Construction Paper Heart - 80s Magazine rack

[vomitHatSteve]

Yeah, nudged down a bit is an improvement.

So the swell that starts at 1:32 (same pitch as the first one around 1:23) could probably come down even more. It doesn't resonate quite as nicely as the first instance.

[WhiskeyJack]

Ray sadly i am just chiming in now and I have absolutely nothing buddy at this point other than it's a pretty cool tune.

I am sort of in love with you panning the organ bit to it's own side rather than some ominous undertone or up the middle kind of entity. Wish i had more at this phase but after a few listens and a good read through the thread it is handled.

[rayc]

Steve,
I've nudged the other one you pointed to. Hopefully it's enough - thanks yet again for chiming in.
Shan,
Better late than never.
The organ started life as a stereo track recreating the sounds across the keyboard - that heavily bass on the left and heaps of treble on the right was really messing with the mix so I rendered it to mono and use it to offset the strings/orchestra when they appear - besides there are some nice burbble in it that needed space to be heard.
Thanks for your kind words.
This version has the feedback swell reinstated but reduced and pulled back even further in a spot where it wasn't very musical. reverb much reduced on the vocal - it, combined with delay, was creating a halo effect that I decided to reduce.

May20180106gd.mp3

[vomitHatSteve]

Yeah!

[rayc]

Just to tick things over - I've been fiddling about with intro variations. This is the latest.
Does it work?

May20180606gd.mp3

[vomitHatSteve]

Doesn't really do it for me. The alternating big hits and silence of the drums is way more dynamic than the bed of synths, etc. and it doesn't really match to me.

[rayc]

Doesn't really do it for me. The alternating big hits and silence of the drums is way more dynamic than the bed of synths, etc. and it doesn't really match to me.

Thanks Steve,That's the sort of feedback I'm looking for.

[rayc]

I had a couple comments, not online, that the rhythm section isn't loud enough - particularly the drums. Also that the vocals aren't loud enough - well that suggested that the people saying so have cloth ears - anything that buries my singing is a good thing.
Nevertheless, I did reduced some bottom end in the bass by a couple of dB to allow the kick drum more space to thump.
Please let me know how you feel about the relative volumes of bass & drums to each other and them to the rest of the mix.
The intro is still up for comment as in yay or ney compared to the smoother intro a couple of mixes ago.

May20180606gd.mp3

[SweetDan]

Thumbs-up for the change you made with the bass - it opens things up in the higher ranges, but it's still present.

With vHS, thumbs-down on the intro drum arrangement changes.

[rayc]

Thanks SweetDan,
and another thumb down for the intro variation. Thanks for the affirmation re the bass tweaks.

Folks,
Generally speaking I've tidied the bass timing a bit, given the kick drum more thump and dried the reverb as much as possible, (except where it's printed on as part of the 80s effects machine). The vocal has some delay on it, (vocal fatten-er setting but reduced), but no reverb.

May20180906gdgd.mp3

[SweetDan]

I understand the desire for clarifying things, but I feel completely removing the reverb on the vocal may have gone too far. Without it, the vocal stands too much "out front" of the rest of the parts.

However, the balance of the drums in this mix is even better than before. (I still think the snare would benefit stylistically by having an "obvious" reverb on it, even if you left the rest of the drum parts drier.) Comparing back to the two previous mixes, it's apparent that the drums in the older mixes didn't have enough "oomph".

[rayc]

I understand the desire for clarifying things, but I feel completely removing the reverb on the vocal may have gone too far. Without it, the vocal stands too much "out front" of the rest of the parts.
However, the balance of the drums in this mix is even better than before. (I still think the snare would benefit stylistically by having an "obvious" reverb on it, even if you left the rest of the drum parts drier.) Comparing back to the two previous mixes, it's apparent that the drums in the older mixes didn't have enough "oomph".

SD,
I agree re the vocal reverb BUT did want feedback - removing ALL the reverb from the vocal and reducing the delay was, probably, a step too far. I'll listen a few times overnight to decide.
Unfortunately the drums are a stereo file created in Band In A Box so I can't treat individual elements terribly well but, at least, they've improved.
Again, thanks for the precise feedback - it's very helpful.

