Ska Party

[rayc]

After visiting Shan's Ska Past I decided to dig up a ska track I started a month or so ago and try to get one with it.
I hadn't really considered ska guitar tone before so decided to look up what folk do...i figured a pretty clean single coil and maybe some compression.
I was astounded at the number of guitar forum folk who think ska is an offshoot of punk and that MMBosstones etc are THE beginning & end of it.
Limited knowledge and scope...even Cake was given as a great example.
I almost wept on by Desmond Dekker LPs.

ANYWAY...
there was no decent info and I figured that I'd go with my instincts - clean amp and clean guitar.
I've only done bass & guitar today. Plenty of flubs as I hadn't played it through until attempting to track it. All will be repaired in time.
BIAB supplied organ & drums...no Farfisa anywhere! Bummer. The "solo" is just a place holder.
I'd forgotten how painful skank guitar can be...I remember now...I wish I hadn't added quite so many chords.

It does need a horn section..I auditioned lots from BIAB but nothing evenly vaguely like ska or even reggae horns was listed...I tried soul sections and they were nice but TOO nice.

Oh well...this is where it starts.

KATYASKAZAZb.mp3

\

I THINK I may have a singer for this - the lass who sang Stinging Eyes.
I had to get some lyrics and a melody sorted to convince her.
This mix is the result of 40 minutes of lyric writing and three runs through "inventing a "melody" as I went.
The multiple takes are all there because I haven't had a chance to comp OR correct.


I did some time aligning of the vocals so it didn't sound scatter shot.
Oddly my vocals on these takes were fairly close to the mark but the mark varied at the end of each phrase with each take...so I've covered the chord tones as harmonies in the chorus...Odd.

I added some Heavy heavy Monster sound delay/echo on the opening announcement just to remind me that I saw madness in concert soon after their 1st hit and later at a pub soon before they split up for the 1st time.




Slightly more sorted mix though no vocal from the lady yet.
I've extended the song with an extra chorus so that it ends verse chorus outro.

Based on @vomitHatSteve 's comment regarding the plastic sounding horns I retracked them BUT they sounded even more so. I've blended the new with the original...


I think I've found a suitable BIAB horn section to relieve the plastic sounding top end. It's blended with the Mel9 parts as there's little or no bottom end in the BIAB part.



This one uses the female vocal as chorus BVOX only...


MORE Fem BVox...though I'm struggling to have them sit IN the mix rather than on.


ALMOST THERE?
Some levelling and tweaking of fem vox verse and chorus.

KATYASKA0310C.mp3

All right
It’s time to point the finger

The big boys have the cash
They spend it where it will splash
Filling pockets with the power
Buying news breaks by the hour.
While the puppets caught in strings
Claim there were no other things

It’s their living it’s their job
Like accountants for the mob.
They’re just living day to day
They stuff they do to earn their pay
Talking heads on Rupert’s sticks
Selling an age old pyramid scheme
All the while they steal the dream.

Some politicians take the cash
They need the money in their stash
Buying votes and buying power
The stink won’t wash off in the shower.
They’re puppets caught in strings
Claim there is no real right wing

It’s their living it’s their job
Like accountants for the mob.
They’re just ruling day to day
They stuff they earn creates what they say
Talking heads on Rupert’s sticks
Selling an age old pyramid scheme
All the while they steal the dream.

Solo

It’s their living it’s their job
Like accountants for the mob.
They’re just scamming day to day
They stuff they do to make us pay
Talking heads on Rupert’s sticks
Selling an age old pyramid scheme
All the while they steal the dream.

Where there’s war there is cash
That’s why the hawks like to splash
Filling pockets for aggression
Creating fear and deep depression.
While the puppets caught in strings
Claim there were no other things

All the while the steal the dream....

[vomitHatSteve]

The incessant crashing really isn't doing anything for me.

Guitar tone is pretty good for ska.

Does the tempo keep drifting, or is that just me?

[rayc]

The incessant crashing really isn't doing anything for me.

Guitar tone is pretty good for ska.

Does the tempo keep drifting, or is that just me?

There are a couple of slow parts at 130bpm and the rest is at 140 supposedly...there do seem to be a couple of drift bars.

[JD01]

I like the tempo drifting! Maybe its a touch too dramatic and jarring - if you ease it up a bar before.

The hi-hats/crashes are awful! Even when it goes to ride, it sounds like the drummer is beating the fuck out of the cymbals.

Go for mostly closed hat's that open and and close occasionally to add a bit of nuance to the beat. Ray - have you used your usual garage rock type settings on this? but then just tried to play Ska over them?

I know you have a few flubs and stuff in it that I'm sure you'll work out on subsequent versions, but its a really cool progression as usual and when you've got some horns and a bit more hammond in there it'll be cool.

[TripleM]

I agree that I think the crash cymbals are pretty loud. The hats too. Bass too.

I like the guitar sound. Is that a keyboard part playing a drone note or two? Good touch, but pretty quiet.

Tempo is all over. I didn't mind it tho. Like JD said, it ramps up its speed really fast.

OK I guess the bass isn't so loud.

[rayc]

Thanks @JD01 & @TripleM , I checked the tempo and it's pretty solid...goes from 130 in the verses to 140 in the choruses a couple of times before settling for 140.
I actually found a ska drum track...it's meant to be at 150 but seems to cope, via elastique, with 130 & 140.
I had to redo the bass to suit the drums...the more rock bass didn't cut it.
This version, in the OP, has more organ and a cobbled together horn section that'll do for time being.

