| The Ultimatum NEW! |    |
Hey all
Here is a new version of our track 'The Ultimatum'
New developments:
- Spent AGES on the drum sound using Battery and a Yamaha DTXplorer drum kit. Skillz from our drummer Pete. Check em out!
- Guitars were also recorded with two mics (SM-57 dynamic and AT4040 condenser) to aim for that studio sound and depth.
- James is not 100% happy with his vocals but I like them
- Bass from our very own Joe
- Mix / mastering by me with suggestions from the crew
As always, please let us know what you think
"A Time for Reason"
Here is a new version of our track 'The Ultimatum'
New developments:
- Spent AGES on the drum sound using Battery and a Yamaha DTXplorer drum kit. Skillz from our drummer Pete. Check em out!
- Guitars were also recorded with two mics (SM-57 dynamic and AT4040 condenser) to aim for that studio sound and depth.
- James is not 100% happy with his vocals but I like them
- Bass from our very own Joe
- Mix / mastering by me with suggestions from the crew
As always, please let us know what you think
"A Time for Reason"
woah, this got buried fast! (lots of other songs' reviews i suppose)
the guitar recording is wonderful. You've done an overall wonderful job, all of those involved. I think the vocals are great, in my opinion. I'll admit that they don't sound as closeup as the guitars. Perhaps it's due to the higher tone of his voice. I think the overall mix works well. I'm going to put this on my iPod and play it through some decent speakers later on, as the headphones I'm stuck with at the moment aren't going to do the track that quality listening experience I want to have.
Because you said James wasn't 100% happy with the vocal track, I'm sitting trying to think what about could be done differently with it. I honestly think that he's done a good job... hmm... The only thing I can think of is to develope a stronger open-mouth sound for held notes, which generally sounds more filling through some compression... less hollow. Now, I don' think the vocals are "hollow" in this recording, but I can see how maybe the widening of the throat for rolling notes (like at 0:24). I generally find the wide open sound to work best on vowels like O and U and sometimes A.
To illustrate... one of the lines in the song is "and now it's all gone wrong". The word 'wrong' has nice O sound that can be pronounced more like in the word "row" minus the W part. Make sense? The O in "wrong" has a different dipthong (to be technical) than the O in "row". In terms of american accents, the O in "wrong" is more like the sound "awe". However, this is all to say that a wide O sound for the word "wrong" would make it more like "wrO(ng)" ... very slight NG sound. Very palleted... in the back of the throat. The O in wide version of the word "wrong" would be like when you're saying "whoa" (again, american accent), yet still putting it as close to the O in "row" as possible.
I'm sorry for talking your ears off, but that's just my analysis considering James' concern. For spots to apply this idea of widening your vocal sound, I'd suggest the following capiltalized words in your lyrics, though it's up to you. Don't sacrifice the sound you're going for in order to satisfy this little theory of mine.
we're ALL to blame ( i think that's the lyric... at 0:24)
self decepTION is hard to admit
should've read the ULtimatUm (this one would turn into something all AWLtimatUm, or OH-LtimaUm)
all gone wRONG
major reacTION
hmmm.. James does the wide thing on "eyes" ("rise"?) in the first line of the 2nd verse.
the E's in certain words, like "togEther" , "you just don't gEt it" can go wide too, by making it more like a candian "eh" sound
as in the sound that the american alphabet letter A is pronounced. Don't do it too hardcore or anything, but if the E in gEt goes wide, it'll sound more like g-ay-t (VERY minor Y sound).
consequent to that E stuff, slightly leaving off a consonant after the E can be useful, so that it doesn't go from a wide open sound to a hard closed one, like the letter T. In gEt, the T kind of takes the back seat, and often will come out as more of a stoppage of air in the back of the throat than a sound made by the tongue and the teeth. I'm not sure if that makes any sense, but just close up your thoat while making that wide E so as to stop your breath, and that is pretty much what I'm talking about.
Now, don't do that last thing about the T too much, else it just sounds dumb, particularly when the next word starts with a vowel. For example, in your line "you just don't get it", you kind of need the T to help break the words up so that you don't sound goofy trying to go "gE(t) i(t)". It would sound too weird since it's a major line in the chorus that gets repeated a few times. If the harmony were to do it, then it wouldn't be so flamboyantly bizare
*sigh* okay, i've got to go to bed
i hope i didn't give you too much to chew on for a comment!
