some songs to critique at your leisure

trevbushell · May 20, 2005, 05:50 PM

OK , I've stuck a few of my songs on the web for all to hear and give HONEST feedback on any of them.
(yes i mean it, its much better for me if you are, so i can develop and improve, so feel free to give honest opinions)

http://www.enginecreations.com/trevb/index.htm
and click top r hand circle for my songs.

to write the music i tend to use soundfonts via kxsfi played in by controller kbd and sometimes vsti's/wav files as well . i have friends who sometimes play in instruments (guitar etc) via the emu aps inputs.

my music is very eklectic, i.e. they are all very different i guess, but maybe not?? my main focus is on developing the song by building it up in layers and it is important for me to create an emotive melody.
i am useless at lyrics and melodies hence no vocals (also my voice is not outstanding!!!

my main downfall is I'm terrible at mixing, but getting better slowly.... you can probably date these 3 songs easily with that info!!!! i just get lost in cubase and kx with all those sends, ins outs etc!!! I need to get my head around the dsp big time and make it work better for me!! i struggle with the fxbusses and cubase when it comes to mixing and fx!! any help gratefully received.

anyway let us know.

trev

trevbushell · May 24, 2005, 09:44 AM

go on, dont be shy.... give us an opinion. it'll help me no end! negative comments VERY welcome too!

Tiger M · May 24, 2005, 02:15 PM

I listened to 'Breeze' and I must say that I'm impressed by the composition. I like it very much.

As for the mix, there is much to be desired. Panning, frequencies, reverberation. All of this could be much better.

I like to listen to a song from two different perspectives. First from the perspective of a casual listener (this could probably be achieved only in the first listening) and from that perspective I'm impressed. Secondly from the perspective of a guy who knows a few things about mixing and from that perspective I'm not impressed at all

The composition and the feel are the most important aspects of a song. Good mixing comes second.

trevbushell · May 24, 2005, 02:22 PM

thnx tiger thats kind of you ,yeah as ive said mixing is something i just cant get my head around. (it probably doesnt help being mp3 as you lose quality anyway.)

i really need someone to get alongside me who knows what they are doing and sort the songs out. maybe i need to look at that more

I also need a good tutorial in cubase and how it all works! that would probably help as i really get stuck with the mixer and all that.

youre kind of right about mix being the second most important aspect of a song, bit at the same time if the mix aint good, people that matter (ie- industry) arent gonna give it a thought!

have a listen to "freestyle..." i think i got the mix better here (maybe)?

Tiger M · May 24, 2005, 03:32 PM

Listened to "Freestile..."

Tell me that you've created the drum track (that it's original and not a loop) and that you've played the keyboards and I'll be speechless. Btw, where are you from, I used to have a drummer that was a sucker for those jazzy grooves (so am I

).

The mix is again not very good, perhaps I'll give you a few pointers tomorrow evening... you could always get a book on mixing.

trevbushell · May 24, 2005, 03:45 PM

Cheers,
a friend of mine (in the band i play in) played the keyboard parts into the comp, (edit- i think.. he played in loads of stuff for me and I'm not sure if this ones his or not ... i think so though!) he's pretty amazing!! hes got a hammond and lesley amp and plays it like no other! its a bummer taking it around when we gig though.

the drums... partly loops which i played around with and partly me playing in stuff. the drumloop that comes in after 30 secs is a loop that ive cut up and redone if i remember rightly. i play stuff in using a master kbd, not great but i get by. i also use some of my own drumming in some of my own songs. this is one of the few songs i used loops!

I come from portsmouth in england. if you like good grooves maybe I'll post a couple of my bands live songs (recorded in pubs) on the site. we play 70's groove stuff like stevie wonder superstition and green onions etc. its a good band (12 piece with brass section) and funky.
if youre interested let me know and i'll post a couple of our live songs up. yes i do love good grooves (how did you know?)!!!

btw wheres valhalla?

oh and yes any mix tips GREATLY apreciated!! particularly how to get around that blinking cubase mixer!! thanx for youer interest tigerM
trev

trevbushell · May 24, 2005, 04:08 PM

2 of our band songs uploaded. I'm the drummer btw!

hope you like it. the bumblebee song shows off the talents of our keyboard player... its just me and him
trev

Tiger M · May 25, 2005, 12:49 AM

Very nice, judging from the applause and the voice of the announcer you did a good gig

Btw, I could give you only general mixing tips, not cubase specific tips, since I never use cubase for mixing, I prefer to export everything and mix in another application. There are people here who use cubase all the time, perhaps someone could give you more detailed pointers. This section of the forum is a bit slow, so you'd have to wait a bit for someone to respond, perhaps a year...

