Let me know what you think...be honest!

Here's my first mix using Sonar4 (studio).

Hold Me Back

It's definitely rock (melodic, yet heavy) so if you're not into that and still want to check it out just pay attention to the mix. If you happen to be into rock then hopefully you will enjoy the tune as well (but still comment on whatever your heart desires).

ORIGINAL: reallifer

Wow! Very cool. I loved the guitars...how did you get that sound?
The critic:
The lead vocal needs some pitch work.
Also, the lead vocal seems to far forward in the mix, it doesn't seem to fit in with the guitars. Maybe try more or different reverb.

Otherwise, the band sounds great. Did you use external effects on the guitars or was it a plug-in?

Thanks a bunch!!!!! To answer your questions/comments:

1. The guitars were recorded direct through a Boss GT-6. I modified one of the settings to try and capture what my head sounds like...it's still a bit fuzzy for my taste but certainly sounds nice to me...so I used it. Oh, and I didn't use the digit outs of the GT-6, just the analog/Line out. And, I recorded each track separately...not choosing to use the stereo outs (just the mono). There are absolutely no effects on the guitars at all. Just panned the different tracks within the stereo field. Used some layering techniques as well....1 set of main rhythms, another set of rythms that were a bit different, and one other track of accent guitars (panned center).

2. Lead Vocals: This is me and I have always battled to get past the "my vocals are way too high...turn them down!" syndrome. Therefore, I have been criticized for having my vocals too far in the mix. I must have over compensated on this track. At times I think they're right in there and at other times I think they are too up front...but I figured let other people be the judge. As far as the pitchiness...yeah, I'm no singer...I'm a songwriter first, guitar player second and singer last. I like to think I get the job done vocally though.

3. Also, this is not a band. This is me! I wrote, recorded, mixed and mastered everything myself. But thanks for thinking it is a band...huge compliment for all the hard work.

ORIGINAL: BlindDog

Love the style of the music, really hooked me with the first riff. Love the BGVs, reminiscent of early Van Halen. Guitars are ultra-tight. Very nice.

Criticisms: The EQ of the vox makes it difficult to understand the words. I'm not hearing it too far up-front, but I'm hearing something in the EQ ... uh, could it possibly be a little heavy on the compression? And I agree, it's a little pitchy, nothing that couldn't be corrected. And as to the "I'm no singer" comment, accept that it's a necessary by-product of the other hats you wear, believe you can do as good as the pros and then expect yourself to deliver at that level. Hey man, if you did all this I hear some serious talent hiding in the BGVs, and believe you can deliver the front vox at that level. It may take some time to get the first few tracks worked out, but years from now you'll be glad you did.

Thanks Kevin!! Unfortunately, this is not my first attempt at lead vocals. I happen to be a chick and my voice also happens to be very deep for a chick. I have trouble EQing my vocals and have found that cutting the mids works well. I could have used too much compression. I'll try and lessen the compression my next go-around. I'm going to start to track a new one real soon! I think my other problem is I'm way more relaxed cutting the BGVs cuz I know they're going to be "hidden", whereas, I'm a little more tense when cutting the leads cuz I know they're going to be right up front for all the world to hear. Also, I think I might be trying too hard with the leads. Who knows...practice will hopefully make perfect.

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

You do realize my use of "man" was the "generic", right?

Hey, no offense but gender doesn't mean dink. Don't let fear hold you back (sorry, had to) from pushing your vocals to where they can be. Be relaxed, get good O2 levels, sing your tune, and know definitively in your heart that it rocks. THEN LET IT RIP! And when all else fails, there's some excellent pitch correction out there.

From what I'm hearing, you're doing a lot in one take, not a lot of patching. Now, of course, I could be wrong. If I'm close though, (it's amazing and) I think perhaps your O2 levels might be getting a little depleted by the time you get to the notes you're just a bit low on. You might try patching in on those parts, oxygenate your blood (half a dozen deep breaths, hold for 2-3 seconds, then release, repeat) and patch in with the part. Oh, and look up. For some, looking up doesn't do much, but I've found that in many cases it helps me pull up something that would otherwise be really ugly. You might try hanging the mic about 4-5" higher (and properly angled) so you have to look up to get the right perspective on the mic diaphragm. Besides, looking up to the mic can force a better posture to get better airflow into the lungs. But be careful with this, though, it can actually pull the note up too far.

ORIGINAL: BlindDog

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

You do realize my use of "man" was the "generic", right?

Hey, no offense but gender doesn't mean dink. Don't let fear hold you back (sorry, had to) from pushing your vocals to where they can be. Be relaxed, get good O2 levels, sing your tune, and know definitively in your heart that it rocks. THEN LET IT RIP! And when all else fails, there's some excellent pitch correction out there.

