Hi, if you don't mind hearing some screamo, take a listen to this song from my son's band - Among Fallen Kings - that we recorded and mixed entirely in Sonar. This band is composed of 15- and 16-year-olds.


Song title: It's Our Future

Link: www.reverbnation.com/amongfallenkings

Facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/Among-Fallen-Kings/547610851950430?id=547610851950430&sk=app_2405167945

It's really not that bad ... even if you don't like screamo. Just saying. :)

Mark

I tried to listen, but it was unlistenable :-( Usually I can listen and comment on the mix or recording, but the song and vocals put me off after only a few seconds.

"Interesting tune. Reminds me of something from Lindsey Buckingham's first solo album, which was a throwback to some older sounds. The phrasings feel a little off in spots, but maybe the second melody version will take care of some of that. A very relaxing song, though. "

Yes, the 2nd melody version took care of that ;-) (BUT IT WASN'T A COMPETITION!!)

So, you DO have college money set aside for the lad? After he blows his vocal chords out in a year or so, he might want to consider a real career, as music appears to not be his forté. I am sorry Mark, I do not want to sound mean. I have listened to my fair share of this type of music and it is a difficult genre to pin musical value to at times, but it does have some. This song however... this song was just awful. Noise and screaming doth not music make.

As far as i'm concerned, "Metal" began and ended with "Black Sabbath"  Maybe i'm biased cause they hailed from just a few miles up the road from me, but i think they did it best, said it all and no other bands came anywhere close to them. That maybe a very blinkered view, but that's my opinion.

That said: I thought the music was kind of interesting and i can tell you put a lot of effort into making it, but the vocals spoilt it for me, although i did listen till the end.. 

The mix sounded pretty good on my speakers.

This is'nt a genre i'm into, but i'm sure that folkes who do like this kind of thing would enjoy it.

Between the  screams, somebody had a good voice in there from time to time.  So, why not exploit that?  Overall, the mix was pretty good, and the instruments had that heavy, crunching sound.  But, the Rob Zombie vocal has become overdone by anybody that's not Rob Zombie.

Hi Mark,

Ah, kids these days!  

When I was 15-16 years old, my main goal musically was finding stuff that adults didn't understand or, better yet, found offensive.  So, with that in mind, if I said I liked what they're doing it would probably mean they're already hopelessly out of date.

I think the mix sounds good on my laptop speakers and it seems like they can play way better than I could at that age.

But what I mostly hear is a father making an effort to be involved with his son's interests...and what's not to like about that?

Hey, everyone. I appreciate all the listens (even if some were partial listens) and comments. :)

This is not what I listen to either, but if you listen to some of the "popular" groups in this genre these days, this is pretty close to what they sound like (or as close as they can get with their experience and only four band members). Group names I hear them talk about are I See Stars, Memphis May I, Asking Alexadria, Bless the Fall, We Came As Romans, August Burns Red, Texas In July, etc. etc. Groups you might see on the Warp Tour. So if you've never heard these groups, you probably haven't heard the kind of music they are trying to emulate, but in their own style.

Clearly, it's not for everyone.

And for the record, my son is the drummer and sings the "clean" vocals and some of the back up low screams.

Thanks again for, well, enduring the pain ...  :)

its all about live and learn, at this age my mixes weren't tha hreat, not as great as this one, so time will help you alng the way to build a better mix, the song itself is pretty good, im a metalhead from way back to seplutura.
reminds me along the lines of slip knot.

but he mix needs some depth to it.
I know your getting the stick in here by some people who don't get it, but im telling you, the depth is what turns this song from thin and weak to a beast that rips your ear off, chews it up and spits it out on a plate for others to marvel and eat.

with that said, the snare is to thin and lost in the mix, the snare is supposed to be banging in death metal.
it sounded more along the lines of casio.
you've got some great pieces here re mix it with anger, more lows.

good job

Hey, Charlie. I appreciate the feedback. I actually did most of the mixing for them in kind of a teaching role for my son, but not being my genre, I didn't really know how to make it be what it needed to be. So, your feedback is particularly helpful in that respect. Might try to "chew" on the mix a bit more. Thanks.

Mark