love this, the pitched cut up at the end is super cool

I might increase the vox volume and maybe a little high end boost so the cut clear through the mix.

what stuff did you do the vocals?  compression/reverb/delay?  any EQing?

love this, the pitched cut up at the end is super cool I might increase the vox volume and maybe a little high end boost so the cut clear through the mix. what stuff did you do the vocals? compression/reverb/delay? any EQing?

Thank you

There's 3 vox takes, one centre, 2 panned about 50% apart (some re-arranging so that the best take of any part was centre).

Then some de-essing, some light EQ (HPF around 120Hz, small high-end boost, a small cut around 2kHz), some light saturation/compression/gating, and some reverb. Then mixed that down and imported it back in to the m8, which is where the pitch-down layer happens.

I was originally planning on just using that as an initial take to get he arrangement working and then re-recording, but I ran out of time/motivation to re-record, and I think I need more experience before I could get it how I really want it anyway.

The volume thing is interesting. I think there's a big range of takes on this - electronic music seems to often send the vox back a bit further in to the mix than pop/rock/rap (e.g. that time rap fans were pissed that the Avalanches mixed Danny Brown and MF DOOM's vox so low on Frankie Sinatra), and I wanted that, but not sure if I got it where it fits the mood best.. Possibly a bit louder with less high end boost would get me closer.

[quote=orangedrink]love this, the pitched cut up at the end is super cool I might increase the vox volume and maybe a little high end boost so the cut clear through the mix. what stuff did you do the vocals? compression/reverb/delay? any EQing?[/quote] Thank you :) There's 3 vox takes, one centre, 2 panned about 50% apart (some re-arranging so that the best take of any part was centre). Then some de-essing, some light EQ (HPF around 120Hz, small high-end boost, a small cut around 2kHz), some light saturation/compression/gating, and some reverb. Then mixed that down and imported it back in to the m8, which is where the pitch-down layer happens. I was originally planning on just using that as an initial take to get he arrangement working and then re-recording, but I ran out of time/motivation to re-record, and I think I need more experience before I could get it how I really want it anyway. The volume thing is interesting. I think there's a big range of takes on this - electronic music seems to often send the vox back a bit further in to the mix than pop/rock/rap (e.g. that time rap fans were pissed that the Avalanches mixed Danny Brown and MF DOOM's vox so low on Frankie Sinatra), and I wanted that, but not sure if I got it where it fits the mood best.. Possibly a bit louder with less high end boost would get me closer.

I just want to make sure that the "vocals are not amazing" comment didn't influence your vocals.

Oftentimes I hear people mix their vocals low because they are not confident about them.  If that's a confident mixing choice, then great!

I just want to make sure that the "vocals are not amazing" comment didn't influence your vocals. Oftentimes I hear people mix their vocals low because they are not confident about them. If that's a confident mixing choice, then great!

*didn't influence your vocal mixing

*didn't influence your vocal mixing

These vocals are fine, clear and mellow, maybe a bit too mellow, but it's a vibe either way
I don't mind the drums, but you can always muffle the high end of them a bit to cut a bit of the piercing of it
- Ebrit

These vocals are fine, clear and mellow, maybe a bit too mellow, but it's a vibe either way I don't mind the drums, but you can always muffle the high end of them a bit to cut a bit of the piercing of it - Ebrit

Oh, no, I don't think so. I managed to destroy most of my perfectionism decades ago, and I think the last shreds of it have been smashed by weeklybeats this year. The only reason I kept the vox low was that I wanted the vibe to be mellow on them, in a the-forest-is-talking kind of way.

The improvements I want on the vox are mostly around adding subtle melodic shifts, solidifying the flow (e.g. syllable length particularly), and anything else with the delivery/mix to make it more ethereal.

But yeah, this is only my 3rd track with vocals. I think screwed up the last one by having the vox too loud, this one is closer to the target.

Thank you! Yeah, these drums are already a bit more low-passed than I usually would. But I think it really also needs some sections where the drums are just more sparse. Anyway, next time

[quote=orangedrink]I just want to make sure that the "vocals are not amazing" comment didn't influence your vocals. Oftentimes I hear people mix their vocals low because they are not confident about them. If that's a confident mixing choice, then great![/quote] Oh, no, I don't think so. I managed to destroy most of my perfectionism decades ago, and I think the last shreds of it have been smashed by weeklybeats this year. The only reason I kept the vox low was that I wanted the vibe to be mellow on them, in a the-forest-is-talking kind of way. The improvements I want on the vox are mostly around adding subtle melodic shifts, solidifying the flow (e.g. syllable length particularly), and anything else with the delivery/mix to make it more ethereal. But yeah, this is only my 3rd track with vocals. I think screwed up the last one by having the vox too loud, this one is closer to the target. [quote=Devieus]These vocals are fine, clear and mellow, maybe a bit too mellow, but it's a vibe either way I don't mind the drums, but you can always muffle the high end of them a bit to cut a bit of the piercing of it - Ebrit[/quote] Thank you! Yeah, these drums are already a bit more low-passed than I usually would. But I think it really also needs some sections where the drums are just more sparse. Anyway, next time :)

just want to say thanks for your feedback on some of my tunes. that has been helpful!

just want to say thanks for your feedback on some of my tunes. that has been helpful!

