SUBWAY TO SATURN - Album of original tracks created as a personal tribute to the music of Vangelis.

[ChameleonMusic]

It's a 20 track album (due for full release later this month)!

If you get a chance please have a listen to one (or two)...whichever tracks you like - just looking for final bits and pieces of feedback.

https://soundcloud.com/chameleon-music/ ... -to-saturn

Been a couple of years since I was last on KVR...gonna have a look through Cafe posts now to see if I still recognize any names here!

[seismic1]

I listened to "Subway to Saturn" and thought "I recognise that".

Aceed, and some lovely Vangelis moments.

I'll check the other out later.

Good work, and welcome back

[ChameleonMusic]

I listened to "Subway to Saturn" and thought "I recognise that".

Aceed, and some lovely Vangelis moments.

I'll check the other out later.

Good work, and welcome back

Hi Tim,
Thanks for having ANOTHER listen to STS - surprised you remembered it! I almost forgot that I'd posted it many years ago in its original form! Must've been my old account, cos I can't find it on this incarnation which started in 2018ish.

[mjolnir]

"Echoes of Neon" is REALLY NICE!!!
I will be sure to take a peek at your soundcloud.

[enroe]

Ooops - 20 tracks are really a lot! I picked out the first one, "Subway to Saturn":
It really does sound like an urban railway. Although Saturn is really far away
(and above all much too cold)!

The synth groove is well done and creates a drive. Very nice! Overall: great track.

[ChameleonMusic]

"Echoes of Neon" is REALLY NICE!!!
I will be sure to take a peek at your soundcloud.

Thanks very much for having a listen!

Glad to hear that you like that one as it was one of the very first that i wrote for this project and I nearly dropped it a few weeks ago...think I'd heard it so many times, I'd lost all perspective!

[seismic1]

"Seahorse Serenade" - I didn't recognise this one, so I assume it's a new (or at least, previously unpublished) piece.

It has a lovely melody and instrumentation. Is the guitar and flute from a library? I seem to remember that you don't rely exclusively on them. I really liked the ambient intro/outro, too.

Good work

[Frantz]

Great to see you here again Mark! Here's some quick feedback on the mix of "Echoes Of Neon."

I wish the piano sat more in the track. It is quite punchy, upfront and trebly.

It also sounds like the bass has been low passed.

I think you are giving every instrument a separate frequency band, which is fine, but for my taste, the effect is overdone slightly. I would rather have more frequency overlap and have the sounds glued together more. This is not really an issue. I'm just mentioning my preference in case it is helpful.

Some of the background effects at 2:33 are reminiscent of Chariots of Fire.

The composition is first rate, as always. No complaints there.

I'll try to listen to more tracks over the weekend. My commute cuts into my KVR time these days.

[tomtom1]

Hi Mark,
i listened to "Tanzen". By the way, with correct capitalization it would say: Tanzen in der Kathedrale. To be honest, the piece left me a bit perplexed. The organ sounds really good (although I find the mixed vocals and strings underneath to be superfluous). The part with the jumping basses and the synths doesn't really blend with the rest for me. Have you tried a reduced version (fewer different sounds and synthesizers?) But my organ training is probably getting in the way. On the one hand, the sacred touch in the beginning and the end, and then the following "fairground basses" - my brain can't get it together That might sound overly harsh, but that's not what it's meant at all. For me it would probably work better as a pure organ work.

[ChameleonMusic]

Ooops - 20 tracks are really a lot! I picked out the first one, "Subway to Saturn":
It really does sound like an urban railway. Although Saturn is really far away
(and above all much too cold)!

The synth groove is well done and creates a drive. Very nice! Overall: great track.

Thanks very much for having a listen - much appreciated!

20 tracks - yep, it's a lot, although some are quite short! I had 76 fully sketched out at one point last year, so I have shown some restraint! (Might still cut it back a couple more - haven't decided).

[Frantz]

"Seahorse Serenade" is understated, gentle, and haunting. It shares the timeless quality of the master's 'La Petite Fille de la Mer' while still being an original piece of work. An exquisite gem.

I think you are going for the retro, tape saturated, lo-fi sound of L'Apocalypse des Animaux and you captured it very well here.

[ChameleonMusic]

"Seahorse Serenade" - I didn't recognise this one, so I assume it's a new (or at least, previously unpublished) piece.

It has a lovely melody and instrumentation. Is the guitar and flute from a library? I seem to remember that you don't rely exclusively on them. I really liked the ambient intro/outro, too.

Good work

Thanks for having a 2nd listen, Tim - much appreciated. Yes it's 100% new.

The flute is a free library called SIMPLE FLUTE by Fluffy Audio, but with layers of real flute added on certain notes for a little extra richness etc.

Guitar - Just me playing the keyboard. Omnisphere patch + other odds and sods added in as subtle layers. I do a little bit of bad guitar, so I deliberately played it as if it was on 6 strings rather than keys if that makes sense?

''It has a lovely melody and instrumentation.'' - thank you! This one in particular does seem to have gone down very well with all listeners so far. Hell, even my family like it and I think they've become quite numb to my constant music-making over the decades!

[ChameleonMusic]

Great to see you here again Mark! Here's some quick feedback on the mix of "Echoes Of Neon."

I wish the piano sat more in the track. It is quite punchy, upfront and trebly.

It also sounds like the bass has been low passed.

I think you are giving every instrument a separate frequency band, which is fine, but for my taste, the effect is overdone slightly. I would rather have more frequency overlap and have the sounds glued together more. This is not really an issue. I'm just mentioning my preference in case it is helpful.

Some of the background effects at 2:33 are reminiscent of Chariots of Fire.

The composition is first rate, as always. No complaints there.

I'll try to listen to more tracks over the weekend. My commute cuts into my KVR time these days.

Hi Frantz, many thanks for the thoughtful feedback - always appreciated.

You've hit on some key points that arose during the mixing of this one...it probably caused me more angst than any other track in the past year!

Piano - it's actually not particularly trebly at all, but I know why it might sound that way in the mix. Yep definitively upfront and punchy so it led the mix, but I'll revisit before release and see if it's been overdone a little bit!

Bass - def low-passed as the original was quite ''fizzy''! I've got various different bass mixes and I ebbed and flowed between them! Again - useful to hear you raise this and I'll check it over, although I do quite like the heartbeat feel of it clearly under everything else.

Frequency overlap - the clarity versus blend conundrum! I definitely lean towards clarity in my mixes and I'm quite capable of over-doing it on any piece. There is actually frequency overlap, but it's possible it could be extended a little bit - easy to check n tweak!

I also tend to high pass / low cut pads / leads and other such layers quite brutally at times, so I'll look at that aspect as well.

Glad you enjoyed it musically + yes, Chariots of Fire with those background sounds did spring to my mind as well!

[eassae]

I'm going through these now. The intro to The Elevator Paradox is really cool. Will write more, when I've listened to everything.

[ChameleonMusic]

I'm going through these now. The intro to The Elevator Paradox is really cool. Will write more, when I've listened to everything.

''when I've listened to everything.'' Very brave!

But seriously - your feedback will be gratefully received!