Unusual Production. Is it fitting to the song??

[lakeshorephatty]

Hey,

So I started with just the gutar and vocal tracks yesterday. This is the 8th of 10 songs I'm working on for a great singer songwriter girl.

This one is the most "out there" production wise of the songs i've worked on for her. I've never made anything sound like this before, but this one was calling out to me to sound quirky. What do you think?

There is a LOT of demeter RV1 spring reverb on this track all over the place.

I think it will be a love or hate thing with this track and I just want to find that out.

Russell

[lakeshorephatty]

no thoughts anyone?

[Ashahalasin]

I'm listening to this out of an inbuilt speaker at work so i'm sure this doesn't help, but I think the reverb makes the sound seem too muddy. Also not a fan of the constant dipping in volume of the guitar (could be panning? Again shitty work computer speaker).

Other than that I like it.

[S.Filpansick]

I agree with Ashahalasin; something with the reverb doesn't sound quite right... but I dig it! What's the other stuff you're doing for her like?

[pineapple]

I like this "acoustic sound":
http://www.gearslutz.com/board/attac...-needed-no.mp3

But, I don't know how it's recorded or what kind equipment is used.

I hope it can be a little reference for you.

[lakeshorephatty]

Thanks for the comments. I guess it would help you understand what's going on if i told you.

The "acoustic" sound you hear is actually coming from the vocal mic bleed. I used a U87 and faced the nulls at the guitar in figure 8. Ambre did 10 songs and for many of them, the guitar bleed was minimal (it was a hollow electric) but for the ones where she pounded the heck out of the guitar and also changed her position slightly relative to the mics sometimes we got more bleed as on this track.

I thought maybe at the beginning this was a quirky sounding thing and may have been fun to use as the primary sound. If it draws too much attention in to the bleed however and keeps you focused on it for the rest of the song thats a problem.

I can certainly try compressing the guitar amp mic (KM84) differently and bringing it up in a more solid way. I'm sure you notice by about a minute into the song the electric track is solidly in place in the middle and the picking and acoustic sound isn't nearly as noticable. Is it both sounds you are finding drop out or are you just worried about the beginning acousic picky sound?

Thanks guys.

Russell

[Ashahalasin]

Maybe you should re-record and do the vocals and guitar seperately, rather than recording both at the same time. It would lessen/stop some of the issues.

[BrandRecordingCo]

Hi,

The song is great, and she is great. I'm not fully agreeing with the production ideas though. I think you've got some cool starting points, but need to experiment a little more. Don't let the production get in the way of the song, which I feel it is doing a little right now. Having some quircky things going on is cool, but make sure the listener hears the song first, then the quircky things.

[aclarson]

Fantastic voice!

I could do without the tighter verb on the guitar, I like the big, old-school verb, but the short, slappy one sounds kinda boxy to me, and sort of gives it a toy vibe.

This one's a real talent for sure, and overall I like the adventurous sound, very real.

[MDSleep]

i would like to hear this with the km84 "brought up in a more solid way".
there is something a little distracting about the way the guitar is bleeding into the vocal mic, if that is what I am hearing.

my demeter is on it's way! finally ordered one.

[john caldwell]

Very nice track. You didn't go far enough with the quirk, in my view. It's left as a hybrid between contemporary hifi and retro lower fi, so it doesn't offer the contrast you might be looking for. In specific:
There is too much dry and upfront component to her (great) singing voice. The bass is very contemporary sounding, as it has nearly a hiphop punch. I don't see that kind of approach to the track. Be brave - follow your instinct to embrace the quirk, particularly if the other 9 songs are "refined".

John-

[lakeshorephatty]

Thanks everyone for the comments.

I certainly could go a little further with the unusual sound. Ambre still is the boss though as its her project and we had to settle on an amount of verb. I had a little more in there at first but she wanted a little less.

I am definitely going to work that guitar over a little. It is a common complaint and once pointed out obvious to me. I just haven't had time yet. This is a hobby for me but I take it pretty seriously.

I only enjoy working with people like Ambre that bring serious awesomeness to the table, and then i get to mess around adding fun things.

So i will be fixing that guitar, and keeping everything else mentioned in mind, and trying to find a middle ground. Thanks again.

Russell

[twilight]

I like the spring-reverb idea and the song and artist are really great.
As said you could make things even a little more lo-fi with tape saturation?