The Musician's Gig Room Chat V1 - Songwriting and Sound Design for all! - Creationism Corner

[QUOTE=mzathemind;52096346]yeah thats not free is it[/QUOTE] WinRARware as in it has a fully featured trial that never runs out

[QUOTE=eggnogg13;52046364] Looking for mix feedback on this track [media]https://soundcloud.com/gaenggaeng/slummy[/media] [/QUOTE] You've got very nice sounds going on there. I think the voices could be a little higher on the mix, 1, 1.5 db's up. Overall, it lacks a little bit of high end spectrum frequencies. Even without this things (which I think are more of a matter of personal taste) it sounds great mate. Good job. Was a little nostalgic today. Made this. [media]https://soundcloud.com/federicofelau/122a[/media] No mix, no nothing. Just plain melody. Should check eq's, compression, and making it a little longer. Perhaps one or more melodies at the beggining should do. mmh

[QUOTE=Adeptus;52108843]You've got very nice sounds going on there. I think the voices could be a little higher on the mix, 1, 1.5 db's up. Overall, it lacks a little bit of high end spectrum frequencies. Even without this things (which I think are more of a matter of personal taste) it sounds great mate. Good job. Was a little nostalgic today. Made this. [media]https://soundcloud.com/federicofelau/122a[/media] No mix, no nothing. Just plain melody. Should check eq's, compression, and making it a little longer. Perhaps one or more melodies at the beggining should do. mmh[/QUOTE] This was super cool, but I think the kick should come in twice as soon. Would be great to hear a huge sidechain on all the synth buildup.

[QUOTE=Ott;52108871]This was super cool, but I think the kick should come in twice as soon. Would be great to hear a huge sidechain on all the synth buildup.[/QUOTE] we both agree on that for sure.

[media]https://soundcloud.com/federicofelau/122c[/media] Cleaned it a little. Added some effects, erased some synths that were artifacting. [media]https://soundcloud.com/federicofelau/117a[/media] Some deep house (?) I think. Couldn't sleep last night, made it in a few hours. Don't know what to think. No master, no Mix, no eq's again.

open question: do you play any instruments, how many instruments can you play and how often do you use the instruments you play when you record?

[QUOTE=Pat.Lithium;52118335]open question: do you play any instruments, how many instruments can you play and how often do you use the instruments you play when you record?[/QUOTE] yes, anywhere between 10 and 20 depending on how strictly you define them (is an upright bass and an electric bass the same thing? harp and piano? whamola and diddley bow, diddley bow and slide guitar, slide guitar and regular guitar, etc.). I use at least one in every recording but nearly everything will have electric bass and a guitar of some nature. piano, harp, and whamola very rarely feature in my recordings.

[QUOTE=Pat.Lithium;52118335]open question: do you play any instruments, how many instruments can you play and how often do you use the instruments you play when you record?[/QUOTE] yes 3 whenever I need piano which is every song

[QUOTE=butre;52118483]yes, anywhere between 10 and 20 depending on how strictly you define them (is an upright bass and an electric bass the same thing? harp and piano? whamola and diddley bow, diddley bow and slide guitar, slide guitar and regular guitar, etc.). I use at least one in every recording but nearly everything will have electric bass and a guitar of some nature. piano, harp, and whamola very rarely feature in my recordings.[/QUOTE] i'd say any instrument that requires different skill to play is a different instrument. upright bass would be different to a precision bass because the pbass is fretted.

[QUOTE=Pat.Lithium;52119395]i'd say any instrument that requires different skill to play is a different instrument. upright bass would be different to a precision bass because the pbass is fretted.[/QUOTE] yeah but if you can already play an upright bass a fender bass is piss easy. that's why early electric players like james jamerson were so good and i think most of them just though of it all as one instrument.

[QUOTE=Pat.Lithium;52118335]open question: do you play any instruments, how many instruments can you play and how often do you use the instruments you play when you record?[/QUOTE] I play most of the instruments myself in my recordings. This includes drums, bass, keyboards (piano, organ, synthesizer, melodica, etc.) and all kinds of percussion. I've played guitar in my own productions before, but I'm really bad at it, so nowadays I get a friend to do it. I don't sing either, so if I have to have vocals, someone else has to do it.

[QUOTE=Little Donny;52119580]yeah but if you can already play an upright bass a fender bass is piss easy. that's why early electric players like james jamerson were so good and i think most of them just though of it all as one instrument.[/QUOTE] It seems like the skill would transfer better when going upright->electric than vice versa. At least thats what ive found (starting out electric vs my buddy starting with upright).

