic pre-amp, and maybe use Autotune. ;)


    I need Paul Rodgers ASAP! :P At least I got all the lyrics written down.

    Larry Mar @ Lonegun Studios. Neither one famous yet.

  • get a SM58 (instead of my 57, get a mic pre-amp

    The differences between a 58 and 57 are minimal, and the audio interface you have for tracking guitar is fine for vocals. A pop filter is always good, but with proper mic technique you don't absolutely have to have one. Just pay attention to your plosives.


    While I'm sure there's room for improvement (there always is), I'm guessing the thing you need most is to simply get comfortable with how your voice sounds on a recording. That's something we've all had to deal with at one point in our career. How your voice sounds to you when you talk or sing isn't how it sounds to others who listen, because science, so that takes some getting used to.


    As an extension to that, I've played in cover bands all my life and have been obligated to try to "sound like the record," which is silly because I'm not any of those guys. I'm me. When I started recording my own material It was an opportunity to forget about all that and just sound like me instead of trying to sound like someone else.


    If you want to work to improve your singing, that's great, but this is your music . It's okay to sound like you. This isn't a problem you need to throw money at, so put your wallet back in your pocket.


    In the immortal words of Nike, just do it. :)

    Kemper remote -> Powered toaster -> Yamaha DXR-10

  • I've heard my voice in enough home movies to know how my speech sounds. But the only experience I have at singing is in the car at full volume with the 1000watt Kicker amp cranked, so my voice is surely drowned. The lyrics to this song have fast-paced phrases, and since I never tried to actually sing them for the song before, I stumbled and bumbled right out the box. There are parts where backing vocals are needed and I can probably handle that since it's like two seconds of singing but I need way more practice to even attempt the lyrics. I'm probably just going to post without vocals and start looking for a real singer.

    Larry Mar @ Lonegun Studios. Neither one famous yet.

  • I've heard my voice in enough home movies to know how my speech sounds. But the only experience I have at singing is in the car at full volume with the 1000watt Kicker amp cranked, so my voice is surely drowned. The lyrics to this song have fast-paced phrases, and since I never tried to actually sing them for the song before, I stumbled and bumbled right out the box. There are parts where backing vocals are needed and I can probably handle that since it's like two seconds of singing but I need way more practice to even attempt the lyrics. I'm probably just going to post without vocals and start looking for a real singer.

    It's a separate skill set, to be sure. Just didn't want you selling yourself short.

    Kemper remote -> Powered toaster -> Yamaha DXR-10

  • It's a separate skill set, to be sure. Just didn't want you selling yourself short.

    I'll try not.


    You, Alan, Paul, and Gear have become my mentors on this project. I am following your advice so I know who to blame. :P

    Larry Mar @ Lonegun Studios. Neither one famous yet.

  • I need a drum fill that graduates down from the high toms to floor toms and snare. I guess similar to a walkdown on guitar. And then I need a "walkup". I'm not sure what they call this. I want to place them at breaks in my ending solo. Are they specifically named in Superior Drummer and real world? Franjoe30 ?

    Larry Mar @ Lonegun Studios. Neither one famous yet.

  • I need a drum fill that graduates down from the high toms to floor toms and snare. I guess similar to a walkdown on guitar. And then I need a "walkup". I'm not sure what they call this. I want to place them at breaks in my ending solo. Are they specifically named in Superior Drummer and real world? Franjoe30 ?

    In Superior drummer just look under the "fills" tab, there hundreds of them. Find one you like and just drag it in. You can alter it with the edit play style or use the grid editor on Superior drummer

  • Consider that you are moving the bass guitar in the wrong direction. Boost the lows and place it below the kick. Maybe at around 50hz for the bass.


    Also consider scooping the low freq out of your guitars. Like below 500hz.


    When there are not defined regions that each instrument sits in, a mix can get muddy.


    Additionally after everything is gelling, don't be afraid to mix wide. Let the vocals, bass, and kick occupy the center. Let the guitars spread out.


    It may help. I've learned to handle these things at the source nowadays so that i dont have to adjust much in mix, but depending on the recordings you may need to eq everything a lot. Don't be afraid to consider that things can sound like shit solo'd, but excellent in context with the mix.