"Orpiment" -- mellow song -- looking for comments

[Snail]

Hi everyone, this is my first post here, so let me know what you think. I'd be grateful for any comments.

http://webdrive.service.emory.edu/us...piment%202.mp3

EDIT: I've uploaded the song onto this site, too. Please scroll down about 10 messages (or onto the next page) to find it.

Some notes on how it was recorded:

PRS CE24 and McCarty Rosewood guitars -> Vox AC15 -> Shure SM57 -> Presonus Firestudio Project -> Logic Studio 8
Vocals -> Shure SM58 -> Firestudio Project -> Logic
Fender P-Bass -> Firestudio Project (direct) -> Logic
Drums are Logic Studio 8's Ultrabeat (the Indie set, tweaked and reprogrammed).

Mixed using KRK RP6's and RP10 sub.

I'd love to hear what you think I can do to improve this mix / bring it to the next level. Suggestions to changes in the song itself are also welcome -- it's an original. I'm trying to develop an album and might post some of the other songs in future. Eventually, this will likely be recorded with a full band, with all the added troubles (and blessings) of that!

Thanks!

[gradgt]

Wow! Good mixing! The lead guitar sounds really good, the vocals sound <b>great</b>. The levels are all where they should be I think. Maybe the lead guitar is a little loud? I dunno, that's a matter of taste and i'm not familiar with mixing this style of music

The only thing that gets me is the gritty rhythm guitar... it's kind of unpleasant. I would like it more without the grit.

Anyways though good job- it's very good mix!

[Snail]

Hey, thanks for the response.

Yeah, I think you're right about the lead guitar. I've been thinking I need to EQ it a little bit better, and maybe bring it a bit down, too, as you suggested.

I absolutely _love_ the sound of the rhythm guitar live... but translating it in the mix is hard. Somehow it did become harsher through the SM57. I actually twiddled the EQ once to get it a bit ****er and less harsh, and that was a big improvement, but from what you're saying, I may need to do even more in that direction.

I've noticed in general that the mix isn't quite as "****" as I want it to me. I think it has to do with the EQ. To make each instrument come out, I ended up boosting certain mid-frequencies, but I think the general result is that it sounds bit too harsh maybe, especially upon repeated listening?

Thanks again!

[Snail]

Hey, that's weird. It's like my post was censored....

The word that cut out is W A R M.

Is that, like, a bad word in mixing??

[Dissentor]

**** milk makes me sleepy.

[MetalDave]

Brandon says W.A.R.M. is a bad bad word to use in here. It has nothing to do with music. What does it really mean when you are talking about sound anyways?

[MetalDave]

I think the only time it should be used is when you say I had to wait for my guitar amp to W*A*R*M up or something like that. Oh yeah also, I won't listen to your song until it is uploaded here... You will find about 70% of the people on here feel the same. Especially the ones who will help you the most.

[Snail]

I think the only time it should be used is when you say I had to wait for my guitar amp to W*A*R*M up or something like that. Oh yeah also, I won't listen to your song until it is uploaded here... You will find about 70% of the people on here feel the same. Especially the ones who will help you the most.

Any particular reason for that? I'd be happy to upload it here, but I assumed it was preferable not to take up server space. In the guidelines, it says:

"If you are looking for a way to upload your tunes, there are several options.
1) Your Own Website / Hosting. The best way is with your own website and hosting. "

Am I missing something?

As for the w.a.r.m. comment, thanks for the explanation.

[gradgt]

Hey, thanks for the response.

Yeah, I think you're right about the lead guitar. I've been thinking I need to EQ it a little bit better, and maybe bring it a bit down, too, as you suggested.

I absolutely _love_ the sound of the rhythm guitar live... but translating it in the mix is hard. Somehow it did become harsher through the SM57. I actually twiddled the EQ once to get it a bit ****er and less harsh, and that was a big improvement, but from what you're saying, I may need to do even more in that direction.

I've noticed in general that the mix isn't quite as "****" as I want it to me. I think it has to do with the EQ. To make each instrument come out, I ended up boosting certain mid-frequencies, but I think the general result is that it sounds bit too harsh maybe, especially upon repeated listening?

Thanks again!

I think the EQ on the lead guitar is okay. It sounds really good to me. Experiment with it and see if sounds better darker...

Honestly I don't think the mix sounds too harsh. Most of the frequencies seem like right where they should be.

The issue of the lead guitar is I just don't think that grainy-ness translates well in the recording studio. I think the frequencies on it sound fine though.

[MetalDave]

I know it is actually an mp3 and not a virus when I click on it posted here. if it leads me somewhere else, I feel less safe. I don't but alot of people in here use their recording PCs' to listen here.

