The Wagtunes Corner

[wagtunes]

Listened to several of your songs and am suitably impressed. You really have a mastery of the melodic. Overall the songs seem perfect for a Disney animation. Mostly I love that you actually write complete songs. That seems to be a lost art.

Thanks for the listen and feedback. Really appreciate it.

Lost art? Maybe around these parts, but there's plenty of complete songs out there.

[wagtunes]

16th track from my upcoming CD "2020"

I had to cut this one short because one of the synths I used (main sound) does not play well with Cubase 7 and Windows 10 and I had numerous DAW crashes. At one point my whole sound system locked up and I had to reboot the whole PC. So this isn't as finished as I would have liked.

In the meantime, I have to now go look for a substitute for this synth, which is going to be difficult because for these sounds, I haven't found anything as good.

Drops In The Ocean

Sit tight...things are changing
Say goodbye to go man go
Don't fight...while it's raining
Pretty soon the sun will show
We're only specks
We're only shadows
We're only sand over this land
Like drops in the ocean

You came...with a big dream
But the man he beat you down
This game...was a big scheme
While you go around and round
We're only specks
We're only shadows
We're only sand over this land
Like drops in the ocean

Instrumental Break

So now...time to give in
Nothing left to wrestle for
Somehow...Life will begin
Coming right into your door
We're more than specks
We're more than shadows
We're more than sand over this land
No drops in the ocean

Outro

https://soundcloud.com/steven-wagenheim ... -the-ocean

[Music Bird]

Now that’s 80’s! Reminds me of ‘Jump’ by Van Halen.

[JonSolo]

What synth are you having issues with?

[wagtunes]

What synth are you having issues with?

OP-X II

[wagtunes]

Now that’s 80’s! Reminds me of ‘Jump’ by Van Halen.

Oddly, that song wasn't even on my mind when I did this but yeah, it's definite 80s and does have that "Jump" flavor now that I think about it.

Thanks for the listen and the feedback.

[Vectorman]

"Drops in the Ocean" put a smile on my face. Bright, punchy and upbeat and, while it may be reminiscent of the '80s, '80s-flavored arrangements have been back in vogue in some circles for at least a decade now in everything from pop hits to TV and film soundtracks, so there's nothing about evoking that sound that necessarily makes a track sound non-current in the present era.

[wagtunes]

"Drops in the Ocean" put a smile on my face. Bright, punchy and upbeat and, while it may be reminiscent of the '80s, '80s-flavored arrangements have been back in vogue in some circles for at least a decade now in everything from pop hits to TV and film soundtracks, so there's nothing about evoking that sound that necessarily makes a track sound non-current in the present era.

Thanks for the listen and the feedback. I just basically do my thing. Whatever it sounds like, well, it's just me.

[wagtunes]

17th track from my upcoming double CD "2020"

Timely Exit

I'm caught in the middle
There's no escape
There's too many voices
Too much on my plate
So I gotta make a timely exit

One girl is crazy
The other insane
Put 'em together
And it hurts my brain
My life is a circus
On a high wire
Gotta do something
Before I expire
So I gotta make a timely exit

Don't know how I got
Into this state
But it's got to end
Before it's too late

So this is it now
Time for me to decide
Two girls to let love me
Or else go and hide
Gotta make a decision
Gotta do it real fast
If I don't make the right one
No way I can last
So I gotta make a timely exit

https://soundcloud.com/steven-wagenheim/timely-exit

[Bansaw]

..Ocean
Great upbeat...
0:45 there is a stuttering percussion there. That for me is not working in terms of the mix.
Would echo the comment that the start reminded me of VanHalen.
..Timely
Loved the intro grungy synth. reminds me of some of the early Eurythmics songs like Jennifer, Mirror (are you familiar with those?). Liked a lot that intro.
0:58 very nice arp. Good sound choice and range.
1:22 Great bridge, very, very good.
1:38 I'm trying to think if I like that little section or not. It brings some contrast but I'm wondering if it is too different.
Some really good things about Timely Exit. Well done.

[wagtunes]

..Ocean
Great upbeat...
0:45 there is a stuttering percussion there. That for me is not working in terms of the mix.
Would echo the comment that the start reminded me of VanHalen.
..Timely
Loved the intro grungy synth. reminds me of some of the early Eurythmics songs like Jennifer, Mirror (are you familiar with those?). Liked a lot that intro.
0:58 very nice arp. Good sound choice and range.
1:22 Great bridge, very, very good.
1:38 I'm trying to think if I like that little section or not. It brings some contrast but I'm wondering if it is too different.
Some really good things about Timely Exit. Well done.

Thanks for the listen and the feedback.

The stuttering percussion is actually a low bass arp supporting the other bass.

The breakdown is Timely? What can I tell you? I like it. In fact, it ends the song, just with a little more going on. Without it, IMO, the song is too much the same thing throughout, especially given how simple it really is.

[Frantz]

I like the song "Timely Exit." A lot of catchy parts packed into this short, fun tune.

The mix is on the loud side. The intro buzzy synth is a bit overpowering. I think it would benefit with a more careful mix.

[wagtunes]

I like the song "Timely Exit." A lot of catchy parts packed into this short, fun tune.

The mix is on the loud side. The intro buzzy synth is a bit overpowering. I think it would benefit with a more careful mix.

Thanks for the listen and the feedback. What can I say? I wanted a loud mix on this one and that synth was exactly what I had in mind. I guess other arrangements might have worked but too many choices leads to paralysis and I end up getting nothing done. So, I made my decision, stuck to my guns and went with it. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. I've finally come to accept that.

I actually thought of doing the song with just piano, bass, drums and guitar. I think it would have sucked. But I guess I'll never know.

[Frantz]

I actually like the instruments you chose including the buzzy synth. My criticism was meant to be about the mix which seems a little rushed.

[wagtunes]

I actually like the instruments you chose including the buzzy synth. My criticism was meant to be about the mix which seems a little rushed.

Actually, I worked extremely hard on this mix. It's exactly the way I wanted it, including burying the lead vocal just slightly into the backing track, if you noticed. In fact, the last A section, if you notice, the lead vocal almost becomes a part of the whole backing track. It's very much mixed down.

We make our artistic decisions and we live with them. Sometimes we make choices that people don't agree with, and that's fine. But unless something is just so blatantly "bad" sounding (and even that is a matter of opinion) we have to learn stick to our guns when we like what we've done, even if others don't necessarily agree.

I wish I had learned this lesson years ago when I was so busy trying to please everybody that I ended up pleasing no one, including myself.

Personally, I absolutely love the way this mix sounds for THIS particular song.

Ultimately, that's all that matters.

But I do appreciate you taking the time to listen and comment. Perhaps one day I'll do an unplugged version of the song just to see how it sounds.