August Contest: Gossip

[satYatunes]

satyatunes
sounds work together nicely. I think the shaker is too loud and the drums bssshhhh remind me of top gun (sorry, don't want to be harsh). fits the beach-theme-idea very good.
4,9

satyatunes mixed emotions
good composition and good arrangement. wistful and reflective, sets a nice mood.

Thank you both for the reviews.

[forw]

Thanks for the review and the vote, forw. Hmmm... you're the second reviewer (after kryptonaut) who mention my instrumentation as a problem... would you guys elaborate on what you don't like, for my own education?

I think the snare sound fits pretty well, hhat sounds strange .. as if someone would hit it with a hammer or so..too much energy.. and strange that it's being cutted off harshly once in a while.
organ and brass sound a little cheap tbh (is this really WIVI brass??). I remember at one moment when 1st listening I thought of midi brass and organ sounds. sorry..
It's extremely hard to read what instruments you were using..
The whole kit as it is programmed sounds very heavy bum tshak which doesn't support the reggae vibe too well..but that's just me..

However I liked your track alot
Hope this helps..
forw

[forw]

@nikp and mvrasseli: thank youuuuuuu for your votes

[GMoneh]

I don't normally comment on anyone's track to the extent that I'll criticize in any way, just whether I like it or not. But as you asked I'll let you know what I thought - the bass guitar and drums sounded wrong to me - like they were intended for an entirely different genre of music, no reggae or any other type of Carribean music. Might just be me on that one, but it didn't have the right sound to it at all.
Hope that helps in some way.

No worries, I don't get mad from negative criticism, in fact, your comment is more useful to me than just saying you like it or not. I might agree or disagree with the criticism, but I'll take it nonetheless. Thanks for your input.

Just as extra info, the drum kit is the Battery 3 Reggae Kit... yea, I might have initially chosen it by name , but once mixed in the song, I did think gave the song the sound I was looking for...

I think the snare sound fits pretty well, hhat sounds strange .. as if someone would hit it with a hammer or so..too much energy.. and strange that it's being cutted off harshly once in a while.
organ and brass sound a little cheap tbh (is this really WIVI brass??). I remember at one moment when 1st listening I thought of midi brass and organ sounds. sorry..
It's extremely hard to read what instruments you were using..
The whole kit as it is programmed sounds very heavy bum tshak which doesn't support the reggae vibe too well..but that's just me..
However I liked your track alot
Hope this helps..

Thanks, forw, it does help indeed.

I believe I know the sound you're referring to... it's not the hhat but a shaker percussion I incorporated trying to give it some air on the higher freqs. I thought it sounded fine when mixing, but I have noticed that depending on the speakers and the listening environment, the high freqs might get emphasized and the sound jumps at you.

The brass is indeed two WIVI Bb Trumpets with the bucket mute, layered with Garritan JABB bucket mute trumpet samples (but the dominant sound is the WIVI trumpets). I am still trying to figure out the best way to process and mix brass... I had used it in another song a few months ago and it sounded to overpowering... too "horny" (no, not horny in that other sense ). So this time, I tried to wash the stridency in effects, so mixed it with some deep reverb and chorus... I was somewhat satisfied with the result (given that the brass role is more backup in nature in this song), but as you proved, other's tastes might vary. If anyone has any tips about processing and mixing brass, I'd love to hear them...

Anyway, guys, thanks so much for the input, very much appreciated.


G.

[mellotronaut]

thank you very much, Robojam, Farlukar, adagiocm, evo2slo (specia l:) for the comment) and Kryptonaut (special hug for the nº1:hug: ) for the votes!

holy shit! a nº1 from Laguna Rising just chimed in. a whoopy hug to Mario!

mell very happy

[me109]

me109 exit 6
great vocal performance and a really good composition. production and instrumentation are all top notch. great job!

Thanks, nik, I really appreciate it.

like an early 80s tune. guitarsound at the end fits 100%. reminds me even of james taylor. love your "authentic" singing.
maybe some desser on voc would be good. some toms seem to have not enough reverb and too busy on some parts, I think.
had to press play once more!
4,2

That James Taylor comment is really going to convince me that the New Jersey thing never happened and I was born here in North Carolina. It's a real compliment, but I don't hear it, y'all.

As for the de-esser, I worked a lot on it to clean it up to where it is. You can hear a little fuzziness on some of the s's, and it's very close to turning into a lisp. I guess my voice doesn't get along with the Audio Technica. I like it for acoustic guitar, though.
You're also right about it being too busy in spots.

Thanks to everyone who voted for Exit 6, especially ,forw mvrasseli and nikp2000 for the 1's and 2's!

[kryptonaut]

In the voting thread,

kryptonaut - Voyeuristic Games
(clever lyrics and groovy tunes - love the twist ending)

Thanks - the lyrics went through a few iterations, so it's good to hear that they were appreciated! I wasn't sure how obvious the 'twist' was, or whether the song would end up just seeming sleazy...

Thanks too to nikp2000 and forw for your reviews, much appreciated.

[forw]

That James Taylor comment is really going to convince me that the New Jersey thing never happened and I was born here in North Carolina.

[forw]

_
forw makali beach
lovely little song, but the vocals are a bit buried in the mix.
_

thanks for your review!
and thanks for your hint on voc level! ..always hard to balance that..

[GMoneh]

That James Taylor comment is really going to convince me that the New Jersey thing never happened and I was born here in North Carolina. It's a real compliment, but I don't hear it, y'all.

Oh, are you in NC, me109? We're kind of neighbors, then... where in NC?

[D.H. Miltz]

Next month:

This month you are asked to submit an entry using only the human voice. This can be your own voice or recordings/samples (ONLY those you have the legal right to use). Any and all effects and/or sound manipulation are allowed as long as the source is the human voice.

Have you understood this to allow pops, clicks, clucks, beatboxing, mouth noises generally, even though they might not strictly speaking be the human voice? I intended it to, but today it occurred to me that the way I wrote that might exclude said noises. Any thoughts?

[evo2slo]

Next month:

This month you are asked to submit an entry using only the human voice. This can be your own voice or recordings/samples (ONLY those you have the legal right to use). Any and all effects and/or sound manipulation are allowed as long as the source is the human voice.

Have you understood this to allow pops, clicks, clucks, beatboxing, mouth noises generally, even though they might not strictly speaking be the human voice? I intended it to, but today it occurred to me that the way I wrote that might exclude said noises. Any thoughts?

That's exactly how I took it.
Already started experimenting with some beatboxing. Was actually pretty amazed how much it can sound like a real kit after applying envelope shaping and eq. Should be a fun theme!

[forw]

Have you understood this to allow pops, clicks, clucks, beatboxing, mouth noises generally, even though they might not strictly speaking be the human voice?

yep.

[Laguna Rising]

@Jack Solium : thanks!

Have you understood this to allow pops, clicks, clucks, beatboxing, mouth noises generally, even though they might not strictly speaking be the human voice?

That would help us get through.
My voice alone is not worthy the bandwidth...

[Mister Natural]

thx for the comments & the votes this month, gents !