Break Away

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mrpippy2
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2017/11/07 19:55:02 (permalink)

Break Away

Hello all, another song I just finished arranging and producing for a singer/songwriting student of mine.  I tried to go with an "electronic meets organic" vibe, and was interested in how the combination of cello/glockenspiel/piano would work with the more electronic elements of the production.  Everything done in Sonar, using Rapture, Kontakt, AD2, and a couple other soft synths that I can't think of at the moment.  Verses and chorus hers, bridge, production and arrangement mine.  Hope you enjoy!
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_43nZ874itc

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    mrpippy2
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    Re: Break Away 2017/11/08 00:49:01 (permalink)
    U-he Zebra, that was the other one. I love that synth. Gave me the "clicky clacky" loop than runs through the majority of the track.

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    #2
    Rimshot
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    Re: Break Away 2017/11/09 02:58:56 (permalink)
    I liked it. 
    In comparison to other posts here, your overall master output volume is a bit low. That makes me turn up the volume to hear it better. This makes it sound less than other songs. 
    If you added some percussion to it, it might help the listener stay with it. As it is, you have to be patient. You need to bring the listener in and make it more interesting to grab onto. 
    I like the song idea and arrangement. Just need more pizzaz to keep the focus IMO. 
     

    Rimshot 

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    #3
    bjornpdx
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    Re: Break Away 2017/11/09 17:27:05 (permalink)
    Excellent vocal
    Clicky clack part needs some variety, maybe add another subtle percussion. The bell(?) embellishment here and there is good.  The string needs a bit more oomph, IMO.
    I use Zebra too and quite a lot. There's always something there I can use.

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    #4
    dougk1824
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    Re: Break Away 2017/11/09 17:45:57 (permalink)
    I liked it - and kudos to the lead vocalist - she was excellent.  The synths were interesting - they sounded like they were underwater to my ears - a nice effect.
    #5
    mrpippy2
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    Re: Break Away 2017/11/10 14:00:41 (permalink)
    Thanks for the feedback.  The track is mastered, but maybe I just didn't get the overall level quite high enough.  I thought I did, though.  And I liked the "underwater" comment.  Never thought about that before, but the main Rapture patch going through the whole track coupled with the various delays going throughout the piece could certainly give it that type of sound.

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    #6
    synkrotron
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    Re: Break Away 2017/11/13 08:32:36 (permalink)
    I like the level as it is and I think it suits this song... I thought we were supposed to be moving on from the "Loudness Wars" anyway!

    http://www.synkrotron.co.uk/
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    jamesg1213
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    Re: Break Away 2017/11/13 13:17:38 (permalink)
    That's nice. Her vocal seemed a little pitchy at the start but got much better as the song went on. Cool production, but perhaps the 'clicky-clacky' arp went on a bit too long.

     
    Jyemz
     
     
     



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    #8
    dcumpian
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    Re: Break Away 2017/11/13 13:29:27 (permalink)
    Yes, she was a little pitchy at the beginning, probably got more confident as she went.
     
    Overall, the mix is pretty good with everything clearly audible. I think you did a real nice job putting this all together, though I would have liked the energy to come more about halfway through.
     
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    Dan
     

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    mrpippy2
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    Re: Break Away 2017/11/13 16:34:11 (permalink)
    Appreciate the feedback! It's always a question of how much to pitch correct, because I certainly want to maintain the human element. Usually if Melodyne shows the note is within +/- 12 cents or so I'll leave it alone. She does have the occasional tendency to be pretty off on the attack of the note and then very quickly pretty much nail the pitch. As I use the bundled version of Melodyne that comes with Splat (I think Essential), that can be tough to deal with. I'm glad to see the comments on the clarity of all the instruments. I tried to really use EQ and panning to give each instrument its own space so they don't clash with each other. Thanks again for commenting!

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    stevec
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    Re: Break Away 2017/11/20 19:59:47 (permalink)
    Sounds pretty good here...   Really liked the vocals - she has a polished delivery.    I was waiting for just a little something more in the second half to build it up, but what you have I liked.  

    SteveC
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