I am kind of going out on a limb here...

I have had this song sitting dormant on my hard drive for just over 6 years. I have never finished it. It is the result of a short collaboration I did with a very talented (IMHO) female vocalist and some friends of hers in the spring of 2002. I recently unearthed the project and reworked all the effects and levels. I decided to use all free plugins in this mix, just to see how it would sound. And, I am impressed with the results I have had so far (but you can be the judge of that).

So here is the deal. There are absolutely no effects on the master bus in this mix. I am looking to see if there is anyone interested in attempting to do the final mastering of this track. If I can get quite a few people interested, I will host all the files on my site and post a poll for everyone to vote for their favorite. Once a favorite is decided, I will post the winner on my site and give the winner credit appropriately. I will decide a time frame for all of this once I determine if there is sufficient interest. I will also edit this post with any updated information.

If no one shows any interest, no biggie, and I will just do my own mastering job and post it to the cafe.

Here is the 192k mp3

If you want to do this project, PM me and I will get the 24/44.1 wav to you promptly.

EDIT (9/4 10:15pm PST):

Packaging: Nothing planned at the moment due to this being a one-off song.
Distribution: Online download from EntiumWeb as well as last.fm
Target playback: Portable players, home stereos and pc/laptop speakers
Genre norms: For references, I am thinking something along the lines of Lisa Loeb, Jason Mraz, or even Mazzy Star. (let me know if you think something else would fit better) I really have no preconceptions and am willing to let you express your artistic style. I don't typically produce this kind of music, so you may be a better judge of it than I.

So, you may be wondering... 'will the popular vote be the end all be all'? In a perfect world, yes, I would like it to be. However, if the results start going in a direction that I am very unhappy with, we will have to go from there. Regardless, I will try to be as honest, constructive and open as I possibly can.

I do not view myself as the client, otherwise I would be much more specific about what I want. I encourage you to have fun with it and do what you think fits.
Last edited by Geoff242 on Thu Sep 04, 2008 9:27 pm; edited 5 times in total

Mastering is all about context (without which there is no need for mastering), but you haven't provided any context yet. For example -

Packaging: Single (not packaged in an EP or album)
Distribution: Online download (not streaming or physical CDs)
Target playback: iPods and computer speakers (not audiophile HiFis or clubs)
Genre norms: Clean, clear upper mids for pop (not harsh and pushed, not light and acoustic, not thick and heavy)

(Let me know if you need some more explanation of what each means, and why they're important.)

As well as making it more likely you'll get something appropriate, setting the context like this actually makes it easier to judge people's efforts and "better" or "worse". Without such criteria, it all becomes a jumble of "just different" and turns into a battle of personal taste, which no-one can win.

-Kim.

Thanks for the tips Kim. I will edit the original post with more details.

I'd be willing to give it a shot, but is there any version of the file in a lossless format? Seems like "mastering" an mp3 is kind of starting off at a huge disadvantage.

I think you might have missed this...


I now have 3 people that would like to do this and that is enough IMO to get started. I would love to have more people though.

To those of you who have PM'd me - I will send you the link to the full file this afternoon when I get home from work. I uploaded the file to my site last night, but for some reason the link isn't working and I can't do anything about it while at work.

Ah, sure enough. Reading is fun-damental!

EDIT: (9/6 10:22pm)

We are officially off and running.

Here is the final list:
JCM
Shy
ngarjuna
pearldivers
hackenslash
expitronic
Zsolt
haudegen
NEKRO.MACHINE
Nokenoku
7kilo

Thanks guys. I really hope you all have fun with this. I am excited to hear what direction you take it.

Anyone else interested?
Last edited by Geoff242 on Sat Sep 06, 2008 9:23 pm; edited 4 times in total

Why not? Might be fun. Good voice.

I too am interested. Always like a challenge like this

EDIT: (9/6 2:43pm)
Ok, we now have 8 people. I would like to have 10 total. So, if I reach 10, I will stop accepting new ones.

I think that any more would make the decision of the final vote too difficult and massively time consuming.

Everyone cool with that?

I am.

Room for a Nekro? i will have a go mate

reporting for duty.. should be interesting experience. :]

btw, nice song so far. i never finished old projects, must feel a bit strange and fulfilling at the same time.

i'm in too. and of cause the female vocal is very pro in my opinion

Thanks, I will pass that on to her.


So, that's it.

I have 11 people off and running now. Thanks everyone for indulging me on this one. I hope everyone enjoys working on this song and is possibly able to learn something new, or gain some experience or something. I always find it's very difficult to master my own work, because I tend to hear it a certain way. Having fresh, unbiased ears always helps. Anytime I get to work on someone else's tracks, it's much better.

IMPORTANT: Please do not post any of your finished versions on this thread. I will put them all together when everyone is finished.