Need opinions on my tracks

[Midcoasted]

Alright Ive been working with a Sony C800/737/into an HD rig. Not sure on the rest but it is all high end, outboard gear is superb and they also have a reel to reel if I want to bounce whole track there for any reason. Using HD for AD/DA conversion.

I just want some opinions on my tracks. Myspace is terrible for getting any input. Places like this are the only way I can get reasonable input.

So these track arent even mixed yet, but to me, they sound great. Not perfect, but Im happy with them unmixed. All thats set is the levels on the vocals and the beats are mixed. We dont have the tracked out versions loaded in, just .wav. I only do the vocals and buy the beats, but am thinking of getting on my own production.

I just want to know if you guys think that these tracks are worth mixing as is, or if they need to be redone completely.

Im very biased, all of them sound amazing to me. Its like the kind of hiphop I always wanted to listen to but could never find. But of course this is my own music, and Im sure that most musicians should feel this way.

But then again, I look at that reel to reel and I dream of making an entire hip hop album on it. Digital for now, but the future? Noone does this anymore, but then again, why do I want to be like everyone else?

So please help, but no hating please. Stick with what I got and mix/master? Redo them till I get them perfect? Or is it better raw sometimes? Digital digital digital, but is analog what everyone is missing? Or scratch everything I have now, start making my own beats, then thats when Ill be ready?

Just need advice. Check them out on myspace

MySpace.com - Midcoasted - Indianapolis, US - Rap / R&B / Hip Hop - www.myspace.com/midcoasted

[piccazzo]

So please help, but no hating please.

Post it in the right section then..

http://www.gearslutz.com/board/work-...tist-showcase/

Seriosly though , I like the Kill the club beat but u gotta put some mo attitude in your vocals cause as they sound now it´s hard to take em serious
and you should consider someone else to do the choruses that can sing , because that´s not really your best feature.
And using the Hit Factory logo is kindda lame as one can clearly hear these beats nor the rapper has been there.
But with more attitude more devotion and attention to detail a singer on the choruses then these tracks would sound a h**l of a lot better.

The rapping sounds a lot like adam sandberg ( SNL ) to me.

[assemblyworker]

Originally Posted by Midcoasted

Its like the kind of hiphop I always wanted to listen to but could never find.

Serious?


Like dude said, you need to put it in the other forum.... I'm really trying to heed your words and not hate but **** me that's hard to do.

[WideawakE]

hot garbage in the sun in the summer

[Midcoasted]

Originally Posted by piccazzo

And using the Hit Factory logo is kindda lame as one can clearly hear these beats nor the rapper has been there.
But with more attitude more devotion and attention to detail a singer on the choruses then these tracks would sound a h**l of a lot better.

The rapping sounds a lot like adam sandberg ( SNL ) to me.

Well I dont think anyone is going to the Hit Factory anymore since they turned it into condos, and who is Adam Sanberg?

But Ill try to post in the right forum.

[Midcoasted]

Originally Posted by WideawakE

hot garbage in the sun in the summer

Damn hate. Unmixed and on myspace for Gods Sake. They sound like crap. On any decent stereo they sound 10 times better.

And for some reason I think u guys didnt get past the first 2 track, so I fixed it for u.

[Nahuel]

mmm... the sound quality is good. the beats are good, not really original, some west coast "playeraz" classic tracks, I dont like the rapper, jus me, gl.

[Midcoasted]

Damn aint one person feelin it. Maybe I should just scratch it. I aint comfortable at all in the studio Im at yet, and Ive only put less than an hour into each song so far. Maybe I should stop smoking 2 packs of newports and 5 rillos a day and maybe I can sound better.

[Midcoasted]

But hey if 300 people hate it and 1 person loves it, u do the math. Theres 300 mil in the US alone

[PhonoquO]

beats are decent, nothing groundbreaking. the rapper, definitely not feeling him. if this was just for fun, fine, it is what it is, but to be taken seriously the rap would have to completely change. no hate at all, just stating my opinion. keep working hard.