Getting into guitar has to be one of the best decisions I've ever made in my life. It's honestly one of the most joyful, creative and happy hobbies I have ever taken up in my entire life. I currently have a teacher to help me, I practice an hour a day for now and I just find myself looking up new things constantly. I'm only 2.5 months in but the improvements over such a short span of time is so shocking. If I'm ever in a shitty mood then guitar NEVER fails to perk me back up again, even if the practice can get frustrating.

[QUOTE=mzathemind;52083473]Still need a program to make beats with anyone??[/QUOTE] If you don't wanna abuse the endless Reaper trial, you could check out [URL="https://lmms.io/download/#windows"]LMMS[/URL]. Not my cup of tea, but it's totally free. [QUOTE=Adeptus;52113104][media]https://soundcloud.com/federicofelau/122c[/media] Cleaned it a little. Added some effects, erased some synths that were artifacting. [media]https://soundcloud.com/federicofelau/117a[/media] Some deep house (?) I think. Couldn't sleep last night, made it in a few hours. Don't know what to think. No master, no Mix, no eq's again.[/QUOTE] First one - really liking this. Reminds me a bit of some CFCF stuff. I agree with the comments suggesting that the kick come in earlier. I think that the synth that starts playing around 5:00 could be a little brighter and some variation in the melody could be really refreshing. Second one - You should really expand on this idea. I think it could sound great if that slightly-percussive higher pitch instrument went through a whole progression of arpeggiated chords instead of the same notes, especially later on in the track. Here's what I've been working on lately: [media]https://soundcloud.com/nicely_done/nonuple[/media] Not sure what I'm going for with this. Came up with the bassline first without realizing it was in odd time and then just decided to go with it and build the rest of the track around that. I don't really know what I'm doing when it comes to mixing.

[QUOTE=FalseLogic;52139015] Here's what I've been working on lately: [media]https://soundcloud.com/nicely_done/nonuple[/media] [/QUOTE] That's actually pretty interesting, I think everything fits together pretty well but I want to critique the choice of drums a bit. I'm not sure but it might be the snare that just made my ear feel kind of "tired" if that makes sense. I'd suggest some variation to the sound of it maybe, I'm not sure if you EQ'ed it too because it seems to be really high end. I'm pretty rusty on critiquing here as a I disappeared for a while but if you'd like me to elaborate on anything just ask away. I've been back into writing fairly hard lately, I've got some scratch vocals for this track and trying to decide if it actually needs them or not is tough. [media]https://soundcloud.com/viyres/uedt[/media]

[QUOTE=The Janitor;52142388]That's actually pretty interesting, I think everything fits together pretty well but I want to critique the choice of drums a bit. I'm not sure but it might be the snare that just made my ear feel kind of "tired" if that makes sense. I'd suggest some variation to the sound of it maybe, I'm not sure if you EQ'ed it too because it seems to be really high end. I'm pretty rusty on critiquing here as a I disappeared for a while but if you'd like me to elaborate on anything just ask away. I've been back into writing fairly hard lately, I've got some scratch vocals for this track and trying to decide if it actually needs them or not is tough. [media]https://soundcloud.com/viyres/uedt[/media][/QUOTE] Sounds really good. The vocals got a bit annoying because it's just one sample and there wasn't much in dynamics. There were some portions where I'd rather have the instrumental shine through.

[QUOTE=Ott;52142471]Sounds really good. The vocals got a bit annoying because it's just one sample and there wasn't much in dynamics. There were some portions where I'd rather have the instrumental shine through.[/QUOTE] Listening through it again you're definitely right. With the full vocals in there they didn't stand out as much. I either need to hurry up and record the vocals properly or sort that out. Thanks!

Working on a mashup album a la The Avalanches: [url=http://files.ilj.io/files/the_future_is_coming_on.mp3]Unnamed Track 1[/url] [url=http://files.ilj.io/files/russian_remix.mp3]Unnamed Track 2[/url] No promises if I'll ever release either of these or finish the album. [QUOTE=The Janitor;52142388][media]https://soundcloud.com/viyres/uedt[/media][/QUOTE] It sounds really fucking cool, however I'd change the envelope on the vocals so that it's overall quieter with a sharp attack that levels out into a sustain about halfway then fades out via release. [img]http://files.ilj.io/img/mspaint_2017-04-24_03-25-43.png[/img] Outside of that, nothing else I can think of for improvements. Just sounds cool.

[QUOTE=wauterboi;52143639]Working on a mashup album a la The Avalanches: [url=http://files.ilj.io/files/the_future_is_coming_on.mp3]Unnamed Track 1[/url] [url=http://files.ilj.io/files/russian_remix.mp3]Unnamed Track 2[/url] No promises if I'll ever release either of these or finish the album. It sounds really fucking cool, however I'd change the envelope on the vocals so that it's overall quieter with a sharp attack that levels out into a sustain about halfway then fades out via release. [img]http://files.ilj.io/img/mspaint_2017-04-24_03-25-43.png[/img] Outside of that, nothing else I can think of for improvements. Just sounds cool.[/QUOTE] I think your webserver is broken, it's not connecting.