[rayc]

This mix is very similar to the previous one but I've reinstated SOME reverb and have done some fine sliding & automation level controls for the vocals, (bad vocals need a little nest), as there were some spots that stuck out a little too much or weren't quite in synch.
Otherwise yet another minor incremental progression.
Perhaps I should rename this track Glacial Development.

May20180906gdgd.mp3

Any & all, as per usual.

[WhiskeyJack]

Glacial Development

I like that.

I have lost track of all the revisions so if i were to AB the last Rev with the one VHS commented on, the tune has come a long way. All the players and pieces are playing nicely with each other. I like the space the synths are sitting in. If i had anything at this stage is that the whole thing bit choked off in the "air" range. I would personally like a bit more breathing room laying over the whole thing. That bump would be minimal. It is fine as it is here just a bit of blanket on some of those airy freq's.

Coming together nicely Ray.

[Greg_L]

This mix is very similar to the previous one but I've reinstated SOME reverb and have done some fine sliding & automation level controls for the vocals, (bad vocals need a little nest), as there were some spots that stuck out a little too much or weren't quite in synch.
Otherwise yet another minor incremental progression.
Perhaps I should rename this track Glacial Development.
May20180906gdgd.mp3
Any & all, as per usual.

This is better than the other one I heard. The backing instrumentation works for me. I don't like the vocal processing. The reverb or whatever is done to it. Anything that makes the vocals harder to decipher is bad IMO. I can't easily pick out the words. I get using some effect for weirdness or whatever, but you still gotta hear the words. A different, cleaner reverb with some pre-delay would be better IMO. These vocals sound like you're in a small bathroom.

[rayc]

This is better than the other one I heard. The backing instrumentation works for me. I don't like the vocal processing. The reverb or whatever is done to it. Anything that makes the vocals harder to decipher is bad IMO. I can't easily pick out the words. I get using some effect for weirdness or whatever, but you still gotta hear the words. A different, cleaner reverb with some pre-delay would be better IMO. These vocals sound like you're in a small bathroom.

Thanks Greg,
In the above mix there's really only delay & reverb on the vocals. I used the same reverb as on the drums - wide room - but it does create quite a halo effect even at reduced levels - I was concerned about the vocal sounding like it was in another room and have created another room by doing so. It works well on drums - perhaps it has something to do with stereo spread...hmmm.

I'll experiment with more types and focus on "...cleaner reverb with some pre-delay...".
Ta.

[rayc]

If i had anything at this stage is that the whole thing bit choked off in the "air" range. I would personally like a bit more breathing room laying over the whole thing. That bump would be minimal. It is fine as it is here just a bit of blanket on some of those airy freq's.

Shan,
Ta. No actual synths other than the organ but I get what you mean - the things was made with guitar effects and they do sound synthy.
Air feqs? Ok, I'll find that & do that. Thank you.

[rayc]

I've had a crack at dealing with the vocals.
On the Vocal Buss, (nothing on the attempted double tracked vocal tracks)...
The delay is drastically reduced,
The Wide Chamber reverb is gone replaced with a vocal plate which is much reduced,
Added 10ms preverb,
PSP Vintage Warmer is still there but that's just some compression and "noise" and
There's still a pitch corrector as I can't sing - it's set to very slow so barely corrects and does so relatively smoothly (astoundingly there's not too much to correct).
Otherwise the mix is as it was instrumentally.

May20181106gd.mp3

[JD01]

Ray, I reckon this sounds pretty good actually. (I know I still haven't got around to doing lead work for you - been really busy!)

I think you could make your vocal work on this actually, just keep practising on it, get some of those note to sing out a bit more and not be so clipped. Just work at it and work at it, you'll get there - you don't have an annoying voice or anything.

Are you using Reatune? Just completely crush one take with Reatune, copy and paste Reatune onto your recording track then practice it until you're singing roughly on the lines. Your double tracking is a bit off in places, but you'll nail that with more takes.

[rayc]

Are you using Reatune? Just completely crush one take with Reatune, copy and paste Reatune onto your recording track then practice it until you're singing roughly on the lines. Your double tracking is a bit off in places, but you'll nail that with more takes.

The singing bit is really hard yakka for my brain.
I should drop the double tracking & comp the best bits.
I'll keep trying to crack the singing thing though.
Thanks mate.