not many people have heard my music.

Hardwired Flaws · #1 07-15-2009, 01:18 PM

Let me knwow what you think. All music is me and it's recorded in my living room (usually after the wife falls asleep)

http://www.fileden.com/files/2009/7/...0met%20mp3.mp3

Hope I did this right!

Bob1131 · #2 07-15-2009, 04:35 PM

Hello Hardwired, and welcome to the AGF! Also, congrats on obtaining a 414CE, that's a great guitar for just about anything you want to do!!! I enjoyed listening to "We Met." As a fellow home-recording musician and songwriter, I think I can hear what you are going for, so here's a couple of suggestions to improve your recording:

1. Layering instruments is not easy. One of the things that happens is the beat or timing can get lost or out of sync. Speaking for myself, I think it happens because I get a different feel from each instrument. Therefore, my tightest sounding tracks are the result of using a metronome or click track to assure that I keep consistent time from track to track/instrument to instrument. I recommend that you give that a try to tighten up your instruments.

2. Bring up the vocals in the mix. I am not a fan of effects on vocals or instruments (except for some reverb), so I recommend eliminating the vocal effect and bringing it more up front in the mix so we can hear and understand the lyrics better. Also, I'd like to hear the passion and expression in your voice, but the vocal effect hides that.

3. Always give your ears a rest before mixing and mastering. Our hearing will automatically shut down in response to loud music. So especially when laying down tracks with headphones on our hearing attenuates. We respond by turning up the bass and the volume which causes our hearing to attenuate all the more, so we turn up....and so on. The result is a mix that generally doesn't sound very good when we hear it after a nights sleep! So, be patient and mix your tracks after sufficient quiet rest.

4. Speaking of patient...take time to get everything right, don't accept mistakes thinking that nobody will notice. In a live performance a mistake (off note, poorly timed lick, etc.) is quickly forgotten, but a recording gets played over and over and over. Each time it is played, the mistake becomes more noticeable to the listener. So, work on your recording until it is right, even if it takes days, weeks, or months! The final product is worth it!! And yes, I know, I need to take my own advice on this this point...LOL, I sometimes get so excited about some song or track that I let it even though I know it isn't as good as I can do).

5. Experiment a lot and have fun.

Again, welcome to AGF and I will forward to reading your posts and hearing more of your music!

Hardwired Flaws · #3 07-15-2009, 05:13 PM

Thanx I need all the constructive criticism I can get.
I'm sure a lot of people say this, but it all was a first take and I wrote it on the fly, everything was done in an hour and a half, beginning to end.
I think it sounds great and mind you it was a "tap foot time" All sounds pretty close.

66strummer · #4 07-15-2009, 06:06 PM

If you played all of the instruments in that tune then my hats off to you. I've heard songs on the radio that use the vocal effect you used. I'd like to hear a song that uses your regular voice as well but I think you did a decent job on this one. Keep posting.....

BTW, I think Bob made some good and thoughtful points. What I personally heard sounded fairly in synch to my ears but I'm no expert.

shawlie · #5 07-16-2009, 04:47 AM

I liked the song, it sounded nice - the verses remind me in a way of how 16Horsepower sounds sometimes (melody-wise, that is).

I do agree a bit that the distortion on the voice is a little much - the other instruments sound pretty clear, it might form more of a whole of it has slightly less effect. But that's just personal opinion, and everybody has different ideas and likes.