[MYAMS]

that rapper is a joke...I dont get it, if I was a rapper and layed that down I would be embarrassed to let anyone see it. I've always wondered, do u guys think "artists" like this have just a whack view of music and actually think their shit is good?

[tonymission]

Originally Posted by Midcoasted

Damn hate. Unmixed and on myspace for Gods Sake. They sound like crap. On any decent stereo they sound 10 times better.

And for some reason I think u guys didnt get past the first 2 track, so I fixed it for u.

listen bruh... lemme help ya out a bit. (i didnt listen to the tracks)

"unmixed and on myspace" are no excuses ...

sometimes, you only get ONE listen. just one, no more.

your myspace, your website, your clips, whatever it might be ... don't waste your chances. not that you're tryna come up or not tryna come up or whatever ... your purpose/goal/mission is irrelevant.

if it's on your myspace, then it is a reflection of you. "mixing" a track doesn't take very long if you know what you're doing or if the source material is done decently in the first place. im not even sure i know what "unmixed" means... like when i send REL a beat on aim that i literally just recorded (stereo) into wavelab ??... that still sounds maybe 80-90% ??? is that unmixed? i guess, but i still dont send my boys a complete shitstorm fuktogether of my work. it's basically telling them "i dont value your time and feedback at all, you might as well **** off" ...

i cant tell you how many beats i HAVENT EVER put on a CD for people that i have some little finicky problem with. guys will come over and ill accidentally play something (my beats are numbered, not named ...) and they'll get mad saying "dog dont hold out your hot shit on me, i knew you were doing that" ... when i just honestly thought no one would like the damn thing.

i just have an issue with something and take too much pride in my craft. that's not to say i havent ****ed up listening ops or havent put up shitty beats in public places, but im getting a lot better at figuring out what best represents me ... and what doesn't.

dont get mad at folks when they giving you the feedback you asked for.

i didnt listen to your tracks cuz im brutally honest ... and didnt wanna be called a "hater" for it.

[cynic one]

beats are aiight....nothing outstanding, but not noticeably bad.

your delivery is annoying though. "god done told me" sounds like you're whining. i understand you're trying to put emotion into the verse, but it sounds contrived, forced, and self-important.

skipped through the rest of em...beats are decent, your delivery needs serious work. sounds like you're emulating rappers you like instead of doing you. be yourself, don't try to sound like others out there. it sounds put-on instead of sounding natural.

you asked for opinions so there it is - don't get mad, get better.

[feedback711]

Your not cut out for rapping. You will not be advancing to the next level, not going to hollywood. and you can leave and talk shit on the judges now.... its not our fault that no one around you has the gutz to tell you to stop rapping. sorry for keeping it real but if i bought a album and it sounded like that i would assasinate myself

[Midcoasted]

Alright, SOME insightful criticism.But hey what did I expect.

Just didnt think the haters would come out in the masses like this. Maybe its what I get for posting in the wrong forum. Or using myspace, or trying to do something that is more uplifting and positive. At least Im not claiming all this stuff Ive never really done. All the things I talk about are true about me.

But Ill keep working. I just dont get how I dont sound natural. I write all my own lyrics, dont really try to emulate anyone, flow is just something I derived in the last 9 years, cant make myself sound much different. People have told me I sound like people I never even listened to. Who knows.

I can definitely agree I had worried my delivery was off. I get in the studio and the red light turns on and i get too stressed and I feel I cant get it to come out right, definitely need to make sure Im not blazed up next time.

And Ill heed the advice about sometimes u only get one listen. Next time I try i will definitely mix first, have a website up, and make sure they are not presented in low quality streaming format. Not really trying to make it big or anything, people just always liked that I was rapping about something more then the same old boa****l, im better harder and cooler and Ill kill u if u say different, rap.