Valhalla is not very near...

trevbushell · May 25, 2005, 03:17 AM

thanx tiger for your interest, appreciated!

yes any mixer tips received gratefully, but only if you have a little time. I know I'm crap at it so anything that will improve me even a little will help!!

glad you likd the band, its a fun hobby, we all dress up (not in girls costumes.... 70's clothes and generally have a laugh, so its good. we dont take ourselves seriously at all. they are all fairly accomplished musicians though so its good to be able to play with them, it helps you grow as a drummer.... no drummer jokes now please!!!

)

"This section of the forum is a bit slow, so you'd have to wait a bit for someone to respond, perhaps a year..."
trev- LOL, this is one of my favourite threads, it is music we make with the drivers after all, so its good to listen and learn and feedback.

trev

ok... valhalla... ?America somewhere

edit... got ya....Roanoke, Virginia?

Tiger M · May 25, 2005, 04:40 AM

Quote:

ok... valhalla... ?America somewhere

edit... got ya....Roanoke, Virginia?

That's not real, I just enjoy norse mythology, that's all

trevbushell · May 25, 2005, 06:23 AM

cheeky! well, i did a google search and it came up that theres actually a valhalla in virginia!! so there you go

Tril · May 25, 2005, 05:05 PM

I listened to all your songs. I'm not a musician so I can only give you the opinion of a casual listener that doesn't know much about mixing and writing songs.

'freestyle in my slippers' : It sounds like elevator music from an old movie. Nice if you like older music style. Interesting but not the kind of music I like to listen to.

'Breeze' : It liked it a little. Some of it is nice. The piano loop gets annoying after some time. Maybe it needs a bit more variation. Some of the song reminded me of a song from a game.

'Memories of orange' : I particularly liked the strings. The drums are well played too. Sounds a bit too repetitive. The rythm is good. The instruments are well synchronised together.

'Wonder' : That song remembered me of a racing game song too. When listening to it, an image of a car spinning comes to mind. I think, a song similar to that one is played when you choose the car or when you watch a replay. I don't remember which game that is. The main piano loop is fast. I felt a bit dizzy while listening to it because the image that came to mind was a camera spinning around an object very fast. It's good and bad that it does that. It's good that this song can trigger a visual memory but it's not so good to feel your head spin.

'By hook or by crook' : I don't really know what to say. It's a song that does not catch my interest. I don't like that first 25 seconds. Listening with headphones, I thought that I heard something that sounded like background static. Sounds like you used a plugin to increase the high frequencies and add echo at the same time but it sounds like static. With speakers it sounded like something thin vibrating. Later in the song, I think there may be too much differents sounds at the same time. Maybe it's just me. Don't take my critics too seriously.

Your two live songs are nice. I particularly liked a lot bumblebee. It's full of life and energy.

My favorite song is bumblebee. I don't know if it's intentionnal but the sound on that song seems more panned to the left than the right. Most people, me included, prefer their music centered in the middle of both front speakers. I can't give you any good tips on mixing. I'm no musician.

trevbushell · May 26, 2005, 03:47 AM

Thanx very much tril for your indepth comments, really helpful! i appreciate your time taken to listen!

breeze- piano loop... mmm yes I'll have a look at that and see if it needs removing at points. i guess i tend to use a point (like the piano) and enjoy building up on it, but maybe i need to ensure it doesnt become too repetitive when i do this with songs! thanx

wonder- i love your analogy of a racing game song!! very funny... This song was me playing around with some arpegio's i made, i used filters and oscilattors to do this, just a bit of fun, but i kind of really liked the outcome. probably personal tatse though.

hook or crook.... yes your right its too full, but i know thats cos I'm terrible at mixing, so its not because of too many instruments but because its badly mixed andinstruments are not placed well! i'll listen to that frequency thing and see if i can hear it and remove it... I am a drummer after all so I've probably lost alot of my high frequency hearing

cool thanx for your honesty.

THe live songs- they are recorded from the mixing desk by our sound engineer when we gig, so they are probably panned to the right a bit, he basically routed the mix to record it and didnt really take interest in what the mix was like!. gives an idea of our band tough! glad you like it!

Thanks again for your input,

trev