Fragile Gods - "Doppelganger"

Share your music, collaborate, and partake in monthly music contests.
RELATED
PRODUCTS

Post

Allomerus wrote:This is very cool. Love the beat/bass. It sounds like something quirky yet a bit sinister.
Vocal effects are great. Fastlanephil hit on it with the Bowie's evil twin comparison.
Yes, I was going for a sinister vibe on this one. The vocal effects are my voice resynthesized through Icarus. There is also a bit of actual vocoder in the middle eight section. I agree Fastlanephil's comparison is cool.

Thanks for checking this out. :)

Post

layzer wrote:infectious vibe. been humming it all day :P
solid track, in its composition and production. liked the EPIANO sound.
another fine FG track. "who is the hunter, who is the pray...DG stay away"
good stuff. :tu:
Thanks Layzer for the very nice feedback and the early bump. Glad you liked it. :)

BTW, that e-piano sound is an Icarus patch I made.

Post

4damind wrote:Good track as expected and a nice mix with a "warm" sound.
Has some 80th vibe or something I would see in this area. Maybe a bit inspired by Camouflage or some similar artists.
Thanks for the nice comments Frank. I agree it has an 80s vibe. It wasn't specifically inspired by Camouflage but it is somewhere in that genre. :)

Post

nineofkings wrote:Great sound design, as usual. The arpeggio in the background (that comes out at the end) adds some nice lift and atmosphere. The vocoder intro really catches your attention. The vocal distortion is pretty brutal. My critique would be that some of the instruments sound like they're not really in the same space or in any space, especially with the mix of acoustic drums in an otherwise synthetic arrangement. Maybe a subtle reverb buss for a few of the tracks would blend them together a bit more.
Thanks for the comments on the sound design. The intro is my voice resynthesized using Icarus and was intended to be a bit brutal and Dalek-like. Glad it worked. :borg:

The feedback about the reverb mismatch is very perceptive. The drums are using BFD3's built-in reverb. The synths are using a different reverb. I wasn't completely satisfied with this and thought about redoing the mix from scratch but I ran out of steam and decided to leave it as is. :help:

Post

Delightfully weird. Great sounds but my comments regarding the mix would be similar to nineofkings. I know what it feels like to be done with a project before it's 'finished'. Sometimes I'll get disappointed with the direction a project is going, and put it on a storage drive, with the intention of pulling it apart for sample food later. When later comes, sometimes I'll think "this is fine as is!" and release it like that.

Anyway, I enjoyed it.

Thanks for sharing!

Post

seismic1 wrote:I love the intro, The arp combined with that filtered vocoder intro is great. I've played this a few times during the last week. I remember that I wasn't crazy about the bassline when I first heard it, but I was listening at quite a low volume, and there were all sorts of distractions. Tonight I have the house to myself and am taking advantage of the fact, and the bassline sounds much more solid. That kick/snare combo is a great fit for the music. The backing pads add the "eerie" factor in the right amounts, and the vocoded and straight vocals work for me. The track was well-paced and, I think, just the correct length. A polished piece of music.
Glad you liked the intro and the overall sound design. This was my first track using BFD3 so I'm pleased the drums sound good.

Interesting comment about the bassline. I originally sang it into my phone and used Melodyne to convert it into MIDI. As a result, I ended up with a couple of odd notes that I decided to leave in since they seemed to work. You might be picking up on that or perhaps the mix is a bit quiet for this style of music?

Thanks for the thoughtful comments!

Post

justin3am wrote:Delightfully weird. Great sounds but my comments regarding the mix would be similar to nineofkings. I know what it feels like to be done with a project before it's 'finished'. Sometimes I'll get disappointed with the direction a project is going, and put it on a storage drive, with the intention of pulling it apart for sample food later. When later comes, sometimes I'll think "this is fine as is!" and release it like that.

Anyway, I enjoyed it.
Yes, nineofking's feedback on the mix were right on. I agree I should put this away for a while and remix this later with fresh ears. Thanks for commenting!