All I was doing is reflecting on my life. And Im not complaining that people are hating, I just didnt expect this much. I just wanted people to hear the music, not look at the picture and see Im white and not trying to be a thug, or Im on myspace, or anything. I thought some1 could just hear the music and relate.

But Im not gonna let 8 haters on here bring me down, Ive had hundreds of strangers tell me I would make it big one day, and I was saying no way. Ive put in years of work since the first stranger told me they thought I would make it.

So Ill keep working and who knows maybe someday ull be eating every word. Im not trying to have the traditional gangster rap fan like my stuff. I want to expand it to everyday people who have been through the struggle, but not went and shot at a house full of kids.

There were two dudes who walked in the session of God Done Told Me trying to book their own session. They didnt hate. They came up gave me props, and said that it was real. And thats all I wanted, was to deliver something real.

[cynic one]

midcoasted - you asked for opinions. you got em.

it sounds like you really didn't want REAL opinions, but affirmation and people telling you how good you are.

content doesn't equal delivery - two way different things. the way you say something has more impact in HOW you say it than WHAT you say sometimes. especially in rap. you can be saying the realest thing to you, but still sound like a clown.

just because someone doesn't like what you do, doesn't make them a "hater". if you can't handle honest feedback from 8 people on a website, you're probably not cut out for this shit.

most of the feedback here is constructive criticism. learn from it and quit trying to argue with it if you really want to get better...but as stated before i doubt that was the goal of your original post.

[tonymission]

Originally Posted by Midcoasted

Alright, SOME insightful criticism.But hey what did I expect.

Just didnt think the haters would come out in the masses like this. Maybe its what I get for posting in the wrong forum. Or using myspace, or trying to do something that is more uplifting and positive. At least Im not claiming all this stuff Ive never really done. All the things I talk about are true about me.

But Ill keep working. I just dont get how I dont sound natural. I write all my own lyrics, dont really try to emulate anyone, flow is just something I derived in the last 9 years, cant make myself sound much different. People have told me I sound like people I never even listened to. Who knows.

I can definitely agree I had worried my delivery was off. I get in the studio and the red light turns on and i get too stressed and I feel I cant get it to come out right, definitely need to make sure Im not blazed up next time.

And Ill heed the advice about sometimes u only get one listen. Next time I try i will definitely mix first, have a website up, and make sure they are not presented in low quality streaming format. Not really trying to make it big or anything, people just always liked that I was rapping about something more then the same old boa****l, im better harder and cooler and Ill kill u if u say different, rap.

All I was doing is reflecting on my life. And Im not complaining that people are hating, I just didnt expect this much. I just wanted people to hear the music, not look at the picture and see Im white and not trying to be a thug, or Im on myspace, or anything. I thought some1 could just hear the music and relate.

But Im not gonna let 8 haters on here bring me down, Ive had hundreds of strangers tell me I would make it big one day, and I was saying no way. Ive put in years of work since the first stranger told me they thought I would make it.

So Ill keep working and who knows maybe someday ull be eating every word. Im not trying to have the traditional gangster rap fan like my stuff. I want to expand it to everyday people who have been through the struggle, but not went and shot at a house full of kids.

There were two dudes who walked in the session of God Done Told Me trying to book their own session. They didnt hate. They came up gave me props, and said that it was real. And thats all I wanted, was to deliver something real.

homeslice.

i read the comments on your page. your friends got they tongues up your ass ... sorry this is the first time you've got the truth.

i've listened to the music now.

...





anyway -- you glossed over my post and still tryin to turn it around on a million other things aside from YOU.

until YOU can be your biggest critic instead of "my shit sounds AMAZING" then you aren't ever gonna do anything. i dont know a single cat doin anything of any importance who isn't the first to throw his shit under the bus ... to get to the point where your tracks are "unthrowunderthebusable", you're gonna have to be like that.

or just keep pattin' yourself on the back. i guess it's up to you but this is the wrong SITE (not forum) to be like that. people have won grammys here, im here to be humbled and learn ... and ive done some stuff. this is the one production forum/site where i GET more than i give. im glad i found it.

futureproducers.com might be a better place to start for you

[piccazzo]

I aint comfortable at all in the studio Im at yet, and Ive only put less than an hour into each song so far.