No probs! I love giving feedback, but I usually hold most of it back unless people ask for it (not least because their goals might not align with my tastes!).

[quote=chr15m]just want to say thanks for your feedback on some of my tunes. that has been helpful![/quote] No probs! I love giving feedback, but I usually hold most of it back unless people ask for it (not least because their goals might not align with my tastes!).

[img]https://i.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPTc5MGI3NjExenZxN2J4MXkwNm84Y3VwM29wbnB0NHkxbjU3NXNucmFjMHI3ZXpydSZlcD12MV9pbnRlcm5hbF9naWZfYnlfaWQmY3Q9Zw/zPY6KZiIf159jpqyr2/giphy.gif[/img]

i really like what you did with this. the mix is inviting and your vocals kept things interesting. i didn't hear anything that seemed off in how they were mixed fwiw 
this is maybe easier said that done, but a good friend and early collaborator was so good at writing vocal melodies or song parts that just felt so right. i asked how he did it and he said he would play the part he already had over and over (he was usually doing this playing guitar and singing, but could also just loop a section) and then he would stop and imagine the feeling he wanted from the next part. so like, if it was a chorus or there needed a lift of some sort... he would focus on the emotion he wanted and then try to find the sounds based on that. whether it was a chord change, or if the melody would go somewhere else.
again, easier said that done but that has always been helpful for me to keep in mind when i'm writing.

i really like what you did with this. the mix is inviting and your vocals kept things interesting. i didn't hear anything that seemed off in how they were mixed fwiw :) this is maybe easier said that done, but a good friend and early collaborator was so good at writing vocal melodies or song parts that just felt so right. i asked how he did it and he said he would play the part he already had over and over (he was usually doing this playing guitar and singing, but could also just loop a section) and then he would stop and imagine the feeling he wanted from the next part. so like, if it was a chorus or there needed a lift of some sort... he would focus on the emotion he wanted and then try to find the sounds based on that. whether it was a chord change, or if the melody would go somewhere else. again, easier said that done but that has always been helpful for me to keep in mind when i'm writing.

Thank you!

Yeah, I've actually used that exact method to come up with variations on basslines and leads before. Makes a lot of sense to use an t for vocals too! I did try a few variations here, and I think maybe the vocal melody was a bit more diverse when I was writing it to Raincoats, but the more monotonic version worked better with this track. I'm thinking this might be a track I come back to and re-write sometime in the future, so might give that a go then. 

[quote=jwh]... [/quote] Thank you! Yeah, I've actually used that exact method to come up with variations on basslines and leads before. Makes a lot of sense to use an t for vocals too! I did try a few variations here, and I think maybe the vocal melody was a bit more diverse when I was writing it to Raincoats, but the more monotonic version worked better with this track. I'm thinking this might be a track I come back to and re-write sometime in the future, so might give that a go then.

sweet! and for the record, i wasn't saying this song needed that approach. it's just something i do if i'm feeling stuck or feel like a song needs a change but it doesn't come to me right away.
i do really like like what you did here, just listened through again in headphones. when the pitched down vocals come in it brings a nice shift. the lower more monotone vox (i'm thinking of those as the "verses" here) almost bring to mind some of Tricky's work with Massive Attack, which i've always loved.
also just read through the lyrics.
"The forest recalls as we decay..."  great line!
i just finished reading "The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate – Discoveries from a Secret World" by Peter Wohlleben, so i was very much relating to your lyrics. cheers!

[quote=naught101][quote=jwh]... [/quote] Thank you! Yeah, I've actually used that exact method to come up with variations on basslines and leads before. Makes a lot of sense to use an t for vocals too! I did try a few variations here, and I think maybe the vocal melody was a bit more diverse when I was writing it to Raincoats, but the more monotonic version worked better with this track. I'm thinking this might be a track I come back to and re-write sometime in the future, so might give that a go then. [/quote] sweet! and for the record, i wasn't saying this song needed that approach. it's just something i do if i'm feeling stuck or feel like a song needs a change but it doesn't come to me right away. i do really like like what you did here, just listened through again in headphones. when the pitched down vocals come in it brings a nice shift. the lower more monotone vox (i'm thinking of those as the "verses" here) almost bring to mind some of Tricky's work with Massive Attack, which i've always loved. also just read through the lyrics. "The forest recalls as we decay..." great line! i just finished reading "The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate – Discoveries from a Secret World" by Peter Wohlleben, so i was very much relating to your lyrics. cheers!

Wow, yes, Tricky's vibe is very much in the direction I was aiming. Thank you!

I've heard good things about that book from friends, I'll have to grab a copy.

[quote=jwh]the lower more monotone vox (i'm thinking of those as the "verses" here) almost bring to mind some of Tricky's work with Massive Attack, which i've always loved. ... i just finished reading "The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate – Discoveries from a Secret World" by Peter Wohlleben, so i was very much relating to your lyrics. cheers![/quote] Wow, yes, Tricky's vibe is very much in the direction I was aiming. Thank you! I've heard good things about that book from friends, I'll have to grab a copy.