Not Today

I haven’t posted anything in a while, but thought I’d see if anyone had any advice for this one.

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Here’s my .02:

This reminds me of late 80’s Pop/Rock, Pop/Metal, Punk Metal, Elvis Costello (vocals especially). It’s an interesting mix of styles, but I like it. I’m only listening on computer speakers, but the low end - especially bass guitar - seems a bit anemic. It could be beefed up in other words. Lots of high-end info in the song, but low end a bit lacking. But the reverse is my taste, of course, so what do I know? :wink:

Recommendations: Look at the whole mix in terms of treble/bass and some volume levels (vocals/guitars vs. low end). Maybe it’s just my love of late 80’s analog, but this sounds too modern in brightness to come across style-wise to an old-timer. Go more for Black Sabbath, but stop halfway in-between. :bulb:

What monitors and your experience with them are you working with? The room? Mine’s not ideal, but I use ARC to compensate.

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Hey JC, catchy tune! Musically, it is tight and punchy.

I think the arrangement might benefit from a really sparse breakdown section or a stop of some kind toward the back end of the song.

Vocally, I like the attitude, but some of the pitch is just a little out on some notes for comfortable listening. For example the held notes in the 3rd verse around 1:13 from the end of the song are really rubbing pitch-wise - some tuning or a re-sing would definitely improve it a lot for me.

I’d second @Stan_Halen 's comments about the overall frequency response. You have a lot of low end below 200hz, but there is a big dip centred around 400hz that is robbing the mix of warmth in the low mids. There is also a big bump happening from around 3k all the way up to about 15k, which is especially noticeable when the chorus hits and you have the guitars combined with the vocal harmonies and the cymbals.

Nice work so far - hope that helps!

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Thanks guys! I did some tweaking to the overall eq balance, and boosted a little 400 hz on the guitars. Not sure if it’s enough yet though. I also worked on the vocal tuning in a couple spots in the second half. I may look into the breakdown or stop idea as well, but that will take some time and I’m not sure I know how to pull it off.

As far as monitors Stan, I’ve been using Audio Technica ATH-M50 headphones forever. I have JBL 305 monitors but I don’t use them much. Don’t really trust them or my room.

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It’s sounding better, especially vocally… but the mix is still very bright in the high mids and highs.

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Thanks, I will work on taming the brightness. I always seem to end up struggling with the overall eq balance in my mixes. I appreciate the feedback. Thank you!

Actually, very good recording.
Your vocals are very clear, and the instruments are great.
The harmony is just right.
Maybe too much cymbals.
Nice work.
Rene

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