From what I'm hearing, you're doing a lot in one take, not a lot of patching. Now, of course, I could be wrong. If I'm close though, (it's amazing and) I think perhaps your O2 levels might be getting a little depleted by the time you get to the notes you're just a bit low on. You might try patching in on those parts, oxygenate your blood (half a dozen deep breaths, hold for 2-3 seconds, then release, repeat) and patch in with the part. Oh, and look up. For some, looking up doesn't do much, but I've found that in many cases it helps me pull up something that would otherwise be really ugly. You might try hanging the mic about 4-5" higher (and properly angled) so you have to look up to get the right perspective on the mic diaphragm. Besides, looking up to the mic can force a better posture to get better airflow into the lungs. But be careful with this, though, it can actually pull the note up too far.

Of course I knew "man" was meant to be a phrase!! I was just saying that me being a chick with a deep tone is hard to EQ. I don't exactly have that bassy frequency generated by a man's voice but I also don't have that high frequency a normal chick has Sometimes when I EQ to get the higher ends coming through i end up with the very annoying "sssssss" that just kill the mix. Like I said, I like cutting the mids cuz I also have a nasaly voice (in my opinion) and it irritates me. I think my problem is overcompression. That can make any vocal track extra muddy and that's what I'm hearing.

I do look up!!! Isn't that funny! I didn't know it was a techinique...just worked on another song I cut and I've been doing that ever since. When I sing deep though I tend to lean into the mic a bit more and hold my head straight. When I rip a higher note (or grit something out) I move away from the mic a bit and look up and to the left. It's a habit.

I also do warm up a bit before cutting a vocl track. I breathe in, hiss out. Then I move to my "mmmmmm, zzzzzzzz, eeeeee" routine. I read that online a while ago from a vocal coach who did an article on warms ups. You'd be really frightened if you heard any tracks without the warm up

Thanks for all your advice!!! I also agree...you can hide behind drums, you can hide behind a guitar, you can hide behind any instrument but you cannot hide behind vocals. Vocals are 10% ability and 90% confidence. I think I'm bordering on 60% confidence...but getting there! Also, what pitch correction software/plugins would you recommend?

Dsomething, nice changes and rips, I like the breaks they are also very mood setting... heavey drone is done nicely, I like the clean/dirty change off done about 3:20... my only suggestion is make sure none of the vocal parts get buried here or there... I know alot of guys will tell you to clean the mix... but I think that would KILL the feel.... -Austin http://www.soundclick.com/bands/8/austnmusic.htm

ORIGINAL: AUSTN

Dsomething, nice changes and rips, I like the breaks they are also very mood setting... heavey drone is done nicely, I like the clean/dirty change off done about 3:20... my only suggestion is make sure none of the vocal parts get buried here or there... I know alot of guys will tell you to clean the mix... but I think that would KILL the feel.... -Austin http://www.soundclick.com/bands/8/austnmusic.htm

See...this is what I'm talking about. The first comment said the vocals were too up front in the mix adn you're saying they seem buried at times. Isn't music grand!!! I do agree they could be EQ'd better though...and maybe less compressed. First person to comment on the bridge!! Yahoooooo! (Pssst...don't tell anyone...that's my favorite part)

Thanks for the kind words! (and advice)

Hi. Nice job on the song. The guitar sounds are pretty happening. I like the structure and the execution. The musicianship is good. I generally don't listen to this genre, but it's still on the fringe of my tastes - I used to listen to a lot of heavy guitar music so I can still relate pretty well.

I have not read the other comments about this song yet but there are a few areas’ I'd look into fixing if this were my own song. They are:

Without being too specific; there are a few areas of pitchiness in the vocal. I would go after those first and foremost. Overall the pitch is good, though.

My other main observation has to do with the "sound" of the vocal. Right now it sounds like the vocal material is too laden with excess low/low-mid frequencies - perhaps from proximity effect. I'd definitely try to fix that if it were my song.

I think the raw material in the vocal recording is there and you probably could get it to where it needs to be without re-tracking via some EQ analysis/correction and some pitch shifting via SONAR's time pitch plug-in. As far as the EQ goes - everyone’s voice covers a certain range of frequencies. My wife for instance usually peaks around 1-2 KHz and can go down to around 300 Hz. Studying the way her voice interacts on the frequency spectrum can reveal a lot and help to get a good EQ on her. There is a free spectrum analysis tool called SPAN by voxengo that I use a lot to do this type of analysis. I don't know if you are already doing this type of work, but if you don't, it can be really helpful to get the right EQ.

Again - nice job on the song.

Thanks,

Great Stuff! Dontcha just love the GT6?, a great piece of kit, gives me all the sounds I need! Production sounds good to me, maybe a little too clean in places, but sounds good. The tune is good and so are the vox. A top effort, good song and sounds vibrant, I have been struggling to mix my last tune to my satisfaction, and your vocal mix sounds better than the one I did! Keep the songs coming.
Cheers

ORIGINAL: Rasmuth

nice job...the energy captured on this is great...especially since you do this all yourself...not much here to complain about...I'm sure the mix could use some adjustments but I thought this sounded great...

and I liked the vocals...fit in perfect for this tune...I'd like to hear more of your stuff.

