There's Only One Who Can... <[ Retro, Disco, Funk ]> (with lyrics) ... feedback welcome...

[Bansaw]

This one was a challenge to mix. Lots going on mid-range.
Anyway, hope you enjoy.
Feedback always welcome on arrangement, vocals, mixing, sound choice etc.

https://soundcloud.com/bansaw-843690132 ... ne-who-can

Lyrics
I don't know what it'd mean for me
if you took your love away
I don't know what it'd mean for me
I would surely lose my way

Oh whoa, whoa
I'll say I'm sorry
Oh whoa, whoa
I'll say it truly

There's only one who can
Get me dancing all night long
There's only one who can
Get me singing my new song (x2)

I don't know what it'd mean for me
if you didn't want to stay
I don't know what it'd mean for me
if we were apart someday

Hmmmmm,
Take me away with you
Oh yeah,
Take me away in your arms
In your arms
In your arms, yeah

[wagtunes]

Cool, new song.

You're right about the mid range. In the chorus, the first line's "There's" gets buried by the synth that comes in over the top there. I'm talking obliterated.

What I do when that happens is pull up Neutron and stick it on the two offending tracks, well the offender and the offendee. I disable everything on the plugin except for the EQ. I then sidechain the vocal to the offending track, use the masking function to find the frequency that's getting hammered and then dynamically duck that frequency whenever there is a vocal. Probably 1 or 2 db is all you'll need but you'll have to experiment.

The problem with this technique, unless you also use on off automation, is that every time there is any vocal going on, that frequency is going to get ducked, which is something you may or may not want. So you might want to have the sidechain compression kick in only on that word. It happens twice in the song.

Having said all that, there have been plenty of songs throughout history where lyrics get obliterated by the music so it's not really a big deal. So you can just ignore all this if you want.

The song is really cool. Again, not a big fan of the end. Did you get bored again? Just seemed a little abrupt. I think a fade would have worked better. But that's just my meaningless two cents.

[donkey tugger]

..or you could turn up the vocals Wags! In this case a little bit more top end air to them would also benefit things, and I think you've gone a bit overboard with a de-esser too?

Mix wise (listening on headphones - too hot to turn the big speakers on, they're like f**king radiators - thanks KRK..)a bit of a cut in the lower mids (100-200hz?) and a corresponding little bump between 2khz and 5 would work wonders I reckon- give a little bit of sparkle and presence. Overall it sounds a bit dull to me and lacking some clarity. Do summat with those drums as well - it's a great sound for the song, but can hardly hear them. Kick and snare need to have more snap to them to cut through so transient shaper and/or compressor perhaps.

Oh, did I mention that it's a top song!? Very reminiscent of ABC (good in my book) with a bit of 80s Bowie. Good hooks and well written, and nicely funky bassline..

[Bansaw]

Cool, new song.
You're right about the mid range. In the chorus, the first line's "There's" gets buried by the synth that comes in over the top there. I'm talking obliterated.
What I do when that happens is pull up Neutron and stick it on the two offending tracks,...

@Wags, thanks. Tough one to mix this one. I should put myself in the shoes of a brand new listener sometimes. The "There's only one who can" line does get a little lost, but I didnt realise because my brain knows why its there and whats its saying.
I do have Neutron(3) and actually used the masking feature quite a lot with a dynamic EQ in this song.
The riser going into the chorus is a bit too loud. I was surprised at how much this song fatigued my ears; had to take a break from it a few times while mixing.
Anyway, appreciate the feedback.

[Bansaw]

Do summat with those drums as well - it's a great sound for the song, but can hardly hear them. Kick and snare need to have more snap to them to cut through so transient shaper and/or compressor perhaps.

thanks @dt for the mix feedback. I switched a few weeks ago to using acoustic drums as I got hold of EZDrummer. I turned the velocity down so the kick wasn't as prominent. The kick just sounded like a dull blast of air to me. Tried transient shapers, tape etc. I've yet to find a kick sound that I'm happy with. Thats maybe why the kick is a bit buried.
Anyway, thanks for the ABC comparison. Smokey Sings was one of my favourites.

[donkey tugger]

Do summat with those drums as well - it's a great sound for the song, but can hardly hear them. Kick and snare need to have more snap to them to cut through so transient shaper and/or compressor perhaps.

thanks @dt for the mix feedback. I switched a few weeks ago to using acoustic drums as I got hold of EZDrummer. I turned the velocity down so the kick wasn't as prominent. The kick just sounded like a dull blast of air to me. Tried transient shapers, tape etc. I've yet to find a kick sound that I'm happy with. Thats maybe why the kick is a bit buried.
Anyway, thanks for the ABC comparison. Smokey Sings was one of my favourites.

Whole different ball game, acoustic drums innit..A lot of the same techniques will work as with electronic kits mind - an obvious one to try here might be layering another kick with quite a sharp attack with all the low end cut from it, then you get the best of both worlds, with the err, douf, and the click.

On ABC, they did some superb highly polished pop stuff. For what you're doing here, I think having a listen to them might be good as reference tracks. I tend to use Blur...never quite works out..

[Karma_tba]

Very Good!!! This is a great song! My first impression was Human League, with a guest appearance by Bowie. Holding to my like it or not, I like it, I'll leave technique critique to those who know what they are talking about.

[Frantz]

I love this song! Even though it's not strictly synths, it reminds of the best upbeat Human League tracks.

Unfortunately, the mix is a bit of a mess. There is so much going on with every sound competing for space. Personally I would start the mix over getting the drums, bass, and vocals set up first. Then adding other instruments making sure they don't detract from the vocals. Keep in mind not every part has to be playing at the same time. Leaving some space is a good thing.

[Halonmusic]

Bring the funk! Loving this!

[Bansaw]

Very Good!!! This is a great song! My first impression was Human League, with a guest appearance by Bowie. Holding to my like it or not, I like it, I'll leave technique critique to those who know what they are talking about.

@Karma_tba, I know Human League's more moody stuff, I'll have to check out more of their songs. Anyway, thanks, - appreciate the like.

[silenthill2006]

I love the composition of the song. As mentioned before by others, the mix needs some work. However, I love what you are going for.

[Bansaw]

Unfortunately, the mix is a bit of a mess...

Thanks @Frantz. I was ambitious with the mid-range. There's some funky disco guitars that are hogging the mid-range (guitars with any distortion I find are the hardest thing to mix), and competing with backing vocals and my vocal. Plus one or two other things. Do you use hard panning? I don't pan much; maybe I'll look into that. I already have Neutron ducking the guitars and other stuff to make way for the vocal, but perhaps not enough.

[Bansaw]

Bring the funk! Loving this!

thanks for the feedback @Halon. I tried to turn the funk up to 11 on this one. ; )

[Halonmusic]

Bring the funk! Loving this!

thanks for the feedback @Halon. I tried to turn the funk up to 11 on this one. ; )

No problem. Looking forward to your next song

[Bansaw]

I love the composition of the song. As mentioned before by others, the mix needs some work. However, I love what you are going for.

Thanks for the feedback silenthill on composition; I do put some thought into the arrangement. Yes, the mix is a bit cloudy. Pleased you liked it overall.