[MetalDave]

Great mix. The lead guitar is really hot in the 1k 1.3k and 1.6k range. It makes me blink. it is just at the point of causing pain to the ears. cut those frequescies a bit and I would feel better listening to it. Just on the fill guitar though. Other than that it is nice. The song reminds me of dire straights with David Gilmore sitting in. Cool

[Snail]

Great mix. The lead guitar is really hot in the 1k 1.3k and 1.6k range. It makes me blink. it is just at the point of causing pain to the ears. cut those frequescies a bit and I would feel better listening to it. Just on the fill guitar though. Other than that it is nice. The song reminds me of dire straights with David Gilmore sitting in. Cool

Thanks! That is so helpful. I'll look into re-EQ'ing the lead guitar.

In terms of influences -- well, Gilmour is probably the guitarist who's influenced me the most, and I just saw Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits in concert two weeks ago (and about a week before doing this song). So, I'm both flattered and impressed by your saying that!

[TooBd59]

I really like the feel of this. Good tune, lovely guitar fills, nice laid back sound overall. There's something about the drums that niggles me, though, and I'm not sure what it is. The bass drum levels seem to fluctuate somewhat, and the snare seems very quiet and indistinct. Are you happy with the drums as they are?

I hope you'll post some more of your work, this is good stuff.

Edit: Oops, should've read your first post before mentioning the drums... sorry

[Vulconizer]

Nice work on the song. Writing, playing and mixing were all done well.

If you are going to EQ out a little on the lead guitar at 1.5k or so, try adding just a tad at the same freq on the bass. Will bring out the pluck sound of the strings.

Overall levels sound right to me. Once you get the tiny bit of harshness out of the lead guitar, it's gonna be sweet.

[Necromancer]

I'd like to hear it too but I stand with MetalDave.
Most files hosted outside of here are going to open at least two other windows. And half the time they are down, etc.
Scratch that, I see you uploaded it here - THANKS!!!

[Necromancer]

It's been said, great song, lead is a little too hot. Glad I got to hear it.

[Snail]

I really like the feel of this. Good tune, lovely guitar fills, nice laid back sound overall. There's something about the drums that niggles me, though, and I'm not sure what it is. The bass drum levels seem to fluctuate somewhat, and the snare seems very quiet and indistinct. Are you happy with the drums as they are?

I hope you'll post some more of your work, this is good stuff.

Edit: Oops, should've read your first post before mentioning the drums... sorry

Thanks for the comments. Yeah, I'm not that happy about the drums. They're the one thing that's not recorded live, and they seem sterile. Drums are often the weak point to anything I try to record. There are two things I don't like: the sound, and the rhythm (they are always right _on_ the beat, whereas a real drummer would be slightly ahead of/behind the beat depending on the feel of the song).

Any suggestions? I've heard about drum software, like drumagog, etc., but I've never used any of it.

[MetalDave]

Some software for drums has a random button. Look for that and see if that makes it more live on your next tune.

[TooBd59]

Thanks for the comments. Yeah, I'm not that happy about the drums. They're the one thing that's not recorded live, and they seem sterile. Drums are often the weak point to anything I try to record. There are two things I don't like: the sound, and the rhythm (they are always right _on_ the beat, whereas a real drummer would be slightly ahead of/behind the beat depending on the feel of the song).

Any suggestions? I've heard about drum software, like drumagog, etc., but I've never used any of it.

Well, when I saw that you were intending to re-record this with a full band, I thought perhaps my comments about the drums were inappropriate. But if you want to improve them on this track, I would suggest EQ-ing to add some definition to the bass drum and snare (someone with more experience than me should be able to tell you what numbers to aim for ), and perhaps some judicious compression on bass drum, just to even out the level variations.

To my ears, the rhythm doesn't sound particularly robotic: I think the drums in this track are too subtle for that to be a noticeable problem. To me it's really just the tonality that needs a little adjustment.

[MetalDave]

I haven't done much sampling as of yet but randomizing wasn't something I wanted to click on. I want my drummer to play perfect. J/K

[Snail]

Well, when I saw that you were intending to re-record this with a full band, I thought perhaps my comments about the drums were inappropriate. But if you want to improve them on this track, I would suggest EQ-ing to add some definition to the bass drum and snare (someone with more experience than me should be able to tell you what numbers to aim for ), and perhaps some judicious compression on bass drum, just to even out the level variations.

To my ears, the rhythm doesn't sound particularly robotic: I think the drums in this track are too subtle for that to be a noticeable problem. To me it's really just the tonality that needs a little adjustment.

Thanks, that's helpful. There likely will be a full band version, but I'm also using this version to help learn how to do things, so this kind of input is great. Drum tracks have always been tough for me when there isn't a real drummer around.