ORIGINAL: bdfutch

I thought this was cool. I love pinch harmonics. The mix has been critiqued to death, so I'll only tell you music translates and it's not hard to tell that you know what you're doing.
Keep rocking.
Brian

ORIGINAL: ed_mcg

Wow, excellent song, high energy! I happen to like the lead vox, it has personality /character in these overly quantized days. The guitar squeels, in between the chrunch, are great.

Regarding vox: The level of compression is fine. The clarity is an issue, here's somethings to try: roll off below 300Hz, dip at 750Hz, and one of these: a boost at 2k (adds hardness), 4K (sibilance), 6~8K (brightness / air) - you could try sweep the boost though there to see if one area sounds particularly good. If you decide to go with pitch correction, I'd recommend Melodyne Cre8 (link), it's superior to Autotune and doesn't have PACE.

On the arrangement, the break at 2:47 with the phase get's to light (or 70's groovy) for the song. Maybe just "clean distortion" (Dan's favorite) sound.

Pretty darn impressive.

ORIGINAL: o3layla1

I liked it a lot , don't know where they get the linkin park thing either , actually more along the lines of alice in chains at times I thought , I like both bands a lot however , but you sound like you , thats the important thing

ORIGINAL: variaxman

Hey DSomething,just wanted to say I thought your song was pretty cool!I really like the guitar sounds...so well defined and clear..Kinda sounding like TOOL to me at times.I thought your vocals perfect for this song to,to my ears I enjoy a vocal when its done with "heart" over perfect pitch corrected singing...but thats just me.
You Rock!

Voice critique:

You’ve got the God given gift of the voice instrument and you already know from the experience of the guitar that all you have to do is go through the nuisance task of tuning it. It just takes much longer. However, it wasn’t until I found out this piece of information, having had listened to the song prior to reading the posts…

I happen to be a chick and my voice also happens to be very deep for a chick.

…that caused me to sit back in my chair and say, “Wait a minute here, this just might be a very unique niche.” It caused me to think that perhaps you are having difficulty with pronunciation and intonation because you are subconsciously fighting sounding male on the lead vocal. However, the background vocals are most definitely female. Try this experiment… Be a chick who is imitating a male voice on the lead vocal. I’m curious.

Heart of song and guitar critique:

From the lyrics that I can understand… “Despair” is the one that stands out. The guitar is also interpreting this emotion while at the same time is being contrasted by an overcoming power of that despair. Well done! I can critique the guitar no further ‘cause you got it kid and I love your understanding of the “pinch”.

ORIGINAL: Abbey

You have caused me ponde_. Hmmmmmm! One moment please while I _ecord my speaking voice and listen back ve_y ve_y ca_efully…

BY GOLLY, you are co_ _ect.

Thank you for c_itiquing New Yo_k State. I’ll t_y to wo_k on that.

I get the feeling that DSomething o_ othe_ is getting a standing ovation on this fo_um.

Looking fo_wa_d to the next one.

THIS IS AN EDIT: When I came back to _ead M_. M's post I was totally shock to see that somehow I managed to type one of the st_aight sho_t thingies with the sqwigely thingy towa_d the top of it. You'll find it somewhe_e (o_ othe_) sho_tly afte_ the two wo_ds that expressed my glee --- "BY GOLLY". I'm so_ _y if my posting caused you o_ anyone else convution. You must fo_give me BECAUSE I'm also dyslexic.

I have problems with pronunciation cuz I'm originally from NY and can't figure out how to say my 'r's anymore

Oh, by the way, I have been listening to your song ove_ and ove_ again in an attempt to deciphe_ just what the song was all about. I now have each and eve_y wo_d figu_ed out with the exception of one and it has me puzzeled[sm=rolleyes.gif]. Pe_haps you can help me out. It sta_ts with a "C" sound and ends with a "Z" sound. You may want to wo_k on that. It just may be that it is due to a p_oblem caused as a _esult of someone in you_ State having simply misspelled one ve_y simple little wo_d. Boy... I su_e hope that it wasn't you. But don't wo_ _y too much. Afte_ a few millions years o_ so, afte_ I have spoken with each and eve_y pe_son in my State in an attempt to help them p_onounce each and eve_y wo_d that contains a short st_aight thingy with some type of squigely thingy somewhe_e towa_ds the top of it, I'm su_e I'll have enough time to help you out with the p_oblem in you_ State. Boy oh boy oh boy I su_e hope that it wasn't you!

ORIGINAL: Brad

Like it alot.. Very nice guitar crunch...

ORIGINAL: Lynn

This is a good production. Don't worry about the vocal being too loud for the mix because it isn't. I listened to this at low volume, and the vocal doesn't get drowned out by the guitars like a lot of hard rock/metal music that I hear on the radio today. I believe if you have good lyrics, let them stand out. Many artists tend to bury their lyrics in the instruments because their lyrics aren't strong or they lack confidence in their voice. Also, their's nothing wrong with the way you EQ'd your vocal. I listened to this song on good monitors, and everything you want to hear is present. This is a good effort, and don't let unwarranted criticism knock you for a loop. You go girl!
Lynn

ORIGINAL: jsaras

The guitar and bass sound terrific as they are.

The drums could have a little more drama sonically. Some panning could do wonders in that department. I would almost say that you could use more bottom on the kick, but I'm afraid that you'd wind up having a frequency conflict with the bass guitar. It's probably better to err on the less bassy side.

The vocals could be a touch louder and a tiny bit brighter. You could also make them sound more forward by using a very short delay (somewhere between 8-30 ms should do it). You won't hear a slap-back, it will just sound bigger. If you download my free Sonar mixing template you'll find two different "short reverb" sends that would work wonderfully for this.

Good job overall!

Jonas