That´s your problem right there , unless your Luda or Jay-Z an hour on each song isnt enought time to mark the adlibs , changes in pitch , changes in flow and every other thing it takes to keep a verse interesting.

and who is Adam Sanberg?

SNL = Saturday Night Live
Lazy Sunday , Dick in a box etc.

There were two dudes who walked in the session of God Done Told Me trying to book their own session. They didnt hate. They came up gave me props, and said that it was real.

What were they supposed to say " Yo dude , U Suck u knaw , aiggght "

And finally

don't get mad, get better.

[Midcoasted]

No I really wanted to be bashed like this in a way. This will help me in the long run. I wasnt calling everyone haters, just the people who had no more to say then u suck jump off a bridge.

I will take this criticism and try to apply it. My flow is off. Im not putting in enough time into these tracks. Need to try to change my whole sound. I can take the bashing.

I have thrown everything I ever recorded prior to this under the bus. If u listen to the last song people always compliment me on it, but its 2 years old and I hate it, even total strangers. Maybe I got a little too confident because i went from completely horrible to mostly horrible. Thats why I wa slike it sounds amazing, and everything else has sucked. So I knew it was too good to be true.

And the dudes who walked in on the session of "God Done Told Me" didn't have to say anything to me. I wasnt like hey man what do u think. I finished laying the last verse I walked out of the mic room, and they walked up to me and gave me their opinion. And these werent white boys from the suburbs, not that it really matters, but just for perception.

And I dont ever get people telling me my tracks are garbage, so this is why I came here. I wanted people to be ciritcal. Hey u need to fix this, u need to work on this. Thats what I really wanted. I dont think the producer is going to be like man that just aint right you need to fix it. Just didnt want some1 trying to bring me down without at least having something critical I could apply.

So thanx to everyone who actually gave me insight. I deserve the harshness because Im not that great yet. but I think I got good lyrics, I like the beats I choose, just terrible delivery. Sometime my delivery is mediocore and not that terrible, but it still needs major work.

[Midcoasted]

Originally Posted by tonymission

homeslice.

i read the comments on your page. your friends got they tongues up your ass ... sorry this is the first time you've got the truth.

i've listened to the music now.

...





anyway -- you glossed over my post and still tryin to turn it around on a million other things aside from YOU.

until YOU can be your biggest critic instead of "my shit sounds AMAZING" then you aren't ever gonna do anything. i dont know a single cat doin anything of any importance who isn't the first to throw his shit under the bus ... to get to the point where your tracks are "unthrowunderthebusable", you're gonna have to be like that.

or just keep pattin' yourself on the back. i guess it's up to you but this is the wrong SITE (not forum) to be like that. people have won grammys here, im here to be humbled and learn ... and ive done some stuff. this is the one production forum/site where i GET more than i give. im glad i found it.

futureproducers.com might be a better place to start for you

Of course i will take affirmation when I can. And mostly my boys aint head over heels with my shit. Theres a few that like it alot. Strangers are the ones who always tell me its hot, I needed some stones cast my way.
I will definitely take ur advice. Maybe when i try to fix it I will be like hey my shit is terrible, please help me fix it. I just been watching the secret too much. If u can visualize, etc.

And I had no idea the likes of grammy winners were on this site. I seriously doubt Ive been bashed by a grammy winner yet, but I wish one would, but give me tons of advice on what to fix and how to fix it.

[tonymission]

Originally Posted by Midcoasted

Of course i will take affirmation when I can. And mostly my boys aint head over heels with my shit. Theres a few that like it alot. Strangers are the ones who always tell me its hot, I needed some stones cast my way.
I will definitely take ur advice. Maybe when i try to fix it I will be like hey my shit is terrible, please help me fix it. I just been watching the secret too much. If u can visualize, etc.