Everything works on my end! D:

Works now. Not sure I like the vocoder on the vocals in the first one. I like the synth in the beginning that comes around every so often. I feel like I've heard it in a VHS Head song before or something. I don't think the rap really fits the russian song, especially since they're such well-known songs. There's too much original production in these to really be plunderphonics, half the appeal of Avalanches is the (mostly) obscure samples they find and weave together. I think you should take these and get your own vocals, there's some great tracks behind the rap. [editline]24th April 2017[/editline] Also you should skip the whistle intro of World Hold On, it's too dissonant.

[QUOTE=Ott;52145731]Works now. Not sure I like the vocoder on the vocals in the first one. I like the synth in the beginning that comes around every so often. I feel like I've heard it in a VHS Head song before or something.[/quote] The list of songs I used for the first: HOME - [url=https://soundcloud.com/home-2001/home-before-the-night-10-sun]Sun[/url] Gorillaz - Clint Eastwood (obviously) Tycho - Awake (heavily processed, but the sound you're probably describing) Hot Chip - And I Was a Boy From School LateNightTales with Bonobo - The Traitor (some original piano) Radiohead - 15 Steps (random break from my collection) Loose Shus - Threesome Joywave - Tongues Bob Sinclar - World, Hold On This one is a lot more along the lines of mash-up than original. [QUOTE=Ott;52145731]I don't think the rap really fits the russian song, especially since they're such well-known songs.[/quote] For sure! I decided to send the [url=http://files.ilj.io/files/ivan_ives_back_in_russia.mp3]instrumental[/url] to my literally Russian rapping friend Ivan Ives: [video=youtube;Gpknd104ATE]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gpknd104ATE[/video] Let's see if he's game. [QUOTE=Ott;52145731]There's too much original production in these to really be plunderphonics, half the appeal of Avalanches is the (mostly) obscure samples they find and weave together. I think you should take these and get your own vocals, there's some great tracks behind the rap.[/quote] I personally enjoy the first one quite a bit with the samples it has so perhaps I'll release that as is as a for-fun track, ditch the idea of a mashup album, and see if Ivan Ives can use the Russian song for his next release.[/quote] [QUOTE=Ott;52145731]Also you should skip the whistle intro of World Hold On, it's too dissonant.[/QUOTE] At first it bugged me but it grew on me. What do you all think? Also, for the last couple hours, I've been working on a theme song for my buddy Asterios for his new podcast called [url=https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/id1225093786]Science Friction[/url]. Here's the [url=http://files.ilj.io/files/science_friction.mp3]proposed theme[/url]. To not be an asshole, I'll critique some more people off the page in a post-merge. (Also to whoever wrote the song Lowlife [WIP] on Soundcloud you better finish it. I know you're from this thread.) [editline]25th April 2017[/editline] [QUOTE=FalseLogic;52139015]If you don't wanna abuse the endless Reaper trial, you could check out [URL="https://lmms.io/download/#windows"]LMMS[/URL]. Not my cup of tea, but it's totally free.[/quote] Moving to Reaper was a one-way street for me. [QUOTE=FalseLogic;52139015]Here's what I've been working on lately: [media]https://soundcloud.com/nicely_done/nonuple[/media][/QUOTE] I don't know if it's just me, but I have a thing for slightly brighter basses. Having just a sub bass doesn't do it for me. I usually do basses with two instruments - a sub bass and something else - and turn down the higher-frequency instrument when needed. Your weird wah-wah vocal stuff is really loud when it first comes in. I'd turn the volume down on that and high pass those harsh higher frequences down a bit. I do like it, though! Really Portal 2-esque. As for mixing - you'll eventually learn just by doing. Rule of thumb, figure out what frequencies are priority with each instrument. Equalize it with the mentality that this will be combining with other instruments to make a full frequency spectrum - kind of like putting lego blocks together to make a wall. Don't stack everything in one frequency range. Also, you should be able to turn your volume on your song down to near nothing and hear only the super important instruments. If that's not the case, you should turn unnecessary stuff down.

Any news on the fp collab album?

[QUOTE=UnknownDude;52081715]Wait for Lord Xenoiya too. He was working on a track and he also made some album art. I think Hakita was cooking something up too.[/QUOTE] funny thing about university I only just remembered I was supposed to send something over in [I]March[/I] welp, I made a few things for it anyway - so it helped me get motivated to make something!