Post

Frantz,
Thank you for the review! Now your tune: curious if you used a (I like it) vocoder or ? Most of the vocals are good, though some are a bit pitchy. I assume some of the vocals were pitch-shifted upward? How did you do that? I liked it, my favorite vocal parts. I liked it instrumentally, even if the key of the song (some sort of minor key?) was a bit bizarre. Audio quality is rather good, though some of the vocals were a little loud for me. I like the bass synth tone. How was the "vocal" synth done (I don't think it's vocoder)?
You can hear my original music at this link: https://www.soundclick.com/artist/defau ... dID=224436

Post

aaron aardvark wrote:Now your tune: curious if you used a (I like it) vocoder or ? Most of the vocals are good, though some are a bit pitchy. I assume some of the vocals were pitch-shifted upward? How did you do that? I liked it, my favorite vocal parts. I liked it instrumentally, even if the key of the song (some sort of minor key?) was a bit bizarre. Audio quality is rather good, though some of the vocals were a little loud for me. I like the bass synth tone. How was the "vocal" synth done (I don't think it's vocoder)?
The vocal synth which repeats "doppelganger" is my voice resynthesized in Tone2 Icarus. I also used an actual vocoder at 3:14.

You are correct that it doesn't necessarily stay in a particular key. I tend to chromatically transpose riffs and let the notes land where they may. :clown:

My go to bass synth is Monark these days. Yes, the vocals might be a little loud and pitchy. Vox are always a bit of a struggle for me.

Thanks for the detailed feedback! :)

Post

Superfine track Frantz.
Listening for problems in the production I can't hear any. Most impressed with the overall balance.
On a personal taste note, all of this in a minor key was uncomfortable for me.
Vocal, as was said, is very cool. Reminded me a little of KMFDM.
Some high CPU action in that project I'll bet? :scared:
....................Don`t blame me for 'The Roots', I just live here. :x
Image

Post

annode wrote:Superfine track Frantz.
Listening for problems in the production I can't hear any. Most impressed with the overall balance.
On a personal taste note, all of this in a minor key was uncomfortable for me.
Vocal, as was said, is very cool. Reminded me a little of KMFDM.
Some high CPU action in that project I'll bet? :scared:
Glad the production worked for you. It's helpful to get different opinions on the mix.

Maybe I should stay in a proper key. I find it sounds more synthpoppy and wimpy when I do but it seems my random approach to harmony can be off-putting. :help:

I think KMFDM is a good vocal comparison.

My CPU was not bad. I didn't have to bounce down but I do have an i7.

Thanks very much for the detailed comments. :)

Post

Frantz wrote: Maybe I should stay in a proper key. I find it sounds more synthpoppy and wimpy when I do but it seems my random approach to harmony can be off-putting. :help:
Don't do it! Unless the specific song calls for it. Being diatonic is overrated.

Post

Hi Frantz - I totally echo just about all the positive feedback above...this is a seriously 'hooky' piece of electro-pop! I would shell out money for this one!

There are probably a number of minor tweaks that could still be made to the mix and production, but WGAF when the overall vibe is so good...let's be honest - some of Bowie's classics had some very dodgy production moments in them! :0)

Having listened twice now, just a few very minor points that keep on rising to the fore for me:

1) I'd love to have some harmonising backing vocals on, at least, the chorus...even if they were done in melodyne or something rather than newly sung? It might just lift certain sections to even higher peaks?

2) Short instrumental solo section to break it up a touch - a break from that vocal which is very good but quite in yer face.

3) I might've been tempted to reduce the vocal effect in certain sections, (something more natural) so that the disturbing, distorted one had even more impact?

Great track!!!

Post

nineofkings wrote: Don't do it! Unless the specific song calls for it. Being diatonic is overrated.
The new song I am working on is also not diatonic so I'm glad to hear you don't mind the approach. I was starting to get worried. Thanks for weighing in! :)

Post

ChamMusic wrote:Hi Frantz - I totally echo just about all the positive feedback above...this is a seriously 'hooky' piece of electro-pop! I would shell out money for this one!
.
.
.
1) I'd love to have some harmonising backing vocals on, at least, the chorus...even if they were done in melodyne or something rather than newly sung? It might just lift certain sections to even higher peaks?

2) Short instrumental solo section to break it up a touch - a break from that vocal which is very good but quite in yer face.

3) I might've been tempted to reduce the vocal effect in certain sections, (something more natural) so that the disturbing, distorted one had even more impact?
Thank you for the enthusiastic and detailed feedback. Glad you enjoyed it. :D

Regarding your points:

1) I would like to be able to do harmonies but it is challenging for me. I tend to double whatever I already sang. I would have to map out guide synth tracks for each harmony part. Previously I tried creating harmonies in Melodyne but didn't like the artifacts.

2) There is a mini solo section at 3:10 but I agree the vox can get a bit tiresome.

3) Point taken on the distortion on the vox. I will think about that for the next track where I am recording vox now. It is easy to lose perspective when mixing especially when it's your own voice.

Post Reply

Return to “Music Cafe”