And I had no idea the likes of grammy winners were on this site. I seriously doubt Ive been bashed by a grammy winner yet, but I wish one would, but give me tons of advice on what to fix and how to fix it.

start with us non-grammy winners first haha... it's pretty good advice across the board. it all STARTS with your MENTALITY. when you get that right and strike a balance between being confident in your ability to grow and mature as an artist because you know the passion is there to produce that and enough humility to know you can ALWAYS get better then you're on your way... that doesn't mean walking around telling everyone how shitty you are because A) you'll start believing that and B) it's really only fishing for someone to pat you on the back ...

just know that this shit doesn't happen over night ... i have tracks from 9+ years ago that i thought were the greatest ever and "if only someone could hear this id be famous" but now even when i stumble upon tracks from 2 months ago, i cringe at certain parts yet still take comfort in being able to recognize the growth ive made since then.

ive been at this almost 12 years and dont feel im even half way there yet i definitely have some shit poppin off from a work perspective. just find that balance, stay humble, seek feedback, apply feedback and dont look back. work harder than everyone and you can only get better.

there's always gonna be someone better than you and if you're lucky enough to have them give you the time of day, take that time to learn, be thankful and run like hell with it!

[piccazzo]

I dont think the producer is going to be like man that just aint right you need to fix it.

Then he isnt a really good producer is he , A REAL Producer is like a mentor for the artist as they know better what can and what can´t be fixed in the editing , but never the less they MUST push you to get the best possible performance out of you if they dont well then i would change producers if i were you especially if you dont feel comfortable in their studio.

[soundgeezer]

beats are okay, mixed okay not beating me out of my socks though ...
the rapper doesn't catch my attention ... he sounds boring ... overall all songs sound too clean, to straight and even ... very predictable...
if you wanna convince people with what you do, you gotta be convinced yourself in the first place and that's what I'm missing there, don't feel that you are convinced at all.
You'll find nice beats, well produced all over the place, so the rapper, his voice and conviction and the lyrics make the difference ...

I do appreciate you trying to do more positive lyrics than other gangsta mf for a change ...

[out-of-bed]

The rapper sounds like he's still looking for his sound. There is a sense of insecurity. You can sense it immediately when a rapper doesn't exactly know what he's doing. People can't feel him because he can't feel it either. I mean FEEL it. So I would advise him to keep looking. And the nasal sound of the mic (?) doesn't really make it better.

The beats sound nice and mellow but - as noted above - nothing original. Take a look around how many people are producing music. U gotta put more effort and try to find your own original sound. U seem to have a good technique already so it probably a good time to start innovating. I don't know your aspirations though - maybe it's enough for you to sound like everyone else in a certain genre. But in any case, don't try to please anyone else with your music except yourself or it'll end up whack.

I'm sure it's not easy to receive this sort of ruff feedback but I think it's very smart of you to ask for it at this point. Good luck!

[out-of-bed]

Originally Posted by Mr.Cheese

I personally never liked Eminem because I thought his shit sounded like a cartoon character trying to rap.

LOL, yes it did... just horrible!

[ambient_child]

It's not always what you're rapping about, but more importantly it's how you're rapping. I don't mind if you're talking about degrading women, slanging rocks, and packing heat, as long as it's delivered in a convincing way that actually makes me believe they're doing that. Big L, Kool G Rap, Nas, Prodigy, Big Pun etc... all talked about that shit, but their worldplay was on point as well as their flow.

An average person typically listens to the production first, flow second, and lyrics third.

[TDT Music Group]

I peeped the songs, first things first. For you to have that vocal chain and end up with those results BEFORE the mix points back to the engineer.

The vocals were too buried which caused me like most others to say "amateur" right from the jump. Your flow is another story. You've been rapping for 9+ years and wrote hundreds of songs but you get nervous when the red light is on? If I was you, I would really think about whether or not this is for you. Bush has been president for almost 8 years now but is he a good president? many people have told him he's good.

