KVR Audio

Frantz · Post by **Frantz** » Sun May 29, 2016 6:24 pm

After months of intense procrastination, a new song is finally ready.

https://soundcloud.com/fragilegods/jaggedlines

Fragile Gods "Jagged Lines"

The ingredients - Monark, Electra2, Audjoo Helix, Arturia SEM, M-Tron Pro, Drumatic4.

The MP3 sounds better than the Soundcloud version. The lyrics are on Soundcloud.

Any feedback is appreciated.

Aug 4 EDIT - I uploaded a subtly different vocal mix which centers the vocals. Both the MP3 and Soundcloud have the new mix. Thanks to nineofkings and layzer for the helpful feedback.

ethermusic1981 · Post by **ethermusic1981** » Mon May 30, 2016 3:14 am

This is catchy as hell! Great synths abound. Love it.

Hezekiel · Post by **Hezekiel** » Mon May 30, 2016 9:34 am

High quality production you did again. I don't have anything to complain about as, like I said, you did a great job. Mix was good also I believe.

Allomerus · Post by **Allomerus** » Mon May 30, 2016 10:40 am

Great quirky 80s sounding track Frantz.
There's a synth note at 0:49 that you might want to review...
The part at 2:47 is very good.
Nice mix too!
Well done!

Frantz · Post by **Frantz** » Thu Jun 02, 2016 3:46 am

ethermusic1981 wrote:This is catchy as hell! Great synths abound. Love it.

Thanks very much for your comments. Glad you enjoyed it.

dark water · Post by **dark water** » Thu Jun 02, 2016 6:33 pm

Excellent stuff Mr Frantz. I enjoyed it.

seismic1 · Post by **seismic1** » Sun Jun 05, 2016 2:22 pm

I listened to this about 12 hours ago and I heard the part at 0:49 (and again in the second verse) that Allomerus was referring to. It seems to be fixed now. I think the overall sound seems better today. More comments later.

Good work

Frantz · Post by **Frantz** » Mon Jun 06, 2016 2:49 am

Hezekiel wrote:High quality production you did again. I don't have anything to complain about as, like I said, you did a great job. Mix was good also I believe.

Thanks for the feedback. I spent a lot of time polishing the mix so I'm glad you liked it.

camsr · Post by **camsr** » Mon Jun 06, 2016 9:38 am

Very snappy, but sounds too "roomy" in the mids especially. I think it could benefit from some movement like a flanger somewhere.

Frantz · Post by **Frantz** » Thu Jun 09, 2016 2:21 am

Allomerus wrote:Great quirky 80s sounding track Frantz.
There's a synth note at 0:49 that you might want to review...
The part at 2:47 is very good.
Nice mix too!
Well done!

Thanks for the very specific feedback! I reviewed the section at 0:49. The synth part has a chromatic note or two which could clash depending on your perspective. I like it and think it adds to the tension but my semi-random approach to harmony may not be everyone's cup of tea.

Glad you liked the section at 2:47! I spent a fair amount of time revising it until I was satisfied with it.

seismic1 wrote:I listened to this about 12 hours ago and I heard the part at 0:49 (and again in the second verse) that Allomerus was referring to. It seems to be fixed now. I think the overall sound seems better today. More comments later.

I haven't changed a note or the mix since I first posted it. I think you can get used to anything with enough listens. Thanks for chiming in. It was helpful.

aaron aardvark · Post by **aaron aardvark** » Thu Jun 09, 2016 4:17 am

Frantz,
Thank you for the review! Now your tune: instrumentally it reminds me of Kraftwerk at times (good). Audio tone is very good on the vocals. Most of the time the singing is good, though at times it sounds pitchy (I recommend Melodyne). I've had a dream within a dream more than once (while asleep). Drums sound very good, as are all of the synth sounds. I like most all of the melodies. Overall, pretty cool!

seismic1 · Post by **seismic1** » Sun Jun 12, 2016 12:02 am

"Intense procrastination". I hear ya. I don't know what causes that. I sit down hoping to work on some music, but just can't seem to get my affairs in order and let something else distract me. A few days later, while I'm on the computer messing around with something in a half-hearted way, I can suddenly I find that I'm in the middle of writing something that I find quite intriguing and fulfilling. These moments usually occur at 1:30 AM, which means that I have to work fast if it's a weekday.

It's funny how impressions of music can change over a relatively short period. The first time I listened, I was in my "alcove" listening quietly, and there was some other "stuff" going on in the room. Second listen, and I had the room to myself. I also had the volume way up.

I've listened to Jagged Lines five or six times now and I keep thinking of the "Human League", both in terms of the overall vibe and specific synth sounds. It's definitely got an '80s synthpop vibe and works very well in that context. It's lighter in style than a lot of your other songs, almost cheerful, if I'm allowed to say that.

The synths sound great and the percussion in the verses has got a good "dry" sound that sounds great, and contrasts nicely with the reverbed snare in the chorus. I liked the break at 2:40. Very good indeed.

The vocals generally work well and I like the little harmonies that you snuck on - "half truths", "grapevine" are nice touches. The only part of the vocals that I'm not sure of is when you sing "jagged lines". I think "lines" doesn't harmonise that well with the synth.

Mix is great.

Good work

markkuja · Post by **markkuja** » Sun Jun 12, 2016 6:53 pm

Good stuff. Nice rhythm and sounds.

nineofkings · Post by **nineofkings** » Mon Jun 13, 2016 4:30 am

The dry synth leads remind me of the earlier/darker side of Human League. Mix sounds very good, except the vocal panning, which strikes me as an odd choice. Other than that no complaints here!

davidstiles · Post by **davidstiles** » Mon Jun 13, 2016 6:08 am

Made me think a bit about Depeche Mode, and a bit about Bowie. And some other stuff, too. Overall, it's really good. Personally, if I was going to complain about something, it would be that I wanted a bit more low frequency presence, but I may just have an unhealthy fixation on bass.

Fragile Gods - "Jagged Lines" (new mix Aug 4)