Choices

 
The first 13-14 seconds of this almost blew my ear drum out on my first listen. On my second listen it didn't seem to be so loud, that might be because I listened to the whole song first and was ear deaf. Great sound though on this one. You might just want to equal out those first few seconds until the other instrumentation kicks in for a bit smoother entrance of the piece. The rest sounds good to me and nice work on the mix.
 
Peace and Blessings, John

I think I remember this song.
 
It sounds great today.
 
The drums sound real nice.
 
I don't think I'd change a thing.

Thanks for sharing.
 
best regards,
mike
 

A lot of your music gives me a Yes vibe, (a good thing) I think because of the time signatures and for example the way you mixed in the acoustic parts and the vocals in places as well. The whole thing seemed very original and well performed.

I thought the interlude was a slightly random sounding. Sometimes that happens when you change direction too much in a song though. The mix sounded fine, the tone was fine too. It sounded a bit like a 1980s hair band tune at times. I'm not saying that to be negative but it's the impression I had. It seems to be put together well though.

the guitar player
heheh, yep, i wanted to get someone's attention right off the bat
hence the ride on the opening riff
i WANT the intro to be louder...
and was not looking for a smooth transition. i actually wanted it to be ruder than it is,
but i vacillated on what was too much and just enough.....
thanks for listening john, glad you liked it, i think i can mix it better.... this was done on a roland VS1880, and was pretty much a 'faders up' kind of mix.
now with automation and mutliple busses, i think i can tweak more out of it.


guitartrek
more drums, check,
yep, i feel the same way..
they really kick, and i need to bring them out more....
see comment above..
i think i can get a lot more out of the transients with some well placed compression, that i did not have available when i mixed this originally.

thanks for listening!


mike mccue
thanks mike, appreciate the comments.
  
 
wookie
you should get the ear fur trimmed, eh?
LOL
jangle on guitar, check.
sometimes i think it's just MY ears that are sensitive to certain frequencies, probably from years of playing too loud.
hehe

Bat,
 
Your stuff always sounds top notch, no exception here.   The acoustic interlude is really cool.  
 
Interesting that you say, "pretty much a 'faders up' kind of mix."   I am trying to do more of that kind of recording so there is less tweaking required.   At least for me, I find the more I tweak the more I break;)  Then I go back to the original and realize that it didn't need that much treatment and all I did was degrade what was there.   Your mixes always sound really good.
 
Regards

Hey, Rob,
 
Great song with cool vintage vibe and excellent playing and vocals, as usual!
 
I like how the acoustic break pulls down for contrast before things kicked back in at the end.  The mix sounds really nice, but I think I might agree with Geno about maybe giving the drums a little bump to showcase them a bit.
 
Dynamite work, as always, brother Bat!
Bob

You really capture that vintage '70's sound.  This number does have a bit of a Yes feel to it.  Terrific playing, vocals, and to me the mix sounds good.
Nice one!!

the band19
thanks for commenting, i hear the 'yes' thing often enough to lend it creedence....
heheh, i don't hear it, but i guess it's got as much to do with the pitch of my voice compared to jon andersons? as it does with the actual music sounding similar or not..
i dont' know, still trying to figure it out, but it's cool, cuz i like yes, and could never sit down and learn any of the guitar parts....
maybe SOME of the vox, but even that would be a stretch!~
 
 

leadfoot
great man, i'm glad you dig it....
i just thought 'too many typical solos', that the acoustic breakdown with the vocals on top would work as the solo, with the drums doing the heavy lifting!
LOL


pistolpete
thanks for listening and commenting..

well, the interlude is supposed to represent 'a moment to pause and reflect' about 'choice made'....
the idea is, it's easy to just plunge headlong into life decisions, but sometimes you gotta back off.
and think about it.
a lot of times i've failed to do that..
the music is representative of the idea of 'trying' to back off..
 
the hair band thing, i just don't hear at all.
(please if you would, point me to an example of what you are describing...)
when i think of hair metal, i think of lots of reverb..... JCM marshalls with face melting distortion and fizz.... lots of treble attack on the drums, with even more reverb.... triple tracked lead vocals with a thousand backups, and more reverb....... LOL
that kind of thing.

not too many hair bands did acoustic breakdowns and feature jazzy drum riffing instead of a standard guitar solo section...


eric paul
thanks man, good to know it's translating......


AT
damaging, yes, i know that perspective too!
LOL
i often will save a mix, and then 'saveas' to a new file, to mess and damage with...
but i do know that, at the time of this mix, i had a very simple setup, as far as mixing goes...
and i know a lot more now, than i did then, i think i could make the drums shine quite a bit more, and get the guitars sitting right where i really wanted them to be....
so, i dont' know, maybe it's not worth the time, but i always look at these things as learning experiences anyway..... so it's cool.
thanks for listening!

markno999
thanks man, for listening and commenting...
well, i like to dial in certain mixes, and this would be one of them.
but some mixes i like to be more raw..
i guess at this point, i know i can get a better drum mix, and just knowing that makes me want to try it.
the guitars, i can get them smoother too....
so, i don't know, i think the more you work on something, the better you get, so i would not back off of experimenting with mixes if you are moving forward.

bapu
thanks, good to know the ear buds translate.
thanks for listening...


bob oister
thanks bob!
the acoustics, i always think about bands like Boston driving a hard drum and bass groove with an acoustic guitar riff..
then blending in electrics.
it's easy to arrange a song for dynamics, doing nothing but having acoustic sections.
kind of a cheap thrill.
LOL
but it works, and it gives the listeners' ears and brain a rest.....


ChuckC
appreciate the comments..
i hear 2k a lot, in the guitars, and even tho that's the frequency that gives it the most clarity, it's also an important vocal range, and even hard panning, still does not solve a certain level of masking and buildup...
more reason to experiment with further mixes!
 

freddy J
thanks freddy...
i wished i knew exactly what is, that gives a 'vintage' or classic rock sound, because i'm using all modern gear, and modern techniques, but i guess maybe the way i eq and compress certain things just fall under that category..
it's not intentional, it's just the way i hear things.
i would not know how to duplicate it on purpose!!
LOL
 

Bat - sorry I am late for the party.  I have always admired your music and this one is my favorite.  The guitars and vocals knock me out.  The whole production sounds great to me.  Love your playing and vibe.  Once little comment - and it doesn't matter at all is that the snare could use more width to me.  It is really compressed and tight.  No biggie.  Your work is so good to listen to.
 
Super job.
 
Rimshot
 

Keep up the great work.  I always enjoy your music no matter what you are doing.  
All the best.
 
Rimshot

batsbrew
thanks man... i appreciate the comment, even if it's not your typical choice of style

anyhow... I still think it's knocked out...  I wish I could do it...
 

batsbrew
notnat
you do do it. 
LOL

(grin ;-) reminds me of that classic quote from Young Frankenstein..." Excuse me darling, what is it exactly that you do do?"