At Audiotuts+ we regularly put up a reader track for workshopping and critique (find out how to submit a track). This is how it works: you upload your song, and every week or so we’ll publish one here and step away from the podium. The floor is yours to talk about the track and how the artist can fix problems in and improve upon the mix and the song.
This track has been submitted for your friendly, constructive criticism. They have put their track (and their heart and soul) in your hands to learn and get useful feedback.
- Do you enjoy the song or track itself? Does it have potential?
- Can the arrangement be improved?
- How did you find the mix? What would you do differently?
- What do you enjoy about the rhythm track? What can be done to improve it?
- Is the choice of instruments relevant and effective for the style/song?
- Are the lyrics (if any) effective? Does the style, arrangement and genre of the song suit them?
- Can you suggest any specific techniques that might improve the track?
- Do you have any other constructive feedback?
More Than You Can See by Alex Moraes
Artist’s website: estudiotrilhasonora.wordpress.com
Description of the track:
Hello from Brazil.
We recorded this track for a client called Rafaela Ruette. She’s 12 years old and composed 10 brand new songs for her debut album (to be released in 2011). Please send us some feedback about the mixing, mastering, compositions, arrangments, and so on…
Recorded, edited, mixed and mastered in ProTools M-Powered 7.3.
Drums: Helio Cunha
Guitars, Acoustic guitars, keyboards, bass, effects programming: Alex Moraes
Mixed and Mastered by Alex Moraes.Thank you all!
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Terms of Use: This track is copyrighted. Don’t redistribute it. Please buy the original CD.
Have a listen to the track and offer your constructive criticism for this Workshop in the comments section.
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Alex,
This is a really nice track, I enjoyed it. Nice mix. The only things I think could improve it is:
#1- Maybe palm muting the guitar part during the verse, this would give the chorus a lot more impact when the balls-to-the-walls guitar sound comes in, and
#2- My first impression was that her voice sounded really dry in the mix. With your expertise you would know that there are a million different ways to deal with this. I just wanted to hear her voice be a little more “surreal”, but that’s just personal taste and has nothing to do with the quality of the mix. Nice job!!!
ChuckD,
Thanks for your comments!
This song has the shuffle feel on the verse, almost blues-rock, so we´ve decided to play one of the guitars with these approach. Some other tracks in the album have a different style, more “rocky”, so the “palm muting” is out there!!!
About the “Dry Vocals” that´s the way the client wanted, and we agreed that could sound good this way too!!!
Thank you very much for your comments, and if you want to hear more tracks, send me an e-mail, and I can reply with some songs from these album…
Did you say this singer is twelve? I feel like I could go to jail for even listening to it!
Well, for starters, she’s got great pipes, and the players (esp. the drummer) are all pretty hot. There’s a couple of chords that seemed to surprise me, particularly right before section changes, but I reckon that can be a good thing.
The rhythm guitar is pretty heavy in the verses (I think someone already said that), especially playing that downstroke “chug chug” part. It’s probably too late, but I would roll off some bass and/or try for a cleaner sound. This kind of song is all about the explosive chorus, so you want to create some contrast between the sections.
I agree with the above, the vox are pretty dry. I like the layers in the chorus, but when they’re dry AND mixed way out front it disrupts the cohesiveness of the mix. Try a short short delay (almost a slapback) and maybe a plate verb.
Me personally, I would also do some parallel compression, particularly with some distortion on it. Squash the snot out of the vocals on a bus, roll off the bass and bump the highs, and put a big fat distortion on it, then mix it back in so you almost can’t even hear it. It should give the vocals some “bite” without sounding too cheesy. For examples of this listen to any Pink record, or actually the second Ashlee Simpson record, which has songs like this aplenty for you to rip-off…er “be inspired by”. I think you’ll notice in those songs they also have a synth pad that hides behind the sections.
The drums, which are fantastically and busily played, are a little hot in the mix, I’d bring ‘em down a tad so you avoid the whole “garage band” sound (an actual garage, not the program).
Lastly, the strange section at the end with the heavy effects on the drums and the vocals? I LOVE IT! Hearing it makes me wonder why the rest of the song doesn’t have these elements! Not as much or the whole way through, but making those creative choices throughout the mix will make the song that much more distinctive. The Smashing Pumpkins had a song called “1974″ that was otherwise completely unremarkable except for this strange synth “woo-wooo-woo-wooo” that ran throughout and consistently held my interest. All this current teen-rock has electronics in it, drum loops, odd synth things, treated guitar… don’t be afraid of pushing away from the raw live feel.
Hey Alex,
This sounds great! I’m listening via earphones on my netbook, so that’s a heads up – but from what I’m hearing this is a professional sounding track! I think the vocals sit pretty nicely though; don’t notice the dry quality Chuck and Michael talk about.
I think I’ll google Rafaela Ruette
Cheers,