-snip-

[QUOTE=The Janitor;52142388]I've been back into writing fairly hard lately, I've got some scratch vocals for this track and trying to decide if it actually needs them or not is tough. [media]https://soundcloud.com/viyres/uedt[/media][/QUOTE] I actually quite liked the vocals, the arpeggios at the beginning and the middle were very quirky and chirpy. There's some nice progressive elements here. In the way of constructive criticisms, I can't necessarily say, I like the way it's been mixed, a little too bright, but a good variance of pitches I'd say. [media]https://soundcloud.com/stephenbose/regret[/media] Working on a conceptual EP at the moment, sort of like an Alternative Hip Hop project of sorts. There's a track prior to this one, this succeeds the intro track. I was gonna post that, but there are some issues with the progression and melodies right now so I've got that on the backburner to address.

[QUOTE=Deals;52153988] [media]https://soundcloud.com/stephenbose/regret[/media] Working on a conceptual EP at the moment, sort of like an Alternative Hip Hop project of sorts. There's a track prior to this one, this succeeds the intro track. I was gonna post that, but there are some issues with the progression and melodies right now so I've got that on the backburner to address.[/QUOTE] I've actually been listening to this type of music a lot lately, it's really been catching my eye. Or ears, I guess. Anybody here heard of Vanilla? His albums "Origin" and "Moonlight" are awesome, pretty close to this style, in my opinion. I'm not really sure if it needs to be playing throughout the whole track, but the background rain sounds are really cool. Adds to that "staying in and chilling" effect that this music does so well. I think your prominent frequencies could have been toned down just a touch, but that feels like my subjective taste anyways. I feel like the higher pitched piano could have gotten more complex with its riff or whatever you want to call it. Overall, I like it a lot, though. Will be replaying this for days to come! I'm not good at building expectations for my music, so I figure it's best to just drop it here and let people listen. [media]https://soundcloud.com/thehoyticus/mind-corner[/media]

I'm actually a motion graphics designer for a software company, mainly doing video promos for apps and stuff. But I've decided to attempt to try and make my own tracks instead of buying stock. Mainly just for fun. I've only been messing around with LMMS for like a week and I've never so much as picked up an instrument before so hopefully this is getting close to hitting the mark. Basically just going for a generic, corporate background tune while the video highlights software features. [media]https://soundcloud.com/dyson-jtapp/corporate-track-wip-01-1[/media] To me the piano melody doesn't sound quite right and it sounds kind of... shallow? Here's an example of the types of videos I've been doing lately if that helps at all. [url]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DaB6gDh8dQY[/url] [QUOTE=Hoyticus;52155421] I'm not good at building expectations for my music, so I figure it's best to just drop it here and let people listen. [media]https://soundcloud.com/thehoyticus/mind-corner[/media][/QUOTE] I really like this a lot! I've actually been listening to this kind of stuff more when I work and it really gets me in the zone. To be honest I don't really know how to critique it constructively since, as stated above, I don't really know anything about music yet...

[QUOTE=Hoyticus;52155421] I'm not good at building expectations for my music, so I figure it's best to just drop it here and let people listen. [media]https://soundcloud.com/thehoyticus/mind-corner[/media][/QUOTE] Interesting, kicks sound like they're clipping or being distorted, doesn't feel the mood of your song imo. a kick that's softer in it's higher end seems like it would fit in fairly well. Seems very Parra for Cuva. Mixing is a bit thin but that's not a big issue [QUOTE=Deals;52153988]I actually quite liked the vocals, the arpeggios at the beginning and the middle were very quirky and chirpy. There's some nice progressive elements here. In the way of constructive criticisms, I can't necessarily say, I like the way it's been mixed, a little too bright, but a good variance of pitches I'd say. [media]https://soundcloud.com/stephenbose/regret[/media] Working on a conceptual EP at the moment, sort of like an Alternative Hip Hop project of sorts. There's a track prior to this one, this succeeds the intro track. I was gonna post that, but there are some issues with the progression and melodies right now so I've got that on the backburner to address.[/QUOTE] that's pretty sick man, really reminds me of early bonobo / guts. I guess only things that are bothering me are the lack of a solid punchy bassline, and a bit more kick to the drums. part from that, i think it's a really good beat attempted doing something a bit more housey, but instead turned into some acid thing [media]https://soundcloud.com/instantmix/joueralordinateur-wip[/media]

[quote=Instant Mix ;77919]attempted doing something a bit more housey, but instead turned into some acid thing [media]https://soundcloud.com/instantmix/joueralordinateur-wip[/media][/QUOTE][/quote] I like the buildup! And it turning out to be some acid thing really wasn't a bad thing! :) here is something me and a buddy made a while ago, Anima! I don't know if there is any way to embed spotify? [url]https://open.spotify.com/track/35KGpAfu3ZgSHLcECjKme9[/url]