Totally aside from whatever anybody thinks about the vocals, I'm quite impressed with the whole mix. This'll definitely go through my car speakers sometime in the near future
Amazing job. (Very) High rating.
the guitar recording is wonderful. You've done an overall wonderful job, all of those involved. I think the vocals are great, in my opinion. I'll admit that they don't sound as closeup as the guitars. Perhaps it's due to the higher tone of his voice. I think the overall mix works well. I'm going to put this on my iPod and play it through some decent speakers later on, as the headphones I'm stuck with at the moment aren't going to do the track that quality listening experience I want to have.
Because you said James wasn't 100% happy with the vocal track, I'm sitting trying to think what about could be done differently with it. I honestly think that he's done a good job... hmm... The only thing I can think of is to develope a stronger open-mouth sound for held notes, which generally sounds more filling through some compression... less hollow. Now, I don' think the vocals are "hollow" in this recording, but I can see how maybe the widening of the throat for rolling notes (like at 0:24). I generally find the wide open sound to work best on vowels like O and U and sometimes A.
To illustrate... one of the lines in the song is "and now it's all gone wrong". The word 'wrong' has nice O sound that can be pronounced more like in the word "row" minus the W part. Make sense? The O in "wrong" has a different dipthong (to be technical) than the O in "row". In terms of american accents, the O in "wrong" is more like the sound "awe". However, this is all to say that a wide O sound for the word "wrong" would make it more like "wrO(ng)" ... very slight NG sound. Very palleted... in the back of the throat. The O in wide version of the word "wrong" would be like when you're saying "whoa" (again, american accent), yet still putting it as close to the O in "row" as possible.
I'm sorry for talking your ears off, but that's just my analysis considering James' concern. For spots to apply this idea of widening your vocal sound, I'd suggest the following capiltalized words in your lyrics, though it's up to you. Don't sacrifice the sound you're going for in order to satisfy this little theory of mine.
we're ALL to blame ( i think that's the lyric... at 0:24)
self decepTION is hard to admit
should've read the ULtimatUm (this one would turn into something all AWLtimatUm, or OH-LtimaUm)
all gone wRONG
major reacTION
hmmm.. James does the wide thing on "eyes" ("rise"?) in the first line of the 2nd verse.
the E's in certain words, like "togEther" , "you just don't gEt it" can go wide too, by making it more like a candian "eh" sound
as in the sound that the american alphabet letter A is pronounced. Don't do it too hardcore or anything, but if the E in gEt goes wide, it'll sound more like g-ay-t (VERY minor Y sound).consequent to that E stuff, slightly leaving off a consonant after the E can be useful, so that it doesn't go from a wide open sound to a hard closed one, like the letter T. In gEt, the T kind of takes the back seat, and often will come out as more of a stoppage of air in the back of the throat than a sound made by the tongue and the teeth. I'm not sure if that makes any sense, but just close up your thoat while making that wide E so as to stop your breath, and that is pretty much what I'm talking about.
Now, don't do that last thing about the T too much, else it just sounds dumb, particularly when the next word starts with a vowel. For example, in your line "you just don't get it", you kind of need the T to help break the words up so that you don't sound goofy trying to go "gE(t) i(t)". It would sound too weird since it's a major line in the chorus that gets repeated a few times. If the harmony were to do it, then it wouldn't be so flamboyantly bizare
*sigh* okay, i've got to go to bed
i hope i didn't give you too much to chew on for a comment!Totally aside from whatever anybody thinks about the vocals, I'm quite impressed with the whole mix. This'll definitely go through my car speakers sometime in the near future
Amazing job. (Very) High rating.
just having a quick listen before work, waking me up really!
love the energy, the mix and the song
vox could be little more upfront indeed, but like it anyway
no solo ????? too bad!!!!
just a short screaming thing would be nice to get totally out of my head
*tnx for the singin lessons TLS
love the energy, the mix and the song
vox could be little more upfront indeed, but like it anyway
no solo ????? too bad!!!!
just a short screaming thing would be nice to get totally out of my head
*tnx for the singin lessons TLS
mmm, yeah, i think that could be true, about the bass end falling out. it still sounds great, though if the bass were accented a little more, it might not hurt
(sounds good in the car stereo, by the way )
(sounds good in the car stereo, by the way
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