[JD01]

Listening to the 3rd one, Ray. Better.
I still think the hi hats could do with a bit more nuance and the kick pattern needs to lock in with the groove a bit more.
Just tapping out the hi-hats and snare to myself on the desk, my foot ended up doing many different things to that groove - have you got much control over this?

The main thing that stands out now is the rhythm guitars though - I know you're gonna re-track them, but the more relaxed drums does highlight that they're not locked in right either. It sounds like you're just trying to get single strums to land on the beat... when to get this sort of thing right you need to just skank away and let your fret hand do the muting and accent to get the chords to land on the beat. You know what I mean?

[vomitHatSteve]

The tighter, hat-based cymbals are a definite improvement.

Sound like you're going for something like a 2nd wave sound?

The guitars are drifting a little bit, I think. I suspect that's exacerbating the effect of the tempo changes.

[rayc]

Thanks James @JD01, @TripleM & Steve @vomitHatSteve ,
Yes, the drums are better but I've not EQd them...stereo file though. The more accurate drums mean 1st then bass and now the guitars don't fit so I'll have to do them again...it lost the ska feel when the ska drums were added.
I'll get to them.
2nd wave probably...definitely not the ska punk barrage of the USA waves.
Lyrics and "melody "in the new mix up top.

[stratmonkee]

Listened to the 4th mix, I see your going to be re doing some stuff...think you have a real solid thing to build on.Lyrics and vocals really good...for me anyways that the toughest part and you have a cool thing going with them. Look forward to hearing this progress.

[WhiskeyJack]

After visiting Shan's Ska Past I decided to dig up a ska track I started a month or so ago

Does this allow me to get filed under "someones muse" ? Probably not.

Ok i went from 1st mix to the 4th. And a great track man.

Definitely has a nice vibe to it. kind of feels like the Specials with the transitions and key changes and shit. very very cool man. I love this. I for one think the tempo changes are ACE!!! It just adds that nice little bit of ska all over the place-ness!! Well done man.

From a historic roots perspective i think you nailed the clean guitar sound. I'd like to hear a bit more rigid "CHINK - n - CLICK" In the guitars. Probably because it what i am used to, but if you don't feel like chasing it it's no biggie. In terms of a rootsy kind of sound you have it here. the solo is brilliant for sure.

Drums are leaps better than than the first mix. Good work there.

Where did you get the horns? They are working. Maybe a little more horn / organ balance would be cool. When the horns come in i'd rather hear those more forward in the mic than the organ. But when there is just organ where you have it sounds good as it is now.

Very cool ray

[JD01]

One thing in Reaper - you can set your timeline up to gradually increase in tempo. Maybe just do this over the course of a bar, or even half a bar to make the change less jarring.

[rayc]

After visiting Shan's Ska Past I decided to dig up a ska track I started a month or so ago

Does this allow me to get filed under "someones muse" ? Probably not.

From a historic roots perspective i think you nailed the clean guitar sound. I'd like to hear a bit more rigid "CHINK - n - CLICK" In the guitars. Probably because it what i am used to, but if you don't feel like chasing it it's no biggie. In terms of a rootsy kind of sound you have it here. the solo is brilliant for sure.

Where did you get the horns? They are working. Maybe a little more horn / organ balance would be cool. When the horns come in i'd rather hear those more forward in the mic than the organ. But when there is just organ where you have it sounds good as it is now.

Morning @WhiskeyJack ,
Yes, you are the muse but, I suspect you Canadians might pronounce it moose!

I tried the chink n click but I wasn't muting well enough and it became messy...I'll try again.

The horns...for the most part it's five tracks from my Mel9..one brass, the same pitched an octave higher, one sax, again copied and pitched an octave up, and a clarinet. At the end of the chorus the energetic bap bap bap bap comes from a funk track in BIAB...they didn't work for the entire song - far too funky but adding that to the Mel9 made it a little more aggressive.
I'll follow your advice re balance when I work on it later today - thanks.

[rayc]

Listened to the 4th mix, I see your going to be re doing some stuff...think you have a real solid thing to build on.Lyrics and vocals really good...for me anyways that the toughest part and you have a cool thing going with them. Look forward to hearing this progress.

Thanks Gene.

[rayc]

One thing in Reaper - you can set your timeline up to gradually increase in tempo. Maybe just do this over the course of a bar, or even half a bar to make the change less jarring.

Ah, interesting. The drums were done in BIAB and the tempos were set there.
I'll have to learn the tempo thing in Reaper.
Thanks James.

[rayc]

I have to do some work n the horns... some clarity etc.

[rayc]

Updated mix in the O.P.

[vomitHatSteve]

Guitars sound tighter.

Some of the brass sounds fake. (I assume it's Bandi on brass?) It's mostly ok because of how it's sitting in the mix, but there's the occasional note that just pokes through and ends up sounding like a keyboard.

[rayc]

Guitars sound tighter.

Some of the brass sounds fake. (I assume it's Bandi on brass?) It's mostly ok because of how it's sitting in the mix, but there's the occasional note that just pokes through and ends up sounding like a keyboard.

The brass is, mainly, Mel9 pedal. There's one touch of BIAB towards the end of each chorus - the bap bap bap bap thing, (which is a funk horn line apparently).

[Alison]

Your vocals are so interesting! I think they distract me from whatever else is going on. Listening for a second time seems to me that there is a bit of a rhythmic clash at the beginning around .16 or so. Love what you are saying in this song. . .an appropriate rhythm for the topic!
Cool song, great topic!