Lastly Myspace doesnt hijack sound like people think they do. It all starts with the recording itself. If it is recorded well, mixed well and mastered, it will translate well. Also burn your MP3's at 320kbs before you post them on myspace.

I agree with everyone that spoke about the flow and delivery needing work regardless of how Myspace encodes. I have three songs on my page that were recorded at three different studios. Check them out and you can see that even tho all three sound different based on equipment, mixing skills etc, the one thing they all have in common is performance.
myspace.com/htsw


p.s.

positive and 5 blunts a day is a oxymoron!

keep it real.

peace

[Midcoasted]

Yea well I aint getting to work with the dude who produced on the d12 album, or who worked with 8ball and MJG. The night before I was last at the studio recording, Mike Epps was there and the place reeked with dro. His production and sound made mine look pathetic. Im working with his understudy. So its weird the studio with all my dream equipment with plaques all over the wall could actually be hurting me.

But I aint gonna throw him under the bus. Hes been critical. He tells me, hey that was close, but u can do better etc. When we come on a consensus it is right, then we stop there. Plus he dont have the tracked out versions yet. maybe where the vocals are sitting in the mix is somehwere where they are fighting with instruments for EQ. But hey my shit never translates to myspace well. it sounds good on car stereos, home stereos, and Studio Monitors, but never as good on myspace. Next time I will try 320 instead of 192, but I swear it hasnt made much difference in the past. Maybe I should create two mixes, one for the album, one for myspace.

But I also could make my flow a more cocky in ur face gangsta rap type of flow, but I thought it just would be better if I let it ride naturally and let my voice be natural, because that is what Im doing now. Not emulating, not changing it, just letting it come out as is. People on here were saying they thought it was obvious I was doing the opposite, so maybe I should do the opposite emulate and be unnatural, then I will sound better?

My flow aint close, this has always been my problem, but still leaps and bounds ahead of 98-99. Ive been doin this for 9-10 years, but only in the studio 10 times. I should have just kept recording myself for these 9 years and Id be leaps and bounds ahead of where Im at now. Should have bought an Apogee Mini Me and an AT 4047 dusted off the old 001 and I bet my stuff would sound better than this C800 G going into a 737 and an HD rig. Not because the equipment is better, but because I would be comfortable, and I could spend infinite amount of time recording/mixing to perfection. But I let some dumb post on here convince me I m the musician, I should let a prodcuer focus on that part, and I should just worry about the rest. Maybe the converters would be better on the Apogee, because Apogee is found on the tracking procedure on 80 percent of commercially sucessful albums. But I DOUBT that is one of the problems, and none of my other equipment could compare at all.

And I know dro aint positive. Yea it helps me write songs, but is it all just in my head? Could I write those same songs sober? Probably. And I know it aint helping my breathing ability or my vocal chords. Plus I smoke that purp, I get paranoid, I start shaking and Im trying to record? Next time I aint smoking a thing. Matter of fact, i might just once and for all stop. Maybe I can smoke on a beach as a reward because I finally stopped smoking and fixed my flow. everything is okay in moderation, but everyday, it has to be killing my potential. because Im not already famous. Jay Z or luda could spit anything and people would say its hot, no matter how ****ed up they were. It also doesnt hurt that their beats and productions are probably 5 levels above mine. Not to mention they have 1000 times the studio experience of me.

So I will be back, in the right forum of course, and we will see then if these things have gotten any better. I think Im on the verge I just need to put in a hell of alot more work. So that either means I need tons of money for studio time, or I need to just start tracking my own vocals and mixing my own songs.

Thanx for all the the insight guys, and TDT, I was feeling that. Keep doin ya thang man. That positive stuff is the future of rap and people finally get over all this commercial gangster rap bs, then we will be leaps and bounds ahead of all these people who are negative.