Wow, thanks a lot! Glad you were diggin' it! I'll be starting the production of another tune shortly and will certainly post it up here when I'm done. Looking forward to hearing what people think on that one!

Honestly, I think you're selling yourself short on the vocals. I think if you get the pitch and EQ stuff worked out, your voice really works for this style. So, get off this, "Oh, I can't really sing" thing, will ya?!

I agree with the comments on the low mids. Everything, including your voice, is just fighting for space in those frequencies. You can carve some out of the backing tracks, but you also need to figure out how to record your voice. Are you too close to the mic? Try backing off. Find the best distance and location in your room. Some of your experimentation might reveal accoustics problems in your room that you'll need to fix. And, if you can rent or borrow some different mics, do that. Find one that works for you within your budget. I'm finding that if I get things recorded right, mixing is a breeze. It sounds more natural to "EQ" with mics and mic position than futz around with EQ later.

Listen to commercial stuff in your style on your monitors. "Tune" your ears to how it should sound on your speakers before you start mixing. Check mixes in your car and on other systems. Get a spectrum analyzer and look at commercial mixes, then look at your mix. I think you'll immediately see the difference. I'm not saying that you should mix with your eyes, but spectrum analyzers can be a tool to help you figure out what's wrong.

Well, I think you have more than enough advice. I'm probably repeating half of it anyway. Good luck!

Oh, excellent first songs post!

ORIGINAL: hornplayer

Honestly, I think you're selling yourself short on the vocals. I think if you get the pitch and EQ stuff worked out, your voice really works for this style. So, get off this, "Oh, I can't really sing" thing, will ya?!

Aside from fixing the pitch, EQ and compression they're GREAT!!! JK!!!! Thanks for the words of encouragement.

I agree with the comments on the low mids. Everything, including your voice, is just fighting for space in those frequencies. You can carve some out of the backing tracks, but you also need to figure out how to record your voice. Are you too close to the mic? Try backing off. Find the best distance and location in your room. Some of your experimentation might reveal accoustics problems in your room that you'll need to fix. And, if you can rent or borrow some different mics, do that. Find one that works for you within your budget. I'm finding that if I get things recorded right, mixing is a breeze. It sounds more natural to "EQ" with mics and mic position than futz around with EQ later.

Futz around? Funny, I like to say Fotz around Actually, I never thought I might be too close to the mic...could be [sm=rolleyes.gif] I'll have to try backing off the mic as well.

Thanks for the comments and suggestions! How would I go about using the pitch correction plugin? Never used one before and it intimidates me a bit. Any advice on that? Also, I will think about using that analasis tool. If you have since read the other comments you will see I think I just overcomressed my vocals. Again, thanks for taking the time to listen and critique!

The pitch correction is a bit of a pain to use for surgical pitch correction and really isn't designed for that purpose either - but I use it that way anyway. My technique is to zoom in on the offending clip/note area and split the clip both before and after said area. Then with a right mouse click (while the cursor is on the split clip), choose audio effects/cakewalk/time-pitch stretch. From memory - I make an educated guess as to how much the note is sharp or flat and then put that value into the pitch field using positive values to sharpen and negative values to flatten. Then I listen to the result. If it's correct then I'm done, if it's not then I undo and repeat until I get the desired result. Sometimes, I have to do a cross fade at the area where I made the split(s) to cover up audio artifacts (also described as a click or a pop) at the beginning and/or ending of the corrected clip.

The Autotune plug-in would make this operation a lot easier, but I refuse to pay $299.00 for a PACE infected plug-in.

As far as over compression - that's not what I was hearing. I was hearing EQ issues.

Again, good tune.

Thanks,

ORIGINAL: danhazer

Thanks for the comments and suggestions! How would I go about using the pitch correction plugin? Never used one before and it intimidates me a bit. Any advice on that? Also, I will think about using that analasis tool. If you have since read the other comments you will see I think I just overcomressed my vocals. Again, thanks for taking the time to listen and critique!

The pitch correction is a bit of a pain to use for surgical pitch correction and really isn't designed for that purpose either - but I use it that way anyway. My technique is to zoom in on the offending clip/note area and split the clip both before and after said area. Then with a right mouse click (while the cursor is on the split clip), choose audio effects/cakewalk/time-pitch stretch. From memory - I make an educated guess as to how much the note is sharp or flat and then put that value into the pitch field using positive values to sharpen and negative values to flatten. Then I listen to the result. If it's correct then I'm done, if it's not then I undo and repeat until I get the desired result. Sometimes, I have to do a cross fade at the area where I made the split(s) to cover up audio artifacts (also described as a click or a pop) at the beginning and/or ending of the corrected clip.

The Autotune plug-in would make this operation a lot easier, but I refuse to pay $299.00 for a PACE infected plug-in.

As far as over compression - that's not what I was hearing. I was hearing EQ issues.

Again, good tune.

Thanks,

Isn't there any autotune plugin in Sonar though? And, I'll try what you say to do with the time-ptich stretch next recording! Thanks for the advice!

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